Contrasts

Ok, so I was really grumpy this morning for reasons that will remain unwritten. I looked out the window and saw this, sitting there for the 2nd or 3rd day in a row. Fit my mood exactly somehow. (if you can't tell what it is, click on the photo and make it bigger)

Later today, after rearranging part of the office room so I can eventually rearrange the livingroom for Christmas, I went over to the post office. They were only able to get 85 postcards for me, but I got the full 100 stamps. I'll pick up other postcards or cards as I need them during the Christmas season. Shockeroo - as I walked in to the post office, there was one woman with an older child standing at a table putting a box of stuff together (looked like a bunch of apples and other produce to me) getting it ready to mail, and one woman just finishing at the window! I walked right up to the window. Wow!

I went early just in case I had a long line. It makes me wonder - maybe some of the stuff they have always done at the post office before is now being done some place else? Like paying out the pensions. I still see the newspapers, dish detergent, soap and stuff for sale. The head woman there, Lyuda, has not been in the last 3 times I've been there, so maybe she's gone some place else to do that? Or, possibly the next time I go over there will be a line out the door again. Time will tell.

I finished that errand early, walked over to the main bus stop and waited until just the right trolleybus came along. A newer one, not one of the old clunkers. I could have taken several other trolleys or marshrutkas before that one came along, but since I was almost an hour early for the next thing I needed to do, I thought, "why take just any old transport?" ha!

I got off at the bus stop in front of the internaught. Or maybe that is spelled internot. It is NOT internEt, but naught or not. That is the orphanage. I was to meet Melinda there at 4 and I arrived about 3:30. She arrived at 4:05 or so. I knew I was going to be early, and I knew there was no place to sit there, but I figured I didn't want to go back home for just 15 minutes (you never know about getting the right transport, so it's best to give yourself plenty of time - that's my thinking on it anyway).

I did not get out my camera because there were so many people walking by, but a very nice homeless dog kept me company the whole time I waited. I really liked that dog. A lot. I almost called Jamie and Julia to see if they would like a dog. I thought about seeing if Mel would let me keep him, but he was just too big for our little flat. He was obviously well cared for not long ago, but now very hungry since I could see most of his ribs. He kept checking everyone out - are you my master? are you my mistress? will you feed me? But he was not annoying, just kind of desperate. Oh, he broke my heart! I prayed for that dog. I prayed that God would give him a good home. And then I thought, maybe that dog was an angel in disguise, sent there just to keep me company, safe and sound while all those guys walked by. It seems that area has a lot of youngish men in it and while they were probably all safe, who knows? Everyone thought he was my dog because he stayed within 5 feet of me almost the whole time, often standing right beside my leg. Oh - I wanted to bring him home! I apologized to him, out loud, verbally. It was hard.

Then a little truck pulled up, drove around me, parked and two guys got out. I wondered at first what in the world they were doing? Right beside me on the intersection of two sidewalks! Then the driver started untying the big long ladder on the back of the truck and the other guy got out some bricks from the back of the truck (the bricks eventually were placed under one leg of the ladder to make it level while the guy climbed it - no OSHA here, no-sir-ee!). Aha! I'd been standing just a couple meters away from one of those big ugly billboards and they were there to replace the ad on it.

I kind of chuckled to myself because I had looked up at that ugly ad several times and thought many thoughts about it. First - it was for the main guy for the Socialist Party here in Ukraine. Second - the colors were garish to me, magenta and turquoise strips (top blue, bottom pink). Third - his name/signature was cut in half so that the top half of each letter was about 5 inches to the right of the bottom half of each letter. Since it was in script, like a copy of his signature, it was unreadable unless you already knew his name (I did). The back side of the billboard was exactly the same, only not offset. So, these guys started redoing the side away from me, the exact same ad, in non-faded paper. Makes me wonder if there really is an election coming up?

Melinda arrived when they were about half done and we walked away.

I have never been to this orphanage before, in all these years. She has invited me, I just never went. But today I did. It was a special day of recognition for those who sponsor the internaught or visit it on a regular basis or bring in stuff for the kids, etc. Due to the major renovations going on right now, the kids did not perform a concert. We just met them in their 'livingroom' and then the adult workers, all women, took us back into their sleeping area. A table had been set up and they had prepared a little food for us. Olives, pineapple chunks, little mandarin oranges, fish liver and cheese on bread, Melinda brought pumpkin bread, and to drink - Champagne, Cognac and fruit juice. Little chocolate rolls and candy were for 'dessert.'

We toasted each other and ate (sorry, I just couldn't eat the fish liver stuff) and Melinda talked with them while I mostly listened. I was SO thankful - I understood most of what was said. Only a couple times did I lose the train of conversation and then Melinda caught me up. Mostly I understood. That was so good for me! Of course, when they talked over each other I lost it, or when the one gal talked really soft and quick I couldn't follow all she said. But, the three staff were talking to Melinda and me - foreigners - so they were careful, and to two other sponsors who also were there.

Here is a photo Melinda took of me with the ladies and the kids:In the back - Olga, me, Marina, Valentina, Tanya, in front on the far right in green, Oksana. Olga, Marina and Oksana are staff there. I won't try to name all the kids because I don't know them all. Most come to Sunday School, but there was at least one new boy and a couple who had just returned from hospitals that I don't know. Vadim (vah-deem)smiles at me.

So, my day started out kind of crappy, but ended up really nice.