An intern among ‘men of letters’

It almost feels like I’m stealing.

My internship for credit – not private lessons – includes creative development and career advice, along with opportunities to read, practice my language, and hobnob over chai (the Russian version of tea-time).

And all of this – with the writers of the Irkutsk division of the National Writers’ Society in the Irkutsk Dom Literatora (House of Littérateurs), which publishes the literary journal Sibir (“Siberia”).

The Katzner Russian-English dictionary defines the Russian take of the French “littérateur” as “man of letters.” Apart from the opportunity to revel in the erudition and energy of my men-and-women-of-letters-overseers, my role in the House as the society’s first intern and first American includes a number of perks.

1. They have no idea what to do with me, thus…
2. I make my own hours, but more importantly…
3. I have the resources of a 75-year-old Russian writers society (begun under Stalin, no less) at my fingertips to create my own experience to learn about language, art, publishing, and the people of Irkutsk.

Job-search drive

The last thing to do during my winter vacation: looking for something to do during my summer one. Initially, I feared my search could be unpleasant and, at worst, unsuccessful.

Although renewed confidence is all that I’ve got against the second part, I’ve so far proved myself wrong, as far as enjoying the process goes. Updating and reformatting the resume and social networking sites is all fun and games for me, part-geek that I am. But with a nod to using all the cool new tools and gadgets I’ve fashioned, I came across this advice from The Personal Branding Blog.

Another mistake I see is people setting up a [LinkedIn] profile and then putting everything on autopilot. Not participating, not seeking other people out, not networking. . . .

Round two in Russia

Exactly a month after I left Irkutsk on a three-day train to Moscow, I returned to the glorious and icy “Paris of Siberia” eager for semester two, but slightly anxious, too.

On my January travels, I didn’t make to the real City of Lights, but I have no regrets—Moscow, Germany, and the Czech Republic (with the week on the Trans-Siberian…) served me well in recovering from the first four months in Irkutsk, as well as in getting excited for the last four and a half.

Nonetheless, the mixed feelings remain, but since I’m not planning on leaving Irkutsk until semester’s end, they are likely to be sticking around. But, is that such grim news after all?

Letters (posts) to home: MiddBlog

This year, I’m co-editing MiddBlog (midd-blog.com), “an alternative news and events blog for Middlebury College students,” that is, “alternative” meaning not the campus newspaper, The Campus.

The blog, founded in 2006, receives well over 2000 hits every week from Midd students, college faculty and staff, parents, and others. This semester, the editorial team consists of ten writers/photographers including myself, and has expanded its scope of work to collaborating with The Campus.
Even though writing from abroad adds a slight challenge in finding subject matter meaningful for students on campus, I figure I can meet the goal of writing a post or two every month, and that a voice from someone off campus can’t hurt to add to the chorus of my fellow bloggers. After my first three posts on MiddBlog already (a review of Midd’s resources for
outdoor trips, a first installment of “Highlights from abroad,” and a story on Midd’s migrating mail service to Google, which stimulated some strong responses), I’m looking forward to the second half of the semester and finding even more to write.