August 31, 2017

Burger Bucks, Dyeing of Shame, and Flying Ballerinas


Burger Bucks, Dyeing of Shame, and Flying Ballerinas
Dollars, Dyes, and Summertime Snow

1. Burger King in Russia has launched its own cryptocurrency, titled the WhopperCoin. Working with the block platform Waves, Burger King issued one billion WhopperCoins, which burger eaters can get by scanning their receipt. The company expects the coins to work like a loyalty program at first, and eventually expand (just don’t push your luck trying to buy a Big Mac with a WhopperCoin).

2. If you don’t have enough green, just dye your face green. Apparently, two Khabarovsk taxi drivers forced two young women to do just that when they didn’t have enough money for their ride. The two drivers were fired after the taxi drivers’ union called for their dismissal, condemning their “medieval methods.” The bright green antiseptic, known as zelyonka, is not harmful, but is hard to remove. Reason enough to think twice before you try to bum a free ride.

3. Winter is coming. In fact, winter has already come to Sakha, Yakutia, and other regions of Siberia and the far north, which apparently decided to skip fall and head straight into a wintry wonderland. Yakutia’s northern reaches also got a dose of snow in mid-July, and regions around Russia have been experiencing severe storms and colder-than-average temperatures. Worst of all, the August snowfall fuels the stereotype of always-snowy Russia. What’s next, a barrage of balalaika-playing bears?

In Odder News

  • The history of salt. A single painting. Death. Check out Russia’s weirdest museums.
  • The first Sunday of every September, up to 10,000 reenactors recreate the Battle of Borodino. Learn about the important military history of this otherwise peaceful field of grass and wildflowers.
Quote of the Week

"The summer has not ended, and it's winter already."
—Alexander, a resident of Yakutia, on the snowfall that hit his region this weekend.

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Fish

This mesmerizing novel from one of Russia’s most important modern authors traces the life journey of a selfless Russian everywoman. In the wake of the Soviet breakup, inexorable forces drag Vera across the breadth of the Russian empire. Facing a relentless onslaught of human and social trials, she swims against the current of life, countering adversity and pain with compassion and hope, in many ways personifying Mother Russia’s torment and resilience amid the Soviet disintegration.

Jews in Service to the Tsar
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Jews in Service to the Tsar

Benjamin Disraeli advised, “Read no history: nothing but biography, for that is life without theory.” With Jews in Service to the Tsar, Lev Berdnikov offers us 28 biographies spanning five centuries of Russian Jewish history, and each portrait opens a new window onto the history of Eastern Europe’s Jews, illuminating dark corners and challenging widely-held conceptions about the role of Jews in Russian history.

Survival Russian
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Survival Russian

Survival Russian is an intensely practical guide to conversational, colloquial and culture-rich Russian. It uses humor, current events and thematically-driven essays to deepen readers’ understanding of Russian language and culture. This enlarged Second Edition of Survival Russian includes over 90 essays and illuminates over 2000 invaluable Russian phrases and words.

Murder at the Dacha
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Murder at the Dacha

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Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices
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Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices

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At the Circus
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At the Circus

This wonderful novella by Alexander Kuprin tells the story of the wrestler Arbuzov and his battle against a renowned American wrestler. Rich in detail and characterization, At the Circus brims with excitement and life. You can smell the sawdust in the big top, see the vivid and colorful characters, sense the tension build as Arbuzov readies to face off against the American.

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