gladiolas

In 2005 when I was planting things in my yard I put gladiolas along the wall. As it got darker they grew less frequently and of course were eliminated when the wall was changed. But I have some in the front of the house and this is the time of year that they are growing. I've planted some on the deck. The ones in the front are starting to bloom. It isn't really abstract but I am shooting through two crystals. 

Ukraine International Airlines stopped operations in late February when Russia began its invasion. It agreed to fly charters from Polish cities to holiday destinations in Spain, Egypt, Tunisia, Albania, and Turkey.


Western generals are astounded at what shite the Russian military is. It isn't just Ukrainian heroism. Some of it is that Putin listens to no one and has made horrendous military decisions. Some of it is corruption, leading to military vehicles with cheap Chinese tires and Russian units using insecure phone networks. Some soldiers have flat out refused to serve, including the 106th Guards Airborne Division and its 51st Guards Parachute Regiment and the 423rd Motorised Rifle Regiment, part of an important tank division. Russia's enemies and allies are concluding that Russia's military is incompetent. 


There are brave Russians still protesting the war - creatively - in a country where protesters are arrested for just holding up a blank sheet of paper, merely implying opposition to the war.