ahoy mateys

The husband of the couple that has happy hour in their driveway had a birthday the other day and this was his gift. 

Your American sisters are not ok and they need to talk about it. They need to talk about how bad this is. Their fear, frustration, anger, needs outlet. I'm not sure the younger generations have the same panic. They aren't reliving traumas. I think they are in a state of disbelief. 

Your American friends of color are not ok. They expect more attacks. They are tired of microaggressions and they are tired of explaining this to their children. 

I fixed the toilet this morning! You might ask why, if we have a handyman service, I fixed the toilet, and then you'd get yelled at and told you have to be more understanding about the impact Covid has had on everyone and told not to ask anymore when the handymen are finally going to come. Answer:  they are coming Thursday. Hopefully. 

Samuel was ready to walk early this morning which was great because it meant we walked in 72 degrees not 93 degrees. Of course, later we walked in 93 degrees anyway because, if you're not feeling well, you're not feeling well. 

I was super industrious for an over 90 degree day. I did lots this morning and then was smart about how I did things this afternoon. I bought more soil, more mulch, and some bone meal. I bought and did my best to install a trellis. By shooting the ground with water I dug holes as deep as I could. (Thank you for that tip Kate.) I changed the mosquito lightbulb. 

A while ago I asked Kate if I could grow Columbines on my deck, but by the time I asked they were no longer available at the nursery. I ordered some online. I meant to order three. I ordered three sets of three. And they are having a special and doubled what I ordered. I guess every available spot on my deck will have a Columbine? Oops. 

Not only are there increasingly thoughts that Ukraine will win, there are thoughts that Ukraine will take back Crimea. Can you imagine Putin's shame? 

One of the top Ukrainian snipers is a woman. Olen Bilozerska gave an interview and said the Russians are easier to defeat than expected. She pointed out that sergeants and junior officers have no ability to make autonomous decisions. She thinks the war will end with Ukraine having Donbas and Crimea. 

Remember that German ex-chancellor Gerhard Schroder was being punished for his Russian ties? He wasn't going to get any new government paid for office staff? He has now quit the Russian energy company Rosneft. 

Matthias Warnig, a longtime friend of Putin, is also leaving the board of directors. The Chief Executive's two top lieutenants are leaving. The VP for Commerce and Logistics is leaving. The VP for oil and gas services is leaving. The head of retail operations has already left. All of these people are from outside Russia, showing how Rosneft has relied on overseas experience. All show that Rosneft will have to navigate this crisis without its most experienced people. 

Russian troops stole a Maine Coon cat. Olena Kukuruzka lived in Bucha and found temporary asylum in the Czech Republic. Her husband drove her and her son to the border and planned to come back for their belongings and their cat, Max. When they reached the border a neighbor told them the Russians had taken the town and he had nowhere to return to. Their house was occupied by Russian soldiers. By the end of March, the Ukrainians had liberated Bucha. Olena was told her house was trashed. The Russians even left a tripwire in the nursery but the Ukrainian deminers found it. They started looking for Max and called different groups. When the Russians left Bucha they stole Max. They took Max over 300 km along with looted home appliances. Near Homel Max escaped, with his collar and tags. Someone in Belarus called Olena, unsure if she would want to hear from someone in Belarus. Belarus volunteers helped Max get a passport and microchip and gave these to Polish volunteers who helped get Max home to Olena in the Czech Republic.