Minor aches and pains. Farm news. One good jab??? Assessments of Russia.

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Oksana occasionally asks why God subjects us to minor aches and pains. My religion doesn't ask questions like that. It is what it is.

She is afflicted at the moment by toenail fungus, pain where the ribs join the sternum, digestive issues with regard to lactose, and insomnia. In other words, a standard catalog for person of her age. At the moment, I am afflicted by scrapes from falling off a bicycle, nighttime cramps, a minor pain in my mouth under my bridgework, a certain lightheadedness, lack of energy and a weak voice. The kids complain about muscular pain, rashes, and this and that.

These things are part of life. I wouldn't mention them except to write about them. If God plays any role in this, it is probably to remind us to take good care of ourselves. Which is to say, I need to call the dentist sooner rather than later for a cleaning and a checkup.

This is time to recall the things that have come and gone, I count my blessings.

·       Hemorrhoids – God knows why, haven't had them for decades
·       Dandruff – time seems to have improved my scalp
·       Acne – cleared up about the time I was 60
·       Psoriasis – treated and cured four years ago
·       Depression – threw away my Prozac right after my divorce, in my first year in Ukraine.
·       Arrhythmia – for two decades has bothered the doctors more than me.  No meds, and I didn’t cut down my exercise regime.
·       Sores on my feet – went away spontaneously after several years
·       Hearing loss – hasn’t gotten any worse for years. Frustrates my family more than me.
·       Vision – thank God for cataract surgery
·       Brain hiccups – this is episodic. For a week or so this winter I was having trouble recalling people’s names. Seems fine now.
·       Pains in my chest – much diminished since I gave up coffee recently
.       Many things have largely gone away since I finally accepted God's tap on my shoulder and stopped drinking seven months back:
o   Acid reflux
o   Gallbladder pain
o   Excessive flatulence
o   Midnight trips to the bathroom
o   Gout
o   More than that, I have lost about 25 pounds. This has me paying attention.  Weight loss may contribute to the lightheadedness, though I note that my daily workout doesn't show any decrease in energy.

Altogether, I’m in great shape for a guy only a month younger than Joe Biden. The time will come when I am affected by more permanent than passing afflictions, but not seem to be here just yet.

I was looking out over the garden on the back porch. Seems worthy of remembering in photographs. Just as we read in the farm news, the crops vary from year to year. We had a cold wet spring. Our cherry plum tree is usually frighteningly abundant, but this year it doesn’t have much. It probably flowered too early for the insects. We use these tart fruits to make jam. The tomatoes, on the other hand, are abundant if a little bit late.

The mulberries were right on time with a good crop. They are almost all gone. Zucchini has a good year every year. We had a zucchini and eggplant moussaka for dinner last night.

These current bushes were on the property when we bought it. Currents are little bit sour, but they have an excellent taste. The refrigerator is full of current jam

We had a bumper crop of peaches three years ago, but nothing since until this year. One of the trees came back from leaf curl and is producing a fairly good crop. This new tree is simply overloaded. The three-year-old pear tree is producing its first crop.

The raspberries and walnuts were also here when we came. They need no encouragement to produce every year.

The apples likewise were on the property. Though we have cut down about half of them we still have more than we can use. I had thought about getting a cider press, but now that I’m on the wagon we’ll have to find other things to do with them. If anything – they generally just overwhelm us.

Strawberries and cherries came and went. That’s the farm news. We are doing a better job of preserving things that we have in the past. With the four horsemen of the apocalypse in this year’s forecast, we should probably be especially diligent.

bad cattitude has consistently been one of the best sources on the Covid situation. When he has a good word to say about vaccines it merits reporting. He thinks the MMR is worth it. I have researched the measles jab quite thoroughly and concluded that while it offers the best risk/benefit ratio of any of the vaccines, I still don’t want it. I have posted my opinion in the comments on his article.

From a selfish point of view, the fact that measles is highly contagious no longer means as much because everybody else around has the shot. Treatments are fairly good. Secondly, I am not as sure as he is that there is nothing damaging about the vaccines. He gives as good an argument as you will find against the autism claim. However, the manufacturers have been less than forthcoming about all the gunk that they put in their shots, they are free to change them anytime they want, and they have proven themselves absolutely untrustworthy. I will still pass.

My brother sent me this analysis of Putin and his ruling clique from a sociologist living in Russia. He describes the decision-making process – or rather profound lack thereof – that characterizes today’s Russia. This too has deep roots. It characterized the czars and the communists as well.

Gary in London wrote this letter of observations from the occupied Kherson region.  I have posted them here.

Thank you for your blog. It gives me something to share with M****** and I can see in her eyes the love she has for you and your family.

I just wanted to share a report M****** received yesterday from an attendee of a meeting held in her town for all school teachers. It seems in May the teachers were all rounded up and told that the curriculum was being changed. It would be a Putin curriculum of study. Of the 5 schools for older students, 4 would be strictly Russian speaking and 1 would be Ukrainian with the goal of the Ukrainian speaker prepared for a full-time Russian language curriculum. At the end of the meeting, it was reported every teacher, staff member, and administrator resigned their position. 

Yesterday, all Teachers were ordered to attend a meeting under some "pain of penalty". The teachers were surprised to see that one of the relatively new and unknown support staff (like a classroom assistant) was now in charge of the school system. I understand the room was shocked to learn she was a huge Putin supporter and it is now speculated she was sent to the Kherson region to infiltrate the school pre-invasion. 

In the meeting, all of the teachers were told that they must return to school. If they do not return to the classrooms assigned then they would import teachers from the outer regions of Russia. So if you do not mind having teachers from Chechnya, Amur, Tartarstan, and other such areas teaching your children and living in your neighborhood you will return to your classrooms on "x" day. If you do not return you must surrender all school equipment in your possession on the day. (It seems every teacher was given a computer and a smartboard/monitor to teach online during the pandemic.) Teachers were told that they would be paid in rubles and promised a significantly higher wage should they return. 

The person who spoke to M****** was a close friend of hers while she taught school there and is a childhood friend. It seems that many people who M****** knew (not a lot of them) have come out in full support of joining up with the Russians. She is very much surprised by some of the names that were dropped. Many are being paid for her town with astronomical wages equivalent to $3-8k a month. Among themselves, the teachers are holding the line of not going back to school. It seems that the teachers are still getting 1/3rd of the normal pay which is about $35.00 a month on average from Kyiv. 

They are all hoping that the long-awaited Ukrainian offensive in Kherson begins soon. Many students that M****** taught are either fighting or are dead. One of her classmates is also now deceased from fighting in Donbas. 

M******'s mother shared also yesterday that the Russian soldiers coming into the market are now buying items that are nutrient-dense, easy to carry, and not suspicious to have in your possession. This is a marked change from just a week ago. The rockets hitting the Antonovsky bridge have left many soldiers feeling they do not have long before they need to bug out she believes. However, Ukraine is on the opposite side of the river and for them, it is a defensive battle but the US MLRS and HIMARS make the concept of keeping a defensive position near the front an unsafe place, and one needs to get ready to run home. 

Just thought I would share this with you. If you want to publish fine with me.

That’s the news from Lake WeBeGone, where the momentarily not-so-strong man is steeling himself to get back on the exercise bike when this post goes out, the good-looking woman is putting Eddie on a train to a summer camp in Ivano-Frankivsk in a couple of hours, and the girls are enjoying picture-postcard perfect weather. 

Graham