What if the Russians don't come?

We have a songbook at home called "Rise Up Singing." It contains a lot of folk songs, oldies, etc. that are good for sing-alongs.

I often laugh when I come across this song:

What if the Russians Don't Come?

My town has a plan for its civil defense
So we'll all take Route 70 when it gets tense
My wife sewed directions in my underclothes
So I'll know where to run when the big whistle blows
We held a rehearsal last Saturday night
And all things considered our town did all right
Except on the ramp when that truck tried to pass
And it took us three hours to clean up the glass.. +/-

But-
What if the Russians don't come?
What if they like where they're from?
What if they're not in the mood to invade?
What if they're tired, or drunk, or afraid?
What would we do if their generals just said, "This is dumb"
What if the Russians don't come?

I've heard about Russians since I was a tyke
So here's what I know about what they are like
They don't believe in God, they don't have no fun
They're brainwashed, they're dull, and they all weigh a ton
And in the Olympics whenever we meet
Their women are men, and their judges all cheat
Maybe you shouldn't rely just on me
I've not seen a Russian except on TV

What if the Russians have lives?
What if their husbands have wives?
If they come home late from work on the bus
And have to fix dinner for children that fuss
They may be too tired to come put us under their thumb...
What if the Russians don't come?

Our leaders said we're behind in the race
We needed those missile just to keep pace
If we don't stay up there lap after lap
The Russians will tumble us right off the map
Well, I'm getting dumb but sometimes I forget
What I've got against all these folks I ain't met
I can't figure out why they want World War III
Could it be they are wondering the same about me?

What if the Russians are scared?
What if they're all unprepared?
What if poor Ivan's as worried as I am?
Tired of worrying about Uncle Sam?
Why don't we stop before one of us does something dumb?...

What if the Russians don't come?

--Phil Hoose (1983)*

It's funny to read these words considering I was one year old at the time the song was written and grew up oblivious to the Russians being our "enemies." It wasn't until I already had Russian friends that I began to learn my history better in school. So everything was the opposite for me.

It feels a bit odd posting about war (or lack thereof) on 9/11, but on the other hand, maybe it fits.

"For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.

Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.

In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints." -Ephesians 6:12-18

*Lyrics disclaimer: Different versions didn't match up, so please offer corrections if necessary.

Finishing up summer projects...

Getting a student visa to Russia

I don't have my student visa yet, but I'm making progress. There were a few surprises along the way, and it's been harder than I initially thought.

The basic procedure is:

-contact the university/place of study to find out your options and start the invitation process
-while waiting for your invitation, find out from the consulate what else is required
-send the invitation with everything else to the travel agent or consulate
-upon arrival in Russia, register within 3 days
-check in with the university to determine your class schedule/settle fees
-if you want to stay longer than 90 days, apparently, you arrive on a 90-day visa and extend it once you're already in Russia (haven't done this yet)

Here are a few things I was not expecting: +/-

1) Invitation processing time=at least 4-5 weeks. They told me 1 month and it has been over 5 weeks. Make sure you factor that in. Invitations are pretty hard to expedite, unless you use a travel agency, and even then it's limited to certain types of visas.

2) The Russian Consulate requires an HIV test for a student visa of any duration. At least, the one in NYC does, according to the website. For other types of visas this is usually not necessary for 90 days or less.

3) The visa application for U.S. citizens has changed slightly. It actually looks like all the information is the same, just in a slightly different format. It drove me crazy trying to fill it out online and print it out. If you can write small, you might want to just print it out and fill in everything by hand. Or get it into Word format and play around with fonts.

Labor Day Weekend

Today our church had its annual service outdoors in a local park. The weather was beautiful! I sang in a choir that had been arranged for the day, which was fun since I barely did any music all summer!

Afterwards, the whole church headed over to a picnic site for a cookout. My sisters had come, and my parents gave rides to some international students who have just arrived back in the area for the semester.

Clockwise from left: Emily, Me, Raquel, Paola, Dad, Angelica, Shawn, Anastasia, Ngozi, and Mark.
Bottom picture: Staying warm.



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