Perpetual Change

Random thoughts II

A collection of unrelated notes:

A very interesting pecking order exists in my family, but to a greater or lesser extent, I think it is cultural. As a guest, I stand almost out of the order; I can expect anything of anyone, but I can also do most things for myself, if I so choose. This second concept is weird for my family to understand. For them, they only do what they don’t have someone else to do for them. This concept is very well illustrated in TV watching. Our TV has the 5 major stations, no cable. It also has no remote. The pecking order is the remote. If no one else is around (besides me), dad will move to the chair closest to the TV to change the channel. In my home, mom occupies similar status, but I think in many homes she is on the next wrung down (in my home, she also cooks, cleans, AND works; her salary is the larger of the two). If the older son is around, he can expect to be called to change the channel; if the younger son is there, he can expect either his father or his brother to call him to change the channel, even if he must come from the next room. If the younger cousin is over, she will inevitably be called. And there is never any complaining about this, unless the person being called is also watching the program, and then in a very devious move, when called they immediately move to the chair closest the TV, but they don’t change the channel. They may get away with continuing to watch the program for 5 more minutes and 5 more requests to change the channel. They only actually change it when the danger becomes imminent which usually means the person of higher rank has to get up. The channel is usually changed just before this point, in a fine example of cultural line-pushing and finesse. This exchange is most often between mom and teenage son (I don’t think it would fly with dad) and usually results with mom standing over the son that is sitting in the chair changing the channel. Sometimes the scene gets so ridiculous, even they laugh at the scene. And then if someone wants tea, the process begins all over, but in the great coup d’etat, the demand can actually be passed from the person being called to someone lower on the ladder!

The internet is very new here, and my host family doesn’t really understand what a blog is. I even showed it to my host brother. However, they do understand that I am writing home, and they say hello to everyone. Also, since the alphabet is different, so is the keyboard. I can actually type decently in Ukrainian (you can’t imagine how difficult it is at first), but the Ukrainians were smart. They put all the most common letters in the most common places. Unfortunately, this means that the letters that sound or look like English letters are now on new keys, and they reduce me to a crawl. Every time, I want one of them, my fingers go to where the letter is on the English keyboard.

For the few of you following along who have been to Ukraine, I am going to the L’viv oblast, which many of you had asked about. It is next to the Ternople Oblast. I will be in a part of the country that was once ruled by Poland, and I am rather close to the border with 5 other countries (Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, Romania, and Moldova). I am far from Russia, people still speak Russian, but rarely choose to. Polish words are just as likely in Surgic as are Russian. And for those of you that new my father’s father, I am going to a town that was founded on the salt industry. THESE are THE people that sold salt, thousands of years ago.

Interesting things to see in Ukraine: Cuckoo birds (sound just like on the clocks); cows or goats browsing on roadside grass (throughout downtown); marshes and ponds that look just like Florida (but without the alligators; boy, do they get a kick out of talking about alligators and sharks); wells with crystal clear water (that are everywhere, many people still don’t have indoor plumbing); tons of music based variety shows (just like on Italian TV; the would love Lawrence Welk, Mom); the concept of “saving face;” whole yards of beautiful, big Tulips; the cherry blossoms; mops (or lack there of, they use horizontal sticks with handles that they drape towels over); the amount of fisherman (in the Ukrainian language it is catching, not fishing!), the ubiquity of scotch and masking tape in classrooms (buy stock now!), and the ever present Hugo Boss black plastic bag which states discretely that it is rated to 35 kg, and is much more popular than backpacks or other satchel type bags for school, work, or any other occasion.

Fences here are to keep things in, like chickens and goats. They are all low and just around the house and pens. The fields are almost always wide open. It is really neat.

This is my first spring, and I need to state how amazing it is. Green comes up from everywhere...overnight!! It really is incredible. To think that some of you have lived with this your whole life (of course I might feel differently after my first winter...stay tuned). And so many flowers! Everyone has tulips; the first round of BIG red and yellow ones have just lost their petals, and the second round of smaller, multi-colored and multi-shaped tulips are now blooming. I love to tell Ukrainians that it is my first spring; they really don't get it; but they do notice how all the trees in my photos of South Florida are short or palms.

The common term for Ukrainian economy translates to "a mess." But what is most interesting, is although everyone seems to be playing by different rules - some old, some new, and none quite truly market economics - the proliferation of the black market shows just how well they understand it. Goods that are elastic, are VERY elastic, and goods that are inelastic are VERY inelastic. Luxuries are outrageous; necessities and non-luxuries are reasonable. Yes, yes, all you economics people and those that don't have a clue, alike, probably want some examples: Today we had a 4 course meal for 5 at a decent restaurant (celebrating the end of exams) for under $25. The next town over is a resort community and they ask $450 (starting, per night) at the nice resorts. A loaf of bread is about 20 cents, but a dinner in Kyiv could be $20 for one. Roses now are reasonable, but at Valentine's day (hard thing to get in winter) they were over 2 bucks a piece (enough to buy lunch for 2) even the day after (no marking to sell, no sales - ever). A trip to the pool is the same price. Ukrainians have a special form of transportation which are half-way between a bus and a taxi (the word, маршрутка, is often translated to route taxi). To get across town in one of these is a dime, to take a real taxi is $1.40 (a lot!). Meat is inflating quickly now, so it doesn't apply (I was never really understood inflation anyway). And finally, the fourth food group here - cabbage - is about the only thing you can get fresh in winter (if you want to call it fresh), and the last of it before the new crop is definitely of the poorest quality, but people got to have it, and now before the first spring crops are ready, it costs more than meat!

posted by jjs @ 5:47 AM