Twitter

I get blogging, I get facebook, I tolerate MySpace, (I know, I know, MySpace is better for musicians or so every musician friend I have tells me repeatedly.) but with all the web 2.0 options, I just don't get twitter yet.

Twitter seems so.....intrusive and a bit weird. Does anyone really care what I am minutely doing during the day? Is it a way to share you life with friends and family? Is it a way for other people you don't know to closely watch everything you do? Is it a forum for humor or something serious?

The President of Ukraine started a twitter account this week and already the link is very popular. If you can read Ukrainian, go check it out, it's fascinating.

I have to admit I do like reading other people's twitter updates much like I love my friend's status updates on facebook, but I'm not sure if I'm ready to take the step towards twittering my own life.

I imagine my twitter for a typical day would start like this:

9:05: Leaving my home, on the way to the mashrutka.

9:08: Just missed getting hit by a car as I crossed the street

9:09: Just missed getting run over by a car on the sidewalk

9:15: Ice fell from the building but it missed me

9:20: Just missed getting run over by a mashrutka

9:21: Looks like there's no line for the mashrutka! YEAH!

9:22: No, I was wrong, that is not the right number mashrutka

9:40: Some wait for the mashrutka but I got a seat and am sitting down! YEAH!

9:50: Mashrutka is full now and a babushka is leaning on me and breathing heavily. Only four more stops til I get off.

And so it goes........

No, I am not ready for twitter in Ukraine........yet.

What do you think? Do you use twitter? Why or why not?

Remont : A Philosophy

I wanted to take the time to write a proper blog post but I am absolutely fried and starving so you will have to wait until tomorrow. Last night people started banging away at 3am and once I was awake, I couldn't get back to sleep. Remont, (A Russian word that describes remodeling in such a perfect and conceptual way that many English speakers here have adopted it in their English usage.) is an Ukrainian pursuit, that once started, cannot stop for anything until it is finished. Just as borscht is a philosophy, so is remont.

During my travels around Kyiv today, I took some photos. There was a huge demonstration in front of Kyiv's City Administration building. I also took a shot of a group of people waiting in line in front of a bank. The exchange rate today was 8.50 UAH to a $1 and yesterday it was 9.50 UAH to a $1.

Kyiv Skyline

I'm actually not sure whether this was taken in black and white or not......everything has gotten pretty colorless here!

Thoughts On A Sunday Afternoon

It's amazing what a little sunshine, sudafed and coffee will do! Since I am still nursing a slight cough and it is still very cold outside, I have holed myself up in my flat today to rest and recover in preparation of a very and I do mean very busy week that's coming up ahead.

The sun has decided to make an appearance in Kyiv and I am currently enjoying the extra glare of winter sun coming in my window. It absolutely amazes me how just a little sun can totally change your mood!

Winter Photos

Gotta post the winter photos while it's still winter here! It's cold and snowy but the birds are starting to get antsy and chirp more and one of my favorite underground metro devushka stores has cleared out their winter coat racks and set up a rack of sunglasses, so I know for sure that spring is on it's way!

Holodomor Memorial In Ukraine

This week I finally got to visit the new Holodomor Memorial which opened last fall amid a lot of talk and controversy. Some of my Ukrainian friends were upset that it cost so much to build and felt the money could have been better spent in helping Ukrainians who are currently suffering from the economic crisis.

Because the 1932-33 famine is not a widely known part of Ukrainian history, I do think it is good that some kind of memorial has been built. I do think it would also be interesting to have a museum. Apparently they are still working on an underground walk way that will present a short film and information on the famine.

Two stone angels are at the beginning of the walk

A bell tower stands at the end of the walk way. It is much more beautiful and touching when it is lit up.

I really liked the bronze statue in the in the middle of the walk way.

Kyiv or Kiev Hotel?

The Kyiv Hotel

The Only Sun In Ukraine

This is about all the sun I am getting in Kyiv these days. I am really feeling it too! It doesn't help that cold and flu season has hit and I am now suffering from a cold as well as missing the sunshine.......oh well. I have faith that spring is on it's way!

Thoughts On The Crisis

A line of people waiting to enter an Orthodox Church in Kyiv, Ukraine

I know the economic crisis is affecting and changing many countries in the world right now. In Ukraine I am already seeing that the older people are being hit hard. I see an increase of elderly people begging and wandering the streets with bags of their belongings.

The other day I found an elderly lady in the honey section of the market trying to trade plastic bottle caps for money but no one was interested in her and shooed her away. I found her a few moments later gazing longingly at raw meat which was cut up and laid on the counter in the meat section. I gave her a twenty hrivnya bill. She said she wanted to trade her plastic bottle caps for food and I told her not to worry, it was a gift and that God loves her. She gave me a big kiss.

Life Update

I'm not ignoring you my dear blog readers, I have just not had time to blog this week. While a lot of ideas have been rolling around in my head, I have not been focused enough blog-wise to type anything out for you. There is so much going on in Kyiv right now that I truly don't know where I would start anyway! My head is spinning!

This week I had the stomach flu which I fortunately bounced back rather quickly from for a round of meetings but then again yesterday and today I have been experiencing a few minor symptoms so I have been busy trying to catch up on projects I can work on at home. I have been using my internet time to study NGO's and the role they can play in advocacy and am absolutely amazed at the wealth of information that is available for free not only to read about but also found in podcasts. The best thing is that it's all cutting edge and current!

I have a long to-do list next week as well, but I will blog when I can!

Photo Essay: Kyiv At Night

As usual, the people are moving faster than the cars!

Inspirational Thoughts

We have to have faith in God, and not in man. A great many people place their faith in men, and they pin their faith to other people's doctrines and creeds. Not long ago I heard of a man who was asked what he believed. He said he believed what his church believed.

"What does your church believe?"

"The church believes what I believe."

And that was all they could get out of him.

There are a great many in that same state of mind. They believe what the church believes, but they do not know what the church believes. If their church teaches it, they believe it. All the churches in the world can't save a soul. It is not to have faith in this church or that church, this doctrine of that doctrine, this man or that man, but it is to have faith in the man Christ Jesus at the right hand of God. That is the only faith that will ever save a soul.......

Dwight L. Moody - From the book, "Wondrous Love and Other Gospel Addresses"

Kyiv Center At Night

I took this a couple of weeks ago and now wish I had taken more photos. The wetness and lights look cool. But I remember that night was very cold and I very much wanted to be home!

For the Birds

I have been wanting to get a shot of this popular bird perch for a while.....

Kyiv Crisis

The economic crisis is causing some strange behavior by a panicked government.

In a move that is both cruel and strange, people are now being charged to enter a cemetery and visit their loved ones graves.

Random Inspirational Thoughts

On facebook, my friends have gone into the stratosphere tagging each other with "List 25 Random Things About Yourself." This "randomness" is making be feel rather random myself so here are a couple of random posts that have encouraged me this week. The first is from a cooking blog that I have been following to learn more about what it is like to be a chef. Here's a quote from line cook:

"Eventually, you realize that good folks are going to come and go, and all you can do is take care of yourself, contribute all you can, and not worry about anything else. The bad chef always ends up filtering himself out, and at very least, you get to have a laugh or two along the way--or possibly challenge yourself and learn a thing or two. Things become clear for you, and in the future, you can see a bad situation coming--and when you're in a good situation, you really appreciate it. And at very least, you know to go easy on the cayenne."

I like this analogy. It helped remind me not to take working with difficult people so seriously.

(Please Note this blog writer uses occasional offensive language in his posts so consider this a warning that some readers might be offended if you visit.)

The Hugh Hewlitt's post features 25 Random Things Michael Steel and the New GOP leadership should know. (Note: I can't figure out how to link directly to this post so you will have to hunt in his archives.)

The ever growing New Media means leaders are going to need to adjust how they communicate and relate to those they would like to lead or influence. This post gives some pointers as to how political leaders need to change their traditional views of leadership.

And what does this all have to do with inspiring a missionary in Ukraine? I think those of us in Christian leadership also need to understand how communications and media are changing and that we need to adjust how we relate to and lead people as well. It doesn't mean we need to change our message, the Word of God is unchanging, but understanding how the world is communicating and how leadership styles are changing should be something we need to be aware of and consider adjusting to if it helps us lead or express our faith better and does not compromise our message or the word of God.