thyrse

I am so used to seeing the crows on bare tree limbs that I am always startled to see my murder surrounded by green leaves. 

Crows are SO BLACK that it is really hard to get a good shot of them. If the light is shining on them enough to show them it usually blows out everything else. 

I began growing cilantro this year and now it is flowering! Yes, I know, that isn't supposed to be a good thing, but it surprised and delighted me. (Thank you for telling me about cilantro Kate.)

Also delightful - I went into my garden during a light rain and a huge bumblebee came to the thyrses or stalks on my purple heucheras and bounced to every flower while I was standing right in front of them. I just looked up that word. Heucheras are native to North America. Now I know that they can be evergreen or semi-evergreen, which I guess I knew but forgot because the rabbit ate them. The webpage says hummingbirds often visit! 

In Iceland, along the ring road, we will pass a barbed wire fence with bras all over it. 

One of the things Putin has insisted is that conscripts have not gone to war. This is not true, but it violates some Russian laws to send conscripts into conflict. Apparently Russia is punishing a dozen military officers for sending conscripts to conflict. 

The complaints of Russian soldiers certainly don't sound like what I would think of as professionals. Soldiers made and posted two videos complaining. One soldier said he contacted his lawyer and he hasn't seen his wife for five months. (????) Also exciting - he called it a war. 

Germany doesn't want to be "too successful" in replacing Russian gas. They want to continue the transition to renewable energy so they don't want to get stuck with massive LNG infrastructure.  

Dog sled racer Igor Tracz has been using his trucks to rescue dogs in Ukraine. Sponsors have donated food that he transports around Ukraine. 

Ukraine's Ministry of Internal Affairs has adopted a cat. The cat was saved about Russians bombed her building. Unfortunately, in exchange for food the cat has to attend meetings. 

Countries like Poland, Romania, and Slovakia have relaxed several rules allowing Ukrainians to bring their pets without essential veterinary paperwork.