Month: June 2021

My oldest son Owen continues to learn the skills of being on his own this summer. On Thursday we opened up his own checking account. He now has a debit/credit card and is learning how to manage his money. Once he gets his driver’s license, he plans on getting a job. There are lots of employment opportunities. It seems like every place we go into, restaurant, store, business, there are help wanted signs. The other day we went to Walmart and there was no one working on mobile phone plans. Service has been slow in other stores and restaurants because of a lack of employees. He should have a good choice of jobs during his gap semester.

His brother and sister have been supportive and also learning what it takes to be on your own. We all are helping him become a more confident, safer driver and Ocean and Oliver patiently waited for him to complete his banking. After the bank, we spent the afternoon shopping for shoes and clothes for Ocean before heading back to Freeland.

Luzerne County is definitely Trump Country! We see signs promoting Trump and supporting the police. Rural Americans found a connection with him and are passionate supporters. Coal country Pennsylvania is one of the many strongholds of as George Packer describes in his new book Our Divided America, “Real America”. These are the working class whites that feel passed over by our economy. They have a lot of resentment and have turned to nativism, Christian nationalism and right-wing populism. You can really see it in the many political signs in yards around the town and throughout the countryside.

To end this post, I put together a video of a hike Owen, Ocean and I did last week. We completed a 12 kilometer loop through nearby Hickory Run State Park.

It was a big day because Owen got his Learner’s Permit to drive. Growing up overseas, Third Culture Kids often are not able to get a license and often to not need to. We have a driver and taxis cost $1 – $2 anywhere in the city. Owen studied the information provided by the Penn Department of Transport Driver and Vehicles Services website. He took a lot of online quizzes and when we were driving around, we asked a lot of questions to him about signs, rules, et. It paid off because he hit the 15 correct answer mark on the 16th question. You have to get 15 right out of 18 questions to pass. He enrolled in a driver’s school to help him with the driving test and hone his skills and safety knowledge. Taking the Japanese driving test helped me become a better driver, and the safety reminders will be useful. It is one of the most dangerous activities adolescent males do .

It was a quiet day. I am still moving slowly so we did some grocery shopping and took the kids to Barnes & Noble to by books. As all parents, we are fighting against phones and video and finding ways to encourage them to read. Nadia and my Uncle Jack are excellent chefs and we had a delicious meal of rigatoni with Jack’s homemade tomato sauce and meatballs. He also provided Italian sausages from Stravino’s, a deli in Whitehall, PA. I ate to the point of being uncomfortable.

I finished off the night with a 2-mile walk around Freeland, PA. Both of my biological parents are from here so I have a lot of DNA in the area. Freeland is a small town of 3,531 people and developed because of the coal mines of Poconos Mountains. Since the 1960s, the town has diminished because of the demise of the coal industry. Walking through the town you can see the impact with dilapidated homes, closed businesses, etc. Most people of means built homes in the forests around the town and down in “the valley” towards Hazelton. It was a cool, clear night and the fresh air felt good. It is quiet here and a nice change in climate from Tashkent. As you can see in the photo, Oliver really didn’t want to walk with me, however, Nadia does not want me to walk alone in case I run into trouble.

After learning I don’t need surgery this summer, I am very relieved and starting to enjoy my holiday. I am moving a bit better each day and love spending time with my family and relaxing. The USA’s efforts in vaccines makes me proud to be an American. Oliver and Ocean received their first dose of the Pfizer vaccine today. By the end of the summer, the entire Kralovec family will be vaccinated!

It was nice to see my mom again after two years away from the USA. She made a delicious egg salad sandwich and we had a good talk. Her voice is soothing to me and it is always nice to connect with her in person. Owen and I in the afternoon went for a round a disc golf at the Hickory Run Disc Golf Course located in a state park near Freeland. It rained most of the day with temperatures in the 50s F, which was a delightful change from Tashkent. The Poconos Mountains, one of the many ranges that make up the Appalachians, go right through Freeland and Hickory Run State Park preserves a small section of the typical Applachian forests. This part of Pennsylvania is mountainous and forested which reminds me of my home in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Walking with Owen through the quiet and wet woods was so relaxing.

Last Tuesday, June 15 I was hit by a car while cycling at 6:10 AM. I was on my way to meet up with friends when about a block away from our meeting point, a taxi struck me from behind. I fell off my bike and hit the road pretty hard. While sitting on the road, I was thankful I was alive and well. I managed to call a Yandex taxi (the Russian Uber) to take me home. The driver stopped to see if I was alright. I locked my bike to a fence and hopped in the cab. I realized I was injured when I got home, I couldn’t get out of the seat with the driver’s help. Nadia and Ocean took me over the school’s clinic and eventually, I was checked into the Nano Medical Clinic. An x-ray showed that I had no broken bones. They kept me overnight for observation while doing blood tests, urinalysis and ultrasounds. Thankfully, there was no internal damage but as you can see above, I did tear my acromioclavicular ligament which holds together the collar bone and shoulder blade. Besides my shoulder, I had bad bruising of my hip and back. Advil was helpful in making me feel better and as I write this a week later, I am moving almost normally.

The doctor in Tashkent suggested that I get surgery to repair the ligaments. I waited until I went to the USA to get a second opinion. Fortunately, my orthopedic doctor here is a former professional cyclist and the current medical director of the Trexlertown Velodrome. He has had the same injury as mine and has seen hundreds of these through the years as it is a common cycling injury when people go over the handlebars and come down on their shoulder. Dr. Stansbury said my tear was a category 2 out of 6 after looking at the MRI and therefore, did not recommend surgery. He recommends not to intervene and let it heal on its own for 4-6 weeks. Studies show better long term results by letting it heal on its own instead of surgery. I will go back towards the end of my holiday to check in. I was so relieved to know that I didn’t need surgery!

It is now one week since the accident and I am finally getting to move normally as besides my shoulder, I also came down hard on my hip and back and it is bruised. The right side of my back is still stiff but last night I slept on my side for a while, something I couldn’t do earlier.

During the school year I struggle with sleep sometimes as my mind goes through problems I encounter leading an international school. Reading calms my mind and going over the stories puts me to sleep. This post features two recently released books.

2034 is the story of the next world war between USA and China. James Stavridis is a retired US Navy admiral and many of the war scenes take place at sea with air craft carriers, cruisers, destroyers, etc. He wrote the book with author Elliot Ackerman. Ackerman is a former marine and war hero, CIA employee, political fellow and now author. I think he is a good role model for young men, combining service to the country and academics. I would love my sons to have a similar career.

The book is a page-turner that has lots of action and good story lines. It jumps from following US and Chinese military commanders leadership teams in the Pentagon and Beijing and a war hero fighter pilot. I was a little depressed with Stavridis’ view of the recent developments with the Chinese military. On a podcast interview, he pointed out despite the US military having a big advantage in traditional warfare (tanks, air craft carriers, drones, etc.) China is gaining the advantage with their focus on cyber security. Both China and India can inflict damage on the US by shutting off the communication and utilities at will. He also points out that our divided congress cannot form a coherent and effective long-term foreign policy and military strategy towards China.

Stephen King is one of my favorite authors. He is such an incredible story teller. An early novel of his, Salem’s Lot, was the first book that I really loved when I was in ninth grade and jump started my adult reading. Previously, I read many of the Hardy Boy Detective stories, but Salem’s Lot pushed me into bigger books. I’ve read many King novels through the years, The Stand, Thinner, 11/12/63, etc. All of them engrossing and not able to put down. Later is no exception. The boy featured in the book can talk to dead people who recently passed away. He can see them for a few days after death and then they fade away. His family finds ways to use this power, especially his book editor/publisher mother. The book takes place in New York and has lots of good details. It is a highly entertaining read.

Nadia and I attended Student-led Conferences last week. It was a nice format, each student had 45 minutes to talk to their parents about their learning. The teachers did a nice job of preparing a packet to guide the conversation. I most appreciated that the school carved out this time and forced teenagers to talk to their parents in a quiet environment. Both Ocean and Oliver were so cute!

Summer weather has returned to Tashkent with temperatures in the 40s (C) / 100s (F). The pool has been a godsend! It is so refreshing to dive in after a hot day at work. I am getting up in the mornings before school to bike for 60-90 minutes which is my favorite way to start the day. We also are taking Obi (our dog) out for walks in the early evening. I love summer nights and Tashkent in my opinion, is a pleasant city to walk dogs. There are many parks and walking streets to take out the little guy.

We also got the second dose of the Astra Zeneca vaccine on Saturday. That means in we will be fully vaccinated by the time we leave Uzbekistan for our summer holidays! Thanks again to the Tashkent International Clinic