Tea is huge in Russia. It’s a whole cultural thing. People drink tea at least three times a day – once between breakfast and lunch, again between lunch and dinner, and after dinner with a dessert. It’s not just tea, there’s always something, usually sweet, to eat with it. It might be a cake, cookies, a chocolate bar, or just jam or honey — bring your own spoon and dig in. The problem is I don’t really like tea.
Continue readingHow to Make Tomorrow Better with Limited Resources
Improving your future is hard, especially when you consider everything you’ve got going on. Even if you’re someone who is staying home because of the pandemic, you don’t have as much time or as many resources as you might like. You could have a limited budget, limited means to contact people, and not enough emotional energy to carry you through to the evening. But there is something you can do to plant seeds for a better tomorrow.
Continue readingCinco de Mayo in Far East Russia 2020
As far as I can tell, no one celebrates Cinco de Mayo in Russia where I live, which makes sense considering it’s between May Day and Victory Day. I have seen three “Mexican” restaurants in town. The drive-up never appears to be open. The one on a side road closed down and became something else, and the one at the mall actually serves pretty good Tex-Mex style food. The tortillas are all flour and more like wraps, but the salsa is often a fresh Pico de Gallo. If it weren’t for COVID-19 and the flood near the mall, we might’ve gone there today.
Continue readingFairy Penguin Paper Doll Now with Easter 2020 Collection
When I released the Easter 2020 Penguin paper doll, I made a coupon code to give it away for free. If people wanted to, they could pay a dollar to get them or join our Patreon, which comes with other great benefits. While the paper doll is still available to our Patreon sponsors, the code has expired. Not a single person downloaded the Easter Penguin paper doll from my website. That’s fine. I’m sure it will happen again, but here’s what’s strange:
Continue readingOur Store Plans for C.A.P.E. before COVID-19
A long time ago before the world changed, about the second week of March 2020, my wife and I were going to move to the coast – probably in Oregon. We were going to open a shop. The details about how, where, and with what money we were going to do this were a little sketchy. I just assumed we would figure it out when we got there. All we needed to do was get our cat micro-chipped and wait for the arrival of Jenya’s passport and Green Card visa.
Continue readingMarch of the Immortal Army: Russian Victory Day, May 9
On May 9 every year, Russia celebrates its victory against the Nazis and Germany in World War II. The army parades down main streets in ever city. There are marching bands, tanks, and patriotism on display. People line-up on the curbs and cheering as the different groups march by. It’s a lot like America’s Fourth of July celebrations. However, there is one difference. After the parade is over, another parade starts: The March of the Immortal Army.
Continue reading‘Outer Banks’: Faux-Teens, Family, and the Search for Treasure
As with a majority of teen dramas, the actors portraying the teens of ‘Outer Banks’ are in their 20s with Chase Stokes being the oldest of the main troupe at 27! Stokes’ John B. is a 16-year-old headed to foster care after the disappearance of his father who was looking for the gold from an old sea-wreck. He lives on the poor side of the Outer Banks and runs with his Pogues. There’s plenty of teen drug use and violence, with fists and the occasional gun being used to solve problems. There are also a couple of scenes of teen sex, but they don’t get too graphic. Clothes remain mostly in place.
Continue readingRory’s Story Cubes: The Mystery of the Unmapped Mark
For Russian New Year’s Eve, I got a gift card to a local game store. I went in and found a couple of games to try. I picked up Rory’s Story Cubes (affiliate link) because they reminded me of a game I invented in Malta inspired by “The Decision Hedgehog.” You get nine dice with pictures on them. Roll the dice and tell the story. Story Cubes offers three different game plays officially, though you can probably make up your own versions. They have different styles of cubes, so if you like genre play, you can stick to your favorite. Or you can mix, match and combine them. Here’s the story I came up with on my first roll of the dice:
Continue readingRussian Radonitsa: Day of Remembrance
Yesterday was the Russian Orthodox holiday called “Radonitsa.” The second Tuesday after Easter, Russians go to the cemetery to visit their relatives and friends on this day of remembrance. Rather than tell you what people generally do, I’m going to tell you my experience of the holiday this year.
Continue readingPenguin Plushies and Patreon: Joy, Travel, Friendship, Penguins
Jenya makes some amazing penguin plushies. She’s done a variety of designs from the original white and black and white penguins to the more realistic ones. There’s even a penguin pillow and the flat friends. She makes these penguins by hand, and the 3D penguins come with passports. (Flat friends do not.) So, if you’re looking for a unique gift, check out the stuffed penguins we have available here and on Etsy. A portion of the proceeds from each penguin goes to help either the Royal Albatross Centre or the Penguin Place.
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Penguinate! Positive Creativity 