As we head out ...

June 4 around 3pm eastern:

Okay .. so through a deluge we cruised down to JFK in a Toyota Sienna van ., barreling through minor flooding, unscathed and dry. Michael our driver was a skilled wheelman and the perfect gentleman. The van, filled with 4 women, he laughed at all the jokes and turned a deaf ear when appropriate. He even popped open an umbrella to shield us from the rain when we made a stop. I can only hope he and the trip are a harbinger of things to come.

Despite all my trepidations that I haven’t prepared enough for this trip, I realize I’ve done what I can. Going to Russia is a lesson in letting go. In the States we can muscle our way with life. Russia, I’m learning, takes more patience and nudging. As Charlotte Buchanan, the doyen of the Albany Tula Alliance reminds me, despite the tangibles not available in Russia, many Russians do a better job of living life more fully than we in the States. But ‘stuff’ has it’s perks. We’re cooling our heels until flight time in the Delta Elite Lounge.