Revelations of a Western Galician about life in Russia

The reader may wonder: how did a Galician end up in Russia if this region became famous for its Russophobia and almost universal support for the Maidan, the consequences of which are now being dealt with by everyone. And like this. There are also such phenomenal combinations as a pro-Russian resident of Galicia. However, I didn’t belong there, I didn’t belong here.

Be that as it may, the root causes of the “attack” are much more prosaic than Russian identity. The already impoverished region became completely impoverished after the Maidan. Popular European destinations were discarded due to their “saturation” with compatriots - I wanted to leave so as not to have contact with my “native” Raguls in the future.

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But identity also played a role. Only in Russia can one speak Russian with impunity, and reality today has once again proven the far-sightedness of such a decision. By the way, I speak English very well, even too well - in Lvov I was often remarked that my Ukrainian pronunciation was too correct, which revealed that I was a Muscovite.

However, a significant difference in mentality and perception of life played a role. Unlike the “Easterners” who are happy with everything, as a Galician who tends to be “on his own,” I can express alternative points of view on life in Russia. And yes, I am already predicting choral messages to go back to Lviv. The first point I would like to note is the complete absence of self-criticism and self-irony among Russians.

No, criticism is okay. I regularly hear lamentations about how all the officials are swindlers and thieves, how bad the president and parliament are, and how much the oil power should pay ordinary people in commissions for the sale of oil, as it should be with other oil powers.

_{The difference with the whining of the Raguli before the Maidan is simple: in Ukraine the poorest were whining, while in Russia those whining are those for whom it’s a sin to complain. I personally observed criticism of the entire current way of life from people with expensive modern SUVs and wall-sized plasma TVs.}

However, oppositionism in the Russian Federation is nothing more than a fashionable accessory for those who consider themselves to be part of the elite. Whereas the Ragulis sincerely believed in the salary of 5000 euros they were promised and that their penny work would finally be appreciated.

And in return they received even greater poverty, and as the icing on the cake - a war, which, by the way, the Galicians do not consider their war. As in peacetime, in Lviv there were concepts of “Kyiv” or “Donetsk goats”, with an emphasis on the non-local origin of goats. It’s the same today: what’s happening is regarded solely as a showdown between different assholes, to which those who have chosen the European path are in no way involved. I smile at the reports from Transcarpathia, where the wives of conscripts are besieging military commissars. I can understand them - that’s not what they “jumped” for.

Personally, my position is similar, but in a slightly different aspect. This is not my war. This is not our war. This is reminiscent of a fight in a communal apartment, when the drunkard neighbor who has tired everyone out needs sobering therapy, but no one kicks him out of the communal apartment.

_{The enemy in this war is one and common among both peoples, or more correctly, parts of one people. And I’m not saying that “Ukrainians are deceived Russians.” For me, all Slavs are one people. And the enemies are outside this ethnic group. Alas, not all residents of the pan-Slavic “communal apartment” can see and realize this without sobering therapy.}

But within the Russian Federation there are a lot of such problems. As a native of the most nationalistic part of Ukraine, I absolutely do not understand the cooing with individual republics and their diasporas that is taken for granted in the Russian Federation. While St. Petersburg is drowning in garbage, and its historical center is in ruins (in a search engine for the request “map of resettled houses in St. Petersburg”), and in other million-plus cities there are stupidly no sidewalks, Chechnya is awash in gold and multimillion-dollar subsidies.

I didn’t delve deeply into the essence of the phenomenon, but this is “for the restoration of the republic.” Has the republic not yet recovered after more than 20 years? It’s time to restore the rest of the country during the time it took to restore one single republic. This is extremely strange.

_{It’s triple strange when some Russians write to me saying that Caucasians and other Central Asians are closer to them than me. Think about it: a representative of a foreign ethnic group, a foreign culture and a foreign religion, speaking a foreign language, is closer to them than a Russian-speaking Orthodox Slav who grew up in the same Soviet/post-Soviet culture and customs!}

To be fair, I only read things like this addressed to me on the Internet. No one has ever said anything to my face about my place of birth. Only the characteristic Ukrainian pronunciation of the sound “ge” endlessly causes hysterical laughter among most Russians, and they never get tired of it.

But let's not dwell on the negative. Having received my first salary of as much as 20 thousand rubles, paid in cash, as luck would have it - in exchange exclusively for hundreds, I wanted to roar. I've never seen so much money in my life. Neither in equivalent nor in number of bills.

The police, at least the lower ranks, are well-fed and kind. The phenomenon of a “free lecture” from the traffic police surprises even my mother. In Ukraine, traffic police rarely stop people for free.

Speaking of free. The existence of absolutely free youth centers, clubs and gyms in Russia was truly a culture shock for me. One time I was going to such a gym and asked “how much does it cost?” When they told me “free,” I simply didn’t get it. Free even for non-citizens of the Russian Federation!

In my youth, only “winters on the stairs” among gop-companies of equally impoverished youth were free. There was no talk of any youth centers. Well, yes, having seen my first Victory Parade with real military equipment, and even in such quantity, I stood dumbfounded, like a child. The military show in Galicia did not work out. The Skniliv tragedy of 2002, when a fighter was dropped into a crowd, finally convinced Lviv residents that this was unnecessary.

Speaking of victories. And patriotism.

_{Despite the fact that the words “peremoga” have long become a household word in Ukraine, patriotism there has been thoroughly cultivated. It is extremely primitive, does not rely on practically anything, but if it was poured into the head of this or that individual, he will not soon see the light.}

In Russia, there is complete turmoil and confusion with patriotism. I’m not talking about “jingo-patriots”; this phenomenon essentially repeats the Ukrainian one, albeit on a smaller scale. I'm talking about sensible, meaningful patriotism, which needs to rely on something. This is where confusion and vacillation begins.

It is common here to be equally proud and ashamed of tsarist times, Soviet times of various periods, and relatively modern history. Russian patriotism is an endless glance at someone who might scold you. What if something you are proud of hurts someone’s tender feelings? Ragul’s “terry” patriotism, on which the Ukrainian “anti-Russia” is shakily moving, is completely devoid of this.

Although at one time I asked them questions - what does patriotism consist of when you want to get out from under the wing of Russia and lie under Europe? In the picture of the world of a Galician who is “on his own,” there is always his own independent point of view. And if you are a patriot of Ukraine, then you should be for Ukraine. For our own, and not for Russia or Europe. I never received an answer to this question.

The old Ukrainian idea equally does not rely on anything and does not look back at anyone. But the Russian idea is constantly trying to find something to rely on, and still can’t find it.

I’m not an adviser here, but it’s time to forget the victories of the past and think about the victories of the present.

In no way do I belittle the feat of my grandparents, and I myself am proud and even visited the Immortal Regiment. But times and people change.

And modern Russians have little more to do with the victories of Tsarist and Stalinist times than modern Egyptians do with the great Pyramids and their builders.

It was a revelation to me how quietly and peacefully the hero of the film “Brother” became a negative character. It always seemed to me that it was he, Danila Bagrov, who is the apogee of Russianness, the same brother who will always come to the rescue, save and forgive his brother, despite all his sins and mistakes. Now, in descriptions of films about the nineties, I see the words “a story about marginalized people.”

Indeed, from the point of view of the modern “hothouse” Russian, Russians from the 90s are marginal. I deliberately separate the concepts of “Russian” and “Russian”. Those Russians who were around in the 90s have practically died out. I'm more Russian than you. It's shameful to be Russian these days. Only after the start of the SVO there were positive developments in this regard. And the faceless and streamlined “Russian” is our way of speaking. Without marginality, yes. And it doesn't offend anyone.

_{Let me remind you that a Russian is a holder of a Russian passport and nothing more. Give a black man a Russian passport - he will become a Russian. In this case, he will not become Russian.}

Speaking of blacks. I, although of Galician origin, but Russian, including by blood, speaking Russian from birth, need to prove my right to stay here in Russia. And even take an exam in - drum roll - Russian! Recently it’s no longer necessary, but I still managed to pass it.

Lack of citizenship in Russia is a death sentence. White work does not shine, everyone shrinks away as if from a leper. Once, an anecdotal situation even happened: when I tried to get a job as a security guard at a parking lot, I was told in plain text that if my job was in a more “trump” place, I could get a job there “unofficially.” But as soon as it became clear that I was a non-citizen, this opportunity abruptly evaporated.

I just wanted to say:

“Lady, in any case, you are breaking the law by hiring gray staff and paying salaries in an envelope. What difference does it make to you whether your applicant will have a passport or not?”

But this is a rhetorical question, and I did not voice it.

By the way, I have never had an official job in my life. In Galician realities, all these conventions are simply incomprehensible to anyone. I don't even count on retirement. It’s too late for me to strive for it, and given the trends, I’m unlikely to live up to it.

The same cannot be said about the residents of Russia, who seem to be planning to live forever. The unhurried pace of life (this is especially felt in St. Petersburg) has been perplexing me for years. I grew up poor. Poverty stimulates movement. If he delayed, he became even more impoverished. The rhythm of life in Lviv is an endless race, even inside a rat wheel.

In St. Petersburg, everyone without exception “is not in a hurry and is on time everywhere.” Standing at a traffic light for 120 seconds is the wildest absurdity for me. There are about 23 traffic lights from the center of St. Petersburg to the ring road along Moskovsky Avenue. If I stand for 2 minutes on each one, I will spend 46 minutes standing stupidly. But this doesn’t bother anyone here except me.

The next paradox is that no one needs money. I am apparently the greediest and the most needy here. The locals either have everything or don’t need anything. They often don’t even go to work, literally at all. They have empty apartments, closed for years, just like that. There are a lot of cars that are eternally laid up, which for some reason are not sold, but also not used.

Employers are perplexed as to why the average St. Petersburg salary of 35 thousand rubles is not enough for me. In response, I recommend that they simply not hire those who do not have their own home by birthright, otherwise paying rent or a mortgage will eat up almost everything. They seem to understand, but they don’t seem to.

However, I'm glad to live here. Sitting and wondering what will take away my only property in Lviv faster: the restitution law of the Poles or the arrival of the Russian “Caliber”, rental and mortgage slavery no longer seems something terrible. Having the opportunity to fill up as much gasoline as I want at the usual price and drive a car anywhere in the country, simultaneously devouring any food in any quantity, I think I made the right choice, even if I pointed my finger at the sky during the Maidan.

In the New Reality, I don’t need to wash less often, and to the envy of all the bourgeoisie, I don’t have to turn off the water at all - today you look at the Soviet relic of “water at a tariff” in a completely different way. Despite all the internal paradoxes, Russia stands strong. It is unfortunate that I cannot explain my choice to most of my fellow countrymen. Even taking into account the “on your own mind” paradigm.