It's the little things...

I started to write a diatribe about the maddening American tendency to insist (without asking, mind you) on dealing with everyone on a first-name basis, but it got way too long. The short version is that a significant number of people seem to go over to first names from the very first step.

The short response is that Russians have a different, yet perfectly usable method of addressing one another that involves the first name and something called a "patronymic" (a name derived from the name of one's father). You can use first-name-and-patronymic with just about everyone in Russia (except children), and nobody will be offended. For some reason, though, there are some Americans who either cannot or will not bother to learn this simple thing - how to address a person who was born in Russia - which will pay off handsomely in dealing with that person. If nothing else, use of the patronymic will distinguish them from the rest of the North American herd.

I've been on console too long...

Cheers...

Gotta smile...

So I stop by the office on the way home, and the (ex-)boss is very friendly and underscoring the fact that we understand one another well and have good relations. I agree. I would have proposed a toast, absent the possession of a suitable beverage, a company rule about imbibing on company time, and the fact that the shift had just about wrung me out like a sponge.

I came home, ate something of a lunch and hit the rack at a little after 11 am.

At 2:05 pm, the workmen my wife had engaged to replace our front and back doors arrived and began to work.

The process involves, among other tools, hammers.

Aaargghhh!

Then again, maybe I have stumbled on to something here. If I can sleep for 3 hours or so in the early part of the [physical] day, to recover from the night before, and then nap for another 3 hours starting around 6 pm, ... hmmm.

The first part will require no effort...it's all I can do to stay conscious once I get home after my shift. It's the second part that will be a challenge...it's kinda hard to fall asleep at the drop of a hat, although there was once a time when I'd mastered that art form. (But that time was also an era of long hikes, communal showers, and loud, sudden noises.)

Well, there's no choice but to press on and see what happens! :^)

Cheers...