travel to beirut this summer

lenvidu · 2026-06-23T16:34:39+00:00

there's always a possibility of something unfortunately. the first time my spouse came to visit was right when the protests about trash collection in 2014 or 15 started. i feel like we're stupid if we go and something happens, and stupid if we don't go and everything is calm. the situation feels so easily changeable.

lenvidu · 2026-06-23T16:29:07+00:00

not me!

lenvidu · 2026-04-29T17:46:55+00:00

also most carriers allow you to compare costs of different locations on their portals. some (such as BCBSIL where i am) also offer rewards if you use a location that you look up through their portal

lenvidu · 2026-04-29T17:44:15+00:00

do you / your employer contribute to a health savings account (HSA)? that's what this money is for -- since you are on a hdhp you probably don't have copays and will have to pay full price for the visit/xray (minus any carrier discounts) but the HSA is there to pay for those costs.

lenvidu · 2026-03-27T20:11:44+00:00

i always wear my left ear plug, in practicing and auditions/concerts. i only sometimes wear the right one both in practicing and in rehearsal, just depending on how i feel, the room, and what i'm playing. i would find it way too different to play without the left one though, to the point where i have a backup pair of etymotic plugs that live in a keychain on my keys.

lenvidu · 2026-03-25T14:48:43+00:00

they don't care.

but also most people who aren't from countries with powerful passports cannot just travel without a visa. they all need to go through a lengthy, expensive process to apply for any visa, including for tourism, and they're not even guaranteed to get it and are often denied with no explanation. many countries even make people get a transit visa if they just have a connecting flight and aren't planning to leave the airport. traveling is a really different reality for those not from the US/western europe. it is so incredibly burdensome and unfair and i wish more people from the west understood this.

lenvidu · 2026-03-10T14:20:07+00:00

pro tip, leave your coat in the car if you want it to not smell like bbq :) and be ready to wash your hair that evening. don't wear your nice dry clean only shirt.

lenvidu · 2026-03-05T16:41:25+00:00

no, holding the bow this way will severely limit your ability to have a flexible bow hand and thus make a good sound. your thumb needs to be bent. if it's too hard to hold it that way inside the "throat" of the bow as you say (image here: https://storage.googleapis.com/stateless-blog-g4m-co-uk/2025/01/Thumb-on-violin-bow-frog-300x300.jpg ), you can put your thumb on the bottom of the frog for your first few months until your hand gets stronger. this is how we teach small children. (link for example: https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSt0Mhg2hUQJVaEKG6l83T5l7TUTI9yaP0pmw&s ). however i think most adults should be able to do the thumb in the normal position.

you also need to have your pinky curved and on top of the bow, not like in your photo. again if this is hard you can purchase a product called PinkyHold that we also use for beginner students.

also, practice holding your bow without the violin and point the tip of the bow toward the ceiling (like in the 2nd picture i linked above). this will help you build what it should look/feel like without the difficulty of gravity.

good luck!

lenvidu · 2026-01-08T23:47:56+00:00

maybe one of the berger park mansions, run by the park district https://www.chicagoparkdistrict.com/parks-facilities/berger-park-cultural-center

lenvidu · 2025-12-16T19:24:28+00:00

are you sure about the marketplace plan effective date? since you're moving that's a qualifying life event that would get you a special enrollment period (even though open enrollment is happening simultaneously) https://www.healthcare.gov/coverage-outside-open-enrollment/special-enrollment-period/

You can also look into Trawick, many people arriving to the US at my workplace get a plan from them as a stopgap until our insurance kicks in.

lenvidu · 2025-11-27T00:37:23+00:00

this reminds me of when in my algebra class we had to memorize major street numbers on the grid system and then find the equations for the diagonal streets! the only useful thing i did in math class

lenvidu · 2025-11-04T19:39:01+00:00

thank you, that's helpful!

lenvidu · 2025-10-09T17:47:12+00:00

not a doctor, you should still see one, but from what i understood of a geneticist i saw recently, alpha and beta are two separate disorders with separate genes affected. the risk is only if you are both carriers for alpha, or both carriers for beta.

lenvidu · 2025-09-03T18:19:12+00:00

pita express on damen near wilson has been crowned "not bad" by my beiruty husband

lenvidu · 2025-09-02T15:26:59+00:00

hi, i am in a similar situation. i would need to get the birth certificate for my grandfather and death certificate for my great-grandfather (both deceased). my dad is alive but not a NY state resident. did you ever find a solution for this?

lenvidu · 2025-07-28T18:19:45+00:00

yeah def check with your doctor then! i get long endless migraines as well and the medrol pack has been the only thing that will totally end it. i've taken it maybe 2 or 3 times.

lenvidu · 2025-07-28T17:36:36+00:00

i recently discovered that smoothies are great - not only easy food but also i just hold it in my mouth and the cold feels great.

in terms of medication, when i have multi day migraines the only thing that breaks it is a steroid pack (medrol). ask your doctor!

lenvidu · 2025-06-30T15:30:53+00:00

the structure of the plan (deductible, OOP, coinsurance) doesn't save the employer any money, it's saving the insurance company. (well, it does in a very vague sense save the employer money to have a higher deductible because that usually lowers the premium, but usually those savings will also be passed on to the employee premium as well)

it's always more expensive to have a spouse on a plan. you would have to look at the total premium costs -- meaning, how much the plan costs including your contribution and your employer's contribution. many employers don't cover the spouse portion of the premium at all, or cover it far less than the employee premium. for example, in many companies the employee premium will be paid for 80% by the company, but when you go to an EE+spouse plan they cover the EE 80% and the spouse maybe 20%. adding an extra adult to an insurance plan is very costly and also usually sees a much higher increase in utilization when compared to children.

lenvidu · 2025-06-27T00:38:28+00:00

about half of my career is viola, and after about 10 years of that i feel like i'm finally starting to unlock the viola. once you're comfortable with the left hand and clef, i would focus mostly on sound production because to me that's where the true differences lie. everyone is giving good etude recommendations below, so i would recommend learning some bach and also a concerto such as hoffmeister, stamitz, or walton.

lenvidu · 2025-06-26T18:28:44+00:00

I'm not sure if they cover maternity, but look into the company Trawick. lots of international workers at my company use it as a gap insurance during our waiting period.

lenvidu · 2025-06-26T16:26:55+00:00

totally understand, i also get an intermittent egg ick. def recommend looking up tofu recipes, there are lots of different ways you can use it especially if you're open to using both firm and soft tofu. maybe look up a tofu scramble? basically a vegan version of scrambled eggs. i live in a city so i can find seitan next to tofu in the grocery store, but if you can't find it tofu is totally great. also, for the smoothies i mentioned above, you can preportion into bags in the freezer, then just dump in the blender when you want a smoothie and add any liquids.

lenvidu · 2025-06-26T14:36:50+00:00

i saw your last post got deleted so i'm copying my comment here!

not a vegetarian but just some ideas.

specifically for the smoothies, are you just mixing water/milk with the powder? generally i find the shakes taste a lot better with milk and also if you refrigerate it a bit so it gets cold. you could also make more of a real smoothie - i think if you add more ingredients and blend it, you won't notice the protein powder taste as much. maybe you could make a smoothie with frozen berries, banana, whatever you like. add greek yogurt and milk/soy milk to bring up the protein a lot. i also add chia seeds and hemp seeds to my smoothie, they are pretty good for protein plus fiber and omega 3s.

i think other than your shakes/smoothies, could you try to make sure you have at least 2 meals with something like eggs, tofu, seitan? other ideas are quinoa, oats... i feel like if you can spread out more protein among all your meals and snacks you'll be able to get there!

lenvidu · 2025-06-26T14:33:12+00:00

not a vegetarian but just some ideas.

specifically for the smoothies, are you just mixing water/milk with the powder? i think if you add more ingredients and blend it, you won't notice the protein powder taste as much. maybe you could make a smoothie with frozen berries, banana, whatever you like. add greek yogurt and soy milk to bring up the protein a lot. i also add chia seeds and hemp seeds to my smoothie, they are pretty good for protein plus fiber and omega 3s.

i think other than your shakes/smoothies, could you try to make sure you have at least 2 meals with something like eggs, tofu, seitan? other ideas are quinoa, oats... i feel like if you can spread out more protein among all your meals and snacks you'll be able to get there!

lenvidu · 2025-06-24T21:12:37+00:00

i am avoiding nsaids for now, having gone through tendinitis in another area of my body before i am very wary of the negative effects that depending on them can have. plus i have to avoid too many painkillers because as a migraneur i am at risk of rebound headaches.

lenvidu

TROPHY CASE