We never read instructions

[Son of Clyde]

Is it normal in Russia or Ukraine to own a household appliance but never refer to the instruction booklet?

When my vacuum cleaner broke down the first place I headed was for the instructions and they told me no, in Ukraine they never read instructions. And who pays for the appliance if it is tampered with and broken beyond repair? I am fortunate it was only a broken belt that can be easily replaced.

[catzenmouse]

SoC,

 It is a very hard and fast rule known all over the world: "When all else fails, read the instructions." I see you've misplaced your Hard and Fast Rule Book. I'll have to send you a copy...

Ken

[Phil dAmore]

Read instructions?  Whatever for?  Simply ask your sweetie... she will be more than happy to tell you exactly what's wrong with the given apparatus, and how it's YOUR fault that's it's malfunctioning.


When you finally find Miss Right, make sure her first name isn't 'Always'

[Bruno]

...in Ukraine they never read instructions...

Very few ukrainian are able to translate chiness instructions 

[KenC]

Ahh, replacing vacume cleaner belts.  Yet another added responsibility to the man that chooses a Russian for his wife! 
KenC

[Wayne]

I bought a Kirby vacuum. The saleman got me the manuals in English, Russian and Ukrainian.

[Doug S]

Too bad your new Russian/Ukrainian wife and son did not come with an instruction booklet, eh ?

If they did, it would be incomprehensible to you. Everything they do is going to be completely foreign to you. Against the grain, even. Don't ever forget thet they THINK completely different than you. Their Slavic-Eastern-Communist Hangover brains are wired completely different than your WASP-Western-Capitalist Heyday brain is. And you can't rewire them, either. They eventually find ways to deal and cope, but they will never really become "Westernized" (whatever that is) to your satisfaction or comfort. A cross-cultural marraige is constant work and compromise. When I get exasperated with Russians, I try to step back and put myself in their shoes, get inside their heads. And sometimes that's scary. Don't ever fool yourself into thinking you got a Russian wife who came to America to live like an American wife with you. She came to America to live like a Russian wife with you.

I am not singling you out, Clyde, so no need to get defensive or take this personally. I'm just taking the opportunity of this thread to point out that a lot of guys who simply can't get American wives, or the kind of American wives they want (younger, good looking, and with good figures), think they can simply go to FSU and pick up a substitute that can later be trained to act like the American wife they always wanted. Of course, that doesn't work witn Russian women.

Wait until she fixes the vacuum with some household string, scotch tape, or cannibalized parts from another appliance. Or just resorts to manual cleaning techniques.

Doug   

[Son of Clyde]

I went to WalMart and bought a belt and repaired that darn vacuum.
Doug, I knew what to expect and I am learning as I go to deal with these differences. I would hope mosrt guys here at my age realize finding a 20 year younger AW is nearly impossible unless your last name happens to be Trump. I am happy with my choice and learning to accept the differences.

BTW, I hardly ever read maps when there is Mapquest. I once used Mapquest for directions through DC and I ended up in an abandened lot because the road had been closed down.

[BC]

Everything they do is going to be completely foreign to you. Against the grain, even. Don't ever forget thet they THINK completely different than you. Their Slavic-Eastern-Communist Hangover brains are wired completely different than your WASP-Western-Capitalist Heyday brain is. And you can't rewire them, either. They eventually find ways to deal and cope, but they will never really become "Westernized" (whatever that is) to your satisfaction or comfort. A cross-cultural marraige is constant work and compromise. When I get exasperated with Russians, I try to step back and put myself in their shoes, get inside their heads. And sometimes that's scary. Don't ever fool yourself into thinking you got a Russian wife who came to America to live like an American wife with you. She came to America to live like a Russian wife with you.

Doug,

You have hit the nail, squarely on the head.

I can remember building a fence to keep our 2 yr old away from our pool and from wandering down to the street.  It was tough.. the fence was built, then rebuilt her way.. she was right.

[Taz]

Even when the manuals are in Russia, they still don't read them. I can't tell you how many times I was asked to fix something that wasn't broken. RTFM! I'll never forget one RW I was dating. In our apartment we had a nice washing machine installed. Manual came in Italian and Russian. She was always asking me how to work it. Somehow she could never find the Russian part of the manual (back half). I would read through the Russian part and point out the area she needed to know. One week later she'd ask me the same question again and I'd point to the same part of the manual. To some RW, men are like appliances. We just do some function she needs; earn money, buy gifts, carry heavy loads, etc. I don't get along too well with those types.

[prince_alfie]

The only manuals I read is for programming computers. Everything else is fair game to be modified or played around with in my book.

[Taz]

I wouldn’t suggest that with some things in Russia. They don’t always work the way we might anticipate based on our experience here. The bombs that sometimes pose as gas fired hot water heaters in some Russian and Ukrainian apartments are good examples of this. Not to mention my personal bad experience with a Russian washing machine. It received its water from the shower and empted into the toilet.

My RW didn’t know and we went out for dinner while washing a load of clothes. Came back and had water all over the floor. It was leaking down into the neighbors aparment and they were PO'd big time! She had also put the washing machine on “stun” for the spin cycle. It was a front loader and had a very high spin speed, 1000rpm. She had stuck my cashmere sweater in there and it definitely came out “stunned”. It look like it had been in a fight with an alley cat and lost.

[Turboguy]

You are braver than me.  I have never had the courage to try a Russian washing machine

[Wayne]

A couple of years ago, a Kirby vacuum salesman did a demonstration at my house, shampooed the carpet, etc.  I agreed to buy the whole system if he could come up with the instructions in Ukrainian or Russian.  He got both!

Later, I was shopping for a new range.  I narrowed down the cost at Lowes, then went across the street to ABC Warehouse, which was having a new store opening.  The regional Sales Manager lowered the Lowe's price and was offering free delivery.  Then I told him I would buy it--but the deal breaker was he had to give me the operating instructions in Russian.  He called the factory, looked for information on the internet and could not come up with it.  Then he lowered the price by $500--so I took it! 

[beattledog]

I never read the instruction manual

beattledog