-
Sheffield, I miss you.
If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be? Having lived in four different countries, in some of them twice, I think I have ‘experience’ to reflect on this issue. Where is it to live the best? I lived in Russia till I was nineteen years old, then in Brussels for five… Continue reading
-
You can be whatever you want
What alternative career paths have you considered or are interested in? I found this question very interesting as I have not only considered an alternative career path, I tried several of them, and in different countries. I worked as a translator and interpreter at Brussels’ committee for refugees and stateless people, as a library assistant… Continue reading
-
Growing up in the Soviet Union
It is with great despair that I watch our world crumbling under the weight of so many wars. My heart bleeds every time I stroll my feed on X or read the news in legacy media. People are dying, are trapped in poverty, don’t even have a chance for a better life. I often reflect… Continue reading
-
Is kindness still a virtue?
What’s the trait you value most about yourself? All people who raised me were kind. And especially, my paternal grandma with whom I spent two years of my life in Donbas and on a farm in the south of Russia each summer. The love I was getting from her (together with my cousins) was unprecedented.… Continue reading
-
The amazing world of superstitions
What do you think of superstitions? Superstition is a belief that is not based in logic, and thus, is considered as total nonsense by those who don’t believe in it. Where I am coming from (Russia), we have a lot of superstitions, too many, a gigantic legacy that passes from one generation to the next.… Continue reading
-
On Writing
What do you enjoy most about writing? My family name Netchitailova means unreadable’ in Russian and yet, writing and reading is my biggest passion! I started to write at the age of twelve and in Russian and even won a third place at one writing competition at school but didn’t pursue this passion until the… Continue reading
-
On Russia
In January I posted a video on Twitter where I talk about me going to attend a service at Russian Orthodox Church, and being a coward, I deleted the video, because several people contacted me and threatened me to remove any reference to being Russian from my profile. I have a reason to act as… Continue reading
-
Dima, where are you?
I was sixteen, and still studying at school. On the day when I encountered Dima I was taking the Moscow’s underground to deliver myself for a photo session at a modelling competition. It was the time, which lasted for a year at most, when I was dreaming of becoming a model. In other words, I… Continue reading
-
And so I vape
I was thirteen years old when I smoked my first cigarette. I was with my friend, Anya, chilling after school in one of our favourite spots – a green space near the church that saw its doors open to the general public, once the Christianity was allowed to return to Russia after the collapse of… Continue reading
-
Weird Russians
Every time I mention that I am Russian, I can always register some fascination mixed with deep suspicion on the face of my interlocutor. Russians are considered to be weird and big. It’s the biggest country in the world, with long history, enormous culture and habits that leave the rest of the world population always… Continue reading
About Me
I am a doctor of philosophy, a university lecturer, and a lover of cats, fine wine, dancing, theatre, and human eccentricity. I was born in the Soviet Union (Moscow). I am fluent in four languages, and have spent all my adult life studying (except from 18 to 19) working and living throughout Western Europe. Despite a surname-Netchitailova- that translates from Russian into English as “unreadable”, my greatest passions in life are reading and writing. My personal struggles have made me appreciate the manifestations of weirdness that exist everywhere.