In Which The Elderly Are Discussed

12.12.2008

So basically I'm just a jackass.

I went out to buy gifts for people and ended up just buying two CDs for myself. Damn it.

In addition, I am a dumbass. I've been trying to get myself to go out and search for Russian music for a while, just because ... well, I'm in Russia. So I figure buying CDs of Russian music would be a good idea. Well, the program office has a small 'library,' and some CDs which students can check out and such. It didn't occur to me until last night that I could check these CDs out, save them to my computer, then turn them back in ... ? But now I only have a week left to access the office, and I can only check out two CDs at a time. I checked out two, today, and won't be able to check out two until Monday. So. Yeah. Today I checked out "Мумий Тролль" (Mummy Troll! I actually thought they were some new indie-hipster sort of band, but the CD says they've been making music since 1983... I don't know, I've seen some of their music videos and I like the lead vocal's singing style. So yeah), and Владимир Высоцкий. I can't really describe Vysotskij, so I won't. I'll... send songs to people who are interested, when I get back. WHICH I AM SURE NONE ARE INTERESTED, SINCE I BOUGHT NONE OF YOU GIFTS TODAY. =(

And, today has been the Day of Crazy Old People. It started in the morning ... or, well, afternoon, when I got on the bus to go to smolny and do some studying. At one point during the commute, an elderly couple got up because we were nearing their stop. The older man was taking a while gathering his stuff, so the woman just walked a little bit ahead and waited in the aisle. All of a sudden, I hear this SCREECHING other old HAG, saying something like "MOVE ON! I NEED TO GET TO WORK!" who then SHOVED this other patiently waiting woman violently, and charged through the bus to get to the front. The affronted woman was horrified, and retreated, glaring angrily at her husband for his inactivity, I suppose. That was strange.

Then, I went to the front of the bus because my stop was nearing, and there was this other elderly couple who were CLEARLY not in the right state of mind. The woman was just repeating "ДАЙ! ДАЙ! ДАЙ!' (which means "give! give! give!", but sounds like "die! die! die!" so it was CREEPY AS HELL), and the man was just rambling on about something else. Then, to my right, there was this other old man who was like... arguing with himself. He was hurriedly and raspily whispering to himself, occasionally nodding and shaking his head, staring at one of the... pole things in front of him.

Finally, on the way home, on the metro, there was a man sitting by himself, seeming to ... lecture someone. But there ... was no one else there. He was gesturing around and almost .. giving a speech, I guess? I don't know. He talked the whole ride, then talked all the way up the escalator, too.

It's ... quite sad. I don't know. Something I recently realised, though, is that most of the people I see... anywhere, really, are really old. Probably the majority are in their 50's, 60's, some older than that. And it hit me that all of these people lived through ... The majority of Soviet history. I don't know, perhaps I'm kind of overblowing the significance in that. What made me realise it is that I saw an older man in the metro who seemed pretty dignified, with a neatly trimmed beard, good posture, well dressed, what have you. He was probably in his 70's, maybe late 60's. When I thought about that, it occurred to me that he could have been born during Stalin's reign. And for some reason that floored me. I don't know, perhaps my own half-disinterest in ... anything Soviet is magnifying this.

I went to Nevskij for the first time in a few weeks, and its all lit up with Christmas decorations, JUST LIKE AMERICA! Didn't make me too terribly homesick, though. Louisville and Baltimore seem a little more low-key than having ... massive flashy public Christmas decorations. Well, that, and they probably can't afford it as much.

Oh, one thing I've realised that kind of surprises me, here. With the way that people drive in this country, I figured that people would be fairly adept in crossing the street, and that Americans/other foreigners would be more likely to get crushed by an oncoming vehicle due to their own stupidity in trusting traffic. NOT SO. When going by my own instincts, I cross roads safely. When I decide to trust other people and go when the Russians go, I almost get KILLED. And I've seen people inches from death nearly every day I've been here -- I saw someone get hit the other day, but they just got up and walked away, so I guess they were fine. Whatever.

And: One thing that IS cheap, here: CDs. I don't think I've seen a CD (not imported, of course) over 200 rubles (8 dollars) here.

Hm.. I'm going to the banya on Tuesday. That's mildly horrifying.

13.12.2008

Well, today I decided to stay inside and 'study' to avoid going out and doing anything with my life. I was successful, I suppose. Studied for my grammar test nearly all day, and I've covered almost all the material. Which is ... a lot. A hell of a lot more than what I originally thought, and definitely my largest test. Of course, it's one test combined from two teachers, but the thing is ... There was really more “material” for Lyudmila Petrovna, but I got through it quicker and understood it more easily than the JUNK that the American professor has us do. Which is basically just memorising specific words and phrases and bullshit without any specific construction. Ridiculous.

However, I did run down to Pyatyorichka to pick up some water, and that was actually .. mildly bizarre. Because, while yesterday was the day of Crazy Old People, today was the day of ... Tremendously Nice Old People. Well, kind of. Maybe not to the same extent. I opened the door for some elderly individuals on my way in and out, and they all smiled real big and thanked me. Then, when I got back to the apartment building, a woman kept the door open for me, then kept talking to me when we got to the elevator, and then on the ride up... So I had a short random conversation with her, and that NEVER happens. Usually people are dead silent and emotionless. So, that was quite pleasant.

Other than that, I watched a movie and a half. First was “Брат” (Brat; Brother) which ... well, I didn't quite understand it, but it was about some militsia-turned-killer in Petersburg. I don't know. Everyone I know has been ranting and raving about how fantastic it was. I was disappointed. Probably because I understood so little about it. Anyway, I just watched a bit of a movie on TV, “Своя Правда” (Svoya Pravda... not sure how to translate it without an antecedent; I guess “One's Own Truth” is the best way to put it). It was pretty interesting but kept dragging on so I turned it off. It was about a single Russian woman living in Azerbaijan and having to raise two children. Had a lot of racial commentary, which were interesting but I'm not entirely sure how true they were.

Guess I should go back to studying and do a bit more before going to bed... Shopping, tomorrow. I hope to get at least 2/3 finished with Conversation final studying before Monday.

14.12.2008

Today... Today was a good day. Well, it's still going on, since it's only 5, but it's pitch black outside so it feels like the day is already over.

First I went to the Teatralnaya Kassa to buy a ticket to La Traviata for this coming week, which was only THREEEE HUNDRED RUBLES! Whoo. Funny enough, while buying my tickets, the woman accidentally closed the window on her computer that prints the tickets, and exclaimed “Oops!” (or, should I say, “Упс!”) when she did so. I was unaware until then that Russians used that exclamation. I'm used to hearing “Oi!” and “Blin!” (yes, they say “pancake!” as an expletive.. don't ask). And, the other day some woman responded with an “Mmmhmm” to me, which was nice, because every time I say “mmmhmm” instead of “da,” I feel like a moron because I thought that wasn't understandable in this ... cultural context. But I guess that it is.

Then, I went to Udelnaya market to buy gifts for people. I bought a hat for my dad, three gifts that I can't describe because they are for people who either read this or at least have access to it, and then one thing for myself. I had promised myself I wasn't going to buy anything until I went through the entire market, but I forgot about the SUN GOING DOWN AT TWO THIRTY IN THE AFTERNOON, and was rushed toward the end because people were already taking down their booths. I planned on buying a jacket and maybe a hat for myself, but only after buying stuff for other people... Buut I ran out of time. So, there's that.

Oh, and the back half of the market was a GIGANTIC SHEET OF ICE because it snowed last week and then froze after that, I guess. So I and other people kept stumbling around. At one point I accidentally hit a Turkish man in the face, but we just exchanged smiles and laughs and walked on (strange?). And then I almost fell another time and exchanged more smiles and laughs with a couple of nearby elderly women merchants (... also strange?). THAT WARMED MY SOUL.

Finally, on the way back, while waiting for the metro, some elderly gentleman came up to me, and we had a short conversation..:

Elderly Russian - “Excuse me, sir, don't you think that is such an умный (wise? Mindful? Knowledgable? The formal translation is “wise,” but it's a bit more general in Russian, I think) saying there? -pointing to a large poster on the wall of the metro, which said something along the lines of “The most important thing about a person is if they have a good heart,” but it sounds better in Russian)-
Me - -reads, thinks for a moment, then nods in agreement-
Russian – Such a wise saying, yeah? -emphasis-
Me – Yeah, I agree.
Russian – Do you happen to remember/know what book it's from?
Me - -thinks for a moment- Hmm.. No. I'm not sure.
Russian – Ahh, don't remember/know? Alright, well, goodbye.
Me – All the best.

Alright, well, recounting that conversation makes it seem tremendously boring, but it's the first time someone's approached me politely just wanting to exchange words, and not asking for money or cigarettes or something else. And he seemed in his right mind, so that's fantastic.

Aaaand I should go study. Exams begin tomorrow.

Oh, I ran across a few other good grammar bits that sound odd when translated (аs I said with “Подходите!” Approach!, before). Well, first off, (I don't remember if I mentioned this before), but when you address someone you don't know, you address them by age and gender:

Девочка (girl!), молодой человек (young man!), мужчина (man!), женшчина (woman!). All except “Young man” sound really rude or just odd in English... If it's a waiter or a salesperson, you always refer to them by “girl” or “young man,” no matter their age. Older women also get kind of excited when you refer to them as “girl,” and are being polite. DESPITE this not being culturally rude, I always feel really awkward when I'm in a situation and trying to get someone's attention. I don't know. Just by anglicisms, I guess. I usually just say “excuse me,” or something.

And then, something else I just remembered: When you're asking for something in a restaurant (the example here is a fork/spoon), you would say “Будьте добры, принесите еще один прибор.” Which, directly translated, means “Be good, bring one more set.” The “Be good” just seems so demeaning to me, buuut it apparently isn't. On the bright side, I've never actually heard someone say this, so it might be a textbookism or something older people say. I'm thinking the latter, because I think this textbook is written by a Russian, judging on some really awkward English translations... That, and I think I asked the professor about this construction, before, and she said it was used. But she's older. So.

So, I watched a bit of “Imya Rossiya” (The Name of Russia, for those who have been following in the news), and right now they're discussing Ivan the Terrible's eligibility for the title. This guy is defending him, saying he created the first political party that “solved the problem of boyar opposition,” and that he was a man far ahead in his time... Amusingly enough, everyone else on the panel was snickering in derision while he went on.

I kind of wish I had been watching this the entire time I was here. This is the first one I've seen, and it's tremendously interesting. Most strange of all is that I seem to COMPLETELY understand it? What in the name of God? I'm FINALLY improving and I'm ALMOST ABOUT TO LEAVE?!

Edit: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7782414.stm

Sad, but not unexpected. I believe these are the results of the advertised protests I mentioned in an earlier post.