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The Numbers Game
Last night, I took my friend Mimi to a backpackers’ bar. I guess I miss my people and/or normal life! Before I proceed however I should probably give warning that this is more over-sharey and less role-modely in what is ordinarily a pretty oversharey, unrolemodely blog anyway (also, this post is not exactly under-18s friendly). […]
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On belly-buttons (Amazon #2)
Early on day 2 of my Amazon adventure, my translator Guillermo and I found ourselves waiting by the water for ‘Tall Jairo’, the indigenous local who would be our guide for the next four days. His arrival time drew closer, arrived, and passed, with no sign of the man. Eventually in the distance we saw […]
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Gay Russia
Now that I’m no longer in Russia, or working for or with Russians, I can finally talk about something as ‘outrageous’ as attitudes toward homosexuality in Russia. I just want to make it clear that I’m not breaking Russian law right now! “He signs with a girl’s name,” squealed one of my students. “He must […]
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Fake Russia
It has been a crazy couple of weeks here at camp. And not the ‘fun’ type of crazy: more like the ‘fml’ kind of crazy. It’s also been very, very busy. My teaching hours are far in excess of what I was told, and it’s six days a week once more. I have afternoons free, […]
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Countries hot and cold
In Russia, people would always tell me how because I’m from a hot country, my personality doesn’t suit being in a cold country like theirs. The theory goes that people from warm places are ‘warm’ people, open and friendly, while people from cold places have (you’ll never guess) ‘cold’, reserved personalities. I personally think this […]