Blair's Life: It’s Getting Cold!!!

It’s hard to believe that this week I will have been in Kyrgyzstan a month. The time is flying by. This past week I started my regular visits to spend time with the kids at Tokmok Baby Orphanage. The kids in the group they assigned me to look to be between 3 and 5 years old and we have been having a lot of fun. In no time they were calling me papa or dada (which means uncle in Russian). Unfortunately I am not able to show you any photos because the orphanage has a policy of no kids’ photos on the internet. You can look at my baby hospital photos from Ukraine in previous blogs to get an idea.

In the last week or so it has been getting colder here. These past few mornings when I look out at the mountains I see that the snow is now creeping lower and lower into the valley. These concrete apartment buildings can get very cold especially at night and the majority of my winter clothes are in Ukraine. But I’m doing okay. I have a small electric heater which takes some of the chill off - even though we’ve had lots of power outages lately in my neighbourhood. I also have some heavy blankets for sleeping but otherwise the gas stove is getting a lot of use – and not for cooking. Well, everyone knows that I hate to cook any ways lol.

I’ll be so glad when the city decides to start up the central heating plant so that I can have some better heat. Of course, everyone knows how much I love lots of heat, especially my room mates last summer when I would not turn on the air conditioner at 40 degrees. (And for some reason air conditioners set off all my allergies too.) …But I’m digressing. Any ways, many people here simply will not have the option of being able to pay for heat. If all of the utilities are off then there is just no way to keep warm in these buildings. With the high levels of poverty in Kyrgyzstan and Ukraine it’s no wonder that there are so many deaths every winter. It gives me a new insight on how cold it would have been when Luba, who I mentioned in my previous blog entry, got frostbite last winter in her apartment.

When I was here last spring even then the director at the Kemin Senior’s Home was thinking ahead to this winter and had asked me if I could buy blankets for the residents. I would love to help with this but I just don’t have the budget. The home has a capacity of 45 people and I’m told that it would cost approximately $1000 to buy a blanket and a set of sheets for each one. Are there 45 people out there somewhere that can each spare $22.50?

On the brighter side I have received a donation this week that I’m going to use to buy fruit for the kids at Orlovka Orphanage. With budgets so tight at the orphanages the kids don’t get fruit very often and it’s a rare treat when they do. Imagine - fruit - being a TREAT!! And to think we in Canada can get cranky when we can’t get a chocolate bar or a coffee or whatever. Stay tuned to the blog as I will have an update when I get it arranged.

I also still have the other items on my wish list as I mentioned in my previous blog entry. I’d like to be able to also buy fruit for Red River Orphanage and the Iskra disabled men’s home. I would also love to take the kids at Orlovka on an outing of some kind, maybe to a movie and a meal or something. I would like to chip in to help buy coal for needy families as well.

If anyone would like to help me out with any of these things you can click the donations link for LinK 127 at the right side of this blog to donate on line or click the Ways to Donate tab at the top of the page for other options. Please remember to include a note with my name on it and specify what you would like your gift to be directed towards. Donations from Canada are tax deductible and every dollar helps.

Thanks for your continued prayers and support and thank you for seeing my heart. Till next time…Я люблю тебя!

This photo was taken on September 30th

This was taken yesterday (October 20th). Not only is there snow on the foothills now but if you look close on the left you'll see that it is coming down into the valley.