March 10, 2008

The Promise of Spring

Dear Daniel,

Spring is coming to Ukraine. Of course, it's only March 10, so we could easily have more snow at any time in the next month, but today feels like spring . . .
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Posted by debtor2him at 12:54:53 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

February 26, 2008

13-Month-Old Monkey!

Dear Daniel,

Samuel is becoming a little monkey! He reminds me of you when you were his age . . .
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Posted by debtor2him at 14:35:30 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

October 19, 2006

Simple Pleasures

. . . Another problem with these windows is that they don't seal shut. Even when you have them closed and latched, there are still significant cracks around the edges where cold air seeps in. Well, if you're lucky, it only seeps in, but usually it kind of blows in instead . . .

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Posted by debtor2him at 19:23:13 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

October 18, 2006

Funny Plumbing

. . . After removing their shoes at the door, most Ukrainians go straight to the bathroom to wash their hands. But when our guests went into our bathroom . . .
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Posted by debtor2him at 23:42:52 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

August 14, 2006

Unplugging Etiquette

. . . I was thinking about what I call "unplugging etiquette" the other day. In the States, children are taught not to yank plugs out of the wall by pulling on the cord. Well, here the etiquette is totally different . . .
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Posted by debtor2him at 11:44:41 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

February 10, 2006

Ice Age

. . . Have you heard about how cold it has been in Ukraine?? I was thinking about how you said you'd like to come visit during the winter so that you could make a snowman, but if your visit happened during the type of weather we've been having, you might change your mind! The temperature has gotten as low as -22F . . .
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Posted by debtor2him at 20:08:43 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

December 03, 2005

Goodbye Party

. . . Only after I had finished making all the open-faced sandwiches did I realize that this would seem like strange party food to Americans. And then I stopped to think, "Well, what would be normal food for an American party?" And you know what? I couldn't immediately think of the answer . . .
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Posted by debtor2him at 23:16:23 | Permanent Link | Comments (2) |

November 25, 2005

Sleet and Rain

. . . This morning my snow turned to sleet. In a few hours, it had covered our windows with bumpy sheets of ice. Then the sleet turned to rain. Living in Southern California, you probably wouldn't know this, but snow and rain make a terrible combination . . .
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Posted by debtor2him at 21:18:44 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

November 19, 2005

My Birthday

. . . I don't feel like a real adult yet, but I'll be 30 in 3 years. When I was your age, I thought that all grown-ups were in the same category. I assumed that all of them felt capable, confident, and that they never felt intimidated by other grown-ups . . .
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Posted by debtor2him at 07:24:36 | Permanent Link | Comments (3) |

November 11, 2005

Snow at Last!

. . . For me, the weeks between the time when the weather turns cold and the first snowfall always seem very long. I'm like a little kid; I just can't wait for the snow to come . . .
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Posted by debtor2him at 17:57:46 | Permanent Link | Comments (2) |