Checking In: 3rd day at Bard College

okay: to Mama and Papa--I am alive, well, and functioning. My roommate just gave me a piece of ginger covered in chocolate, and it is really really good. I'm re-reading a piece of Antigone for hw :)

(Man, no, nor imoortal god. Love's
Prey is possessed by madness)


(some time later)

and now I am done and have showered and am going to bed.

some time before that (reverse chronological order) we drank tea (roommate, me and the the girls diagonally across from us) while discussing books and mason jars. We got our student I.D.'s and I looked shell-shocked in my picture (absolutely expressionless and even paler than I usually look). And we had a review of the student handbook and community thing in a mandatory meeting. It was a bit annoying, but I met, as usual, ...at least 6 new people. probably more, but only remember six names. So not too bad.

anyway, bottom line I am happy and excited to be here and meet new people.
I will write more when I am less sleepy.

Meh Day

I nearly started sobbing at the train station.
twice.
because the train was 3 minutes late, and the way my day has been going, I figured I missed it.
and I got on the train and the seat diagonally from me had throw up all over it and under it
I had a perfect view.

and these were my favorite sandals.
(though I suppose I got re-stitch but still)

It was supposed to be a great day. I saw Inception with Yulka at the AMC at Harvard Sq.
and that was good. And the bubble tea from Tealuxe was yummy.

but the rest of the day was pretty crap.

Father Daughter Weekend

Everybody except me and my dad have left the house to go to NYC.


(Soupish: yellow split peas (first time ever), caramelized onions, water, and chicken block thing that I've never used before either, homemade croûtons and parsley)

We went to play tennis on Saturday. I lost 3-6 3-6, but I was serving better than I ever have before, and it's my dad, so I'm satisfied.
Then we got an AC for my room. maybe I'll be able to sleep there a couple times before leaving :)
Then we watched "Иди и Смотри" which was scaring.
I was not mentally prepared for a movie about the Belarusian Genocide.
Plus the movie is made so that the scenes are long, leaving you time to dwell on what was being presented and think and it made it penetrate all the deeper into my mind.

Sunday...
Mostly sanding and putting polish on the windowsill. oh so exciting.













(lobio: pinto beans, lemon juice, walnuts, olive oil, garlic, parsley.food: lobio, fried potatoes, pickled herring)
[though the lobio is my mom's very simplified version: http://www.gumbopages.com/food/russian/lobio.html]

We watched "Ночной Дозор", but Папа left midway through because monday=work=need to sleep. It was funny and dramatic.

(rice, pepper, tofu with soy sauce+pad Thai sauce+sesame seed+ginger powder marinade)

And today [Monday] I packed a bit more and polished a bit more and then cooked for when everybody came back.


And smoothie :)


(yogurt, milk, ice, mango)

Also I had a dream last night that involved talking to this male-model. I was walking in this giant hall with Yulka, and he lying on a couch. He said that he was Trojan from his mother's side.
He had brilliant blue eyes but otherwise looked... Sicilian?
The rest is foggy, but most of the dream was outside on a cragely beach...being annoyed by my brothers friends.

Palooza

I woke up to the sound of the my dad and the roof contractor discussing construction.
I'm pretty sure they were walking on the roof (it's flat, and leaking from the summer series of intense storms).
The contractor has a very loud voice.

I don't think I would have heard them if I had been sleeping in my room, but it doesn't have a.c., so I've moved my sleeping quarters to the upstairs office.

Sima (4) decided to clean my room, but after stumbling across some paint deciding the stop attempting the impossible.






Os'ka joined soon, saying something about 'right after this dries, we are cleaning your room!', needless to say, the pictures are dry and my room is still a mess :)
At least there's space to draw. That wasn't true a month ago.






I also remembered the rest of a dream I had the night before last. I'm not sure what order the bits went in though.

I was in this bathtub attached to this wall. There where two girls from school in there with me, and it was crowded. The only way down was the waterside, even though there was a random ladder just out of reach.

I was also trying to pack an elephant into a suitcase. And while the elephant could be taken apart (and be put back together with no harm, despite the fact that it was, indeed, alive), it didn't want to fit.
[I think this part is caused by the fact that I have started packing sweaters and such for college: stuff I don't need now, and it gave me a taste of what it'll be like to pack 'my life'. Metaphorical dream]

And I also went into this hall where I saw a really pretty umbrella. And another. And another. And then I realized they where not umbrellas, but these weird toy (fashion accessories?) that people wore on their arms. I got to this market where they had spreads of different styles, and Yulka, Kostya and Leonid where there too. They were tiering to wear because the dense material was heavy.

Thursday Night Movie Moment[o]

Came back via Commuter Rail
the conductor thought something was up
my point a to point b spelled sketchy in his book, since only one guy got on the same place as me, and I was the only one person got off at my stop.
He said that it was strange for anybody to be going [here] at this time, and asked me if I was up to any trouble, I said "not particularly, watched a movie", and he wasn't convinced.

movie night #2 has passed successfully: we watched the Memento and then argued the last couple scenes (including the VERY last one where he is lying in bed with his..wife? his fantasy? and Teddy dies and then boom..next scene still alive in kicking. definitely an interesting movie.)
yup, because that's what good teenagers do on a Thursday night in the summer.

Kirill came down from Philly and is staying at Eloosha's, and I finally met his gf, who is easy to talk to and so I like her :).

San'ka

My cousin San'ka is visiting from Moscow for three weeks. It's his first time in the U.S.. He was originally supposed to take English classes in NY, but the intensive classes require a student visa, and since that wasn't properly arranged he's staying with us and taking classes in Boston.

At the moment he is at the Harvard Museum of Natural History, and I wish I was there too because those taxidermied animals are great for practicing drawing.

San'ka came on Friday and the first thing we did was take him to the supermarket :).
Then I dragged him with me to movie night at Eloosha's, but we arrived after the movie had started and he was exhausted from the flight, (I liked "Night On Earth" better the first time around anyway).

The next day we went to Target and TJmaxx and Marshalls and Kohls to get presents and cloths (for him, though I didn't pass up the opportunity to get something for myself too). I unleashed my super powers of finding guys jeans that look good on them :P

And then later we went off for a Tour de Boston. We wound up in China Town.



More specifically the Vietnamese restaurant "Pho Pasteur", which is awesome.
There where two people sitting next to us. One was a white guy and the other a black woman, but they where both speaking Vietnamese, which really threw me off.


(drinks: Avacado Smoothie, Pennywort Drink, Red Bean Smoothie, Orange Juice
food: Shrimp salad, Pad Thai, Some spicy soup, and there was another soup not pictured here)




Giant metal sculpture of George Washington on a horse. The horse has veins and everything.

Haven at Esther's

June 28th-30th I was at Esther's house in New Haven. Technically we came for a graduation party on the 29th.
(people day one: Kirill, Vanya, Yulka, Esther, Me)

I ended up scrambling around South Station and nearly missing the train.
It was a quick ride, Yulka and I ate blueberries and listened to music.
There was a musician couple and the guy was very grungy looking: ripped shirt and tired.



We got there and hugging ensued. As it always does, thankfully.
We drove around and got Mexican food and observed cars stopping in the middle of the road for no reason. We went to Urban Outfitters and looked at the FBI building and said no thanks to some bum offering to buy us alcohol. And got a parking ticket.




Then we feasted.



and talked and drank tea. because that's what we do. it as late and Kirill had just gotten back from Germany (jetlag anyone)?



We stopped talking at 6:06 am.
Well, the guys where downstairs, I suspect they stopped earlier :)
but our conversation kept getting reignited, especially on college excitement.

The next morning Eloosha and Val arrived via train (Eloosha from Italy (yay summer traveling!)
Vanya eventually woke up.


Eloosha made an omelet. Then we ate it.


food=happy :)

then futball

and men's fashion


Then nail polish color choosing and graduation party.

And ice-cream (almond joy). And sitting in some random grassy part of New Haven and weee. :)

At some point we all got back to Esther's, and then later our ability to converse degraded and we started solving problems instead. The latest people lasted till 3.

the next morning Eloosha and Val where gone, having left only a note :(.
But I got told to wake up in the best way possible: with a morning hug.
thank you Esther :)

and then we all split our separate ways.
dropping us off and visit to his gf for kirill.
10$ bus from providence for me and yulka.
train for vanya to disappeared.
dr. appointment for esther.

'twas wonderful.