Year: 2010

Took 4 Years To Unwind in Russia and Read a Book…

A photo of a cup of coffee.
That Morning Cup of Coffee…

I was drinking my morning cup of coffee and doing some thinking’s!

It had crossed my mind that I actually read a book. In fact I have read 5 books in a week…

Now you are saying to yourself, “So big deal…”

Well it is a big deal too me!

Once in my life, I use to read and read and read! I have consumed books from the Hardy Boys Series to The Holy Bible. I use to devourer a book in a single day and even took me only three days to read, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich. I had thousands of paper backs. I was speed reader…

Then that all ended once I graduated from High School and entered the Army and became more interested in tanks, weapons, missiles and staying alive in particular. (Not necessarily in that order…) Life became a blur of years that entailed saving the world and all that crap. Then I progressed (progressed?) to the American corporate world and became interested in how to destroy the competition and profit from that destruction. I never read again, except for internet and work related items. I lost the ability to read…

I tried numerous times to read a book. I really tried. My mind kept centering on business and making money, plus the bottom line. Nothing worked so reading became a lost part of my past…

I have a friend in America (Well I call him a friend, he might disagree!) He has a website about reading. It is called I’ll Never Forget the Day I Read a Book!

I have thought about and read his reviews on his site and tried many times to pick up a book again. I realized that I was missing an intricate part of my life by not reading because I had a passion to read once in my life…

I had just visited his site not long ago and said to myself that I need to read a book. I do not have to work 14 to 16 hours days anymore. (It only took me 4 years in Russia to realize that 🙂 ) I decided to take a book that I had seen the movie of, but never read and see what would happen…

Now I am a huge scifi fan so I grabbed the first title that I recognized. (Not a lot of books in English in the Russian book stores.)  The Chronicles of Riddick is the book I picked…

It was a struggle at first but then it was like riding a bike and swimming. The next thing that I knew I came up for air and the book was finished…

It took 4 years after majorly changing my life, to comprehend the fact that I could read a book again. To acknowledge that in me, was a strange feeling…

Don’t let 33 years pass since you last read a book…

Windows to Russia!

Georgia Smiled Today at Your USA Tax Money…

Georgia Collects Your Tax Money...

The USA has just allocated over $30,000,000 US dollars for improvement of “The Electoral Environment” in the Georgian country…

Georgia loves to brag about the money that they get from America. The Georgian news is stimulated weekly about the millions that America generously hands over to Georgia in the name of Democracy…

$30,000,000 dollars seems like chump change, but if you stop and think about it like this: “I use to run a business based on saving pennies – If I could save a penny on the price that a soft drink cost my business, then I could save hundreds of dollars by the end of the year. If I could save that amount on just 10% of the items I sold then I could save thousands of dollars a year. If I could cut everything in my business by that much, I could save a million dollars by the end of the year…” Do you realize that a million pennies is $10,000 dollars? I sold over a million soft drinks a month…

So since I have already reported about 6 separate times that Georgia has received various sums of money for alternating functions of the Georgian government. So far I see about a billion dollars in a little more than a year, that has slipped the way of the Georgian government and no one in America seems to care…

You see, when you dole it out a few million at a time, it seems like not very much, but it adds up quick…

Do you care? I care…

Windows to Russia!

New Fires Break Out in Southern Russia…

RIA NovostiWildfires raze village in Russia’s Siberian Federal Region, some 1,000 evacuated

21:38 08/09/2010 The village of Nikolayevka in the Altai Territory has completely burned down and two other villages are on fire, a spokeswoman for the Russia’s Emergencies Ministry said on Wednesday.Read Original Source  >>>

Windows to Russia!

St. Petersburg Calling For Permanent End To Foreign Adoptions from St. Petersburg…

Adoptions...

The Governor of St. Petersburg, Valentina Matviyenko has expressed the need for a ban on all child adoptions by all foreigners in the city of St. Petersburg.

“I see how many cruel incidents have happened. We don’t need any foreign adoptions in St. Petersburg,” she said at a city government meeting.

“Enough of this fashionable fad. Enough of torturing children. I think children must be picked by St Petersburg families, who can take better care of them.” Matviyenko said.

The news expressed that a St. Petersburg family gets 6,155 rubles ($199) a month per child that they take care of.

This has come about after the last escapade with the Leschinsky Sisters and Russia has reached a boiling point over issues in America with adoptions…

Sounds like Americans may have lots of future trouble getting Russian children to adopt. I would say that Moscow will not be far behind in the call for ending adoptions and taking care of the children internally.

I ask the question though, What happens with the children out away from the big cities? Seems that there needs to be a federation wide program that cares for these kids and foster homes availability.

But as my Sveta would say, “That is just right – The children need to stay in Russia!”

Windows to Russia!

For Those That Have Traveled By Russian Train…

I found a few pictures on my cellphone. That is why they are not the best quality. But they show a good before and after of what is inside a train car looks like and a picture of some of the border patrol waiting for us to stop…

In The Morning...
Beginning of Trip...


A train trip in Russia is an experience that everyone should have to take. It gives you a different outlook on Russia…

I literally love to travel by train in Russia. It is like everyone is just one big family all stuffed together in one tiny area…

Russians are experts at packing bags with everything that you could imagine possible…

Come to Russia and ride a train… 🙂

Windows to Russia!

What Happened to the 5th World Leaders Symposium…

Rice fleeing, Gorbachev refuting and ship departing
The 5th World Leaders Symposium looks a complete mess. The former Soviet President, Mikhail Gorbachev had no intention of going to Tbilisi despite the news and hopes of the organizers – He has always had completely different plans. U.S. former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, was expected to attend the event, but suddenly she was off and running, leaving the country in an unknown direction after a short visit to Batumi. Later it was reported that she preferred a trip to Ireland‘s capital, home to a constellation of brilliant literary talents, instead of the meeting with Mikheil Saakashvili. It would certainly unfair to blame Ms Rice for the choice she made.
Read More: читать статью полностью

Sometimes you have to wonder about Sassy! He really seems to have a screw loose on top…

Windows to Russia!

Medvedev Changes Stance on Grain Issue…

RIA NovostiRussia to lift grain export ban only after 2011 harvestRussia to lift grain export ban only after 2011 harvest

21:41 07/09/2010 Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has said Russia will lift a ban on grain exports after next year’s harvest is gathered in, not this year’s, the president’s press service said on Tuesday.Read More From Source >>

But we were just told…

Hummm…

Now we know who the boss is…  🙂

Windows to Russia!

Leschinsky Sisters not to Return to Foster Parents…

Children's Rights Ombudsman Pavel Astakhov...

Latest Update on the Leschinsky Sisters:

Russian Children Rights Ombudsman Pavel Astakhov said the three Leschinsky sisters abused by their foster parents will not return to the US.

He believes there is enough proof of tortures to cancel the adoption.

A US court is currently holding hearings into the case of the Leschinsky couple, charged with abuse of their adopted daughters, aged from 12 to 14.

Revealing various forms of punishment administered by their adoptive parents, the girls said they were ordered, among other things, to do push-ups above a board studded with nails.

Russian orphans adopted by foreigners can be protected by the US-Russian draft agreement on adoption, planned to be signed by the end of this year, Pavel Astakhov said.

Windows to Russia!

Original Source: Voice of Russia

Interesting Happenings on the way to the Georgian Symposium…

An Interesting thing was happening these last few days. Former and last USSR president Mikhail Gorbachev, former US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and ex- US Secretary of Defense William Perry were to travel to Georgia and meet on the 6th of September…

According to the Georgian mass media:  Mikhail Gorbachev had a sudden last second change of plans! Then Condoleezza Rice, the ex-U.S. Secretary of State, had a whirlwind of a sudden departure to Ireland soon after landing at the Batumi airport in Georgia. US Secretary of Defense William Perry was never even heard from according to Georgian press. The Georgian press has also said that Sassy did not go to the airport to meet Condi and she got upset and left…

They was to be there on September 6 for a Georgian symposium entitled “Global Challenges in a Post-Perestroika World.” The participants will discuss political, historical and cultural cooperation between the Black Sea nations.

The Georgian news was on fire with this information for weeks. The news was hailed as being one of the most important events and earth shattering affairs of this year…

I have watched with interest and waited for the Western press to express the joy and delight at Sassy and his meeting. But no avail he was ignored…

I find it interesting that Condi actually landed in Georgia and then ran…

Can you say Hummmm…

Windows to Russia!

Georgia: Drones and More Drones?

Hello,

I think this makes 5 drones that have been shot down. Georgia has got to run out of drones…..Update: Georgia had acquired a total of 40 drones, worth around $2 million each, from Israel between 2006 and 2008. So looks like there may be a lot of drones shot down…..

MOSCOW (Reuters) – Georgia’s breakaway region of Abkhazia shot down another Georgian spy drone on Thursday, its Defence Ministry said, although Tbilisi immediately denied the allegation from the Russian-backed rebels. Minutes before the announcement, Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili had told visiting Russian reporters war between Georgia and Russia over the status of Abkhazia had been only narrowly averted days earlier but remained a real threat. According to the Abkhazian authorities this was the third Georgian drone it had shot down in the last five days.

Yes I went back and counted: 5 drones shot down, out of total 6 drones spotted. For some reason Abkhazian did not knock down one drone spotted the other day.

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.