December 12, 2019

Exorcising the Spirit of Upside-Down Christmas


Exorcising the Spirit of Upside-Down Christmas
Putin vs. Ded Moroz: They’re both famous Russians, but only one will give you free candy. Sergei Fedoseev

Quote of the Week

“Yes, Russia is really degenerating. Christmas trees on the ceiling… If you think this is normal and you don’t find this strange, then why don’t you go out in the street with a children’s potty on your head.”

— One VK user reacting to an upside-down Christmas tree

The Dog Days of Noël

1. Putin better watch out, Putin better not cry — Santa Claus is coming to town. After a shaman was sent back to Siberia when on his way to perform an exorcism of Putin, his accomplice Ded Moroz — specifically, journalist Viktor Yegorov — took the reins. Yegorov has been trekking westward from Tyumen since November, with a mission to personally deliver a New Year’s message to the Kremlin. He was detained in Yekaterinburg a few weeks ago, but that hasn’t slowed him down. At every city he’s stopped in, he has picketed with a sign saying “All power to the people.” And of course, he hasn’t forgotten his Christmas duties: In case his New Year’s gift plans don’t pan out, he’s been handing out an early present in the form of candy.

2. In more Christmas news, some kindergarten parents went head over heels for the spirit of Christmas. In fact, when they put up a Christmas tree in the classroom, they hung it upside down from the ceiling. It’s unclear what their exact thinking was — hanging a pine tree in this way doesn’t quite “spruce up” the room. But it’s possible they were trying to copy these Christmas trees — that is, “trees” made of colorful ribbons that you can hang upside down. Regardless, it’s the spirit that counts. Even if you can’t put gifts under the tree, the real gift was the fun all the VK commenters had on the way.

Upside down tree
“Decorating the tree will be… interesting,” remarked one commenter. / ChP Omsk

3. Swedish archaeologists have unearthed an 18,000 year old puppy in Siberia. They’ve been trying to see if it’s a wolf or a dog, but increasingly, they are suspecting that the puppy is from an even more ancient population: the ancestor population of both dogs and wolves. Naturally, this makes this cool dog just that much cooler, and it also means that Russians might have domesticated the first dog. Accordingly, the archaeologists let their Russian colleagues name the puppy. He now goes by the name Dogor (not a pun — “dogor” means “friend” in Yakut).

Dogor
Even after 18,000 years, Dogor is still a Good Boy. / @love_dalen

In Odder News

  • Dirt doesn’t have to be ugly. One Russian Instagrammer has been using the dirt buildup on the backs of trucks to make drawings. He uses his finger as a brush.
Dirt drawings
You don’t even need to watch The Mandalorian! / proboynick
  • A widely used exit from a Moscow metro station was sealed off, but you had to round a corner to see it was closed. Hijinks ensued.

One snarky Instagrammer labeled the video “work” / “drinking beer.” / Москва 24
 
  • Moscow’s former mayor Yuri Luzhkov died on Tuesday. To commemorate his nearly twenty years in power, take a look at ten wacky buildings that appeared in Moscow during his tenure.
Egg house
Who needs eggs when you have an egg house? / Wikimedia Commons

Want more where this comes from? Give your inbox the gift of TWERF, our Thursday newsletter on the quirkiest, obscurest, and Russianest of Russian happenings of the week.

Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

Life Stories: Original Fiction By Russian Authors

Life Stories: Original Fiction By Russian Authors

The Life Stories collection is a nice introduction to contemporary Russian fiction: many of the 19 authors featured here have won major Russian literary prizes and/or become bestsellers. These are life-affirming stories of love, family, hope, rebirth, mystery and imagination, masterfully translated by some of the best Russian-English translators working today. The selections reassert the power of Russian literature to affect readers of all cultures in profound and lasting ways. Best of all, 100% of the profits from the sale of this book are going to benefit Russian hospice—not-for-profit care for fellow human beings who are nearing the end of their own life stories.
Murder at the Dacha

Murder at the Dacha

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin has a problem. Several, actually. Not the least of them is the fact that a powerful Soviet boss has been murdered, and Matyushkin's surly commander has given him an unreasonably short time frame to close the case.
Survival Russian

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.
Woe From Wit (bilingual)

Woe From Wit (bilingual)

One of the most famous works of Russian literature, the four-act comedy in verse Woe from Wit skewers staid, nineteenth century Russian society, and it positively teems with “winged phrases” that are essential colloquialisms for students of Russian and Russian culture.
Fish: A History of One Migration

Fish: A History of One Migration

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.
Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices

Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices

Stargorod is a mid-sized provincial city that exists only in Russian metaphorical space. It has its roots in Gogol, and Ilf and Petrov, and is a place far from Moscow, but close to Russian hearts. It is a place of mystery and normality, of provincial innocence and Black Earth wisdom. Strange, inexplicable things happen in Stargorod. So do good things. And bad things. A lot like life everywhere, one might say. Only with a heavy dose of vodka, longing and mystery.
Dostoyevsky Bilingual

Dostoyevsky Bilingual

Bilingual series of short, lesser known, but highly significant works that show the traditional view of Dostoyevsky as a dour, intense, philosophical writer to be unnecessarily one-sided. 
A Taste of Russia

A Taste of Russia

The definitive modern cookbook on Russian cuisine has been totally updated and redesigned in a 30th Anniversary Edition. Layering superbly researched recipes with informative essays on the dishes' rich historical and cultural context, A Taste of Russia includes over 200 recipes on everything from borshch to blini, from Salmon Coulibiac to Beef Stew with Rum, from Marinated Mushrooms to Walnut-honey Filled Pies. A Taste of Russia shows off the best that Russian cooking has to offer. Full of great quotes from Russian literature about Russian food and designed in a convenient wide format that stays open during use.
Tolstoy Bilingual

Tolstoy Bilingual

This compact, yet surprisingly broad look at the life and work of Tolstoy spans from one of his earliest stories to one of his last, looking at works that made him famous and others that made him notorious. 
Okudzhava Bilingual

Okudzhava Bilingual

Poems, songs and autobiographical sketches by Bulat Okudzhava, the king of the Russian bards. 

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955