December 19, 2019

Tik-Tok Goes the Progress Clock


Tik-Tok Goes the Progress Clock
Let the wedding bells jingle this holiday season! Erika Ashrakova | RIA Novosti

Quote of the Week

“I listen to music and horse sounds in my apartment. I also knock on the walls all night.”

– A man who was arrested for inflicting mental suffering on his neigh-bors. (Pun credit to Moscow Times)

 

Transgender marriage? Rap and roll!

1. Two transgender people got married in Kazan, Russia. The bride said that they encountered no problems because they had already changed their appearance to look like a traditional man and woman, and received new documents that reflect their gender identity. It is unknown whether this is the first case of transgender persons getting married in Russia, though the bride Erika said she has heard of others. First came love, when the couple met two months ago, then came marriage, and soon may come a baby in a baby carriage – the newlyweds are planning to stay in Kazan for now, but may later move to Europe and adopt a child. Shout out to the Russian media, which used their correct pronouns. 

2. The All-Russia People’s Front, an organization founded by Russian President Vladimir Putin, apparently counts teenagers as part of all Russian people. They demonstrated this by creating a TikTok account this week. So far, their focus seems to be on fighting use of snus – smokeless tobacco packets that are placed under the lip. They even enlisted the rapper Ptakh to help convince kids not to “waste their health on dangerous amusements.” The account only has about 500 subscribers so far, but there are eight million active users of TikTok in Russia, spending an average of 39 minutes on the video site every day. Tick tock goes the clock, the People’s Front is wasting no time modernizing.

All-Russia People's Front TikTok
Staying in front of the latest trends. / Website of All-Russia People’s Front

3. Nothing says the Russian holiday season like rolling up to an office party with… sushi rolls? The food ordering and delivery app Delivery Club found that sushi was the most popular large advance order of the holiday season in Russia. They drew the same conclusion from March 8th Women’s Day orders. Clearly, sushi is on a roll in Russia. Just don’t expect the Japanese version: almost all Russian sushi is made with cream cheese, and some even includes chicken and mayonnaise. Continuing the trend of localized foreign foods, the second, third and fourth most popular orders were khinkali, kebabs and pizza. 

 

In Odder News

  • A pine tree saved the life of a 16-year-old Russian girl, whose accidental fall from her ninth-story balcony was softened by the tree’s branches. Who needs birds and pears? The best Christmas gift is a girl in a pine tree. 
  • No time like New Year’s to give yourself a present. One out of ten Russians is planning to treat themselves this holiday season. 
  • A 97-year-old World War II veteran Alevtina Gruzdkova became a poetry-reciting and war-stories-telling Instagram star after she was robbed. She used her popularity to let Putin know she was robbed of justice after the crime. 
Elderly woman World War II Russian veteran
Who says Instagram is only for the youth? / Rambler

 

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

A Taste of Chekhov
December 24, 2022

A Taste of Chekhov

This compact volume is an introduction to the works of Chekhov the master storyteller, via nine stories spanning the last twenty years of his life.

93 Untranslatable Russian Words
December 01, 2008

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.

The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas
October 01, 2013

The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

This exciting new trilogy by a Russian author – who has been compared to Orhan Pamuk and Umberto Eco – vividly recreates a lost world, yet its passions and characters are entirely relevant to the present day. Full of mystery, memorable characters, and non-stop adventure, The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas is a must read for lovers of historical fiction and international thrillers.

 
Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices
May 01, 2013

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.

Fish
February 01, 2010

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.

The Little Humpbacked Horse
November 03, 2014

The Little Humpbacked Horse

A beloved Russian classic about a resourceful Russian peasant, Vanya, and his miracle-working horse, who together undergo various trials, exploits and adventures at the whim of a laughable tsar, told in rich, narrative poetry.

Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka
November 01, 2012

Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka

In this comprehensive, quixotic and addictive book, Edwin Trommelen explores all facets of the Russian obsession with vodka. Peering chiefly through the lenses of history and literature, Trommelen offers up an appropriately complex, rich and bittersweet portrait, based on great respect for Russian culture.

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