We Want American Trucks...

Putin told his government on Thursday that he met with truckers during his trip along Khabarovsk-Chita highway in the Far East and they asked to allow imports of used second-hand U.S. long haul style trucks…

Putin responded, “The government will satisfy the requests of the drivers and will amend safety regulations for wheeled vehicles to allow long-haul trucks of a bigger size of up to 20 meters,”…

In the past the regulations had restricted trucks to a total length of 18 meters…

Putin expressed hope that the domestic industry will produce such trucks in Russia with time…

The ministry of industry and trade hurried to respond on Thursday the regulations had been amended and U.S.-made trucks can now be imported into Russia…

Now that was interesting and I did not realize that they had a restriction on truck length…

Windows to Russia!

• Russia: Medvedev Deals with Animals from the West / Putin Deals with Animals from the East! (windowstorussia.com)
• Looks Like Truth and Tell Time by Putin… (windowstorussia.com)
• Some Simple News From Russia (8/31/2010)… (windowstorussia.com)
• What is Going on in Russia and Company… (windowstorussia.com)
• Simply News From Russia… (9/02/2010) (windowstorussia.com)
• Russia Today in Spanish in DC… (windowstorussia.com)
• Adoption Talks Between Russia and America Still Going On… (windowstorussia.com)
• The Last Debt of the USSR – Ordered Paid by Putin! (windowstorussia.com)
• The FSB Has More Power Now and Other Thoughts… (windowstorussia.com)
• Putin Responds to Clinton’s Repeat Performance… (windowstorussia.com)

Medvedev Checking Food Prices...

Windows to Russia!

• In Russia Grain Speculators Just Plain “Suck”… (windowstorussia.com)
• Medvedev Meeting with Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia… (windowstorussia.com)
• Russia: Medvedev Deals with Animals from the West / Putin Deals with Animals from the East! (windowstorussia.com)
• Medvedev Is Very Correct About the Russian Customs Border… (windowstorussia.com)
• Russian government eases off on grain export (rt.com)
• Medvedev Did What is Correct About Khimki Forest… (windowstorussia.com)

Our 310221 Volga Wagon - named Sammy...

That cup of coffee this morning was wonderful and it got me thinking about what I did to the Volga car this weekend. While in the village, I decided to do a little adjusting on our Volga and make her run better…

I had to remove one of our fuel systems to get around technical difficulties. The propane had to come off for an overhaul. Then it got hotter than the ace of spades and I never was able to finish the job…

Well this weekend I got the job done. We drove to the village on petrol and came home on gas. (petrol is gasoline and gas is propane) The difference in cost is amazing. Petrol 80 octane is 18.5 roubles right now and gas is 11.5 roubles. The difference is not as striking as many would see because we burn the cheapest petrol. Most have to spend 22+ roubles for 92 or above octane… (Our Volga burns anything… )

But the cost of propane (gas) has not gone up in the last year and it is a wonderfully stable and clean fuel…

The only issue that I ran into was I am going to have to pick up another solenoid valve for diverting the petrol flow when I use gas. I forgot to get that part and of course it is the part that is needing replaced. It works and you just have to smack it with a screwdriver handle once in a while and tell it who is boss.

Sveta was so happy that we were purring along on propane that she is ready to go on a whole bunch more excursions all over Russia…

So am I!

Windows to Russia!

• Russia: Model 24 Volga! (windowstorussia.com)
• Cup of Coffee Today Was Delicious and Other Thoughts… (windowstorussia.com)
• South Ossetia Gives From the Heart to Russia… (windowstorussia.com)
• Never Ask A Russian is Everything OK… (windowstorussia.com)
• Russia: New GAZ Volga Siber! (windowstorussia.com)
• Drinking Coffee in Russia and Thinking… (windowstorussia.com)

Did you know that the heat in Russia was the worst in the last 5000 years?

At first it was stated that it was the worst in 30 years, then 40 years, then 50 years. This then became 140 years, then it become 200 years. Then it started to skyrocket…

500 years – 1000 years – 2000 years – 3000 years – 4000 years and now…

Sveta came home last night and expressed that never had we had such heat in 5000 years!

Can you believe that?

Of course a scientist has said that by studying the lake bottoms we can tell how the temperature has been for the last 5ooo years…

5000 years that is a long time…

Windows to Russia!

• Cup of Coffee Today Was Delicious and Other Thoughts… (windowstorussia.com)
• Have You Ever Thought a Country Could Burn Up… (windowstorussia.com)
• Bad Move – Russia Lifts Chicken Ban on America… (windowstorussia.com)
• Run – The Hurricane is Coming to Moscow… (windowstorussia.com)
• Are The Russians Going to Get Fat… (windowstorussia.com)
• Belka and Strelka 50 years Ago… (windowstorussia.com)
• Russia’s “Cold Pole” Getting Heated Up… (windowstorussia.com)
• We See The Sun in Moscow but More Smoke to Come… (windowstorussia.com)

In what Sveta and I consider a bad move on the part of the Kremlin. Russia made a decision that lifted a trade ban on poultry imports of 71 U.S. company‘s on Thursday.  Russia will retain the ban on the remaining 16 companies that do not want to meet the country’s sanitation requirements.

Russia banned imports of U.S. chlorine-treated poultry as of January 1 2010, citing new safety requirements. U.S. poultry has traditionally accounted for almost 80% of Russia’s total poultry imports.

This is not a necessarily a good thing for Russians to do. But it looks like from local sources, that lots of money has exchanged hands in getting American chicken back into Russia. The American chicken farms had a huge hurt put on them and they need to get back in the Russian market. At any cost…

It is a shame because Russian farmers proved that they could keep up with the demand of chicken.

The American chicken as per a good reader and friend named Blackseabrew who is in the business of farming in America says:

” ‘Modern’ poultry production condemns the poor chickens to living in their own filth leading to all kinds of problems from breathing in the fecal dust and excess ammonia. This produces a meat that is less than firm and very absorbent. This absorbency is terrible for us because of what happens when the chicken is cleaned. Because processing is highly mechanized…and frankly not practical for cleaning chickens….many intestines are torn during evisceration thereby soiling many of the carcasses, which are then ‘sterilized’ in a chlorine bath(better known as a fecal bath) which the absorbent meat sponges up for us to later eat. I believe up to 5% of the carcass weight is usually this chlorinated water. Yuck again. Just read what Joel Salatin has published about this.

Russia should not trust American chicken from the big producers. They have not changed anything in their production methods. Only the wording on the package.

Kyle, I’d be more than happy to send you some of my next batch of pastured poultry.

Below is a link to a video I shot of my automated chicken plucker I built a couple of years ago. It’s quite entertaining.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6wuD_AJHKu0 “

That was a great video by the way. If you are a little squeamish do not watch it because it is a fact from a real farm. I was impressed with the chicken plucking device. Sure beats doing it by hand like I grew up doing…

We will eat only Russian chicken by the way. Unless we could take Blackseabrew up on his true farm raised chicken from America…

Windows to Russia!

• Russia To Make Decision On American Chicken… (windowstorussia.com)
• UPDATE 4-Russia to partly lift chicken ban; US wants more (reuters.com)
• Are The Russians Going to Get Fat… (windowstorussia.com)
• Chickens Ready to Fly the Coop in Russia (fool.com)
• Russia concerned over U.S. “non-compliance” on poultry (reuters.com)
• US blasts Russia over poultry trade snag (alternet.org)
• Russia to Lift Ban on U.S. Chicken Meat, Obama Says (Update1) (businessweek.com)
• From Bush Legs to Bad Business Practices – It’s Been a Busy Week for Poultry (ecocentrism.org)
• Cup of Coffee Today Was Delicious and Other Thoughts… (windowstorussia.com)
• Pilgrim’s Pride gets OK to pack chicken for Russia (sfgate.com)
• Medvedev Is Very Correct About the Russian Customs Border… (windowstorussia.com)