Everybody in Nicolette’s family gets a tattoo of a bull when they are 18, because her last name is bull… but everybody’s bull tattoo is done in a different style that accurately reflects their personality.
Monthly Archives: May 2018
Russian Folk Song
Oh, not the evening is a Russian folk song that my friend learned in school. Amina does not remember what it is about, but these are the lyrics:
Oh, at this evening, at this evening, I was sleeping so little, I was sleeping so little. Oh, and I saw in my dreams… I saw in my dreams, that my horse was crazy under my saddle. Oh, evil wings came from the east. Oh, and took the black hat off from my head. But my esaul was clever, he understood and explained my dream “Oh, you will lose” he said “you will lose your head” Oh, at this evening, at this evening, I was sleeping so little, I was sleeping so little. Oh, and I saw in my dreams…
She learned this song in school when she was young. She guesses it was around the 3rd grade.
Russian Vodka Tradition
When drinking vodka with family, you can’t leave more than 60 seconds between taking the first and second shot.
Amina says that her family and friends followed this tradition for fun, without acknowledging symbolism.
Russian Ghost Story
A man was walking to the woods one day with his dog to collect potatoes. They waited all day but found nothing. At midnight, the two began walking back. But just as they were passing the cemetery, the man spots a figure in the distance wearing white rags. It stumbles towards him at first but quickly breaks into a sprint. As it gets closer the man can see that it is a corpse. He becomes terrified and freezes in place. Luckily, the dog jumps on the corpse just before it reaches the man and the two wrestle. The man, however, abandons his dog and runs home. He never hears from the dog again, except when he goes hunting in those same woods, he can hear the howl/bark of the dog in the distance. It sounds like it is in pain.
Amina’s father told her this story when she was a child, to scare her. He thought it was funny, but Amina remembers being frightened at the time. Many of her friends heard this story growing up as well.
Russian Proverb
“The thief who stole 4 kopecks is hung but the thief who stole 400 kopecks is praised.” Amina and her family are from Moscow. When she was growing up, her father used to say this to her often. She describes him as a funny man who does not take life too seriously. He would say this to Amina as comic advice in different situations. Mostly, when Amina was stressed in school, he would say this to encourage her to cheat.