As I was told by my parents (I just have to trust them on this) that on July 31, 1977 I was born in Leningrad (better known today as St.Petersburg), Russia. After 1 year my parents decided to move to Akademgorodok to work for Institute of Catalisys, so I had no choice but to move with them. In this small Siberian capital of science, located just 50 kilometers from Novosibirsk, the largest Siberian city, I lived until I was 14. During the course of those, years I acquired some of the best friends that I have ever had in my life. Snow and cold temperature made from me a real "Sibiriak". Skiing every weekend and going to school 6 times a week was the way I usually spend the long and cold Siberian winters. Unlike the stereotype that developed here in states, Siberian winters do end and even some snow melts sometimes:) ). Because Akademgorodok is located in the southern part of Siberia, +30C (97F) is not uncommon during summers, but usually temperature tend to be around +20C(~80F). Walking in the nearby woods with my family, playing soccer and going for a refreshing swim in Ob' river were among my favorite things during summer.

Once a year, usually during summers, I flew to Leningrad to see my grandparents and grandgrandparents. This is the most beautiful city I have ever seen in my life. Anyone who has ever been there or knows anything about it can agree to the title that this city holds - Venice of the North. Build by Peter the Great in 1703, it served as a capital of Russian Empire until early 20-th century. Its beautiful parks, extravagant palaces and the famous museums attract thousands of tourists from around the world. On the summer of 1992 I left Akademgorodok and Leningrad and moved to Winnipeg, Canada.

The geographical location of Winnipeg, capital of Manitoba(Canadian province), is very interesting. It is located exactly on the opposite side of World compared to Novosibirsk. There I experience my first culture shock. Everything was new, unknown and exciting. Even though I spend 3 years studying English in Russia, when I came to Canada I could not understand anything or say anything. In a following year I dedicated all of my time and energy to study English. Because we were living in the English speaking part of Canada (French is spoken in the Eastern part) me and my brother were constantly exposed to it at school and everywhere else. This everyday exposure contributed significantly to our accelerated learning of language and culture. After a LOT of hard work we successfully finished 9-th grade in Acadia Junior High. I even got special recognition for having an outstanding grades. Because we happened to be the first Russian students in the Acadia, we got a lot of silly questions about Russia and especially Siberia. Everybody knew about harsh Siberian winters, but what really surprised me the most was that students could not believe that in Siberia we had summers. They thought winter was all-year-round thing there. And when I told them about 30C in the summer they literally fell off the chairs. In Winnipeg climate was exactly the same as in Novosibirsk but nobody knew that but us. We met some Russia families there that helped us to adjust to this new place. In the following summer we moved again. Our journey took us this time USA, to be exact, Dallas, Texas. We had never experienced summers as hot as there. Temperatures of 35C + every single day for 3 months in a row was a difficult thing to overcome after living all of your life in the "coldest places on Earth". My brother Lev and I finished 10-th grade there. And again we met some Russians and some good Americans. But we only stayed for 1 year because we had to move again. Tyler was our final destination. I successfully finished school with highest of honors and enrolled in Tyler Junior College (TJC). Me and my brother finally learned to drive and we got our first car, Ford Crown Victoria 89 (it is mine now). This car added some freedom to our mobility, before we had to walk in the +40C heat during the summer time. Because in Texas cars replaced horses a long time ago, Tyler does not have any sidewalks to walk so that became a real problem for us. Always having an affinity for computers, I decided to major in Computer Science at TJC. Now I changed my major to Computer Information Systems, which is simply a combination computers and business, to accommodate my desires of building my own business someday and being my own boss. Currently I am enrolled at University of Texas at Tyler and in two years I am going to get my Bachelors Degree. To add some "spice" to my life I am also working at the headquaters/warehouse(russian - glavniy ofiss/prodovol'stvenniy sklad) of Brookshire's Grocery Company as a print-room operator.