yolachka

Picture of the day (And even more, the story behind it)

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 17:01:53 GMT

A Muslim caretaker removes dust from a Jewish epigraph in a repository in a mosque near Herat November 5, 2009.

REUTERS/Morteza Nikoubazl

A very brief --and mostly sad-- history of Jews in Afghanistan

Picture of the day

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 13:57:15 GMT

Caption: A student looks out of a classroom during a break at a primary school in a rural village of Gutian county, Fujian province October 28, 2009.

REUTERS/Pillar Lee

Сегодня, в русском магазине

Mon, 26 Oct 2009 04:02:44 GMT

Зашла в русский магазин купить то, чего нет в супермаркетах. Около меня проходит мордоворот и кричит куда-то в другой отдел: "Лена, где та хуйня которой я позавчера обожрался у твоей мамы? Давай купим, шоб угостить завтра гостей." Я успела отойти и не хихикала при нём. Поделилась на FaceBook а друзья раскритиковали. Мол, надо было посмотреть, что за чудо-продукт.

Из Америки стишок

Tue, 20 Oct 2009 14:45:17 GMT

Из Америки стишок

Стих для умных детей

про Нобелевскую премию и дядю Обаму президента.

Эпиграф.
А в Африке, а в Африке,
На черной Лимпопо.
От смеха разрывается
Веселый Гипопо.
(По мотивам К. Чуковский)

Норвегия, Норвегия,
Прекрасная страна.
Есть нефть, селедка, скумбрия,
И фьордов глубина.

Чиновники норвежские
Боятся воровать.
И генералы смелые
Не любят воевать.

В Норвегии, в Норвегии
Несчастным быть грешно.
Но есть одна проблема:
Норвегам не смешно.

Там холодно, там пасмурно,
И в море не нырнешь.
Гнетет тоска ужасная
И стар, и молодежь.

На всю страну Норвегию
Один певец Рыбак.
И тот из Белоруссии,
Обидно, братцы, как.

Нет цирков изобилия,
Не знают КВН;
Но комитет есть Нобеля
Хазанова взамен.

За труд на пользу мира,
Для блага всей Земли,
Там премии престижные
Давно учреждены.

Барак Хусейн Обама
Их так заговорил,
Что приз за краснобайство
От них он получил.

Барак его достоин,
Мы все должны понять:
Кто делать не умеет -
Тот должен обещать.

"Евреев и арабов
Научим мирно жить!
И Маугли с Шер-ханом
Заставим мы дружить"!

"Биг-маки для голодных,
Страховки для больных.
Через четыре года
Не будет больше их".

"С Кореей Ким-Чен-Ира
Мы будем говорить.
Иран не быть упрямым
Мы сможем убедить."

"Перекуем в орала
Ракетный арсенал.
О да, мы это можем!"
Он громко прокричал.

Он умный, загорелый,
И Штатов президент.
С улыбкой белозубой.
Пришел его момент!

Барак Хусейн Мессия -
Не правда ли - звучит?!
Он все народы мира
В любви объединит!

Весь свет уже смеется
Над Осло от души.
Теперь за красноречие
Подарки хороши.

От зависти несчастен
В аиде Цицерон.
В раю сам Дизраэлли
Сей вестью удручен.

Щедрее, чем в Элладе
За ритора урок.
Парламентские дяди
Дают деньжат мешок.

В душе их нет пристрастия,
Как ангелы чисты.
Но головы их светлые,
К прискорбию, пусты.

И хочется смеяться,
Хоть плакать в самый раз.
Дают авансом премию
За две войны зараз.

Но был лауреатом
И Ясир Арафат.
А в будущем получит
И Ахмадинеджад.

Алексей С. Железнов.

"Amish Teens at Crossroads"

Mon, 12 Oct 2009 00:47:55 GMT

One of the great things about living in Philadelphia, is being close to Lancaster County and the Amish. I can't even count how many times I've been there, just for the chance to drive past the buggy and unrealistically envy their lifestyle. When I worked in Lancaster for 6 months and lived with a Mennonite family, almost everyone who had grown up there had stories of living near the Amish and mostly, only kind things to say about them. Usually once every couple of years, we revisit the Amish museum and stroll through the model farm as real Amish walk and ride by. Buying fruit and vegetables from their stalls is as close as one can come to the Eastern European open air markets here on the East Coast. (If you don't count South Philly's Italian Market.)

Naively, I picture the pure and innocent lifestyle of the Amish and the determination to ignore the modern conveniences for a spiritual belief. I learned from my Lancaster friends that many Amish communities allow some modern conveniences if it's for the benefit of the community, such as controlled tourism. But I had no idea about the difficult choices young Amish men and women need to make before they can truly become adult members of their community. After watching this "20/20" segment, I have a new-found respect for those who make the conscious choice to stay and live the Amish life. It's a decision they come to after much soul searching and not by blindly following the road that has been ~~paved~~ plowed for them.

I couldn't figure out how to embed the video but I hope you find it as interesting and educational as I did.

http://abc.go.com/watch/2020/166626/233952/amish-teens-at-crossroads

P.S. werthmueller , if you are wondering, yes, the Amish have been on my List since the day I started making it. :)

Новый лозунг!

Thu, 08 Oct 2009 21:46:53 GMT

"ДА ЗДРАВСТВУЕТ ОБАМАНИВАНИЕ, БАРАКИЗАЦИЯ И ОХУССЕЙНИЗАЦИЯ ВСЕЙ АМЕРИКИ!!!"

Приехали. :)

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В Филадельфии

Sun, 04 Oct 2009 15:42:58 GMT

В Филадельфии уже местами осень. Осень у нас очень красивая, разноцветная, и часто дождливая. А я думаю уже о зиме и мне очень хочется настоящую зиму. Чтобы нужна была меховая шапка и шуба. Чтобы ветер дул ледяной и снег, снег, снег. У меня есть дублёнка, но она так, для красоты.

А сегодня я весь день наслаждалась филадельфийской осенью в парке. У знакомых дочке годик.

.

Picture of the day

Tue, 15 Sep 2009 14:35:24 GMT

I am always amazed by how diverse Afghans are under their veils. At least seven distinct ethnic groups, over 30 languages, and hidden from each other and the world, rarely seen for more than warring tribes.

Caption: Aftab, an Afghan girl, waits to receive vaccination for polio in a UNICEF-organised countrywide campaign, in the central province of Ghor September 13, 2009. Once at the heart of the medieval Ghorid empire stretching between present-day Iran and South Asia, Ghor is now an obscure place, with no proper roads, hospitals and schools.

REUTERS/Maria Golovnina

Дурак!

Mon, 14 Sep 2009 04:14:38 GMT

Для iPhone вышла игра Дурак! Сделана отлично и я вот уже второй день не могу оторваться. Решила поделиться радостью с друзьями у кого тоже iPhone. Послала e-mail о том, что вот вышла такая игра, нам всем знакомая с детства. Двое тоже сразу её скачали и тоже как я подсели. Но от дорогого kabakhf пришла SMSка. Нашу короткую переписку я приклеила ниже для повышения Вашего настроения. (Мы уже поржали и поделились с близкими.)

:)

Swine Flu Panic

Thu, 10 Sep 2009 20:45:40 GMT

Thanks, Becca!

A perfect Thursday

Fri, 04 Sep 2009 13:59:37 GMT

Perfect weekends and perfect trips are often written about. But what about perfect weeknights? They do exist! Now that the often-unbearable Philly summer is coming to an end, it's actually possible to sit outside and enjoy the weather, rather than just complaining about it. On the way home from work, I called Honey and suggested dinner in a park. Afterwards, it was still light enough to walk around, where nature inspired a conversation about our time in Sweden and then Buddhism and meditation.

Not wanting the evening to end, we went to Barnes & Noble and stayed there until closing time. My indecisiveness reared its ugly head (although I don't find it that ugly) and I ended up buying three books to read, plus the one Honey suggested.

Here's a question, when you're in a book store, do you prefer to buy one book so that you then have a reason to come back and buy a second one or do you buy several that you liked? This led to a very heated discussion. I say, buy the books you liked now, so as not to risk forgetting about them. Honey seems to think one at a time is best, you don't feel overwhelmed by the stack of books you still haven't read. Plus, he added, how can I forget about a book if I keep a "Book List" in my iPhone of books I hear about and plan to buy.

Anyway, a perfect Thursday paved the way for Friday, and that means a long weekend with amazing plans is only eight hours away!

My new book list:

P.S. I have been looking forward to the bottom two for a few months now. The top one is Honey's recommendation. "A Seat at the Table" we stumbled upon while looking for something else. I was a little hesitant to buy it since I'm afraid it was written to resemble Chaim Potok's books.

IT Question

Fri, 04 Sep 2009 02:45:02 GMT

Вопрос: Я скачал файл из интернета теперь он мне больше не нужен. Как его закачать обратно?
Ответ: Вот из-за таких уродов как ты в Интернете скоро совсем файлов не останентся.
:)

Caught cheating

Thu, 03 Sep 2009 18:26:22 GMT

P.S. I love creative people! I respect people who can take the ordinary and turn it into the extraordinary!
P.P.S. Thank you, Honey, for the link. ;)

Очень жалко, что не стало Михалкова :(

Fri, 28 Aug 2009 16:41:43 GMT

Очень жалко, что не стало Михалкова. Но очень странно смотреть как поэта слов гимна Советского Союза хоронят в Храме Христа Спасителя. Как быстро всё меняется!

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Tue, 25 Aug 2009 23:12:09 GMT

I was reading an article on the causes of poverty in Africa and it included a quote by a Kenyan architect: "Africa is not poor. Africa is poorly managed." Well said, no? I couldn't help but think of how accurately it also applies to Ukraine (Happy Belated Independence Day!) and several other former Soviet Republics. How much more prosperous [as a country] could Ukraine be if corruption ceased to exist on an epidemic and endemic level among the country's leaders?

2010?!

Tue, 18 Aug 2009 16:17:47 GMT

Когда я продлеваю информацию клиентов в нашей системе данных, то делаю это на шесть месяцев вперёд. Так вот, сегодня первый раз ввела в компьютер "2010." Сразу почему-то глаза на лоб полезли и пальцы дальше не сразу смогли печатать. Как это - 2010-й? Вот только недавно газеты печатали о 2000-м! Вот только на днях было! А совсем недавно Саша Трубилин, мой лучший друг по детсадовской группе рисовал для меня мелом на стенке "1991" и показывал как будет интересно в будущем, когда будет читаться одинаково и слева-направо и справа-налево!

When I enter information for our clients in the work data base, I do so for the upcoming six months. Today, for the first time, I entered "2010." For some unexplained reason, I suddenly got very cold and my fingers couldn't type anymore. How can it be 2010 already? It seems like only yesterday papers were going crazy over the onset of the new millennium! Wasn't it just a few days ago? And it also wasn't so long ago that Sasha, my best friend from day care, was writing "1991" on my Grandparents' wall and showing me how cool it will be to live in the future, when you'll read the same number, regardless of whether you read left to right or right to left!

Иногда хочется вспомнить только хорошее и доброе.

Mon, 17 Aug 2009 13:38:08 GMT

Прислали ссылку. Я посмотрела и поревела. Просто так, ностальгия по детству и всему тому, что было там хорошо. Потом села и написала о ностальгии по тому, что было и чего не было. И о том, чего быть не могло. О том, как я всё понимаю и о том, что много было "не для нас" как это иногда объясняли дома. А потом всё сохранила в компьютере а здесь оставила вот только это. Кому интересно, по Скайпу или за чашкой чая обсудим.

Physicians' Opinions on Health Care :)

Thu, 13 Aug 2009 20:44:06 GMT

Apparently the Medical Profession has weighed in on the new national Health Care Plan....

The Dentists thought that they would chew on it for a while, while the Orthodontists wanted to straighten out some misconceptions.

The Allergists voted to scratch it, but the Dermatologists advised not to make any rash moves.

The Gastroenterologists had sort of a gut feeling about it, and the Neurologists thought the Administration had a lot of nerve.

The Obstetricians felt they were all laboring under a misconception, while the Gerontologists thought it wouldn’t last long.

Ophthalmologists considered the idea short sighted, but the Nutritionists declined to weigh in on the issue.

Pathologists yelled, "Over my dead body!" and the Pediatricians said, 'Oh, Grow up!'

The Psychiatrists thought the whole idea was madness, while the Radiologists could see right through it.

Surgeons decided to wash their hands of the whole thing, but the Rheumatologists thought it was a real pain

The Internists thought it was a bitter pill to swallow, and the Plastic Surgeons said, "This puts a whole new face on the matter."

The Podiatrists thought it was a step forward, while the Urologists were pissed off at the whole idea.

The Anesthesiologists thought the whole idea was a gas, but the Cardiologists didn't have the heart to say no.

The Chiropractors wanted to back it, and the Endocrinologists thought it would grow too big.

In the end, the Proctologists won out, leaving the entire decision up to the assholes in Washington.

"You didn't want to be anyone's girlfriend, and now you're somebody's wife."

Mon, 03 Aug 2009 03:12:59 GMT

Went to see "500 Days of Summer" tonight with Honey. Good movie, I give it an 8. Once again realized that Joseph Gordon-Levitt looks like a version of Heath Ledger.

Here's what I think every time I see a movie about relationships in "our day." Unless the movie is specifically about a character;s interaction with technology ("You've Got Mail," "Julie & Julia," "He's Just Not That Into You"), there is almost no mention of the parts of technology that are so important in the real world. The scene where we realize Tom and Summer broke up and he asks her why she didn't tell him about her new boyfriend? I thought: "I guess she removed him from her friends list on FaceBook." It's true, we stay in touch by reading electronic glimpses into the lives of our friends and exes.

The movie made the effort to show that the characters are living in our time and in our world, Tom and his little sister play Wii as they talk. But he doesn't Google Summer and does not try to find a shortcut to finding out her tastes in books and music by peeking at her profile on FaceBook. Is it because the movie tries to show them as too cool for social networking sites or because the movie wouldn't be too interesting if it showed the characters as true to life and slacking off at work by checking friends' updates or later sitting in the diner and constantly checking their phones. Is it that the movie wasn't realistic or is it us that are wasting too much of our time online and not enough time actually living our lives?

P.S. The title of the post is a line I really liked from the movie.

Things were different 9 years ago

Fri, 31 Jul 2009 18:20:05 GMT

I was talking to a 17-year-old girl yesterday and asked if she had a boyfriend. She said that she had a long distance relationship, it didn't work out, and they are now just friends with benefits when he visits her or she goes to visit him. I asked how they met. "Oh, my friend is friends with him and one time, she had him on speaker phone and that was how we first spoke. We called from my cell phone so he had my number. He texted me a few times, then he added me on FaceBook, and then we started talking on the phone. You know, the usual."

When I was 17, the "usual" was the guy asking for your number, then explaining to him until what time is ok to call on the house phone so your parents don't get upset about late night phone calls. I didn't get a cell phone until my senior year in high school and FaceBook was released upon the world when I was already a college freshman. :) The times, they change. And so does "the usual." :) I wonder what will be the "usual" way to meet and make friends when my kids are 17.

Вообще-то, я никогда языки не путаю...

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 04:29:36 GMT

А вот бывает, что устаёшь на столько, что мозги вооообще не работают? У меня сегодня было.

После работы заехала к Маме, сели вместе пообедать.
Мама: Тебе дать сок или воду?
я: Сок, пожалуйста.
Мама: Какой?
я: Апельсиновый.
Мама: Ой, извини, у нас нет апельсинового.
Я встаю и иду к холодильнику. Апельсиновый сок стоит на полочке. Я достою и показываю Маме с улыбочкой.
Мама смотрит на сок: Ты же сказала, что хочешь апельсиновый?
я: Ну? Так вот же он!
Мама: Лёшка, ты же держишь яблочный сок.
я: Тьфу! А знаешь почему?!
Тут уже Мама начинает смеяться, так как поняла.
я: Apple-синовый!

Ага, спать надо ложиться пораньше! :)

Picture of the day (Хочу сюда!)

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 15:43:11 GMT

Caption: Visitors view the inside of the steeple of the Franzoesischen Dom (French Cathedral) in Berlin, Germany, which has been opened to the public after three years of renovation. (BBC)

Chicken Enchiladas

Wed, 17 Jun 2009 03:52:03 GMT

Tried a new recipe and it came out great! Just wanted to share and brag a little bit. :)

This is what they look like fresh out of the oven:
.

Honey's had sour cream on it, like they're supposed to :)

If you're interested, here is the recipe I used: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/chicken-enchiladas-recipe/index.html

Rainbow!

Mon, 15 Jun 2009 22:19:20 GMT

When the radio warned of severe thunderstorms in East Montgomery County by 6:15PM, I looked at the sky and laughed. At 6:03 the sky got dark and I could barely hear anything over the thunder and lightening. And then, as the freezing rain continued to pound the grass, roofs, and my outstretched arms, I saw it! A rainbow! And not just a piece of it but the whole thing! It looked as if it sprung out from the patch of mud next to the tree and threw itself over the apartment building to the other side of the street. How beautiful!!!

опера

Sat, 13 Jun 2009 23:05:15 GMT

Эврика! Моё поколение можно разделить на тех, кто увидит слово "опера" и прочитает "Опера" и тех, кто прочитает "оперА."

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