Dust really piles up fast in Russia. I think it has to do with lax air-pollution laws and lots of exposed, eroding dirt. "I sweep my apartment on Sundays" is a common answer that my students give when I ask about their routines, and, now that I have my own place and no host mom to do the cleaning, I understand why sweeping is a necessary part of every week. I did some pushups when I got up this morning, and while in close proximity with my beautiful Soviet linoleum floor I noticed how it was covered with an impressively thick layer of dust. The dust was so thick, in fact, that my black shorts were completely dirty with mud-colored dust by the time I was done. The crazy thing was that I had swept and mopped the floor when I moved in just ten days ago. I've been keeping the door to the balcony hanging open that whole time (it's been pretty warm here), so I think all the air pollution has been settling out onto my floor. Lovely.

Another problem is the cleaning supplies I'm working with. The apartment came with cleaning basics, but they are--well--basic. The broom is a bundle of twigs about three feet long (not so convenient for a tall guy to use), and it seems to pick up only the biggest of the big dirt clods. The mop is the most basic thing possible--just a small, commercial-style mop head on a short handle--and there's no way to ring it out. So maybe that also contributes to the bad cleaning outcomes. Here's a shot of the broom, which is actually very common for Russia.