February 24, 2022

Bass Guitar, Baby Goats, and a Break for Guys


Bass Guitar, Baby Goats, and a Break for Guys
In Odder News

In this week's Odder News: planting forests as a present, a light thief, and a head-banger's fantasy.

  • One lucky go-getter's dreams came true at an Aria concert in the Moscow Oblast. The heavy metal band noticed his sign in the crowd which read, "I want to play Rose Street [one of Aria's songs] on the bass!" To the boy's shock, he was invited onto the stage to do just that! If you haven't heard of Aria, perhaps you need a refresher on Russian rock.
  • February 23 is Defender of the Fatherland Day, a holiday in Russia on which people celebrate the men in their lives. However, according to a new survey, nearly half of all Russians questioned consider the holiday to be only for military personnel. This doesn't stop the majority of Russians from taking the day off work, however.
  • On the other hand, if you're one of the people that do celebrate the gendered holiday, you will need a gift to give to the men in your life. Luckily, project Plant a Forest has you covered. They are running a promotion called "Trees Instead of Socks," whereby you can pay to have a tree planted in areas affected by fires and natural disasters around Russia.
  • Some people will steal whatever isn't bolted down, but even that doesn't stop everybody. One ambitious thief was caught on film carrying an entire light post home in the Moscow Oblast. Although it remains a mystery how or why the man would steal such a heavy object, we can only hope that he puts it to good use.
  • Don't worry, we didn't forget to add a bit about animals! Several baby goats have been saved from a garbage can in Chelyabinsk Oblast by children that heard their squeaks and called for help. But who would put such cute and useful animals there in the first place? A mystery, much like our light-pole-stealing friend.

You Might Also Like

Buy a Goat
  • May 01, 2020

Buy a Goat

It mows and fertilizes. What could possibly go wrong?
Gender Equality in Gift Giving
  • February 24, 2021

Gender Equality in Gift Giving

Russian women seem to luck out more than their male partners during the spring holiday season, a new study shows. 
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

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.
Turgenev Bilingual

Turgenev Bilingual

A sampling of Ivan Turgenev's masterful short stories, plays, novellas and novels. Bilingual, with English and accented Russian texts running side by side on adjoining pages.
Russian Rules

Russian Rules

From the shores of the White Sea to Moscow and the Northern Caucasus, Russian Rules is a high-speed thriller based on actual events, terrifying possibilities, and some really stupid decisions.
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.
The Frogs Who Begged for a Tsar (bilingual)

The Frogs Who Begged for a Tsar (bilingual)

The fables of Ivan Krylov are rich fonts of Russian cultural wisdom and experience – reading and understanding them is vital to grasping the Russian worldview. This new edition of 62 of Krylov’s tales presents them side-by-side in English and Russian. The wonderfully lyrical translations by Lydia Razran Stone are accompanied by original, whimsical color illustrations by Katya Korobkina.
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.
The Samovar Murders

The Samovar Murders

The murder of a poet is always more than a murder. When a famous writer is brutally stabbed on the campus of Moscow’s Lumumba University, the son of a recently deposed African president confesses, and the case assumes political implications that no one wants any part of.
93 Untranslatable Russian Words

93 Untranslatable Russian Words

Every language has concepts, ideas, words and idioms that are nearly impossible to translate into another language. This book looks at nearly 100 such Russian words and offers paths to their understanding and translation by way of examples from literature and everyday life. Difficult to translate words and concepts are introduced with dictionary definitions, then elucidated with citations from literature, speech and prose, helping the student of Russian comprehend the word/concept in context.
Maria's War: A Soldier's Autobiography

Maria's War: A Soldier's Autobiography

This astonishingly gripping autobiography by the founder of the Russian Women’s Death Battallion in World War I is an eye-opening documentary of life before, during and after the Bolshevik Revolution.
Chekhov Bilingual

Chekhov Bilingual

Some of Chekhov's most beloved stories, with English and accented Russian on facing pages throughout. 
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.
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