wonderful customs

My Hindu neighbor was placing wonderful symbols outside her house, as she has done every year, but this time I got to see and watch because we just happened to come by at the right time. When she was done and we left her son called, "thanks for watching!"

I love blip.
I'm so glad I have met you.
You are so cool. 
My life is richer for you.
I appreciate you.

There is a Russian IT expert who has run off to the forest. He was openly opposed to the war and was even arrested for several days for protesting, but when Putin said he would mobilize 300,000 people Kalinin began preparing to go hide in a forest. He's an outdoorsman so he had equipment and experience. She hides food for him an hour away. He has solar panels and an antenna so he can keep working. He doesn't want to leave his family and friends in Russia or he would leave the country too. 

There was an interesting article in The Sunday Times by Michael Clarke. He is a professor of war studies at King's College in London. He points out that Germany's bombing of London did not break the British spirit. Likewise, British bombing of Berlin did not break the German spirit. Amerian bombing of Japan did not break the Japanese spirit - they were just losing on so many fronts and they thought we had more atomic bombs. The US delivered the biggest air bombardment in military history but we never broke the spirit of the Vietnamese. NATO bombed electricity generators in Belgrade but it did not change the Serbian sense of victimhood. 

Russia employed these same tactics in Afghanistan, Chechnya, Syria, Libya, and Mali. They have long been a terrorist state. Attacking civilians in war is how it is historically done. Somehow there is an assumption that it will destroy a people's will. It doesn't. 

Clarke said the historical record shows attacking the population and its infrastructure makes misery more miserable, but it never breaks the will of people already resisting. 

The only thing Putin is getting out of this is appeasing his hardline critics.

Russia invaded Kherson in February and has been trying to swap out Ukraine's currency. There are multiple videos on local Telegram channels showing employees at gas stations and pharmacies refusing to accept rubles and insisting on Ukrainian currency.  

A part of a railway linking Russia to Belarus was hit with an explosion. It was being used for military transport. 

Cyprus is also welcoming Russian expats. Cyprus has an easy immigration process, low taxes, and wants to attract foreign business. Since the war, up to 50,000 Russians and Ukrainians have moved to Cyprus. Hopefully they are all enjoying the beach.