It has snowed all day and it is being whipped around by the strong wind. We took a walk this morning and Cindy convinced me to wear those Stabilicers that we got from LL Bean. Man, what a difference. I walked with confidence the entire way and made sure we took the most treacherous route, all without incident. (From CC: in case you’re worried, I have my own pair and have been wearing them all along. They are marvelous.)
Most of the day has been spent doing laundry so that Cindy will have clean sheets while I’m gone and I’ll have clean clothes to wear on the trip. I’m all packed, mostly bringing things home that we no longer need here, as well as bringing some of Cindy’s clothes home to be dry cleaned. I know it sounds ridiculous, but one pair of slacks cost $20 to dry clean and a skirt and jacket cost the same as the gross national product of Peru.
We went to a party last night to celebrate the wedding of two of the teachers at AAS. They threw the party and it was a good one. Lots of great food, the best of which was pulled BBQ pork that was just out of this world. I continue to be impressed with the intellect and commitment of these young teachers. Even at the party I heard bits and pieces of conversations as to how they could improve their teaching and curriculum.
I tried to get my boarding pass online but that is no longer allowed in Moscow, a direct result of the bombing incident I’m sure. So, I’ll have to go and get in the long lines tomorrow to clear the first hurdles to flight. Also just found out that even though I’m ticketed on SAS, which is a Star Alliance carrier, it is a code-shared flight on Aeroflot, which is Sky Team. Oh JOY, Aeroflot; I just don’t get it.
I gave all the plants big gulps of warm water today and it smelled just like springtime in the garden. Just what I needed while looking at the frozen tundra. All of the plants have thrived since I salvaged them from the garbage when we moved here in August. They were a sorry looking bunch, but I felt that they looked so bad due to lack of water so I’ve nursed them back to health and now surround myself in my office with green.
Everyone is rather jumpy in Moscow so now even crank calls about bombs are treated as the real thing triggering the shut down of airports and malls. Yesterday four large malls were closed because of bomb threats.
What started as a grass roots movement to depose a despised ruler has now turned to chaos in Egypt. Mobs are looting stores, robbing people in the street, freeing hundreds of Muslim militants from jails and thousands of other inmates all across the country. It is sad to see this turn of events, which of course will give perfect cover to Mubarak to instruct his military to turn up the pressure. We talked with several people last night who have booked trips to Egypt for the April vacation and they don’t know what to do now. Most embassies, including the USA, have begun the systematic evacuation of non-essential personnel and the airports are clogged with anxious tourists from all over the world wanting to get out as fast as possible. It is all too, too sad.
In all likelihood, I’ll not be doing a daily blog for the next several weeks since I’ll be out of Moscow. I’m sure things will crop up that I think need my attention and analysis and if so, you might receive an email. Otherwise, it will be up to Cindy to discuss Moscow, if her schedule and energy allow.
Ciao, Cindy and Wm
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