Few weeks ago I received a call from one of my coworker, whose responsibility is Human Resource issues. And she told me severely, that I had to take out my last two vacation weeks of last year, otherwise they will disappear. There was pretty active time in work, I and other my companion were deep in our tasks. But as I didn’t planned to drive to the foreign countries, I promise to help him with tasks through my home internet.

Now I know how feels unemployment when he sit home and do nothing, because in first week I sat like a bump on a log, do nothing but read some books. Next week Elza encourage me to plan a trip around somewhere in Latvia. We decided to go to Latgale for three days. I truly wanted to make a drive with bicycles around some lakes in Latgale, so I decided to make an investment and bought bicycle for Elza.
Our trip started from Vecpiebalga to Gaiziņkalns, Cesvaine, Varakļāni, Rēzekne, Rāznas lake. Then we stayed in one rest home called “Ezerkrasti” situated at shore of the Rāznas lake. I really suggest this place to stay. We get lucky, no one reserved any room there, maybe because there was middle of the week. We had been settled in one big empty house. That costs for us 24 lats including breakfast. Next day our trip went through Mākoņkalns, Dagda, Auleja. In Auleja we had planned to took a ride with bicycles around different lakes including Drīdzis who is deepest in the Latvia. After exhausting ride we went to Krāslava and climbed up to few towers with beautiful sight to “Daugavs loki”. Third day had been spent in Daugavpils, and we took a tour around city with bicycles. Elza manage to consecrated her new bike with horrible crash. But she is OK now and hope she was able to ride again this Sunday.
Next day I had to participate in competitions “Zelta keda”. Finally I have caught a feeling of running, no stress just excitement of every kilometer. I was able to keep smooth, even speed through the course, and was manage to build up speed in last 3 km.

Anyone who has not heard about Lattelecom home complect – Optical internet + Digital TV, I suggest. Only 15 Lats (if you accept contract for 24 month) and you got 50 Mbit Optical Internet, and TV pack with more than 30 channels, and what is more important. It’s possible to store any kind of TV program you want. 3 channels (LNT, TV1, TV7) provide TV archive, which means you can rewind any program or movie you want during last week and watch it without any commercials.

Last year I had scheduled some sport plans and decided to create one for this summer, despite last summers plan was to optimistic and I was to lazy for regular training to achieve 1:20 in half marathon distance.  I realized training activities  will not about to beat someone in competition for me anymore but about feelings of comfort and relaxing from every days stress and tiredness in the job. And all unprofessional training plans and methods ended up with serious injuries.

But That does not mean it’s bad to planning sport goals, of course not, but most importantly is to stick to the regularity. This year I will try to be more tender to my health and will not put any unrealistic goals and will choose only safest training methods, and of course try to work with little less intensity but with a little more frequency.

During the winter I found a lot of excitement in skiing and realized that it is less severe for me.  So for this summer I choose to plan trainings 20% running; 50% bicycling;  30% roller-skiing, as an idea to optimal divide force to all body.

My planned running competitions

05.06.2010 – 15 km Zelta Keda’s run

19.09.2010 – 21 km Marathon of Valmiera

My planned cycling  competitions

07.08.2010 – 50 km Cycling-marathon of Cēsis

I also want to share with my every week running root. I restarted to run after a long brake to better prepare to following competitions
View Skriešanas maršrutns 2010.05.13 in a larger map

My cousin Igors who live in Belarus invited me to his upcoming wedding some time ago. I was a little surprised about that, because we had a chat not while ago about weddings and families e.t.c. and he seem assured to wait a few years for such responsible step.  And as I clarify later the reason was sudden family growth. I hesitate long time to accept invitation, because of many different formalities, insurance, visa and son on, but then other my relatives persuaded me.

And last weekend I and my mom in my car and other my relatives from Ireland in other two cars rode to Belarus.  We planned to went all together, but we couldn’t awaited while some girls create hairstyle. So after 3 – 4 hours we was at Latvian – Belorussian border zone. I spent about 1.5 hour Belorussian custom, wrote different kind of motivations and declarations about my car, my self and my mom some of the in multiple copies and in Russian language. I hadn’t written in Russian anything since secondary school-age. It was already dark when we came into Belorussian and i didn’t know road well, all I had was Baltic map, but we successful find necessary place through many small and bumpy roads, fortunately it was about 80 – 100 km from border.  We had about 4 hour to sleep a little bit, and after it was 200 km long road to Vitebsk, city where wedding was took place.  Next group from Latvia appeared in the next morning.  They delayed because they wanted to transport LCT TV set as a gift and Belorussian customs officer demanded 500 Euro import duty Of course no one wanted to pay such huge price.

First thing that paid may attention was terrible road quality specially minor roads I would even say they are not planned for vans rather than tractors.  May be that’s way many local vans are manually upper lifted . But  there is no problem with main roads, 50 km around big cities.  Next thing – prices. As my surprised prices, except food prices was as high as they are in Latvia.  Import goods and electronic goods, such as TV sets, laptops, automobiles are much higher.  For example my 12 year VW in local market costs about 4.5 K -  5.5 K lats. In Latvia I would able to sell that car no more than 2K lats

After solemn ceremony when Igors and Anastasia make promises,  all guests jumped in his cars and about 2 hours we should rode around city many times and main party started very early.  Soon  we sat at over fulfill table with different snacks.  Guests was cheerful straight away and not waited until drunk out 3 – 4 bottles of alcohol as it often is, specially in Latvian weddings.  After a while I together with my uncle planned to steal bride, despite there already was one bride steal action, but it was very uninteresting even bridegroom didn’t take notice of that so as I. But events are happened so quickly that we didn’t make it in time  because  “mičošanas” ceremony took place, which had I also missed. After “mičošanas” ceremony and cake eating pretty much all of first day celebration was over.

In the next day all guests came together in such “Petrovich” house and celebration may continued. All actions occurred like accelerated movie. Toasts has been said with 5 – 10 interval. After 2 – 3 hours some of the guests went upstairs “to rest” a little bit. I simulated time after time,pouring in my bottle mineral water instead of vodka.  Next day I was totally out of my money and there was nowhere I can change Latvian lats against the local money, so little journey in Vitebsk didn’t happen. I and mom decided to drive home without any souvenir.

Yesterday I heard that Newly Weds planned to visit Latvia as a honeymoon.  I hope they will spent a good time here. For Igors and his New wife Anastasia I wish all the best in love and their conjugal life.

As every Spring is coming with Ice hockey madness, every third Latvian sitting in front of his TV set with bear and snacks. Latvian fans always earn attention with they loudness and quantity in every world championships. Already two years when hockey club “Rīgas Dinamo” was renewed and gave opportunity to attend quality hockey games  for ordinary people, who are not willing to ride to world championships.

In Continental Hockey league where Rīgas Dinamo is participate, play-offs are started a week ago.  In spite of wan performance in first part of season, Dinamo done very good improvement in second and finished in 8-th place in western conference in regular season, as last team who creeped through to play-offs.  In first round we showed excellent defense and  selflessness and we were able to knock out Sanktpeterburg’s SKA who finished 1-st in regular. And now is time for Balahisht’s MVD (2-nd in regular). Already 2 losses in opponents field make all fans a little bit worry for our teams strength before yesterday’s and today’s game.

Yesterday was my first time ever when I attend hockey game in presence.  Tickets off course was sold out within an hour, and I predicted it and walked to the box-office 30 minutes before selling was open. Bought 3 tickets for my self, Elza and Reālais.  All of us never watch hockey games in presence before. Game was great! Emotions, loudness and unity, all was there. I surprised for few fans behind us talked in Russian, fanned for Dinamo rather than MVD. And enthusiastically shouted out phrases something like “менти козлы!!!” (MVD teams title means something of police officers from Russia, what I didn’t know).

The most important thing was that Dinamo win yesterdays games 3 to 1. And score of series till 4 wins is now 1 to 2.  Hope today’s game will be even more exciting.

Last weekend I visited my sister, Maris and his newly born daughter Marta. It’s quite strange feeling to be an uncle now.

Winter is come to his end and 2 weeks ago I take part in skiing championship of Riga city. Of 10 or 11 competitors in elite group I finished in 4th place, and quite far from podium, but I satisfied of my result, because later looking up at competitors names in competition protocol I saw that 5 of them represented different skiing sports club. On 5 km of skiing I lost 2 minutes. So I will try to improve my results in hard training in summer. I already buy roller skiis for that.

My cousin Igors will going to be married and he invited me to his weddings in next month. I hesitated for a long time because he live in Belarus 600 km from here and different more formalities with visa and insurance i should pass.

Last two days I spoiled my nerves with such laptop my coworker asked me to repair. Bloody laptop had a partly damaged HDD, which was not being visible from Windows XP formatting tool and many others “fix and repair” tools, but was seen in BIOS. Strange but Windows 7 saw this HDD and I was able to format and save users files this way. Fortunately Windows 7 is not required huge PC parameters, and I ought not to try leave Win-XP on it

After done reading my first English book Memoirs of Geisha I fall into fancy to read one after another. Elza granted me one as a present, and later I bought one more, but unfortunately they is written in extremely complicated language with so many American idioms and complex sentence structure , that I could barely understood context of few introducing chapters and then I just discontinue reading. Probably I should start reading some easily understood books as Harry Potter or Lord of The Rings.