You Say It's Your Birthday...

Well...It's His Birthday Too. Here in Russia, Christine shares a birthday with Jesus. Russian Christmas is tuned to the Orthodox Calandar and so every January 7th Christine and the history of the Gospel become a year older. Christmas is mostly overlooked here. It comes a week after New Years, which is the largest holiday thanks to 70 odd years of Communism's influence. Most people, and I do mean most, get completely smashed on New Year's Eve and sleep away the next few days . The fireworks are amazing at midnight, all around the city for 30 minutes non-stop. Other than that, I haven't found much good cheer or sentiment, no rich culture. There aren't any carols, hymns or songs. One famous movie with no redemption story, no angels, no wisemen, no mangers around town. The holidays are another reminder of a nation's lost indentity. But hey, that doesn't stop me from celebrating my beautiful wife's birthday. Happy Birthday, Christine! Ok, actually, she has to throw her own party here. Another gem of Russian culture. It is tradition to throw your own party; this really isn't so bad, because if your party stinks, you know who's to blame. My dear wife slaved in the kitchen all Sunday afternoon making food for the crowd of friends who came over Sunday night. This second picture that I posted of Christine reminds me of her character and of the concept of a Russian birthday party; she is blurry and everyone else is in focus. This is how she lives, with the focus on the rest of us and not on herself. Thanks, babe, for being so selfless in such a selfish world. I love you. Steve-O