#4 : Trash Talk

#4 Weeks 2-3

When I lived here in the 90s, garbage disposal was really easy. Usually there was a shoot in most buildings that took it down to some central disposal area, often in the public stairwell but sometimes right in your kitchen. You could either throw individual items right down the shoot or a small plastic bag of garbage. While convenient, the flip side was that cockroaches loved this place. And I will admit, I was thrilled not to see a garbage shoot either in or outside our apartment.

However, as I looked around our building, I was confused as to where we were supposed to throw our garbage. So I asked one of our doormen, and he asked back, "how much garbage?" I didn't really know how to quantify my garbage, but in any case he told me to take it to the garbage cans in the park across the street. Huh, I would have sworn there was a weekly or monthly collection of a container, but none for this building? Apparently not. At first I actually thought he meant the small cans just for the park, and actually that was where Andrew was disposing of our bags for a while. But instead we discovered some dumpsters, but we still have to lug it two blocks, past some really nice shops and restaurants. I feel quite silly dressed up taking a large garbage bag to this spot, but actually can't really complain as I've given this task to Andrew!!

This is the park, 1/2 block from us, where we thought we should throw our garbage!
It's called Patriarch's Pond where Bulgakov's Master and Margarita was set.
It's really beautiful and nice to have so close!

So, speaking of doormen... we have 4 different ones and they are all very nice to us (I am already Sasha to them). It helps that Izzy set to work to bake them all some cookies, and in return they have given us some candy and apples from a back yard ("no pesticides" = lots of worm holes). But really such sweet men and looking to give lots of advice.

The thing of it is, I can't figure out what their job description is. I know they in general guard the building by looking at who goes in and out, but during the period when we had no way of letting anyone into our building, I asked them what bell people ring to ask them to open the door (the door is always locked - you just need to call and apartment to be buzzed in or know the code). Their answer was that they don't let people in. So many people buzz and come by each day and how could they know what to do with all those visitors?

There also is no house number on any part of the building, so besides people not knowing which building is ours, it was hard for the first two week to let anyone in! I'm desperate for laminating and label-making machines! I want to put a house number up because I really don't think it is a priority of the city, and we need to note which buzzer is ours from the street - now that it's working, we receive at least 5 incorrect apartment requests each day.

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Girls in gym - can't play outside since it's been raining sooooo much
Missing California: Cal sweatshirt, Giants hat, Squaw Valley ski team sweatshirt

Family update: thing are settling into a routine. The girls have made 3-4 good friends and are playing soccer, swimming for PE, doing the lower school play (Tash) and learning the flute (Izzy). Andrew is working hard and I am, well, still waiting for things to get fixed, taking the dog for long walks, and going to the gym. I am thinking once I work out a dog walker option and we finally get a car, I will look for work, but I have no idea how that might take shape.

We head to St Petersburg for a long weekend soon, have our first visitors from the US (my mom and Bill), and then have to think of a place to visit for our week off in October.

We just received a small portion of our shipment - the 1200 lbs by air. Some of it is missing, and I cannot for the life of me figure out how (all of the dogs prescriptions - since he's always sick - and our expensive toiletries). Curious that those are the two missing... I really should have looked at each box to see if it had been opened - who knew???!?

But to quickly go back to the trash talk... so, so many of the clothes we just received I don't even want. While I didn't pack well for a long stay here in my 3 suitcases, I cannot tell you how much came in the boxes that I don't even know what to do with. Shows how little you can live with.