– Alexey, please tell us, please, your story in America. Where did you live and work before Texas?
I came from the Krasnodar Territory, the city of Gelendzhik, 15 years ago in a student program. I studied as an advertiser marketer at the Don State Technical University. I didn’t work in this area, but the knowledge I gained helped me a lot to promote my business.
Here it was possible to work, travel, and improve my level of English. In the first couple of months, I traveled almost half the country. I traveled with a friend by bus. He, like me, came from Russia, only he then left, and I stayed.
Over time, I received a green card and later citizenship. The first time I worked in the field of mountain resorts. I worked at one of the popular resorts in Colorado for about three years. I also lived on the island of Key West in Florida and worked as a driver in the Sheraton hotel chain. It was then that the first thoughts about teaching driving appeared. I saw demand for it. By then, I was already tired of working as an employee and getting an average salary. I wanted something completely different. At that time, I had lived in America for almost ten years.
– Please tell us about your profession and your work.
At first, I taught driving to my friend. Everything worked out, and it was not so difficult. After that, I began to work until lunch for myself – taught driving, and the rest of the time, I continued to work at my previous job. So I worked in three positions – until lunch as an instructor, and the rest of the time, I continued to work in two hotels with the same owner. Many people wanted to learn to drive, so I worked seven days a week and had no holidays for some time.
Six months later, I decided to leave. Besides, there was an intense hurricane Irma, and almost the entire state was evacuated. True, then the neighboring islands suffered more than Key West. So after that, I did not return there. Instead, I worked in other states for some time, visited Russia, and then came to Texas.
I have been here since 2020. I have a lot of clients, especially in Austin.
I’m a driving instructor, but not quite ordinary, as I specialize in complex cases. For example, I had a guy with amentia. Regular instructors did not accept him. They feared that he would not cope – he could not read, write, or determine the speed. However, the law allows him to pass on the rights. He passed the theory, and my task was to teach driving. I trained him, and he got his license. I had to deal with people with autism, with cerebral palsy. I also help the elderly. I had a client who was 75 years old and had never driven a car before. She is from Russia and tried to learn how to drive in Moscow, but she was not accepted anywhere. Because of such refusals, she became discouraged, but in the end, she learned to drive a car. True, I worked with her twice as long as usual.
– Do you conduct extreme driving courses?
No, although I was approached with such a question. These courses require a manual car, but I have an automatic, and besides, the demand for everyday safe driving is very high, so there is simply no time to do anything else.
– What difficulties did you have to face in America?
For a very long time, I could not find myself, did not know what to do, and was naive. I thought I would work for hire and everything would go uphill – it was my mistake. I changed companies and employers, but this did not change the essence. Raising salaries once a year did not compensate for inflation. It was difficult for me to find something I could do and be helpful to people. I only discovered my field about five years ago.
Now I work with Russian-speaking people, many of whom had driving lessons with Americans but experienced a lot of stress. They said they were already asked to enter the freeway on the second day. I do not do this. Instead, we drive on streets until a person feels confident and comfortable.
– Do you teach of English-speaking clients?
95% of my clients are Russian speakers. Americans tend to start driving at the age of 16. At this age, it is much easier to learn how to drive. When they get their license, they can take courses with the Americans. When people come from Russia, at the age of 40-50, they need a special approach, which they do not receive in American driving schools. They work with teenagers, with young people, and when they encounter immigrants, they do not adapt to their needs. Such driving schools operate on a stream and not in those situations where special attention is required, where you need to be able to explain, and so on. And when a person speaks English poorly, it’s tough.
– What do you like most about Austin?
I really like the climate. It’s warm in winter, the real estate here is inexpensive compared to other states, and the taxation system is simple. Before that, most of the time, I lived in Colorado and Washington. Compared to Texas, these are costly states. Here I was relieved. In addition, there are a lot of different areas of business in Austin and very favorable conditions. As a result, many people who work in the IT field began to move from California to Texas. It, in turn, made my profession even more in demand – there are a lot of programmers’ wives among my clients.
– Do you miss your homeland?
Yes, I miss it. I miss my parents. I tried to go to Russia every year, especially in winter. In winter, I don’t have many customers. Everyone is busy preparing for Thanksgiving and Christmas. The weather during these months is also not consistently favorable for driving.
– Please tell us about your family.
I’m not married, and I don’t have a family here. My parents and sister live in Russia. The parents are already retired. My sister and I have a big age difference (18 years), and I see her very rarely, unfortunately. There have been relatives in Ukraine since I was born there. Due to recent circumstances, I can’t even go to my grandmother’s grave. She was a very close family person to me. She died of covid, although in age, she could still live. I couldn’t go to my grandfather’s funeral either. I worry about losing loved ones. I would like to spend the rest of my life with my family. I dream of going back there. I bought an apartment there, a dacha, and a car and earned a living.
I miss my classmates.
– What do you do outside of work? What are your interests and hobbies?
Previously, I was very sick and could not get help from any clinic in any country. I was treated in America in different states, Ukraine, and Russia – to no avail. So I searched for various information on the Internet and, in the end, found a doctor from California who was engaged in alternative medicine. Boris Uvaydov, a doctor, came to the Church of Evangelical Christians “House of Bread” in Sacramento, where Alexander Shevchenko preaches, and I learned about him there. I began to read his books and learned different ways without medicinal help. Thanks to this, I healed myself.
Now I continue to delve into the study of alternative medicine. I am also interested in yoga. I have mastered therapeutic fasting on water, and without water, I practice longer and longer fasting. During it, various interesting thoughts come ideas that would not come on a full stomach. The idea to engage in driving also came during fasting, although not at all long – two days without food and water. These are the practices that change the attitude toward life and people. Six years ago, I switched to vegetarianism, and I became a vegan in the spring.
– That is, if I ask about your favorite books, will they be books about alternative medicine?
Yes, I have read dozens of books on therapeutic fasting, dissertations, and candidate and doctoral theses on this topic, which I found in the public domain—various examples of the healing of incurable patients. In general, this is a huge topic.
I also want to try carbon walking, burrowing – when a person is buried at a shallow depth, and he also experiences various insights. I also tried hardening, according to Porfiry Ivanov, and continue to harden. I held my breath and brought it up to two minutes. Finally, I go in for running, fitness, and health-improving sports.
– What are your favorite films?
I do not watch American films. I love the old Soviet “Operation “Y”, “Ivan Vasilievich changes his profession. I was upset about the death of Kuravlev, an entire era of cinematography left with him. I also love French cinema Belmondo, Pierre Richard, Gerard Depardieu, and Alain Delon.
– What would you like to wish the Russian-speaking residents of Austin and Texas?
In connection with current circumstances, I wish that people do not quarrel with each other, live in peace and harmony, and do not express hatred, regardless of where they come from.
Contact information:
Alexey Krasnov
Facebook: facebook.com/profile.php?id=100012771669186
E-mail: fredik8@gmail.com