today my basketball team played our arch rivals tulpar in a much anticipated rematch from a game early in the where we were destroyed by 20 points. it was the game that caused the former coach of the team to get fired. i was hired the next week.
we went into the game fairly confident having won my previous two games as coach. i had some concerns about our defense and our rebounding (both ongoing problems) but the team "seemed" ready. i was probably a little over confident as i invited a big group of our friends to come and watch and go out for a victory dinner afterward. bad idea on my part.
the national sports palace where we play our games was packed with about 500 people. ok... admittedly most people where there to watch the interpretative dance competition taking place on the next court! but we had a pretty good crowd ourselves with about 150 people. the two courts are divided by a hanging screen and we were forced to listen to a combination of classical music and russian love ballads being blared for the dancers during the entire game.
i would like to blame the music for the way we played the first half of the game. we started very strong - attacking the basket and getting some good looks. we opened up with a press that rattled tulpar. everything was going our way. except for the fact that we missed 5 out of our first 7 shots (most of them layups) and 8 (yes 8) free throws in a row. the crowd moaned each time we missed an open shot or clanked a free throw - to the extent that it really started getting into the minds of my team and snowballing. we should have been up by 10 in the opening minutes but instead we were down 10.
by half we were down by 30.
the team owner and former coach were irate and they both came into the locker room to yell at my team. that isn't really my style - so instead i brought jennifer and olive into the locker room and introduced them to the team for the first time. "see my beautiful family?" i said. "that is what is important. remember that and remember that this is just a game. go have fun.".
my touchy feely speech must have worked as we opened the half on an amazing 20 - 5 run. we started to do the little things that i had been emphasizing in practice. we were well on our way to making an incredible comeback. but we didn't.
things leveled out in the third quarter and we ended up losing by 19. a one point improvement from the first time ak-bars played tulpar. i am not sure that is exactly what the mafia financed team owner had in mind when he hired me. but i didn't end up gagged and in the back of his trunk so guess i will survive to coach another game.
we have another big game against the number 3 team in the league next week so we have lots of work to do.
Saturday, January 23, 2010
Thursday, January 21, 2010
the camel flu
i missed work on thursday and today. just feeling too, too sick. the whole family went to the doctor on wednesday. doctor arena diagnosed me with bronchitis and laryngitis. olive has a mild upper respiratory infection. jen is the only healthy one.
dr. arena said i should stay home from school as i am contagious (which makes me worry about olive) and she wrote me a note to give to my director.
she also gave me a list of about 10 different medicines to take. we will see how that goes.
i am feeling horrible and have been sleeping on the couch for the past week as every time i lay down i cough up an intestine. better to only keep boone up (who is sharing the couch with me) than to keep jen and olive up.
as bad as i feel (enough to miss work) somehow i imagine that i am going to feel well enough today to make both the morning and evening basketball practice in preparation for our big game tomorrow.
dr. arena said i should stay home from school as i am contagious (which makes me worry about olive) and she wrote me a note to give to my director.
she also gave me a list of about 10 different medicines to take. we will see how that goes.
i am feeling horrible and have been sleeping on the couch for the past week as every time i lay down i cough up an intestine. better to only keep boone up (who is sharing the couch with me) than to keep jen and olive up.
as bad as i feel (enough to miss work) somehow i imagine that i am going to feel well enough today to make both the morning and evening basketball practice in preparation for our big game tomorrow.
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
on the job front
we still haven't heard anything from qsi regarding what options we have for next year. we know we can be back here in bishkek if we want (which a very good option). marykay has also lead us to believe that qsi is going to give us something good... we will see.
the job in jordan is on the back burner. doesn't look like the tentative positions are going to open. we have heard so many good things about amman but i wouldn't be really excited to be a full time math teacher.
no news on the job in tanzania which in many ways would be our first choice outside of staying with qsi. they said we would hear from the before the end of the month.
we also have received some good feedback and interest from the international school in mali (west africa). from what i have researched it is fairly third world there and has some security concerns we would have to reconcile before considering the job - but the job itself is great. i would be the athletic director and take teams to tournaments all over africa.
international job fairs (which we are not attending) are going on during the next month so we won't know anything until after they happen i imagine.
the job in jordan is on the back burner. doesn't look like the tentative positions are going to open. we have heard so many good things about amman but i wouldn't be really excited to be a full time math teacher.
no news on the job in tanzania which in many ways would be our first choice outside of staying with qsi. they said we would hear from the before the end of the month.
we also have received some good feedback and interest from the international school in mali (west africa). from what i have researched it is fairly third world there and has some security concerns we would have to reconcile before considering the job - but the job itself is great. i would be the athletic director and take teams to tournaments all over africa.
international job fairs (which we are not attending) are going on during the next month so we won't know anything until after they happen i imagine.
Monday, January 18, 2010
a foot of snow
we woke to at least of foot of snow this morning with more coming down. our backyard/driveway looked like something out of a christmas postcard. the trees draped in white. the ground soft and quiet like a feather bed. it was so peaceful and tranquil walking outside first thing in the morning with not a disrupting footprint to be found or sound to be heard.
and then i let boone out.
all i can say is that crazy dog loves, loves, loves snow. he was leaping and bounding his way around the yard kicking up a storm of snow everywhere he went. it was so much fun watching him frolic. especially when he would build up some speed while running and then try to stop and change direction as he ended up sliding into fences, trees, bushes and our car.
and then i let boone out.
all i can say is that crazy dog loves, loves, loves snow. he was leaping and bounding his way around the yard kicking up a storm of snow everywhere he went. it was so much fun watching him frolic. especially when he would build up some speed while running and then try to stop and change direction as he ended up sliding into fences, trees, bushes and our car.
Saturday, January 16, 2010
dinner at nancy's
last night we went to dinner at my friend nancy's house. nancy is a 50 something year old woman who has lived pretty much all over the world. she works for the united states justice department based out of the embassy here in bishkek. her main job is to work with local lawyers and judges to help them emulate the good processes of the democratic justice system we practice back in the states. on some level pretty basic stuff - miranda rights, due process, innocent until proven guilty (all the stuff we don't practice at guantanamo bay). but here those things are pretty cutting edge as they are not rights which were afforded people here under soviet rule. so she pretty much has one of those under the radar very important jobs that does bring about positive change.
as she has lived all around the world her apartment is not like the typical bland embassy housing. it is full of art work and rugs from every bazaar between africa and southeast asia. pretty inspiring to think about living in all those places.
i know nancy from charlie (who is now in dhaka) and she played tennis with us quite often last year. tonight was the first time that she had met jennifer and of course olive. we also met for the first time a new justice department couple new to bishkek - dan and irene. really good, funny people. we are excited to add them to our community here.
the food was amazing, the wine was flowing and the conversation was really good. but as the case pretty much everywhere we go these days - all that took a back seat to olive who joyously ruled the evening!
as she has lived all around the world her apartment is not like the typical bland embassy housing. it is full of art work and rugs from every bazaar between africa and southeast asia. pretty inspiring to think about living in all those places.
i know nancy from charlie (who is now in dhaka) and she played tennis with us quite often last year. tonight was the first time that she had met jennifer and of course olive. we also met for the first time a new justice department couple new to bishkek - dan and irene. really good, funny people. we are excited to add them to our community here.
the food was amazing, the wine was flowing and the conversation was really good. but as the case pretty much everywhere we go these days - all that took a back seat to olive who joyously ruled the evening!
ak bars
my 'professional' basketball team had it's second game with coach conover at the helm this afternoon. we played one of the lower level teams in our league and came out with a fairly easy 102-62 victory. the team has really taken to the new offense that i have taught them and they are really playing well. moving without the ball... setting screens... taking the best, open shot. things aren't going so well on the other side of the ball. our defense is porous at best. my guys don't help out. they don't rebound well (and we are a pretty tall team). and they don't put forth much effort. i tried the old "chuck hayes" inspiration speech but it didn't translate too well into russian i think.
either way. next saturday we play our rivals (and the number one team in the league) tulpar. the coach i replaced mid-season was fired after having lost to tulpar. so there is no pressure there!
on a side note - friday night i met with the team's owner and the league's vice president to talk about my contract. they offered to pay me $1000 a month to coach the team. but they are deducting money for the three day time practices and two weight lifting sessions that i miss when i am working at the school. so that knocks the amount down to $300 a month. doesn't sound like much but when you think about that the average monthly salary of a local here is around $350 a month - i can't complain. the owner of my team is self proclaimed russian mafia and i thought for that i was going to be offered girls, drugs and cigarettes in lieu of cash payment. maybe i will hold out for that on my next contract. i am suppose to receive the official contract and my first pay (for the past two months) at the end of next week. at which point i will be an official member of the russian basketball federation and a professional basketball coach.
i love central asia!
either way. next saturday we play our rivals (and the number one team in the league) tulpar. the coach i replaced mid-season was fired after having lost to tulpar. so there is no pressure there!
on a side note - friday night i met with the team's owner and the league's vice president to talk about my contract. they offered to pay me $1000 a month to coach the team. but they are deducting money for the three day time practices and two weight lifting sessions that i miss when i am working at the school. so that knocks the amount down to $300 a month. doesn't sound like much but when you think about that the average monthly salary of a local here is around $350 a month - i can't complain. the owner of my team is self proclaimed russian mafia and i thought for that i was going to be offered girls, drugs and cigarettes in lieu of cash payment. maybe i will hold out for that on my next contract. i am suppose to receive the official contract and my first pay (for the past two months) at the end of next week. at which point i will be an official member of the russian basketball federation and a professional basketball coach.
i love central asia!
Monday, January 11, 2010
back to work - a note from jen's blog
Back to Work
I went back to work today. Going back to work itself was not a stress at all. I just couldn't bear the thought of leaving Olivia. Nina brought Olivia to the school right when Olivia woke up. It was perfect. She arrived happy. She visited me and we had lunch together. She napped. Dave drove Nina, Olivia, and I home and Olivia napped again after our walk to the store.While I was at work, my director gave me the best news ever (it might have helped that she is pregnant)...she told me that Olivia could be at school with me the whole day. I can't believe it.
I don't want to miss a thing because it seems like every day Olivia is doing something miraculous!
Olivia is intentionally grabbing for things and when we go to kiss her face she puts her
arms out in front like she is trying to stop us. It's so cute because she is smiling the whole time. She's been such a ham lately! She turns her head away while she's smiling like she's shy.
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
culture shock
we've arrived back home in bishkek. nothing like rolling into central asia at 500am in the morning. being herded into a dark room with a jet full of other weary passengers. being forced to walk by a "swine flu detection camera/device" not once but twice. and then having to fight crowds of people (who have no regard for the fact we are toting a four month old baby with us) through customs. oh... and the computers were not working so the customs officials were having to enter everything manually.
needless to say returning to kyrgyzstan was a culture shock after two weeks in central europe.
we are all safe and sound although olive already misses the road. boone nearly had a heart attack upon seeing us and still hasn't calmed down nearly 24 hours later. nina was at the house when we arrive (around 700am) and immediately tried to make jen a heap of blinneys.
obviously i am quite a few days behind on the blog and will try to get caught up before the end of the week. we have to return to work on monday and jen is already fretting it. basketball practice starts up again this week. my masters program has started up again.
good bye vacation hello real world.
no complaints though. we are pretty blessed.
needless to say returning to kyrgyzstan was a culture shock after two weeks in central europe.
we are all safe and sound although olive already misses the road. boone nearly had a heart attack upon seeing us and still hasn't calmed down nearly 24 hours later. nina was at the house when we arrive (around 700am) and immediately tried to make jen a heap of blinneys.
obviously i am quite a few days behind on the blog and will try to get caught up before the end of the week. we have to return to work on monday and jen is already fretting it. basketball practice starts up again this week. my masters program has started up again.
good bye vacation hello real world.
no complaints though. we are pretty blessed.
last days
the last days of our trip were a blur. kerstin drove us to munich. the drive was only suppose to be two and a half hours yet somehow ended up lasting almost six when all was said and done. might have had something to do with the 'shortcut' through the countryside to avoid the autobahn we took. or perhaps it was our one hour stop at a burger king. or maybe the three times we stopped because olive was protesting car travel. or maybe it was the two hour layover in ikea. by the time that kerstin dumped us off at some random tram station - it was almost dark. we said our goodbyes (we hope to see you again soon kerstin!) and took the tram into central munich where we met up with katja and thomas our local couch surfing hosts.
katja and thomas were a super nice couple. she is five months pregnant with their first child. they both have the travel bug like jennifer and i do and were curious to know what it was like to travel with a new born as they hope to do it as well.
after we got settled in we headed into old town munich where they showed us the sights and then we went to one of the famous bavarian beer halls for dinner (and the world's least attentive and most rude waitresses).
we had hoped to stay in munich for two days but decided it was better to head back to vienna early the next afternoon. another long train ride. more wandering around in the dark looking for our night's lodging (this time in youth hostel). we ate dinner from the hostel's bar and squatted in the room for the night instead of getting out to explore on our last evening in europe. we were all three exhausted by this point.
tomorrow morning we have to get up early to hitch a ride to the airport for our 1100am flight. along the way we need to buy some diapers for our daughter who has run out.
katja and thomas were a super nice couple. she is five months pregnant with their first child. they both have the travel bug like jennifer and i do and were curious to know what it was like to travel with a new born as they hope to do it as well.
after we got settled in we headed into old town munich where they showed us the sights and then we went to one of the famous bavarian beer halls for dinner (and the world's least attentive and most rude waitresses).
we had hoped to stay in munich for two days but decided it was better to head back to vienna early the next afternoon. another long train ride. more wandering around in the dark looking for our night's lodging (this time in youth hostel). we ate dinner from the hostel's bar and squatted in the room for the night instead of getting out to explore on our last evening in europe. we were all three exhausted by this point.
tomorrow morning we have to get up early to hitch a ride to the airport for our 1100am flight. along the way we need to buy some diapers for our daughter who has run out.
Friday, January 1, 2010
new years day
happy new years everyone.
we had a nice quite (with the exception of the crazy amount of fireworks being shot off by every german) new years eve. we cooked dinner together on a __________ (i have no idea what you call the thing - it has a grill on top and little trays underneath were everyone can bake their own veggies, etc) which was great. we would love to have on of the ___________ at home because they are perfect for entertaining friends. the girls were asleep by this point and the three of us (kerstin, jen and myself) found ourselves reading and lounging on the couch looking at the clock wondering if we could stay away until midnight!
as the new year got closer, we each shared our highs and lows of the past year (i am pretty sure you can guess ours - olive being born and my dad dying) as well as our resolutions for the coming year.
it was a good way to bring in the new year. sharing good conversation with my best friend (that would be you jenny) and someone who we know who will be our friend for years to come.
on the first we spent another full day with kerstin. went to lunch up in the albs (the local mountain range... it isn't a misspelling. the name is 'albs' not alps) with kerstin's family. ate so much wiener schnitzel that it is dripping out of my pours. but i am happy. afterward we went on about an hour walk (i think we were actually lost for a little bit) along some trekking paths outside of the restaurant. i carried olive most of the way and loved feeling her sleep up against my chest and neck as she slept.
we are slowly making our way back to vienna tomorrow. kerstin is going to drive us to munich (about 2.5 hours away) where we will spend one night before heading into austria. the trip is coming to quick close...
we had a nice quite (with the exception of the crazy amount of fireworks being shot off by every german) new years eve. we cooked dinner together on a __________ (i have no idea what you call the thing - it has a grill on top and little trays underneath were everyone can bake their own veggies, etc) which was great. we would love to have on of the ___________ at home because they are perfect for entertaining friends. the girls were asleep by this point and the three of us (kerstin, jen and myself) found ourselves reading and lounging on the couch looking at the clock wondering if we could stay away until midnight!
as the new year got closer, we each shared our highs and lows of the past year (i am pretty sure you can guess ours - olive being born and my dad dying) as well as our resolutions for the coming year.
it was a good way to bring in the new year. sharing good conversation with my best friend (that would be you jenny) and someone who we know who will be our friend for years to come.
on the first we spent another full day with kerstin. went to lunch up in the albs (the local mountain range... it isn't a misspelling. the name is 'albs' not alps) with kerstin's family. ate so much wiener schnitzel that it is dripping out of my pours. but i am happy. afterward we went on about an hour walk (i think we were actually lost for a little bit) along some trekking paths outside of the restaurant. i carried olive most of the way and loved feeling her sleep up against my chest and neck as she slept.
we are slowly making our way back to vienna tomorrow. kerstin is going to drive us to munich (about 2.5 hours away) where we will spend one night before heading into austria. the trip is coming to quick close...
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