NOLA BB Fan - Best to your mother. BTW, I just saw Singin' in the Rain last summer for the first time!

RRA! - You come across like someone who prefers non-rounded shapes. (I feel most comfortable with ovals, circles, curves everywhere. No idea why.) The best gift anyone gave me that cost nothing was when my aunt, who knew how messed up my parents were and therefore how low my self-esteem was, saw how I was struggling to stand up for myself. She took my hands in hers and said, "Here. Take my strength. I don't need much anymore." It was the first and only time in my life that anyone gave me approval for protecting myself. 

the Captain - I have happy memories of childhood trips through Minnesoooota, all in the summer. I'm sure your winters put those in PA to shame. I like used books stores, as well. To me, they provide more of an adventure than a new bookseller.

RRA1 - The n-word is so emotionally laden because it was used to degrade and humiliate black people, both before and after slavery. I look forward to the NII link, if you find it.

I'll say! LOL. 2016.

Watching on local Public Broadcasting Station (PBS) Summer, Surf, and Beach Music We Love. Host is none other than Mike Love! As far as I can see, it is totally lip-synced promo films and TV performances from back in the day. Really fun, IMO. Date of original broadcast is 1916. Features Jan and Dean, Beach Boys, all of the usual suspects.

Yes, it can be quite powerful, in a positive way, when a famous male athlete (or rock star, for that matter)  speaks frankly about his experience with such things as mental illness, sexual abuse, etc., as boys and men are often less likely than females to address these issues.

Glad you friend is back, safe and sound.  Id be very happy if someone brought me Swiss chocolate, cheap or not, from Switzerland.   

So true, Captain, about the '"film" vs. "movie" issue.

Regular school teachers get off 8-9 weeks in the summer, a week in the spring, a week between Christmas and New Year's Day. I enjoyed some of that, although I found myself taking classes and doing planning, etc., for about half of that. I work in a residential treatment center that has school all year, both because the kids need something to do in addition to treatment and most have missed a lot of school and/or are very low in terms of knowledge and skills. This is the first year I have not been able to get away, even to my beloved beach. Damn. I'll try for a weekend soon.

I did not know that Mike did/might have co-written Darlin' Regardless, it doesn't sound to be Mike-ish., Brian-sh, Beach Boy-ish.
Still it's on my top ten BB songs (on other thread).

That is pretty much the impression I had about why people wanted the books banned. The word is emotionally loaded, and understandably so.

I have the same impression of NII, as well. Certainly, he was a loving husband and father. Witnesses also state that he was quite even-tempered and treated even regular people with respect  and kindness.. I've read that he wept when his father died, telling a Grand Duke that he was not ready to rule. Still, he did seem quite obstinate about his God-given obligation to maintain the throne as it had been,, essentially sharing no real power by creating a constitutional monarchy along the lines of those that survived WWI. He also seemed tone-deaf in terms of the living conditions of the majority of the populace, just felt unconditionally worshiped and adored by the masses.. One would be hard put to identify any famous figure (or regular person) who might qualify as all good or all bad.

Yes., I misread.  Smiley Smile time for me is when I am very sleepy and rarely have my reading glasses with me. Sorry! During absence from SS
I've been battling my teaching assistant who is supposed to be in charge of handling behavior in the classroom. He literally does nothing, forcing me to teach and handle serious issues that tend not to occur in regular schools. His excuse? I don't understand the hard lives the girls have had, and should not be bothered if they shout and sing during instruction, run around the room shooting the stapler, etc. Right. Smiling will help them have a good future. Actually, I am quite warm and fun as a teacher, have degrees in social work and education, and have been working with troubled kids, oh, I don't know, since before he was born. But I know nothing. Tomorrow we meet with the principal, at which time I will pretend to care about how much he wants to be the students' friend. 

Perhaps Mike might treat us to Cavalier Nephew (to follow up Pisces Brother) at a forthcoming concert.

NOLA BB Fan and RRA!-

I could never imagine my kitties tolerating a basket. Yours is special! I've only seen Gish in Birth of a Nation.

RRA1 - As far as paintings are concerned, I'm afraid I have no particular inclinations. I seen some I like in antique sores and yard sales as much as in museums. When I see something that is famous and acclaimed, I find it interesting for that reason, but that is it.

The Captain and JK - I am always amazed at the interesting things I see while walking that I fail to see while biking or driving.


 RRA! - Sounds like a lovely day with Auntie. I am chuckling at how you just come right out and say what you think -  the niece is "funner
than aunt to talk with."

NOLA BB Fan and lRRA1:

I think that you really had to "be there" to find humor in the Dick and Jane discussion. As for favorite authors and books, I don't have any. I just like to read, period. I like Husk Finn and Tom Sawyer. There were some school districts in America that actually banned them as racist. The funny thing is, they were just the opposite and served as my introduction to the concept of racism and its ugliness. I think that some people saw the "n" word and missed Twain's true intention.   

Nicholas and Alexandra! Yes! I first read it in 1990, while on bed rest with pregnancy. I have read maybe a dozen books related to Russian history, but none recently until I  discovered a website called the Alexander Palace Time Machine. I has many resources, with a separate  discussion area, related to all things Romanov. I especially enjoy exploring their relationships with the extended family and the other royal families of Europe within the context of so much intermarriage over the years. (Romanov brides were usually German princesses., but there were other unions with the Danish and Brits, as well.)  One example involves Victoria Melita, who was Albert and Victoria's son Alfred's daughter; her mother was the Tsar's aunt, Marie.  VM married Alexandra's brother, Ernst, Duke of Hesse. They divorced, then she married her other first cousin (also Nicholas' first cousin), Grand Duke Kyrill. VM and Kyrill were exiled for that until the First World War. Goodness. It truly boggles the mind, who was whom and who liked/disliked whom for what reasons.

RRA!, is there a general opinion in Russia of Nicholas II ?  I was under the impression that he underwent a rehabilitation, of sorts, after the remains of the family were discovered.

Can't say exactly why, but  I had no idea for years that Darlin', in terms of lyrics and music, was  a Brian product.

1. God Only Knows
2. Don't Worry, Baby
3. Good Timin'
4. Let Him Run Wild
5. I Can Hear Music
6. Sloop John B.
8. Darlin'
9. Kiss Me, Baby
10. Please Let Me Wonder

We just sat in rows and read, 'Dick, Dick, Dick"out loud until our next turn.

I'd like to see that film. I've never seen Lillian Gish in a "talkie."

That is SO cool to take walks with your cat in a basket! Is this a Russian tradition? I once read a book called The Midwife's ApprenticeIt is about an orphan who survives by helping to deliver babies. She had a kittie who went everywhere she went. I walked with her and sometimes traveled in her bag.

Where do you fish, in a local river or lake?

Does watching horror films without the sound make them scarier? I'll have to try that sometime.

I don't believe that men would deal better than women with pregnancy and childbirth. (I say this as someone who had a miserable twin pregnancy, then endured the pain of recovering from having my belly sliced open to have them. I then had a medication-free back labor for 24 hours with my third son, don't know which was worse.) That was a funny movie, though.

The first book I read by myself and liked was something like Going to the Beach. It was just about a little girls whose family takes her to the beach. It described all of the things she saw, heard, and felt, and in the end she was sad that she had to leave. I could so very much identify with her! The first book I read was Dick and Jane, part of a series of what we call readers. They were created to teach kids how to read in first grade. I hated the book, first of all, because I could already read and it said things like,"Oh Dick. See Jane run. Oh, oh, oh!" Second, in my little mind, dick was a bad word for penis. Finally, I never met anyone who said, "Oh, oh, oh!" A few years ago, I found a book in a store that made fun of Dick and Jane, had a vampire stalking them or something.

We can go without headgear often in the winter, depending on how long we are outdoors. Our worst winter days are probably like your more pleasant ones in Siberia.

I have actually rarely traveled by train (three or four times), bus (same), or underground (twice). Most Americans who do not live in cities have less access to these forms of transportation to get around on a regular basis, most use cars. Besides, reading on some trains/buses/subways is not always safe - people have to be aware of surroundings, depending on where they are. In cities, trains/buses/underground are used a lot more, although many use cars, exclusively. The USA has never had the well-developed, highly accessible modes of public transportation seen in Europe or Russia. My British cousin flew here with his son to visit a university two states away from mine. I picked him up at the Philadelphia airport and we visited. The next morning, he asked where the train station was, thinking that it would have a train that would take his son to the university. In reality, the local train would would go to the Philadelphia's main station, which would have a train taking him to a city far away, where he would get on a train to take him to a city in the other state, where he could get on a train stopping a few miles from his destination. I did read on my long plane trips to/from Europe. The first time I finished several Agatha Christie mysteries!   

So true about roaches. I live in a row house (many attached to each other), and have heard of very fastidious housekeepers having to deal with roaches. Another example of infestations happening, regardless of cleanliness, is bed bugs. The insecticide that kills them easily was banned years ago, so this is now a problem in the USA. Bed bugs are "hitchhikers" that hop on someone's coat, pant leg, or purse, even get into a suitcase in a hotel and are carried into a person's home. They are very difficult to get rid of. I know - it happened to me. Most people have to pay for a very expensive high-heat treatment of mattresses, rugs, furniture, just about everything. Clothes and curtains must be  washed in the hottest water, everything kept separated from everything else to avoid cross-contamination. I washed everything I could in hot water, but could not afford a professional. I did some research and learned that diatomaceous earth kills the little buggers. It is a whitish powder made from the dried-out stuff found at the bottom of dry riverbeds. Some farmers use it with their farm animals, so it was safe around the kitties. I put DE EVERYWHERE (a mess), and within two days the bugs were all dead.

Of the activities you listed, I hate all of them except picking berries! My free time is spent planning lessons and finding cool stuff to inspire my reluctant students. On Monday, we will project a camp fire on the white board and sit on a blanket reading a scary story, using clues in the text to figure out unfamiliar words. If they cooperate, we will eat something called s'mores, a popular camp fire treat made with roasted marshmallows and softened milk chocolate between two pieces of graham crackers. I also love to read. I'm the weird lady reading a book as I wait in line at the grocery store. Swimming is something I like to do every day in the summer, and I enjoy walking in nature the rest of the year. I used to love to travel, but cannot afford to anymore. other than all of this, I especially like to spend time at the beach, a 2-3 hour drive, depending on where I go. What do you enjoy?

Forgive my ignorance  -  my conversion charts show your winters at 30-40 C would be are 86 to 104 F?  That's  tropical temperatures. We have pretty distinct seasons where I live.  Winter averages  30-45 F (-1 to 5 C), although it can be as cold as 10-20 F, typically with 30 or so inches of snow . Summers  average  64 -87 F ( 18-31C), although it can get as hot as 99 F or so, and spring and autumn, of course, in between.

Yes, It's all worth it in the end.  No, I'v never lived with roaches, thank God. This, in spite of the fact that I am not a good housekeeper!

Emetophobia was something I had until I got pregnant with twins. Puking every hour or so for 5 1/2 months (when it suddenly stopped) cured me of that; I had no choice. I guess we were both protected from the teenage-girl phenomenon for bulimia. Other than that, I panic at the sight of or thought of a rat. Spiders and snakes are OK (unless they are biting me), mice are tolerable in moderation, but do not bring a rat near me! Waves, I like, although I've never been on a boat in a bad storm with monster waves. Typically, I find them relaxing to swim in and watch. 

RRA1 -
I see. I meant "icon" in the USA, should have been more specific. I guess it can be taken in terms of the world or within a nation/culture.  You are certainly making me more globally conscious!

I've never met a Siberian, although I talk to many other Russian college students who work in my favorite ocean-side resort in the state of New Jersey. How long do you have cold winter weather?

Falafel is actually a Middle Eastern food (I think originally Egyptian?) that is popular wherever there are larger settlements of Middle Easterners in the US. Essentially, it consists of fava beans or chick peas fried up as a patty and served on pita bread or they may be made into little balls and eaten alone as a snack or starter or put on salads, other vegetables, etc. Often, they are accompanied with sauces that may be spicy or not. Falafel is also popular with vegetarians because it is a tasty, inexpensive source of high quality protein. The flavor itself is pretty bland, but is enhanced from frying in oil and the sauces. I enjoy falafel as long as it is not spicy.