Baby sloth

I took the child being temporarily homeschooled to the Baltimore Aquarium today. It was such fun. The aquarium has a rainforest in it, with THREE sloths. 

My experience with previous job hunts is that the most important thing is to take care of your mental health. It is NOT to job hunt 40-50 hours a week, it is to stay sane and upbeat so that the letters you write re well done, the jobs you choose are appropriate, and you project confidence and charm during interviews. When you project desperation no one wants you. 

I have a couple of exciting positions to apply for and doing the applications well will take time. 

Part of self-care is exercising. 

A judge again ordered overlords to pay the $2 billion they owed to businesses who had already done work for USAID. 
The Supreme Court paused that.
Today the Supreme Court finally ruled. Sadly, it was not unanimous. In addition to it just flat out being illegal (violates the Prompt Payments Act and the 14th Amendment), it is basic contract law. You sign a contract. The party fronts money, does the work, submits the bill. You accept the work. You freaking pay your bill. 

One of the problems doing business in developing countries is that you can’t always trust their governments to honor contracts. You buy political insurance for this. If the government does not live up to its contract, the insurance pays it but usually the government does not want to anger the insurance provider. Usually the insurance provider is the World Bank or the Development Finance Corporation and if you rip them off you will not get any future loans from them. 

If the United States government considers paying its bills optional, businesses considering contracts with the US government will have to buy political risk insurance, pushing up the cost of everything the US buys. 

If the US government considers paying its bills optional, fewer businesses will consider contracts with the government, there will be less competition, pushing up the cost of everything the US buys.

The Atlantic wrote that at its current rate it will take Russia 118 years to control all of Ukraine. Russia is not winning. 

EU leaders are gathering tomorrow for a special counsel on defense. Discussions will include how to help Ukraine given the US joining the perpetrators. 

The Netherlands pledged $3.8 billion to continue support to Ukraine in 2026. The Prime Minister said it could also be used in 2025 if necessary.