The final Grand Slam of the year is like a jigsaw puzzle that lacks one of its four components. The US Open starts at Flushing Meadows Stadium at the end of August, the picture acquires clarity. The “US Open is coming!”  I want to alert you, dear readers, there is nothing to be scared about.  Below are some tips on how to survive the tournament which may as well be called the “Stress Open”.

Online retailing in Russia is booming, not actually so, but according to forecast projections. Wherever you come from, people are talking about online stores and it seems bricks-and-mortar could soon fade out of fashion and toilet paper will be found only online. Total euphoria about Internet trading makes it really sick especially if you consider living in Russia when none of my letters has ever reached its recipient and a parcel sent by my friend after I give birth, arrived when my kid was walking around. Nor should we forget the latest case where the postal service blocked all mail when it could not process mail fast enough and the limits on orders free of duty were increased! Another worry for you to wake up to – try sending something to Russia by DHL, the biggest messenger globally! Briefly speaking, the logistics stun you.

I continue the series on national comparisons between Britain, Russia, and the US. In this part I observe accommodation in each of three countries.

The ideal middle-class settlement for both British and Americans is suburbia. In theory, it combines city amenities with rural idyll; the critics aver that it is better at combining city pollution (noise, gas fumes, etc) with rural isolation. There are some excellent American cities (e.g. San Francisco; Seattle; Austin), but many others are uncontrolled suburban sprawls (e.g. Los Angeles) or post-industrial shells beset by so-called inner city blight featuring ethnic ghettos and high crime rates (e.g. Detroit; Baltimore).

"New Wave" has already become a very significant annual international festival for young pop singers, not only from Russia and Latvia, but also from CIS and other countries. The event is held every year in the small Latvian town of Jurmala.

In 2011 the festival of young talents celebrated its 10th anniversary. This year’s celebration was remarkable for the gathering on stage of many famous showbiz superstars, as well as by beating all records for oligarchs’ attendance! In the VIP-areas of the concert hall "Dzintari" there could be seen more billionaires per square metre, whose total expenditure during the event exceeded the budget of Latvia.

The beginning of the new calendar year in January is usually associated with a fresh start. When the clock strikes midnight most people make their wishes, plans and expectations for the next twelve months. I have always felt differently about this “January rise of spirit”, because for me the New Year starts in September. I began perceiving September as a fresh start many years ago, at school as in most post Soviet countries, children come back from their summer holidays on the first of September. For me it was always a great day, as you meet your smiling schoolmates, congratulate each other and your teachers ahead of the new school year and then sit together to plan what the year is going to be like. At university, September also had its magic power over students as there was always intrigue about what will happen during the academic year? What subjects will be added? Are there any new faces in the class? Who will fall in love with the best guy in the group?