Ukrainian Crisis and General Update

So I'm sure you've all been watching the news lately. For the first two-thirds of January Russia cut the flow of gas to Ukraine and the rest of Europe over a complicated dispute that involves the governmentally monopolized gas companies, the current drop in the price of natural gas, the historical dispute between Russia and Ukraine which stems from that fact that Ukraine is part of the former soviet union, the reliance of Russia on Ukraine for gas transport, the alleged theft of gas by Ukraine from the pipes transporting it, and many more issues. I'm not even going to attempt to explain how these factors all caused the abrupt gas shut off on the first of January, but I will say that it's a very complicated issue that is difficult for everyone to understand.

How could have the crisis affected me? Not at all really. My town doesn't use gas as a source of heat, in магазинка(Magazynka) it's all coal and electricity, at least this time of year. During our Russian Language training last week we had a round-table discussion about the crisis in Ukraine. One of the members of the Peace Corps staff said a very important issue for Russia is "saving face." Russia, like every other country in the world wants to look strong in the international scene. And it might be doing things like shutting off gas to Ukraine and invading Georgia to accomplish this. It's interesting to be in such an active part of the world.

What else is in my news? I'm actually back at my site, and will be for some time. My role hasn't been big at my school lately, mostly limited to helping with computers and playing sports with the kids, but I get the feeling more than ever before that what my school really wants from me is just to be here and be involved, so that's what I'm doing. My evenings are spent cooking, watching TV Series, playing guitar, reading books, and studying Russian. I can't stress enough that Peace Corps is a great time to get away from the distractions of the world, particularly if you live in a small village, as I do.

Ukraine is a fascinating country to be a volunteer in because we have volunteers in million plus population cities, and we have volunteers in 400-odd person villages. This leads to vastly different lifestyles within the country, so it it's incorrect to say there's an average lifestyle for a Peace Corps volunteer serving in Ukraine, we're all over the place as far as living conditions.
Sometimes I wonder, what if I had been placed in a city? It would have made my service completely different, however, I'm sure Peace Corps placed me in a village because I am from a big family, I know about starting wood fires (now coal), I'm relatively healthy and don't have a medical condition that requires that I be near a hospital, etc. But I still wonder at times. Then I think, it's only another 16 months, one of which is vacation days. It's nothing I can't take.

On another note, the creative team behind Skype deserves a pulitzer prize. The ability to communicate with my family for free over the internet has made this a much easier journey. I try to be on skype every weekend and my username is nathanmichaelweiss . If any of you would like to talk to me, I recommend you get a mic or a headset and install the program. You're able to call anywhere in the world for free for an unlimited amount of time over the internet.

Nate