musings on the cow and then some

it seems that bovine are in abundance in this country (we have 3). that’s understandable considering they yield protein and calcium. however, i have come to loathe the cows in this country, mostly because they get in the way.

they are truly “free range” here…they roam wherever they want. including roads. they are also incredibly slow moving creatures, despite any on-coming traffic. as they lie, almost lifeless, in the street, cars and marshurtkas alike must weave around and through them, sometimes at rather high speeds, to get from a to b. there may be an occasional honk to get them moving, but that seldom works to anyone’s advantage.

the true wanderers of georgia…but yet, nature’s lawnmowers.

in other bakhvi animal news: we killed our huge rooster today. he is lying contentedly in the freezer awaiting his fate: dinner. we had a new batch of chicks appear earlier this week. the up-and-coming rooster (efron, as emily and i have taken to calling him) is exercising his manliness with the lady hens (cough…cough) now that the main rooster is out of the coop. one of our chickens mysteriously passed this week. perhaps the chupacabra? simba, the family dog, was in a dog fight and has a ginormous gash on his hind leg. and i am being continuously asked why i haven’t been eating meat.

i did manage to bring a little american into the anghuladze house the other day: milk and cereal. after a rather heated debate about my lack of eating (but yet i’m sure i’m gaining weight) and me trying to explain that even in the united states my epicurial tastes were rather boring, i just had to sink my teeth into some comfort food.  [[yes, i am a picky eater.]] so, when i find something i like (america: milk, cereal, pasta. georgia: bread, pancakes, macaroni.) i tend to stick with that. plus, once you can put a face to the meat that’s sitting in front of you, it’s difficult to muster the courage to actually eat it. the next day i went out and bought some drinkable milk (our cow’s milk is a little too fresh) and some russian cereal and explained to my host parents that, in the states, i ate this every morning for breakfast (and…gasp! sometimes for dinner). their mouths dropped simultaneously. but then they tried it and all was better.

this weekend i will be in tbilisi (thank you peace corps) and will hopefully get a chance to relax (even more than i already am, i guess) before summer camp starts the following week and school in mid-september. also, i plan on catching up on tv shows because my wireless internet is super slow out in the village.

i hope everyone is well and enjoying the last few weeks of summer!