Good end to the day

Watching the sunset and then an evening of high-stakes Jenga. Knock it over and do exercise.

The wheels on the bus...

....go SCHRRRREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEECH. Yeah, they really do. Several times a day I'll hear the sound of tortured metal echoing off the walls of this concrete jungle. It's the nails-on-the-chalkboard equivalent of brake pads well passed their useful life. And if you're lucky enough to be sitting over top of that axle as they make that lovely sound, check for loose fillings and potential hearing loss.

Three Months

     That's how long it's been since I stepped back onto Ukrainian soil in July. The beginning of this adventure. It seems like so long ago. Ninety-two days actually. I missed the last monthly milestones and wanted to get my thoughts onto the screen on time for this anniversary.

Back In the Saddle Again

     Well, you may have heard through the grapevine that finally I'm back in Ukraine. This week has been a confusing one. My body clock is all messed up from about 31 hours of riding on a bus. The sightseeing was amazing in Krakow. I'm not even sure what all I should say about the visa process other than it was annoying. That's an ordeal that I'd rather not go through again.
     As a review, I had to leave Ukraine for a few days to get my visa sorted out. Americans can stay for 90 days on a tourist visa but then I have to leave. I was able to come back on a 45-day visa and now I'll have to apply for permanent residence if I want to stay any longer.
     Poland was certainly the correct choice for a place to stay. I want to go back and spend more time there learning about the history and seeing the downtown. You saw some of my pictures from there. I could have walked around downtown for hours. At every corner I faced a difficult choice of where to go next. Each alley and side-street held something new and amazing to see. The only way it could have been better is if there were no cars. I wanted to see the architecture and design without the influence of modern steel and plastic blocking my view.
     I got back to Kiev yesterday in the afternoon. I had a few hours to get cleaned up and ready for Bible study. We had ten people, including me, crammed in here last night. I'm still learning about how to lead. Having a study guide is great. But it's also no substitute for listening to the attendees and responding with more questions. Opinions vary greatly among the people who attend. Last night we had two from Big City and two from Liberty camp, along with three from English club and one who was at English walking. Several are obviously Christians. But there are also some who are either agnostic or simply don't believe. So it's an interesting challenge balancing the questions with expectations.
     It seems that Autumn is in full swing now. The last two weeks have been getting progressively colder. Trees are showing their underlying colors before shedding their leaves for winter. It's also been rainy, both here and in Poland.
     That means it's definitely time to start thinking warm. The city turned on the heat this week. My building has radiators for heat. There is one in my bedroom and one in the living room. My landlord told me about a luxury I didn't know about until last week was hiding under my bathroom floor. The bathroom has a heated floor! I will absolutely be making good use of that as the temperatures drop even farther and the snow begins to fall. Speaking of which, that, according to my language teacher will probably happen in the coming month.
     That's all for now. I've got to get back to studying for Monday's language lesson. Unfortunately I didn't get much chance to do that while I was away and now need to play a little catch-up.

Quick Update

     I just wanted to update the readers on some of what's going on here in Krakow. I hit a snag with the visa stuff. Without getting too far into the weedy details, some papers weren't exactly correct. The consulate said I need to get the correct papers to them tomorrow (the 21st) for attempt number two. The 21st is also the day I was planning on being on a bus back to Kiev. They said if they get everything they need, they will issue the visa. I've got a team working on this with me and I'm confident they will do their best. So here's the request for all my readers. Please pray that the embassy receives the papers they need in time for them to issue the visa and that they accept those. I've been praying that it all gets worked out smoothly but I can't expect a cake-walk. I'm hoping this is the extent of the trouble.
     Other than the snag this morning and the bus ride, the trip has been fun. I want to come back here again, probable with someone, to enjoy the city more. It'll be good to be here without having to worry about visa stuff. Then I can focus on the truly amazing sights. I did get out again to walk around in the cold, dreary weather. Here are a few of the good photos I got.

     One other thing I wanted to share was my page views. When I started this blog, I never expected to reach such a wide-ranging audience. I was expecting just people from the US. I should have expected it to contain a sizable number from Ukraine too. But that list has expanded to 10 countries and nearly 2100 views.  This is the list I see when I check the page stats and audience list.

Entry	Pageviews
United States	1638
Ukraine	378
Germany	26
France	9
Romania	6
United Kingdom	5
Poland	2
Brazil	1
Chile	1
Ireland	1

I mean, I'm not even certain I know people in most of these countries. However, it's great and I thank you all for reading. I am encouraged that my writing is reaching so many people around the world. I hope it's encouraging and enlightening for you. Technology is an amazing thing. We can communicate almost instantly with people around the world, sending ideas and questions and pictures to places that would have taken months to reach only a century ago. It's great to be able to use that tool for ministry and spreading the Gospel.
      OK, that's all I have for now. I'll talk to you later with some (hopefully) good news.

Went for a trip...

...across the border to Poland. I'm in Krakow (or Krakov as it's pronounced here and in Ukraine) right now to get some visa stuff taken care of. Poland is a great country for sightseeing. My first impressions of it were dark and foggy. But now that it's later in the day, things have cleared up considerably. For those Americans who want to travel to Europe but want to be somewhere familiar, Krakow is great. I had a quesadilla from KFC for lunch in the biggest mall I've ever been to. Lots of people speak English too. If it weren't for the language, I'd think I'm in Anytown, USA. Of course, much of the architecture is old-world style. Trams still run on rails embedded in cobblestone streets. And there is a massive number of French cars everywhere. But for being the second country I've been to on my own, I can say I'm really enjoying it. For now. That all might change tomorrow and Wednesday.
     The visa stuff (which is the purpose of this trip) is a massive pain. Ukraine's rules for visas say that an American can't be in the country for more than 90 days in a 180-day period. By my count, I had three or four days left. But it was time well-spent. So I'm here cooling my heels in a neighboring, friendly country until Ukraine approves my application for a longer stay. They allow long-term stays for religious reasons (like what I'm doing). Missionaries with the various groups serving in Ukraine deal with this sort of thing all the time. But it requires invitations, approvals, and (usually) leaving the country to get it worked out.
     Speaking of leaving the country, that could be a post all to itself. But since I'm on a roll, it gets to grace the electrons of this post. Originally I had planned and been advised to fly into Katowice and then take a shuttle over to Krakow (where the Ukrainian consulate is). But that thought was put out to pasture. Maybe another time. The team that is helping me has more experience in this than I do. I deffered to their judgement and, so far, it's worked out well. Other than the bus ride, that is.
     I was expecting (HA! that'll teach me) a ride like the one I had in August to and from camp. Nope. I could have done without the SEVENTEEN hours on a bus in a cramped seat. I could have used more than the two or three hours of sleep I barely got. And I definitely could have done without the Ukrainian border guard choosing me out of everyone to take off the bus.
     I knew something was up when he looked at my passport and decided to start questioning the woman who had been sitting next to me for the previous nine hours. They had a little back and forth (of which I only understood конечно) before he finally moved on to get the remaining passenger's passports. On his way back to the front of the bus, he tapped my shoulder and motioned for me to follow. At this point, I started doing two things; asking what he could possibly want and praying. "God, please make this work out with no problems."
     He asked me a question something like this while we walked inside, "понимаете русский (you understand Russian)?"
     I immediately replied with "нет (no)," but amended that to "немного (a little)." That's mostly accurate. I do speak a little Russian but my comprehension of spoken Russian is very low. He had me stand in an office waiting (I presume) for a translator but one never came. I stood there for about 10 minutes contemplating the walls, printers, desks, and the quite conspicuous holding-cells not two meters from where he parked me. Another border guard sitting at the desk inside tried asking me another question but I didn't recognize until later what she had asked.
     The whole time, I wasn't really scared, just a little nervous. I probably should have been scared. I think I was just too tired to be scared.
     By comparison, the Polish border guards were friendly and welcoming. The said "good morning" to the people while they collected passports. This time, probably fifteen people had to get off the bus to go and talk with the guards inside. But no one was detained and we were on our way about an hour after getting to the border. The rest of the ride was uneventful but extremely boring. I managed to get some sleep. It didn't really do anything though. We stopped off at a rest stop for a few minutes. That's where I took these two pictures.

     Finally, after seventeen hours on the road, we made it to Krakow. I later realized it was only an hour behind schedule. But since my phone was still on Ukraine time, I thought it was two hours late. The rest of the day was very good.
     I dropped one of my bags at my hotel and went for some lunch. There is a huge (three floors) mall a block away from my hotel. They have a respectable foodcourt with three American choices (McDonald's, Subway, and KFC). There was even a Starbucks. Like I said earlier, if it wasn't for the different languages most people were speaking, I could have imagined this as being in any state of the USA. I have a sneaking suspicion that a lot of people in Krakow are Americaphiles. The mall had it's own English bookstore.

     After a surprisingly tasty lunch (chicken quesadilla with BBQ sauce and fries on the side), I went for a loop of some of the other floors. Half-way though the second floor, I got distracted by the view out one of the doors and went to investigate. This was my best choice of the day. Outside, I got to see something I've never seen in America. Old-world architecture. Massive churches, city walls, Renaissance-era facades, and central squares large enough to hold military drills. I'll put the rest of the good pictures in the Ukraine pics folder. There are just too many to put here. Plus I'll be taking more over the next two or three days. The whole time I was out in the old city, I kept thinking this would be better if I could share it with someone. By that I mean having someone with me. It's great seeing all these sights but talking to someone about it would make it much more fun.

     I was actually an hour early for my check-in but the lady behind the counter, Klaudia, was very accommodating. I'll spare you the picture of the bathroom (quite nice actually) but the interesting part is the room itself. I could actually take a portrait picture and give a better sense of it's size that with a landscape picture. I'd call it cozy. But the bed on the left is very comfortable and I look forward to trying it out after trying out the shower.

     Well, that's all for now. I hear that Pastor Max is back in the US. Don't let him tell any crazy stories about me. :) And please pray that this visa process goes smoothly. I don't like dealing with bureaucracy so I'm hoping and praying that I won't get frustrated by all of it. I have the forms mostly completed. So all I need to do is get a good breakfast (free with the room!) tomorrow and be at the consulate before they open to get a good place in line. I'll let you know how it goes.
     Have a good week.

Long time

Wow, I didn't realize it's been so long since I wrote anything here. There has been a lot going on but I haven't thought about the blog. I'll update more of what's going on right now later. But for now, enjoy these two pictures. The first is a pair of Jehova's Witnesses outside of a metro station. The second is some construction equipment at a local police station. Not sure what they are drilling holes for. 

In the Territory of Wolves

     Quick programming note. I'm beginning to post photos to an album on my G+ page. The link is here if you are interested. It'll be mostly photos/videos I've taken that weren't deemed necessary to go on the blog. I've realized that there are so many things that have become common to me that would still be interesting to other people. So you now get to see them. And now on with our irregularly scheduled blog post.

Skype Followup

     First off, I want to thank everyone who showed up for the Skype chat on Sunday. It was good to see and speak with you all. It's very encouraging to see and talk with people from home. I wish every one of you could be here to see what I've been seeing and doing. But talking on Skype and writing in this blog is the next best thing. I wanted to write this post just to better answer some of the questions people had. Pictures, explanations, and some more thoughts.
     I got a question on Sunday about shopping and how I do it. While at the grocery store yesterday, I was thinking a little about it. So here are a few thoughts/observations about it. I can read Russian and Ukrainian. The two are actually very similar. The alphabets only have a few letters that are different. That makes figuring out what something is a little easier. I showed the juices on Sunday but I'll use a different example.

(pictured left to right; ketchup, tartar, Mexican, paprika)

     These are four kinds of sauces that people put on food. Ketchup is very popular. People will put it on almost anything. But back to the sauce (never thought I've ever say that). Shopping in modern grocery stores, no matter the country, is very easy. Pictures make it clear and obvious what is in the package. But when you need to know specifically what's in the package, the banners across the front are where you need to go. Russian and Ukrainian share a lot of words with English. They are called cognates. кофе sounds very similar to coffee because they are the same in Russian and English. All of the sauces pictured have cognate names. That's the case for a lot of the other sauces too.
     On a side note, the Mexican sauce is very good on omelets. I made a chicken and cheese omelet for dinner last night and spread the Mexican sauce over the top of it. It probably would have been better inside but it was still good. Also, the paprika sauce is good on rice.
     These sauces are just a few of the huge selection of sauces available at just the one store I normally go to. But how would you tell the difference between Mexican and Italian sauce just by the pictures? That's where being able to read the language comes in. That knowledge makes the shopping process easier. Of course that doesn't extend to everything. If you're going to read the packaging to find out the fat or sugar content, then you'll need to know the language in more detail than just letters.
     The plus side to shopping here is that a lot of products do have English writing on them. Since Europe is a multi-lingual place that includes England, many products carry a variety of languages. Wines and beers (neither of which I drink here), tea, and olive oils seem to be the most common products with English writing on them. But I also discovered curry seasonings yesterday that fall under that category.
     OK, time to switch trains of thought. Coming back from my language lesson yesterday, I was inspired for a little topic to write about. Transportation here, especially the public variety, is only vaguely like what I've seen in the states. The metro is just like any other subway system. Lots of people at rush hour. Some good, new trains and some older models. The buses and trolleys are also fairly standard. I haven't taken a taxi that often but they are pretty standard.
     The part I want to talk about are the Marshrutkas. I've mentioned them several times in the past but it's worth talking about in-depth now. Especially that I'm not as stressed about navigating the city by them as I used to be. Yesterday while going back to my apartment, I realized this was the perfect example of something (almost) uniquely Ukrainian that explains the culture. It's also the best example of why I needed to get over my cultural discomfort as soon as possible.
     I linked to an article a while back (here I think) and it's good looking at it for reference. But it really doesn't give the picture of actually riding in one. Imagine a marshrutka as a cross between a bus and a taxi. They have a certain route and but it is possible to hail them along the way between normal stops (if the driver is feeling willing). They are also cheap to ride; between 15 and 25 cents (in American dollars). And that is if you ride one stop or ten.
     The cheapness means they are popular. And like all popular transportation at rush-hour, they get crowded. Which finally brings me to my point. When I first got on, all but one seat was full so I decided to stand. By the time my stop came about 25 minutes later, I had to push through the wall of humanity to get to the exit. By nature I don't like situations like that. Too many people and I'll start looking for a quick exit. But in the time I've been here. I think I've gotten used to it. I still don't like it but it doesn't bother me as much as it used to. Which is weird considering how uncomfortable it feels to be standing back-to-back with a stranger.
     I had a question about big trucks and off-roading. I'm not sure how it went but the answer is yes. Yes, people do go four-wheeling here. I've seen a convoy of Jeep Grand Cherokees, a bunch of modified Toyota FJ Cruisers, and more than a few Lada Nivas. The latter are popular because they are common but also fairly decent at tackling the path less traveled. See picture for reference. This one is lifted with bigger tires and a snorkel. That kind of thing is standard for someone who wants to get muddy with one of these. If I wasn't a Jeep guy, after an FJ-40, I'd take a Niva. Hatchback and two solid axles. Win-win.

     I tried showing this picture on Sunday but it didn't work. This is an example of personalized vanity license plates here. It say "tornado" in Cyrillic letters.
    I also tried showing what the view off my balcony was like on Sunday but it was too dark. So I took these today. The building in the first one has been in-process since before I got here. It's been interesting watching it get worked on. The black stuff on the roof is (I think) rubber mat for waterproofing. I had to keep my windows closed while they were installing it. The workers painted tar on the roof before rolling out the mat. But to help the mats stick, they had to heat the tar with torches. They must have chosen the loudest torches possible.
     I'm not sure what will be going into the building when it's done. Probably offices or apartments. Although that won't be until at least next year with the pace they've been keeping.

     These last two pictures are examples of some of the improvements that are going on around the city. As I understand it, these are just two of the buildings that have received full murals. It was an interesting process, watching how they were put up. 

     The artists hung off the roof by climbing gear or window-washer platforms for almost a week. They attached styrofoam to the wall and plastered over it. Then they painted their designs. It's a very similar process to how they covered the building up above. Except the foam was used for insulation. A lot of buildings in the area have been getting the foam treatment.

Another Quick Note

For those of you who have been to Kiev, do you recognize where this was taken? It was taken at the top of the hill in front of St. Sophia's cathedral. However, the when is an interesting thing. 1984. I think I like it more than how it is now.

"A time to keep silence, and a time to speak."

     The beginning of this post was written about a month and a half ago. Keeping that in mind, I'll finish what I wrote here and add a little to show how far I've come in the time here and what I'm learning.
     Apparently I've been doing something all wrong. I'm supposed to be outgoing, pointedly inquisitive, and unafraid of being too personal. At least, that's what I should be like to make the next six months a success. Sort of. (editorial note; I had been watching a lot of Top Gear and the last paragraph, in my head, sounded like it was narrated by Jeremy Clarkson)
     Most people who've known me for any period of time will know that I only speak when I want to. Usually that's when I have something I feel is of great enough importance to add. (Hereon out is new material) For the last decade or so, I've tried to live by the mantra, "Better to be thought a fool than open your mouth and remove all doubt." That's lead to a silent streak beaten only by a monk with a vow of silence.  I've never been eloquent or quick with a rebuttal except at the helm of a keyboard. Snappy comebacks, yeah, I can do that. But that's a sense of humor more than anything else.
     The last two months, and yes it has been that long, have been a eye-opening experience. I was informed in the middle of August that I need to be outgoing, talkative, inquisitive, and friendly. In the past, I've been all of those things. But it was rarely all at the same time and never for an extended period. Being here has forced a metamorphosis toward that end.
     In my myopic view of what I thought I would be doing, my interactions with people here would be limited to church and English clubs. I quickly found out that wasn't going to be true. As an American, I have a pseudo celebrity status here. Among certain people, that's gone away. However, with English club, Walking English along with other activities, it still persists. As such, I need to not be the standard Hollywood trope of the withdrawn celebrity. As a side-note, I don't even think of myself as a celebrity. It's not something I've ever aspired to. All I've ever wanted to be was good at supporting roles.
     Now I find myself at the head of classes, a Bible study and even the sometimes center of attention. It's a very weird feeling to have people paying a lot of attention to me. I understand that I need to not only reciprocate but initiate that attention. So along with all the other things I've learned to do, I need to learn the art of the extrovert.
     I could probably write a big book on the concept of being an introvert in a strange land. A whole chapter would be devoted to just stepping outside my door. It would probably end with being driven outside by starvation. Be assured that such a conclusion would also be fictional. But that's not why I'm here.
     Personality has a huge impact on how successful a missionary is. It's probably why I'm still hearing stories about Kristen Lucas (now Clemmer) years after she left. She and I have very different personalities. The main difference is the introvert/extrovert dichotomy. I remember back in my youth group days (wow, saying that makes me feel old) that she was a huge influence on how much fun it was to be there. Her public personality, with a smile or laugh not far away, ensured fun during even the slow moments. What I need to learn and ultimately express is a similar kind of outgoing personality.
     Stretch your minds back to the early days of this blog. I said in the forth post (that only four people have read) that constancy is stagnation. Yeah, I'm not going to always be the outgoing type. Being that guy 24 hours a day, 7 days a week is the quickest way to a nervous breakdown. But sitting in a corner and not talking to anyone isn't going to win any friends either.
     That leads to a question. If I've been here two months already, how have I changed? Self, thanks for asking that. I'm sure the lovely people reading this want to know too. I'm actually surprised at myself. The first night of Bible study went mostly well. I could see almost immediately where I need to improve. It was later pointed out to me also that I need to talk more. I thought I did but I know there were people even in a small group of thirteen that I missed saying more than 3 sentences to. I still struggle with initiating conversations. Small talk has never been my specialty. As host, it's my responsibility to do just that. For the people I did talk with, those conversations went well I think. I still bumble and fumble for the right words sometimes and I doubt that's going to change.
     But the real change I believe started happening almost a year ago. The missions team asked that I lead a Sunday school to gain experience. It was a great suggestion. Being a teacher for a week at English camp would never have prepared me for what I'm doing now. Teaching Sunday school gave me the confidence to lead even when I wasn't confident about what to say. Not everything that needs to be said has to come out of my head. I have an excellent study guide to teach from. Plus I have the best book of all to point them back to when I can't think of the right words to say.
     However, the best part of all this experience so far though is that I constantly see where I can improve. Ukrainians aren't shy either about giving compliments or constructive criticism either. Nothing can break your confidence or build it up faster than the directness of a Ukrainian. American's have to understand, Ukrainians are honest and direct. They act as if beating around the bush would get them jailed for chlorophyll abuse.
     So how does all that wrap up into a neat, little nugget of informative goodness? It's this. I'm being daily stretched, shaped, molded, prodded, formed and cajoled into a shape that I never thought I would be. And it's not some svelte or Arnold Schwarzenegger physique either. I still enjoy "me time." I still spend the majority of my time on my own or in my own head. But the time I do spend with others needs to be in an extrovert's shoes.

(Pictured above for reference: an introvert's shoes. Can you guess which one's they are?)

That time spent with others should be about them. Not about the photons beaming into my eyeballs from my smartphone or the intricate details of the dirt under my fingernails. This whole trip is predicated upon the idea that I'm here to spread the Gospel. I'm here to be light in the darkness. I'm here to share the Hope that I have with everyone who doesn't have it. I won't be able to do that if I don't make the first steps of breaking through my own warm, cozy, little world and go out and talk to someone.


     BONUS ROUND: I heard this back when I went to LeTourneau University. I make no claims to the levels of funny contained herewithin.
Q. What's the difference between an introverted engineer and an extroverted engineer?
A. Introverted engineers stare at their own shoes while extroverted engineers stare at other people's shoes.



     As a side and totally unrelated note, I wish I could write fiction as often and verbose as I write posts in this blog. I might be able to get all the stories in my head out for public consumption.

"At 7 PM a main hatchway caved in...

...He said, 'fellas it's been good to know ya!'" Well....that's not really what happened. On the ship or here for that matter.
     I actually got really lucky today. My language tutor had a teacher's meeting and we decided to postpone the lesson until tomorrow. It gave me some more time to study and also prepare for the study. I'm beginning to see why being a missionary is a full-time job. With all the studying, meetings, classes, and teaching, it's extra work just to find personal time. I can imagine it's even harder with a family and the duties that entails.
     The study went well, I think. There are a lot of little details that I can improve on as the weeks go by. I need to rephrase the questions to make them more simple. Many of the people from the study are not believers. I'll need to tailor some of the questions to make it easier for them to understand. Also, the food needs improving. We had enough this time (barely) but I learned a valuable lesson with that. God created women to be great logistical minds. They know a lot more about preparation and quantity than I do.
     I'm using a study guide created by Intervarsity Press. It has twelve chapters that each take a section of Ecclesiastes and focus on it. The first chapter focused on the first eleven verses of the book. It's a pretty bleak section to start off on. But it sets the tone for the rest of the book. The study guide is written for college-age Christians. So I have to cut and edit on the fly to help make some concepts and points clearer to a person who hasn't had the same background as me. But I just walked them through the questions, with Marina translating, and tried to get them to answer what they could. I'll have to start picking on them by name to get some of the quieter people to talk. Ultimately, I left them with a question to think about until next week. If there is nothing that brings meaning, what resources can you rely on to bring hope to your situation? I got some interesting answers like "hope" and "a positive attitude." But I'd like to see what they come up with over the next week.
      By the way, it wasn't 7PM that my "main hatchway" caved in. Nor did it cave it. But I was surprised at the number of people who showed up. I knew ahead of time that a few members of Big City would be there. Like normal, they are there to facilitate things (logistics, translation, etc). Marina was my translator for the night but Yuri and Dasha (from Walking English) were there as well. In total, we had thirteen people, including me. I was only expecting four or five. Two were people who I had not met before. The rest were veterans of Liberty camp either from 2014 or 2015. 
     That's about all I have for now. We'll be meeting again same time, same place one Thursday the 8th. And for those who are interested, here is the advertisement (badly translated by Google) that Pastor Max made for the first Bible study.

Hello, hello! Tomorrow at 19.00 we attack first apartment and the refrigerator and Brian at st. Lviv, 22, kv.53, 12th floor (see the map below and tell the concierge that you are in 53rd for an American to visit). In the program: Deep Dive Brian in Ukrainian reality - a flash mob to surprise Brian: Remember! !!! Everyone who comes immediately excitedly asks Brian "Where is your food?" He goes to the kitchen (not Razuvious) and looks in the refrigerator. Then indignantly says Brian: "Yeah, you got a mouse hanged. Well, go read Ecclesiastes!" Tea and sandwiches start at 19:00 - do not be late! Then we discuss the book of Ecclesiastes. - EDIT 10/2/15: "Razuvious should actually read "without taking off your shoes."

      And enjoy this photo I took. From left to right are Yuri, Olya, Alina, Dasha, Bogdona, and Zhenya. This was taken before we started.