August 23, 2018

Skyfalls, Sinking Feelings, and Smitings


Skyfalls, Sinking Feelings, and Smitings
Superheroes Save the Day (or ruin it)

1. A plane in Russia made an emergency landing after one of its engines caught on fire. The Red Wings plane had just taken off from Ufa on its way to Sochi when the engine caught fire, and the plane landed shortly thereafter. All of the 202 passengers were evacuated by means of an emergency slide, and no injuries have been reported. Although this incident ended well, it recalls more lethal plane crashes, such as the deadly crash in Moscow this February, which led to broader questions about the safety of Russian aviation. If this incident in particular tells us anything though, it’s that we should pay a bit more attention when the flight attendants review safety procedures: who knows when we’ll get to go down one of those slides!

Airplane on fire

Photo: Dmitriy Antonov

2. Everyone knows what it feels like to lose a their phone, their keys, or a few bills. One unlucky Russian pensioner felt this shattered feeling a million times over this week when he left one million rubles ($14,718) on a trolleybus. Luckily for him, the pain didn’t last too long. The trolleybus conductor notified the police, who identified the now distraught man and returned all of his money to him. Even more luckily for him, these police officers had some financial sense and helped him deposit his money into a bank in order to prevent further mishap.

3. If all the governors of Russia were secretly superheroes, Viktor Tomenko, governor of the Altai region, would be Thor. Or maybe he actually is Thor? In a meeting this week Tomenko chewed out Dmitry Feldman, mayor of Rubtsovsk, for misspending funding meant for flood relief. However, Thor’s hammer only really came down when the mayor was driving home and a bolt of lightning hit his car. The mayor and his driver were unscathed, though the car needs repair (because of course Thor—ahem, the governor—was just trying to give him a scare, not hurt him). How’s that for a good smiting?

In Odder News:
  • A mysterious hairy creature (item? carcass?) washed up on the beach in eastern Russia
  • Russia made the biggest jump of any team in the FIFA world rankings, thanks to its surprisingly good World Cup performance

  • A Russian Church blessed cats and the photos are priceless

Quote of the Day:

“Suddenly, I’m not that keen about flying”

— One passenger aboard the Russian Red Wings plane, speaking as the plane circled with one of its engines on fire

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

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.
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.
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.
Faith & Humor: Notes from Muscovy

Faith & Humor: Notes from Muscovy

A book that dares to explore the humanity of priests and pilgrims, saints and sinners, Faith & Humor has been both a runaway bestseller in Russia and the focus of heated controversy – as often happens when a thoughtful writer takes on sacred cows. The stories, aphorisms, anecdotes, dialogues and adventures in this volume comprise an encyclopedia of modern Russian Orthodoxy, and thereby of Russian life.
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.
Okudzhava Bilingual

Okudzhava Bilingual

Poems, songs and autobiographical sketches by Bulat Okudzhava, the king of the Russian bards. 
Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka

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.
Moscow and Muscovites

Moscow and Muscovites

Vladimir Gilyarovsky's classic portrait of the Russian capital is one of Russians’ most beloved books. Yet it has never before been translated into English. Until now! It is a spectactular verbal pastiche: conversation, from gutter gibberish to the drawing room; oratory, from illiterates to aristocrats; prose, from boilerplate to Tolstoy; poetry, from earthy humor to Pushkin. 
The Little Golden Calf

The Little Golden Calf

Our edition of The Little Golden Calf, one of the greatest Russian satires ever, is the first new translation of this classic novel in nearly fifty years. It is also the first unabridged, uncensored English translation ever, and is 100% true to the original 1931 serial publication in the Russian journal 30 Dnei. Anne O. Fisher’s translation is copiously annotated, and includes an introduction by Alexandra Ilf, the daughter of one of the book’s two co-authors.
A Taste of Chekhov

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.

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