With the winter holidays in full swing - and inspired by meeting Krampus on the Pacific West coast -, I remembered some of the holiday traditions back home, in our communist little country which is the subject of this blog. I remembered caroling, goat and bear dances, masked parades, sledding, traditional food and coma-inducing feasts. … Continue reading Carols, bears, goats and gluttony: a Christmas Story in Eastern Europe →

I was just chomping on some “bagel crisps” from a salad kit and, as soon as I shoved a couple in my mouth, I was struck by the familiarity of the taste. Oh, but what could this be? I was confused because it tasted good but awful at the same time, and let's just say, … Continue reading Stale bread, stray dogs, snouty pigs.  →

Content warning: childhood trauma, abortion, poverty. I have decided early on that I wouldn’t have children. “But why, you waste of a uterus that you are…” some strangers would quip. Well, I already have a child in me that needs attention, so why bring up more to the party? Besides, I am so stoked on … Continue reading The falcons of the homeland, patriotic labor and sand in the ass. →

I will probably burn in the very hell they scared us with when we were kids, but I had to bring up religion in Eastern Europe, because it’s such a big, messed-up part of our culture. This is me looking back and seeing everything from a different perspective, that may not bring me many fans. … Continue reading Do not forgive me, father, I’ll be okay: on religion and priests in Eastern Europe  →

I talked about the grimness and hilarity of death and death related rituals in Romania in a previous post. But what I didn’t quite touch on was the story of the undead, or “strigoi” as we call them. Well, HAPPY to tell you I never saw one *insert LOL, triple spit and hashtag #blessed*  But … Continue reading Every day is Halloween in Romania: the strigoi, the evil fairies and a few other superstitions →

I follow this page on social media called “ Squatting Slavs in Tracksuits” and I crack up every time they post a photo that screams “Eastern Europe”. Only by being removed from that environment am I able to see the ridiculousness of it all shine through, and with that realization, I laugh even more at … Continue reading Neighbours: on cars, drunks and babushkas, also drunk babushkas.  →

I grew up thinking that my not so comfortable medical encounters were probably the same everywhere in the world - I had no awareness of “a better way” because, obviously, that’s what happens when information is censored. Imagine the shock I had later when, having access to western media, I saw a movie scene where … Continue reading No tonsils, no candy, no fun  →

I was a pretty musical child. From an early age I showed keen interest in dancing and singing. Far from actually enjoying performing in front of people (“come sing a song for nana”, ugh) I kinda liked exploring my talents on my own. Whether in the bathroom, singing in the bathtub drain because it had … Continue reading A headbanger’s journey – from a bathtub drain hole to communist music school →

I’ve been mentioning magic in a few write-ups so far, I think it comes up easily in any discussion and situation from my childhood in Eastern Europe. It’s so deeply ingrained in our behavior that it’s not even perceived as an unusual thing. A lot of our experiences were (and still are) determined by superstitions. … Continue reading The magic of the triple spit →

Disclaimer: Stories and opinions here are limited experiences and not a generalization.  I lived in a pretty nice looking building - for communist architecture. It was new and built by my father’s construction team the year I was born. It was a 4 story, brick colored, U-shaped building, with several entrances and a nice inner … Continue reading Your man won’t crave another pussy ever… →