Hello from Russia!

[Flowerdk4]

Surely I know that. We were always "ready to roll" - if somebody offered to come to some seashore, kayaking expedition etc., or just to meet and to play preferance - it needed only hours to get going. But now, when it is not easy to leave our buisnesses, even to go to a bath together needs some planning... (You know, our Russian custom to go to a bath is quite a procedure... We drink beer there, swim in a cold water (if possible - in snow), and spend a lot of time in our variation of sauna, though our is not as dry as Finnish one is... But the main thing is talking, of course).

I did not know that you had more or less the same tradition as the Finnish people taking cold baths in the winter?? We do have some people who swin in the ocean in the winter but I wouldnt call it a danish tradition at all. Its very few people doing that. I have seen that in some east european contries they have these public baths where you can get massages, mudbaths and old men playing chess in the nice warm water. It looks great to me. I wouldnt go into the sea in the winter.

Yes, I get it. You know, it really is very frustrating to do a job nobody needs. In the USSR everybody had a job. Really, everybody MUST have had a job, as idleness was considered a criminal offence, so our unofficial singers and artists had to work as janitors, street cleaners, boiler operators etc. But wages were very low - when our parents and me came to Mejdunarodnaya Hotel to meet my brother who came to visit us for a day or so from Germany, two cups of coffee that our parents ordered costed exactly as much as my mother's pension for a month... That has occured soon after USSR has been demolished, but in the USSR the situation was exactly like that, with Levi's jeans costing more than two month wages, and death penalty (!!!) for private business of selling foreign goods and exchanging foreign currencies...
And quite a lot of workers were doing work nobody really needed: made clothes and boots nobody would wear, as they were too bad, made projects nobody would use etc. And of course people understood that, and that had been very bad on morale...

I can understand that it must be damaging to your sense of moral etc. when it was done like that. And to say that it was a crime not to have a job, thats just stupid and a strange way to motivate people.
I like the idea that there is a use, a need for everybody in a society but not when its put like you say. Thats just awfull. It sounds like a dictatorshipp where the government tried to controll people.

I still have a Panasonic GAOO 29" TV, that I bought in the 90-es, when it was issued... It costed me $US1600 or so then, and I have never any problem with it - the sound is still perfect (and recently, when we gained access to stereo programs, we started to get a stereo sound - that feature of our TV has been senseless before that, used only for tape and CDs playback...).
We have some warranty protection here - but almost never use it: we try to buy only really good things, and they usually never fail until they get morally old, you know...

That sounds good! I dont like this idea to buy and through out. I like to get good stuff which lasts.

I suppose that some really had these intentions, and others just used the idea to obtain what they needed - personal wealth, power, prosperity for relatives...

Yes, there must have been a few rotten apples in the bunch.

Yes, I think they were.
As to liing... I am too lazy, and my memory is toooo bad to lie effectively, so it is not for me, I think.

Smiling, I dont lie myself. I am like you I think. I wouldnt be able to keep track of what I said to who etc. But I find it intriquing when people do, I cannot stop asking myself why and whats behind the lie.
When I mentioned that film by Hitchcock, its because lately a tv canal over here is showing all his very old films, many of them which I have never seen. And it was "funny" that the first one I should see was filmed both in Copenhagen and Moscow.

OK, I will eventually...

Now mafia is not a new problem, but an old one rather... Really, it is not much of what we called "mafia" left to this day. Now our main problem, as far as I see it, is our new people at power trying to rearrange things here... People in the government agencies, I mean...

I am not sure I understand what you mean? What do the new people do? And what are the government agencies?

Flower

 

[Flowerdk4]

I have just finished reading "The Idiot" by Dostojevsky. And then today I saw that you could actually get the book on DVD. Its a russian movie with english subtitles. Check it out: http://www.russiandvd.com/store/product.asp?sku=32166.
You can get a 10 mins preview. I watched the preview and I simply just loooove to listen to the russian language. (not that I understand more than the njet).

I have made a thread about it in the general book area as I am not sure if I could see the DVD on my player as there is something about the different systems.

Have you seen the film, Sergo???

Flower

 

[Kenny Shovel]

Not big - netsuke are never big, as they really are to be weared on a belt, so some objects could be fastened to them - a purse, or a notebook,

I see.

or an enemy's head...

…as was the fashion at the time…

I can send you a photo of these I still have.

Ok, that would be interesting.

... To reorganize all Russia from top to bottom I think the head of state must come forward with a program, in which everything to be done is shown in the chronological order, for example:
1. Taxes are lowered to some reasonable level - to date...;
...........
17. Customs officers are immediately to be fired from their work with huge fines to be paid if caught at wrong doing - from date...;
...........
19.Taxes officers are... (the same as for customs officers)
...........
27. Importers are to be put on trial with huge fines to be paid if confirmed of cheating with customs payments etc. - from date...;
...........
37. Not paying all taxes is to be considered a serious offence, with every official to be thrown out of office with no possibility of any governmental duty again, and every ordinary citizen to be severely fined.

And so far. In 5 years or so we could became a good country to live.
Of course all the possible bonuses for businessmen (including foreign) for fair play should be offered...

How do you like it?

Sure, I can see the sense in the steps you’ve laid out, but I think you need a little bit of carrot to go with your stick if you want the donkey to move. For example, if you are successful in collecting more tax, the money can be used to increase the basic pay of the officials that are tempted to be corrupt. It’s easier to stand by your principles if the weight in your pocket pins you to the spot.

Odessa... Yes, once upon a time it was said that all Cartier watches, that were sold in Russia, were really made in Odessa, along with everything else suposedly of good quality and foreign origin... Odessa were a free city once in Russia - kind of Hamburg in Germany. But all these decades of our "Socialism" and then years of "conversion to Capitalism" have made Odessa one in a long row of places where people know how to produce Cartier watches out of thin air...

Odessa reminds me more of Liverpool, both ports with people who supposedly have their own sense of humour, and a certain reputation. To tell an old British joke: What do you call a Liverpudlian wearing a suit? The accused.

Yes, you are absolutely right - and as soon as I am granted a Finnish visa - I will go there for painful discussions. But our problem is we are really not a European state - so it is not easy for us to make Europeans to deal with us as they would have with a European companies.

I’m not sure it’s a case of dealing with you as they would a European company. I’d say it’s more a case of incompetence on their behalf. Presumably they want the profit they get from trading with you, but don’t seem prepared to undertake their dealings with the correct level of professionalism. Rather than treating your orders more casually than normal, they should understand the situation you are in and make an extra effort to ensure correct loading.
Personally I would start to come at them from the angle of lack of professionalism; if they are a company worth dealing with, then that will be something of concern to them.

 

[Sergo]

I did not know that you had more or less the same tradition as the Finnish people taking cold baths in the winter?? We do have some people who swin in the ocean in the winter but I wouldnt call it a danish tradition at all. Its very few people doing that. I have seen that in some east european contries they have these public baths where you can get massages, mudbaths and old men playing chess in the nice warm water. It looks great to me. I wouldnt go into the sea in the winter.

Yes, our tradition is very much the same, though the main difference is the Finnish sauna is rather dry, and our banya is moist and hotter at the same time.
And taking cold baths is also a very old tradition in Russia: quite a lot of people here swim in Winter. In many of our lakes special holes are prepared, so people could come and get into water, never mind the cold, ice and snow... I never tried that myself, the latest that I swimmed was in the beginning of November: that Autumn has been very warm, and the air temperature was near +5C that day... So after several minutes of swimming and then 20 minutes running to our dacha I felt quite warm myself.

I can understand that it must be damaging to your sense of moral etc. when it was done like that. And to say that it was a crime not to have a job, thats just stupid and a strange way to motivate people.
I like the idea that there is a use, a need for everybody in a society but not when its put like you say. Thats just awfull. It sounds like a dictatorshipp where the government tried to controll people.

So you see it is not always good what looks good from the outside...

I am not sure I understand what you mean? What do the new people do? And what are the government agencies?

Flower

I mean that every businessman here is constantly checked on by the governmental people: ecologists, firemen, taxmen, immigration people, customs people, hygiene people etc. And as nobody and nothing could be perfect, it is always possible to find a flaw here and there. So all these people are usually paid some nominal bonus each month.
More than that, if some discrepancies are found (real or imaginable) in taxes, customs payments - these problems are usually solved by bribes too - from several hundreds dollars to sometimes millions... Usually it is much easier to pay a bribe, as investigation takes usually many months, and to have all your activities stopped for all this time, or only some goods confiscated for half a year means huge losses for you, even if you get everything back after all, and you get confirmed innosent. You will never get proper compensation from the government, and for storing of your confiscated goods you will still have to pay yourself...

 

[Flowerdk4]

Yes, our tradition is very much the same, though the main difference is the Finnish sauna is rather dry, and our banya is moist and hotter at the same time.
And taking cold baths is also a very old tradition in Russia: quite a lot of people here swim in Winter. In many of our lakes special holes are prepared, so people could come and get into water, never mind the cold, ice and snow... I never tried that myself, the latest that I swimmed was in the beginning of November: that Autumn has been very warm, and the air temperature was near +5C that day... So after several minutes of swimming and then 20 minutes running to our dacha I felt quite warm myself....

I could never take winther baths..grrrr.. but I have heard that they should be good for your bloodpressure. I saw a film a looong time ago about baby swimming in russia. That was great and fun to see the small babies swin like it was something they have always done.

So you see it is not always good what looks good from the outside...

Yes I see what you mean. I think its sad that the government could make some good follow up with the idea that there is a use for everybody. I think its better for a person to actually do something and get paid instead of just being unemployed and doing nothing.

I mean that every businessman here is constantly checked on by the governmental people: ecologists, firemen, taxmen, immigration people, customs people, hygiene people etc. And as nobody and nothing could be perfect, it is always possible to find a flaw here and there. So all these people are usually paid some nominal bonus each month.
More than that, if some discrepancies are found (real or imaginable) in taxes, customs payments - these problems are usually solved by bribes too - from several hundreds dollars to sometimes millions... Usually it is much easier to pay a bribe, as investigation takes usually many months, and to have all your activities stopped for all this time, or only some goods confiscated for half a year means huge losses for you, even if you get everything back after all, and you get confirmed innosent. You will never get proper compensation from the government, and for storing of your confiscated goods you will still have to pay yourself...

I see what you mean. That must be frustrating for the employer. Over here we have someone to check out our restaurants and the restaurants have to display the rapport for the public to see. Then you can decide if you want to go eat there or not. The restaurants are usually given some time to correct things if they are not severe. If there is huge problems and the hygiene is awfall then the restaurant has to close untill they get it right.

Did you read my post about the dvd? The russian dvd of The Idiot by Dostojevsky? I am curious if you have seen the film?

Flower

 

[Sergo]

I have just finished reading "The Idiot" by Dostojevsky. And then today I saw that you could actually get the book on DVD. Its a russian movie with english subtitles. Check it out: http://www.russiandvd.com/store/product.asp?sku=32166.
You can get a 10 mins preview. I watched the preview and I simply just loooove to listen to the russian language. (not that I understand more than the njet).

I have made a thread about it in the general book area as I am not sure if I could see the DVD on my player as there is something about the different systems.

Have you seen the film, Sergo???

Flower

Yep, I've seen a large part of this film, and the one before it... You know, it is not the first "Idiot" film made here...
I must confess that the older one had much bigger impact on me. But that could easily mean that I were much softer then...

 

[Sergo]

Sure, I can see the sense in the steps you’ve laid out, but I think you need a little bit of carrot to go with your stick if you want the donkey to move. For example, if you are successful in collecting more tax, the money can be used to increase the basic pay of the officials that are tempted to be corrupt. It’s easier to stand by your principles if the weight in your pocket pins you to the spot.

Yep. Really I left those numbers in between for these purposes, as they are rather obvious... But... You know, to make their wages higher would not do the trick. As the problem is HOW MUCH higher? From my experience with customs officers, they sometimes use their official wages just to be collected together and used to pay for meals and drinks in the office... What they get as bribes is THOUSANDS times more than what they officially earn. To pay them that much is impossible - not because of lack of money here, but because how it would look to others, still low paid folks... And to rise their wages by 100% wouldn't change the situation a bit - as it would be the same tea money for them...

I think that the only way with customs now is to recognise status quo: OK, Russia gets so much billions of dollars as customs duties at the moment. OK, for the time being it is enough for Russia, as with lots of "unexpected" oil dollars we are up to the neck in money - our government cannot effectively spend it, and boasts that our "stabilization fund" - the money just laying in the vaults - is unprecedentally large (what fools...) So after it is understood that what Russia gets in customs payments is enough - our customs duties must be cut down so when paid from the real invoice values they were equal to what is illegally paid now. Thus in one step the situation could be made legal, and with stronger control on the further deviations the whole customs problem solved. (The same may be true for taxes - though I do not understand the situation there as well as with customs).


[/QUOTE]

 

[Sergo]

I could never take winther baths..grrrr.. but I have heard that they should be good for your bloodpressure. I saw a film a looong time ago about baby swimming in russia. That was great and fun to see the small babies swin like it was something they have always done.

Yep, it is a well-known idea here, that to give birth into water is good, and swimming for babies is very good... I am not sure of the first, as there are many cases when mothers or/and children died...
And to swim is good - it made my spine lots of good several years ago...

Yes I see what you mean. I think its sad that the government could make some good follow up with the idea that there is a use for everybody. I think its better for a person to actually do something and get paid instead of just being unemployed and doing nothing.

Yep, so to do nothing really and get paid for it is as bad as to do hard work and don't get paid enough for it and as bad as to do nothing and to be paid nothing...

I see what you mean. That must be frustrating for the employer. Over here we have someone to check out our restaurants and the restaurants have to display the rapport for the public to see. Then you can decide if you want to go eat there or not. The restaurants are usually given some time to correct things if they are not severe. If there is huge problems and the hygiene is awfall then the restaurant has to close untill they get it right.

Yep. And when I worked for some Turkish construction firm, one day a fire man came to us. He went through the building, and said that he orders the work to be stopped on the ground that the metal beams under the roof are not sufficiently insulated against fire. OK, great man, what should we do??? - Easy, says he, here's the guys who will paint your beams with some special fire-stopping paint, and when you pay them for their work - I will allow you to go on... Oh, you think they ask too much? It is up to you, but if you will use some other people to paint your beams - I would not allow you to resume your work.

Did you read my post about the dvd? The russian dvd of The Idiot by Dostojevsky? I am curious if you have seen the film?

Sorry for so late a reply - but please see slightly above...


Flower
[/QUOTE]

 

[Sergo]

By the way, Flower, have you ever heard of a Softline furniture? We got bored with our folding sofa bed, and my wife has found these things by Softline from Denmark. Are they well known at home?

 

[Kenny Shovel]

Yep. Really I left those numbers in between for these purposes, as they are rather obvious... But... You know, to make their wages higher would not do the trick. As the problem is HOW MUCH higher? From my experience with customs officers, they sometimes use their official wages just to be collected together and used to pay for meals and drinks in the office... What they get as bribes is THOUSANDS times more than what they officially earn. To pay them that much is impossible - not because of lack of money here, but because how it would look to others, still low paid folks... And to rise their wages by 100% wouldn't change the situation a bit - as it would be the same tea money for them...

I see, so you think that the problems are so ingrained and part of the culture of the job that you can’t ease people towards a better approach? You think that they must not be given a choice, and examples must be made to make them realise that the ‘old way’ is no more?

I think that the only way with customs now is to recognise status quo: OK, Russia gets so much billions of dollars as customs duties at the moment. OK, for the time being it is enough for Russia, as with lots of "unexpected" oil dollars we are up to the neck in money - our government cannot effectively spend it, and boasts that our "stabilization fund" - the money just laying in the vaults - is unprecedentally large (what fools...)

That’s interesting, I wasn’t aware of that. If they have this money when why aren’t your government investing in the infrastructure of your country? I’ve seen so many places in Eastern Europe that badly need an injection of cash, I would imagine it is the same of Russia surely?

So after it is understood that what Russia gets in customs payments is enough - our customs duties must be cut down so when paid from the real invoice values they were equal to what is illegally paid now. Thus in one step the situation could be made legal, and with stronger control on the further deviations the whole customs problem solved. (The same may be true for taxes - though I do not understand the situation there as well as with customs).

Ok, you’re saying that you don’t mind paying customs duties, just the ‘overheads’ that the custom officers add, which seems reasonable.

 

[Sergo]

I see, so you think that the problems are so ingrained and part of the culture of the job that you can’t ease people towards a better approach? You think that they must not be given a choice, and examples must be made to make them realise that the ‘old way’ is no more?

Yes. Surely the problems are ingrained, as even the students of Customs or Taxes Academies, when privately asked why they had decided to learn to became customs or tax officers, answer that they like to get big money rather than anything else. And everybody knows that wages of tax and customs officers are far from "big money"...

That’s interesting, I wasn’t aware of that. If they have this money when why aren’t your government investing in the infrastructure of your country? I’ve seen so many places in Eastern Europe that badly need an injection of cash, I would imagine it is the same of Russia surely?

It is said that they fear the money could be stolen, or misspent, or mis-invested, or something. So they supposedly let them rot while they just sit on them, like one of the previous Emirs of Arab Emirates, who stored his newly found treasure of oil money in a big room, where rats made their nests in them, spoiling millions of dollars in the process...
It is beyond me why they do not spend the money on something our country needs. When they are asked why they do not spend the money - they say that if they use it to add to people's wages - it would just boost the inflation. It seems our finance geniuses are so unprofessional they cannot think of investing it in production or something useful.

Ok, you’re saying that you don’t mind paying customs duties, just the ‘overheads’ that the custom officers add, which seems reasonable.

You know, we do not mind paying anything so far as after we have paid it we have a profit, and all of us are on the same level - paying according the same basic principle.
But the situation here is that if we pay according the current customs or tax laws, we have too small a profit, nobody would have risked for, as the situation is unstable and it is very difficult to predict the final outcome: if the expected final pure profit is, say, 0,5% of needed funds, plus or minus one percent - you hardly will start the business...
So we have this intricate system, when by using certain techniques it is possible to get additional profit, and I think 99,99% use them here.
As it is quite difficult for businessmen to play fair when there are ways to get more stabile profit than by using legal ways - the absolute majority doesn't play fair. And to change that our government has to close all the possibilities for illegal practices (it is not too difficult, as everybody concerned knows how these practices work), or start hanging people for economic reasons, or call legal what is now illegal.

BTW, I am reading Dan Brown now. It is not too bad, really - I think what he does could be considered as "good women stories" it is interesting, and if you learn not to dislike his many inconsistencies - it is a great reading. And, you know, as I have already invested all the money in three of his books, I have nothing to do but read them... So I think in some time I will be ready to discuss Mr. Brown in detail...

And I will be in Helsinki most of next week. Need anything from there?

 

[Celeste]

just turned up here to welcome you. it's seems a very outstanding place

 

[Sergo]

just turned up here to welcome you. it's seems a very outstanding place

Thanks Celeste and welcome to the forum!
I cannot but return here now and again.
Maybe it will become the same for you...

 

[Flowerdk4]

By the way, Flower, have you ever heard of a Softline furniture? We got bored with our folding sofa bed, and my wife has found these things by Softline from Denmark. Are they well known at home?

I havent heard of them. But then again I dont know many danish furniture besides the big names. My son says he has heard of them. Is it a sofa you are looking for?

I havent been around for a while as I have been busy starting a new job. I have been tired after all the new faces and new routines.

About making your spine good. I am just starting to take up yoga practice again. I used to do it 3 times a week and its very good for your back. Do you have yoga in Russia?

About the russian dvd film , I have just downloaded a dvd decoder on my computer. Do you by any chance know if it will work playing american dvds/region1? as I cannot find "The idiot" in region 2 (europe).

Talk to you later, take care
Flower

 

[Sergo]

I havent heard of them. But then again I dont know many danish furniture besides the big names. My son says he has heard of them. Is it a sofa you are looking for?

Yep, as our old one got too uncomfortable.

I havent been around for a while as I have been busy starting a new job. I have been tired after all the new faces and new routines.

And I just returned from Helsinki. Somehow I do not think I have accomplished everything I planned.

About making your spine good. I am just starting to take up yoga practice again. I used to do it 3 times a week and its very good for your back. Do you have yoga in Russia?

Yes, we have yoga. I tried it 35 years ago for several month (my mother made me). I think yoga could help... Though I do not think I am strong enough to take on yoga now... My own method for many years now - push-ups etc.

About the russian dvd film , I have just downloaded a dvd decoder on my computer. Do you by any chance know if it will work playing american dvds/region1? as I cannot find "The idiot" in region 2 (europe).

I am not a really PC literate person - so I do not know much about DVD differences. But I'll try to get understandable explanations from my brother - he is a DVD genius. He made more DVDs than I have ever seen in my life.

Talk to you later, take care
Flower

Sure.
I want to tell a thing or two about Helsinki, besides other things.

 

[Kenny Shovel]

Yes. Surely the problems are ingrained

Yeah, I thought that would be the case, as even pre-revolutionary Russian literature makes mention of it…I think we’ve talked about that before…

It is said that they fear the money could be stolen, or misspent, or mis-invested, or something.

That seems a crazy way to view the situation, you’re admitting defeat without even trying.

It is beyond me why they do not spend the money on something our country needs. When they are asked why they do not spend the money - they say that if they use it to add to people's wages - it would just boost the inflation. It seems our finance geniuses are so unprofessional they cannot think of investing it in production or something useful.

Weird, they could surely improve your transport infrastructure for a start.

…the situation here is that if we pay according the current customs or tax laws, we have too small a profit, nobody would have risked for, as the situation is unstable and it is very difficult to predict the final outcome: if the expected final pure profit is, say, 0,5% of needed funds, plus or minus one percent - you hardly will start the business...

and that’s not going to encourage foreign investment, you need more stability for that.

to change that our government has to close all the possibilities for illegal practices (it is not too difficult, as everybody concerned knows how these practices work), or start hanging people for economic reasons, or call legal what is now illegal.

And they don’t because you think they also ‘have their fingers in the till’??

BTW, I am reading Dan Brown now. It is not too bad, really - I think what he does could be considered as "good women stories" it is interesting, and if you learn not to dislike his many inconsistencies - it is a great reading. And, you know, as I have already invested all the money in three of his books, I have nothing to do but read them... So I think in some time I will be ready to discuss Mr. Brown in detail...

Well, I think he’s probably the most discussed author on the site, so you should have no problem there. Personally I’ve never read anything by him, so can’t really comment; in general I’m not particularly interested in thrillers. I’ve just finished re-reading ‘Life and Fate’ by Vasily Grossman btw.

And I will be in Helsinki most of next week. Need anything from there?

I’ve already got plenty of fir trees in my garden thanks.

 

[Flowerdk4]

Welcome back home!

Yep, as our old one got too uncomfortable.

Let me know if I can help you in any way. It will be easy for me and I have the advange of speaking danish.

And I just returned from Helsinki. Somehow I do not think I have accomplished everything I planned.

What did you do in Helsinki? business trip? What is your job?

Yes, we have yoga. I tried it 35 years ago for several month (my mother made me). I think yoga could help... Though I do not think I am strong enough to take on yoga now... My own method for many years now - push-ups etc.

so your mum made you do yoga! The yoga I do, does not take much strenght, its more to loosen up tension, making your body more flexible etc. If it have been working for you to do push-up etc., then you should carry on doing it. I have a minor problem with my lower back as many people have, so I need to do some stretches.
I cant help asking how old you are, since you mentioned you did yoga 35 years ago?

I am not a really PC literate person - so I do not know much about DVD differences. But I'll try to get understandable explanations from my brother - he is a DVD genius. He made more DVDs than I have ever seen in my life.

Oh so you are like me. I can operate a computer but I am not a nerd when it comes to how to fix it and all the technical details. I have now bought a dvd where it says NTSC on. NTSC should be an american system. I bought the dvd from an english firm, and they assured me that I could see it here in Denmark. But I had to download a dvd decoder in order to see it.
I would be glad to hear what your brother has to say. It would be much appriciated. And maybe you should let him know that I was able to see this dvd (NTSC). The russian dvd "The idiot" costs like 40 us dollars and I want to make sure that I can see it before I buy it.

Sure.
I want to tell a thing or two about Helsinki, besides other things.

I am all ears! I have never been to Helsinki and besides that I am always interested to hear news from you.

Flower

 

[Sergo]

Weird, they could surely improve your transport infrastructure for a start.

You know, it seems I understand why they do not invest in the construction of our roads, especially far from major cities: our country is immensely vast, and the population is very thin. So investments in infrastructure will do lots of good for people in small villages, who sometimes can come to the nearest city only in winter, when everything is frozen. But as for profit - most of our roads will never encourage business or something, so there would never be sufficient profit... And they fear not to show profit - as they may be themselves accused of misspending the funds... So it is much better for them not to spend money at all.

and that’s not going to encourage foreign investment, you need more stability for that.

And for stability we need foreign investment, and so on...

And they don’t because you think they also ‘have their fingers in the till’??

Yes and no: some (maybe even most) of them cannot bear legalization, as that will be the end of their huge profits, and others cannot bear hanging people...

Well, I think he’s probably the most discussed author on the site, so you should have no problem there. Personally I’ve never read anything by him, so can’t really comment; in general I’m not particularly interested in thrillers. I’ve just finished re-reading ‘Life and Fate’ by Vasily Grossman btw.

Wow, why don't you like thrillers? Everybody likes them...

I’ve already got plenty of fir trees in my garden thanks.

Oh, they have got plenty of things besides fir trees... But maybe the best is their nature. Lakes with plenty of fish, forests with fir trees you like... Errr... Have I forgot something?
Really, I like Helsinki - though it is a shame they have demolished most of their old buildings in favour of modern ones...
And, remember we spoke about that green light pedestrian crossing? Finnish drivers also cross pedestrian's way when pedestrians have their green light. Of course they will stop if you try to cross a road in some illegal place even, and allow you to pass on the pedestrian crossing, but having them to drive when they supposedly have to stay is uncomfortable.

And Finns have a cute thing: underground and internal passages, when people can go quite a long distance under cover - it is very comfortable when the weather is foul, and it seems it is often like that there...

And, back to our problems: it seems the pressure on our import gains up. Last week militia stopped our truck near StPetersburg, and the only problem they found there - were 10 cartons of supposedly Czech goods (planes models), that turned out to be of Chinese origin on close inspection. So the truck has been detained for investigation. After a week of demurrage we decided to meet the militia request for the bribe of $US3,500 - so now the truck is supposedly preparing to start for Moscow, but hasn't started so far...
Oh, if nothing is changed for the better soon - hard times will come for our business...

 

[Sergo]

Welcome back home!

Thanks!

Let me know if I can help you in any way. It will be easy for me and I have the advange of speaking danish.

Thanks again - though I hope that my English would help me in buying or delivering. If I wanted to sell something in Denmark - I would surely need Danish... But so far I can sell only my services, and I do not expect that's needed in Denmark.

What did you do in Helsinki? business trip? What is your job?

I visited a warehouse we use to import goods to Russia. And my job is to deliver goods all over the world. (Mostly from USA and China to Russia, I must confess).
And my wife visited Stockman - it has been the first foreign shop in Russia that she frequented many years ago...

so your mum made you do yoga! The yoga I do, does not take much strenght, its more to loosen up tension, making your body more flexible etc. If it have been working for you to do push-up etc., then you should carry on doing it. I have a minor problem with my lower back as many people have, so I need to do some stretches.
I cant help asking how old you are, since you mentioned you did yoga 35 years ago?

Yep, I have meant not body strength, but rather soul strength.

I am quite young: next January I will turn 45.

Oh so you are like me. I can operate a computer but I am not a nerd when it comes to how to fix it and all the technical details. I have now bought a dvd where it says NTSC on. NTSC should be an american system. I bought the dvd from an english firm, and they assured me that I could see it here in Denmark. But I had to download a dvd decoder in order to see it.
I would be glad to hear what your brother has to say. It would be much appriciated. And maybe you should let him know that I was able to see this dvd (NTSC). The russian dvd "The idiot" costs like 40 us dollars and I want to make sure that I can see it before I buy it.

Wow! So I got everything wrong. I just got instructions from my brother, but I told him that you bought a DVD unit for your computer. If that has been the case - acc. to my wise younger brother - all you had to do were to find a software named "Region Free" and install it to your PC. He also advised to use Power DVD*6 software to watch DVDs.
But as you seem to have bought a DVD player... First of all, our TV system is SECAM, as in France and some other countries. But most of our DVDs and tapes are PAL. So, if your DVD player isn't a multisystem one - I doubt it very much it will be possible to watch PAL disc on NTSC player...

I am all ears! I have never been to Helsinki and besides that I am always interested to hear news from you.

Flower

Thanks Flower, but it is definitely not time for more news now, I fear. I still have to calculate what to charge several of my customers, and do it NOW, so they could bring me cash tomorrow. I just "smuggled" (please do not believe me) several truckloads to Russia...

 

[Kenny Shovel]

You know, it seems I understand why they do not invest in the construction of our roads, especially far from major cities: our country is immensely vast, and the population is very thin…

In Britain the situation is almost the reverse, as we have a fairly dense population, in both senses perhaps…
This can have advantages and disadvantages. An obvious advantage is in advances to technology that require upgrading in infrastructure. Countries like Britain and Japan which are rich and are densely populated tend to be ahead of the game in things like Digital TV etc as it is easier to upgrade any needed infrastructure changes than countries like America and Russia.

Wow, why don't you like thrillers? Everybody likes them...

You seem to be contradicting yourself there… It’s not that I don’t like, more not particularly interested in them. I’m sure I’ve read a fair few books that would qualify as thrillers, some by Graeme Greene for example. BTW, you mentioned ‘The Tailor of Panama’ before and I recently saw part of the recent film version of it the other night. I see what you mean by comparing it to ‘Our Man in Havana’; I think this might persuade me to try John Le Carre again.

Oh, they have got plenty of things besides fir trees... But maybe the best is their nature. Lakes with plenty of fish, forests with fir trees you like... Errr... Have I forgot something?

Pine Trees?

And, remember we spoke about that green light pedestrian crossing? Finnish drivers also cross pedestrian's way when pedestrians have their green light. Of course they will stop if you try to cross a road in some illegal place even, and allow you to pass on the pedestrian crossing, but having them to drive when they supposedly have to stay is uncomfortable.

So it’s not just an East European thing then? Bang goes my ‘Soviet population control’ theory.

And, back to our problems: it seems the pressure on our import gains up.

Did you manage to sort things out in Helsinki?