The snow on the sidewalk was almost up to the knees, making it quite difficult to walk.
Old Vasily was leading the way, grumbling as he went: "Damn! No one came to remove the snow again today. If it were a few years back, I could understand—after all, they were paid so little, who would want to risk their life? But now those sanitation workers are getting a decent salary and yet still accustomed to being lazy. I'm going to complain to city hall about them later!"
His wife, on the other hand, didn't mind, perhaps having gotten used to it after all these years. This is Siberia, after all!
Their eldest daughter took the opportunity to say: "I just went to Moscow a while ago, and let me tell you, the street maintenance there is so much better than here! The streets are cleaned of snow every day, spotlessly. Moscow is much bigger than our Irkutsk, but they still manage to do it. This shows the competence of Governor Rossiyana!"