Wow! Check Out Those Siskins!

It finally happened; contractor Mitch began installing the window panes. Okay it’s far from complete, but it is a start. I do like the window color but still wondering whether red would not have been better. Of course there is no seal in any of the windows as it is too cold to install it; imagine snow and cold this time of year—who would have thought it! Not complaining, just happy to see some progress.

Back several posts ago, someone made a comment about my last name: “you have the funniest last name! made me laugh sooo hard… love it!! Paul Siskin WOW i think you must be Russian, if you are not then the next time you see a Russian ask them to translate your last name for you. bahahaha i would consider changing it :))).”

After extensive research and consulting with Russian scholars (the Russian medical assistant in my doctor’s office and my Ukraine barber) I have uncovered some interesting data. Any grand fantasies about being a descendant of a Romanov (on the Jewish side of course) have been shattered. Siskin is Russian slang for “boobs” or “tits,” not even “breasts” or “teats,” just “boobs” or “tits.” I don’t think there will be a family crest on my entry gate; imagine what it would look like. History can be so humbling.

As interesting as my ancestry is…more about the dacha I call Brokeback Manor. Seeing the glass panes has sparked new enthusiasm in the construction process. After such a long period of little progress, I lost interest. I could only think of the end product and how far off it still was (not to mention, how much money it has cost). Closing up the house, no matter how far off it still is, marks a new stage of completion. Well, at least a one step further away from incompletion. It’s all in how you look at it.