things I still don't understand about Russians

I've been here exactly 3 months. You would think that would be enough time to get accustomed to Russian quirks, but there are still some things/fixations that I just can't get used to… 

1. tights. This is fresh on my mind, as I spent all of today trying to discreetly tug at the monstrous things, because to appear at a concert without them is just not done. This isn't just a babushka thing: I can count on my fingers the number of bare Russian ankles I've seen, and we've had a good handful of days in the 70s F. Suggested justification: they keep your core warm, so that all of your organs continue to work properly and you can have babies one day. Problem: hose actually doesn't do anything to keep me warm, sorry.
2. children. Okay, I get that it is important to stay warm in the winter. But it's 70 degrees outside, and you yourself are dressed in normal spring clothes, but your child is wearing a parka and hat with ear flaps. I do not get this. The little guy is the one running in circles around the playground; it's not like he's freezing.
3. shoes. I heard it phrased well the other day: a Russian will easily go three days without a shower but doesn't dare walk outside with less-than-perfectly-shiny shoes. This is hard, I have found, because the streets here are awful. The nice, shiny, black walking shoes I brought here… are no longer shiny, and don't even look that black, and I don't know how the Russians do it!
4. cash. A five kopeck coin is approximately equivalent to .14 cents. What is that useful for, tell me? On the other hand, we've got the 5000 ruble bill, which is basically as useless… it's equivalent to about $140. My biggest purchase in my whole time here was 725 rubles, for my metro card. What in the world am I supposed to do with that bill?
5. the draft. If you have the door and the window open at the same time, you might catch a cold. Even if it's 90 degrees in your room already.
6. shoes (again). I thought it was bad in the winter… is it really necessary to wear 4 inch heels to class? Explain that to me. Also explain how you don't twist your ankle; these streets aren't exactly even.
7. exam system. The whole grade is on the exam, more or less. Homework, when it exists, barely factors in. But do I know when my exams are? Not exactly. For instance, one professor told a few students that we have a Politics exam tomorrow, but he said nothing of the sort to half of us, and never told the other students to tell us, and technically we're supposed to have exams next week. (Update: just got a phone call; no exam tomorrow.)
8. walking. 40 degrees is warm enough for a 2-hour walk along the river bank? sure. I believe you. And you're the one who keeps telling me to close my door so I don't die of the draft.
9. metro makeouts. I know I've talked about this before, but… isn't it a little uncomfortable to be so demonstrative in the most public place in the city? Just a little? And yet every time I ride the metro, I see couples (young and old alike) acting as if the 2000 people around …aren't.
10. closed for drying. There are a couple of gardens/parks I've wanted to visit, including the Summer Garden. But they've been closed the entire month of April "for drying." I realize, this isn't about the people at all, but more the system itself… but still. Have you not noticed that it hasn't rained for 3 weeks? And that the forecast shows the first rain on the day the garden is supposed to open, when it is sufficiently "dried"? Okay.

So that's that. I haven't completely learned the Russian psyche yet.