Cav's Place

This will be another one of those probably awfully inappropriate posts, adding another that only includes Ukrainian bands to this series. And this time around they don’t even seem to still be active, or at least the two actual new finds don’t have new material or any other activity that I can find in years and the third, which is the one Ukrainian band that I still had on the list, ceased to exist in that form several years ago, though it can be said to have a successor, as a two-person project, but the songs posted under that name seem to be in Ukrainian. And yes, I’m aware that there is one more band on that list that has Ukraine listed as the country, but it’s from Sevastopol and they seem to consider themselves Russian, so they’re part of the problem and I won’t even mention their name now. Either way, once again, I can only hope that the members of these bands will make it through this, along with the rest of the Ukrainians and the country as a whole… And with all of us in this part of the world, and not only.

Kreigen is the band I specifically meant to include this time around, albeit more for what they attempted than for what they actually achieved, this kind of operatic metal with several vocalists requiring production values that they obviously lacked and also more experience than they strike me as having. I’d say that Winter of the Wolf and Therion of Wawel turned out better than the rest, so those are my two picks, the first actually being what I happened to pick to listen to first and the reason why I was actually excited to stumble into this band before the other songs dampened my enthusiasm. Still, the potential is obvious and I’d have certainly liked them to continue.

The other new find is HeirThronE, which can be said to be here in order to have three bands in this post, being a generic power metal, or even simply heavy metal, band, with a rather rough sound and some weaknesses in the vocals. Still, they seem to be kids, or at least they were at the time this was recorded, and I’d actually say that they sound better than I’d have expected after seeing that picture. If you want to listen for yourselves, I’ll go with Metalhallow and Hero as my two picks.

As for the band that was already on the list and which I know is no longer active in this form, though two members continue under the name of Trouble|Me, that’s Sad Alice Said and my picks are Open Your Eyes and Fade. They’re the one band included in this post that seems fairly professional and experienced, and the sound is clean and smooth, quite pleasing to listen to, but it strikes me as rather weak, in the sense of lacking strength. Not that everything needs to have a powerful sound, of course, but it seems to me that they could use, or more exactly could have used, more force in order to truly be memorable.

Since I didn’t even manage to write some quick notes yesterday and today it was a little after 5:30 PM when I got up and I didn’t even open the file until after this evening’s race, it was clear that this post couldn’t be about planting trees again yesterday, because even if I was again going to add more later, I was unlikely to even finish a first part by midnight. So I decided to write about the two runs I’m yet to write about, though I’ll actually start with the early hours of March 14, when I was taking the dishes back to the kitchen after eating dinner in my room and saw one of those black cockroaches. It had been under the door, so it was revealed when I opened it, but it was a rather small one and it stayed there, so I couldn’t step on it because of the threshold, at least not with these slippers, and the dishes I was carrying didn’t really allow me to make sudden moves and I clearly couldn’t remove a slipper and put it on a hand and try that way, so it escaped.
Either way, even though I had worked a lot in order to clean the fridge two days earlier, when we finally defrosted it again, which led to being exhausted and out of it the day before, and the temperature was also supposed to be a fair bit higher the next day, it was also supposed to be cloudy and more windy, so I decided to run that day and set the alarm to wake me at 2 PM. It didn’t get to ring, however, because I kept waking up, a number of times to pee, then even if I didn’t need to anymore, and after being awake just after 1:40 PM, deciding to try to nap a little more and maybe just managing to fall asleep again, there was some noise and I woke up yet again, seeing 1:57 PM when I checked the time, so I turned off the alarm and got up. Then I had the usual stuff plus almonds, but the sweet thing was much larger than usual, in the form of a mucenic, or I guess a sfintisor, with plenty of walnuts and added honey. I left a little before 4:35 PM, wearing the full running gear, an undershirt underneath, that thing around my neck and the gloves, plus the jacket on the way, tied around my waist as I ran, the reported temperature being 8°C, supposed to drop by 1-2°C by the time I’ll finish, but it was sunny and there was little wind, so it didn’t feel cold at all.
The time was 47:49.42, with sector times of 4:07.14, 5:16 (5:15.88), 5:51.00, 4:29.84, 5:08 (5:07.31), 5:53.81, 4:24 (4:23.50), 5:11.32, 5:46 (5:45.22) and 1:44.40, making for lap times of 15:14.02, 15:30.96 and 15:21 (15:20.04). I couldn’t really say what my initial target was, maybe to at least stay under 49 minutes and hope for something better, but I started by giving everything on the first sector and managing that great time, which would have actually been the second 4:06 I ever managed if not for what was almost a roadblock forcing me to take the last turn all the way on the outside before going again across the path and getting back on the inside just as I crossed the line that marks the end of the sector. Then I took it easier on sector two, needing to recover, but that time was too bad, so I pushed again on sector three, albeit obviously not to the same extent as on sector one, and after the end of the lap I thought I was aiming for 48:30, since I wasn’t going to maintain that pace, which in itself would have allowed me to stay under 48 minutes. But lap two, when I maintained a sustainable pace, not sparing myself but not pushing either, made me wonder whether staying under 48 minutes was in fact possible. I didn’t think so, but nevertheless pushed from the start of lap three and after sector one thought that I might fail by a matter of seconds and end up blaming it on the fenced area and needing to take to the grass. Then, after sector two, I was even thinking that 48:15 was more likely, but I just gave it everything on sector three and at the end of the lap was surprised to see that I had a good chance of staying under 48 minutes after all. I felt tired, however, so I thought that I was going to have to dig deep for that 1:54 I needed… Only to be ten seconds faster, managing a great final sector!
There were fences on much of sector two again, starting early on the long straight and ending close to the end of the sector, when I was approaching the bridge, and that caused me to have to take to the grass a couple of times on each lap on that long straight, and on laps one and three I even went behind that stall that’s there. I also slowed a lot in order to squeeze through a roadblock on the long straight of sector one of lap two, then other roadblocks caused me to slow twice more on sector two of lap two, and again when two guys went towards me as I was staying on the lane, I’m pretty sure on sector three of lap three, though there’s a chance that it was actually on sector two. And on sector three of lap two there was some pain in my right knee and ankle, though it got better after that. Otherwise, my eyes were really tearing up after that very fast first sector, with tears running down my cheek…
After getting back, I had lunch and changed, and at 7:40 PM I was leaving again, also taking the vegetable pâté and instant coffee and tea we had and never used, to drop off at one of the stores gathering products donated for the Ukrainian refugees. I also wanted to donate that 1 RON I had decided to donate after being charged less at Carrefour on March 10, but while I seemed to remember that Mega Image took donations for refugees, when I just stepped inside this one that’s across the road and glanced at the donation box, it seemed to be for something else, so I kept going to the Carrefour from the park… Only for the box meant for donations of food from there to still only say Food Bank and Red Cross, so while I thought I recalled reading that all the donations received during this period will be directed to Ukrainian refugees, which I confirmed after getting back, at that point I was uncertain and didn’t drop anything off, just entering the store with those things in my pockets and only buying a tea. At least I finally remembered to use the discount ticket received for the snacks and popcorn bought from there after the half marathon run, having forgotten about it the other two times I had been to Carrefour in between. But what was unpleasant was that, since these discount codes are just printed on the receipt and I therefore had to give it to the cashier, she just took it and, after first seeming to mean to give it back after scanning it, suddenly changed her mind and threw it away. And I couldn’t get myself to say anything…
Either way, I then also went to the newer Kaufland. Thought about checking that Penny as well, but after changing my mind a few times on the way, I eventually went straight there… And saw that the box which should have been for food donations for the Ukrainian refugees was empty and had no sign on or around it, and I couldn’t get myself to ask an employee, so I didn’t leave anything there either, washing my hands and walking in with everything still on me once again. It was just after 9 PM, but bakery discounts of 50% were already listed and as I was trying to decide what to get I heard the announcement stating 75%, so I ended up grabbing a number of things, most of them for my mother. Then I also took a lettuce that had a good evening discount and one more thing for dad, after which I wandered around for a while, checked for expiring products and other evening discounts and looked for that pack of four yogurts for the price of three that I was used to buying, after having been unable to find it in Carrefour, but I couldn’t find it there either, nor anything else that I’d be interested in, so I eventually made my way to the self-checkout and had no problems with the machine. Then I used the scales that are close to the bathrooms in order to get a label that I used to keep the bag with my pastries closed, and on the way I saw that some products had appeared in that donation box, but there was still no sign, so I still left it for another time.
I was walking away before closing time, and got back a little after 10:40 PM. Then I put things away and ate an orange and something sweet that was already around, leaving those pastries for other days. After that, I had a hot bath and managed to stick to the new schedule for dinner. On the other hand, though it didn’t really seem to be the case right after the run, my right nostril felt irritated again that night.

As for March 24, I got up when the alarm rang, at 2 PM… When it seemed that I was just about to finally fall asleep again after waking up when dad had left, which should have been around 1:30 PM, though I hadn’t checked the time then. Either way, I then had the usual stuff plus almonds, but replaced the yogurt with some of dad’s kefir, since I was out of yogurt. As for the sweet thing, that was a slice of cozonac, with added honey. It was a little after 4:15 PM when I left, wearing the full running gear, the reported temperature being a nice 21-22°C, supposed to drop by a few degrees by the time I’ll finish.
The time was 1:18:41, with sector times of 4:23, 5:08, 5:54, 4:33, 5:04, 5:53, 4:36, 5:06, 6:04, 4:41, 5:18, 6:07, 4:42, 5:15 and 5:57, making for lap times of 15:25, 15:30, 15:46, 16:06 and 15:54. I was hoping to stay under 1:18 again, but at the same time the realistic goal was just staying under 1:20, especially since I didn’t feel good early on. Still, thanks to that sector three, the time on lap one was exactly the same as the previous time I ran 16 km, so I started thinking of 1:18 a little more. It seemed unlikely at that point, but after lap two was six seconds faster than then, it started to actually seem possible. However, after losing ten seconds on lap three, it was clear that it had been a wrong impression and I was just looking at staying under 1:19, and lap four meant that I actually had to push on the last lap even for that. Considering the total time at the start of that last lap, I was sort of thinking of being exactly one minute slower than then as a good target, and that was just what I managed, though it meant really giving it everything, especially on sector three.
This time around, the fenced areas were in sectors one and three, plus pieces of fence still placed in two earlier portions of sector three, before the part that was actually fenced off, but it seemed that those had simply not been moved quite yet, since they had been moved from the ends of those areas, all the ribbons between them were torn and the new surface and the paint seemed completely dry, so in those areas I just stayed on the lane. But some of the areas that were actually fenced off were on the long sector one straight, where as a result I often had to go off the path, including behind benches, garbage cans and poles, and when I tried to avoid that I kept having to squeeze through and slow, and a few times even briefly stop. And I also had to go behind that stall where people usually gather on sector three on all laps except the first, having no way through on the second, third and fourth and choosing to not risk it on the last, since there was a narrow space between the people and the fence as I approached, but if anyone’d have moved I’d have been blocked. So, while I dealt with worse, there definitely were plenty of people, dogs, children, and the fenced areas made it much worse, resulting in a lot of weaving, going the long way around, squeezing through, slowing, avoiding, and a few brief stops. And since I mentioned avoiding, there were a few times when it was a close call, the worst seeming to be on sector one of lap two, when me and a cyclist barely avoided each other. Otherwise, it was also windy in some areas, at first the worst being towards the end of sector three, but then it was mostly windy from the long sector two straight of lap four until the end. And my right knee also started hurting a little after that straight, not really getting better until the end. And my nose was also really irritated after the run, though it got better quickly.
Either way, I then jogged most of the way back, had lunch, changed and left again at 7:45 PM, taking the paper, which I dropped off in a bin. Then I went to the Carrefour from the park, but didn’t buy anything even though I considered getting a few things. I did buy one expiring thing from a Mega Image I decided to check on the way to the newer Kaufland, finding that expiring products still had the 50% discount in that location. Then I washed my hands when I got to that Kaufland, entered with that product in a pocket, not bothering to use a cabinet, and went straight to the bakery area, discounts of 70%, instead of 75%, having just been announced. The other two kinds of bread were again no longer available, but that third kind I had considered days earlier was, and had a price that made me decide to at least try it once, so I got one, as well as a sweet pastry. Then I also grabbed a kind of lettuce with root that had a good evening discount and several expiring things, most of those being some chocolate bars for dad. After that, I waited for a while for a machine to free up at the self-checkout, so I was still scanning when the store closed, but at least there were no problems. I got back a little after 10:45 PM, ate another slice of cozonac, with added jam, and an orange, and then showered. I didn’t manage to stick to the new dinner schedule, however, despite getting back in the kitchen just before 1 AM, since I still had a fair bit to do, so I ended up only starting to eat dinner at 3:20 AM and finishing a little after 3:45 AM.

Proving that I wouldn’t have managed to write any significant part of the post about planting trees again yesterday, what I posted before midnight only included the part about March 14, the one about March 24 being added just before I went to bed in the morning, at which point I also changed the time to 11:59 PM, that first part being posted at 11:56 PM. But since it initially showed up as having been posted at 10:56 PM, at least that also reminded me to change the time here as well, after the hour went forward last night.

Picking up from where the post about the two previous runs left off, on March 5 I got up when the alarm rang, at 2 PM, though at 12:40 PM a neighbor started drilling and I was considering getting up then and maybe trying to catch another short nap later, if it’ll get quiet again, but the noise only lasted for a few minutes and then I probably drifted in and out of sleep, having pretty crazy dreams that made it hard to tell when I was sleeping and when I was awake. Then I had the usual stuff plus almonds, with the sweet thing being the last slice of that cozonac-sized chec, which Wikipedia says is a version of pound cake, with added honey, but also an expired bar. Unfortunately, the time spent on the toilet was mostly wasted, just getting the tiniest bit out, but I had gone before going to bed, getting quite a lot out, and that was good enough even if it definitely felt like there was a fair bit more there. Then I put on the full running gear, with some things in the pocket of my tights, also had that thing around my neck and the gloves, and the jacket for the way, tied around my waist as I ran, and left a little after 4:10 PM, when the reported temperature was 5-6°C, supposed to hold steady, the fact that it was also cloudy not helping.
The time was 1:47:16, with sector times of 4:22, 5:20, 6:03, 4:36, 5:17, 6:02, 4:36, 5:17, 6:07, 4:40, 5:23, 6:09, 4:43, 5:27, 6:17, 4:48, 5:31, 6:19, 1:59, 6:23 and 1:57, making for lap times of 15:45, 15:55, 16:00, 16:12, 16:27 and 16:38, plus 10:19 for the final portion. Being so tired and with my right ankle, and even some toes from that foot, still bothering me, I was thinking that I’ll reward myself if I’ll stay under 1:50, setting targets of 16:00, 16:00, 16:00, 16:30, 16:30, 17:00 and 11:00, adding up to 1:49, while the best case scenario was 1:48:30, since I saw 10:30 as the normal time for that final portion. And the exact target time I hoped for was in between, 1:48:48, since I was thinking of a reward of 5 RON per minute and that pack of four mucenici, or sfintisori, that I wanted was 5.97 RON. So that poor sector two of lap one made me worry, but the first lap’s time was good enough and I managed to gain a little more on lap two as well, while on lap three I pushed in order to just manage to stay on target. Then I relaxed a little on the first two sectors of lap four, before pushing a little again on sector three, worried that if I’ll go over 16:15 on that lap I’ll go over 16:30 on the next. And that was probably correct, since I was three seconds under 16:15 on lap four and three seconds under 16:30 on lap five. Since I was only seriously thinking of that 1:48:30, on lap six I probably relaxed a little again, but at the end of it I realized that in fact 1:47:30 was a real possibility, so I pushed on that final portion, also to make up for the seconds lost in order to look at the time, and made it by a safe enough margin to make me think that I could have done even better, quite clearly getting under 1:47 if I’d have been more confident early on, but maybe even getting under 1:46 if I’d have really pushed all the way.
A good part of sector two, two straights and a turn I had to take on the outside as a result, was fenced off again, but the remaining area wasn’t that narrow except in front of a stall, where I had to briefly stop on lap two because of a kid with a scooter and almost stop on lap three because of a cyclist, both appearing from behind the people gathered in front of said stall. Also slowed quite a lot, twice, on sector two of lap four, because of people with dogs, briefly stopped again on sector one of lap five, because of two boys chasing each other and not looking, and yet again on sector two of the final portion, because a little kid decided to go from one parent to the other, across the lane, just as I got there, so it’s a good thing I still had good “brakes”. Otherwise, there was obviously some weaving and going the long way around, and maybe I slowed a little a few more times and took just a little to the grass on a couple of occasions, but there weren’t as many people as I feared, probably because it was so cloudy.
Speaking of the conditions, at the start I was thinking that I should have taken a second t-shirt, but I eventually managed, though I can’t say that I was comfortable except for some moments on the first three laps, after warming up on the first and before it seemed to be getting too chilly for being warmed up to still be enough towards the end of the third, and minus the moments when the wind chilled me, since there were some windy areas as well, mainly on sector two, and on laps two and three I was freezing while passing through them. On lap five it already was quite cold, though when I was pushing on the final portion I can’t say I felt it anymore.
It did get rather dark though, and I started struggling from the start of sector three of lap five, my eyes watering, maybe because of the cold, and especially in that spot, after passing under the bridge, where it was dark, I couldn’t see well for a while and the time was over one hour, so the seconds were small. Then, on sector three of lap six, I looked at the stopwatch multiple times, trying to make sure that I had seen the time correctly, so I probably slowed a little while doing so, and that sector was also when I first removed my glove, to hold the stopwatch better and not cover it, otherwise pressing the button with the glove on. And on sectors one and two of the final portion I had to briefly stop, there was no other way to see, and I didn’t pick the best moments to do so. On sector one I chose the bottom of the stairs instead of the top, where I could have caught my breath for a moment, plus that I had to briefly stop again there anyway, because of people just turning towards the stairs as I was about to turn away, to cross the bridge. And on sector two I stopped just a few steps after starting it, while a little later I saw that a stall had turned the lights on and the briefest stop in that spot would have been enough to see properly, but those lights hadn’t been on when I had previously passed it, so I couldn’t have known.
As for physical issues, I felt bloated at first, but then it got better, and a certain pressing need only appeared on the very last sector, as I pushed, without being an issue. Otherwise, there were some warnings from my right knee, and also lower down that leg, on sector one of lap four, but that was pretty much it, as otherwise I felt surprisingly well… At least while running, because that ankle hurt a fair bit after I got back and things got worse over the course of the next day. After having a hard time sleeping, in the evening something wasn’t feeling right in my abdomen, there was some pain if pressing the liver area, and also that feeling that I associate with the inflammation of a tendon or something along those lines in my right foot, and at night my feet were burning again and my left ankle was visibly swollen.
Back to the evening of March 5, after the run I went to Carrefour and got a number of things, wandering around for a while in order to pick, since the time meant that I could reward myself with a fair bit more than those mucenici, plus that snacks were among the classes of products included in that weekend deal, customers receiving 20% of the value as a voucher for future purchases. But those mucenici were four for the price of three and you had to ask for them, and while this was stated on a big sign, the two women who were just ahead of me only asked for three, not seeming to pay attention even when I mentioned that the fourth would be free, and I couldn’t get myself to stop them and tell them properly after I got the four I wanted.
Then I jogged most of the way back and made a little detour to this nearby store, for cheese, ending up getting the buffalo kind, since they had increased the price of the regular kind so much that the two were equal, after spending quite some time trying to get a bag out of the pocket of my tights, since it had caught in the zipper… But I’m not sure what I did with the receipt. I’m sure I took it, but when I got back and spread everything on the table, it wasn’t there anymore. Either way, I then quickly went to take a shower, after which I ate a banana, the snacks I had purchased and one of those mucenici, also took a pill, just in case, and then made mamaliga, adding quite a lot of things in it.

And now I’ll go back to fill in the part I skipped in that post about the two previous runs, starting with February 23, when I left at 4:40 PM, also taking the recyclables, which I dropped off in a bin, then first went to the branch of my bank that’s just past the store I had ordered the external HDD and the speakers for dad from, to also deposit the money for said speakers, since I was paying by card, and at 4:55 PM I was at the store. After being asked whether the two orders could be merged and agreeing, I was handed the external HDD and asked to verify the product code, but I was looking at the serial number, so it was obviously different. But I was really struggling to make out those very small characters and they assumed that I couldn’t see it properly, and the first cashier said she couldn’t make it out at all when she tried, handing it to the second, who could finally confirm that it was the correct product. Then they just gave me the cheap speakers, without asking to check anything. And while that was going on, another employee was talking to a customer on the phone and at one point said that the computer doesn’t restart because of the video card and I couldn’t stop myself from saying out loud that it does if that video card uses more power than the PSU can provide, which caused the sales woman to laugh.
After using a route that took me past another recycling center I wanted to check, which ended up being just a waste of time, since the prices were no longer listed on the sign, I got to Auchan at 6 PM and bought a number of things, including one of those breads, the actual weight being only six grams less than the listed one that time. I also meant to get some purple potatoes, out of curiosity, after seeing them there, at a decent price and listed as being Romanian, but I forgot to go back there after getting the other products, only being reminded when the cashier said that she had thought that the eggs were potatoes and had almost dropped them before I told her what they were, at which point it was too late. Then, after taking a little time to figure out how to do it, I managed to use the credit that was on dad’s store card, as a result of the purchases made two days earlier, at the machine. And then, after taking some time to arrange the purchases, I left that shopping center just after 7:45 PM, the different access routes making me give up on the idea of also getting some meringues from a confectionery that’s there, after having previously noticed that they seemed to have the kind I’ve been looking for.
Since it was getting late and I didn’t want the added travel time between them, nor to have to put my things in cabinets in both places, I decided to then go to the Carrefour and Kaufland that are next to each other, leaving my things in a cabinet at Kaufland, peeing and washing my hands, but then going first to Carrefour. I didn’t get anything from there, but in that location they also discount some bakery products after 9 PM and since I was still there at that hour, I saw a guard get some buns, dropping one on the floor and just throwing it back with the others, so not just putting that dirty one along with the rest, but getting the others it touched dirty as well. Either way, I washed my hands again after getting back to Kaufland and, while there wasn’t much left in the bakery area, there was one last rye bread that had the evening discount, so I got that… And ended up using two small bags for it, as in those that I sometimes look for when I get pastries and rarely find at all, since that time around those were the only ones still available. Then I got some other things and wandered around until I realized that it was almost 10 PM and rushed to the self-checkout, needing to call an employee because the machine wouldn’t accept the expiring sandwich I had picked up as the correct item, and it admittedly had 25% more than the listed weight, which I knew because I had weighed two I had found and picked that much bigger one. Either way, the announcement that the store had closed came as I finished scanning, but I still took some ten minutes to arrange everything in the bags and backpack… And then rearranged them again once I stepped outside and saw that it was raining, so I obviously wanted some to be better protected.
I got back a little after 10:45 PM, having carried 15 kg. That was easy on that last part of the trip, from Kaufland, with everything properly arranged, but on the way there, from Auchan, I had struggled despite having carried a fair bit less, because everything purchased from there had been in one bag, just the external HDD and speakers being in the backpack. Either way, I then had half, so 25 grams, of the chocolate with 95% cocoa I purchased from Kaufland, what was still usable of the last of those three bananas purchased two days earlier, and that expiring sandwich. It was almost 12:30 AM when I went to the toilet and to shower and 1:20 AM when I got out of the bathroom, but I still had things to do and only started eating dinner at 3:30 AM, finishing at 4 AM.

That morning, I again slept poorly, despite falling asleep rather quickly and only waking up the first time at 9:35 AM, because I was unable to get back to sleep after that. So at 10:45 AM I got up, connected the new external HDD, made a first attempt at setting it up, and also tested dad’s speakers. Then I took care of various domestic matters and set up and checked a part of the new external HDD, but after it took an hour and 20 minutes to copy I realized that for some reason I couldn’t expand that partition after shrinking the first one, though I had deleted and recreated the others, so the 3 GB of freed space was right before it. So I had to delete and recreate that one as well, and then copy everything again.
I wasn’t feeling well, so I took a pill, but maybe I was just tired. My feet were also badly swollen again, but that was probably to be expected after sitting in a way that had cut off circulation, and also hurt my back, while rearranging the boxes and munchies at the bottom of my bookcase. And at least I got a little more sleep in the evening, though dad soon forgot that I had told him that I’ll get in bed and called me, and I couldn’t get back to sleep after that, though I tried to just stay there. Either way, after washing what he had left after cooking, slicing some more of the bread bought for him and trying to find room for it, as well as for that one I had purchased from Auchan for myself, in the freezer, I started eating dinner at 3:05 AM, and that was after having lunch in the early afternoon, but at least I still managed to finish at 3:40 AM. And I felt a little better after the time spent in bed, and there was a further improvement after dinner.

After getting in bed at 5:20 AM, which was the first time in a while when I failed to stick to at least 5:15 AM, I didn’t sleep enough that next morning either, since when I woke up the second time it was just after 10 AM and dad was in the bathroom, him going there probably being what had woken me up in the first place, I got back in bed and actually fell back to sleep right away, but the need to pee woke me up yet again minutes later, I waited for him to finish, and since he was probably shaving as well it was around 10:20 AM when I could finally go. And I then exchanged a few words with him as well, and when I tried to get back to sleep once again, I couldn’t. After a while I was thinking of getting up, but was just too tired, and while I did eventually fall asleep again, it took a long time, a rough estimate being that it probably happened around 11:30 AM, and since I woke up for good at 1:30 PM, I likely only slept for some two more hours, if even that.

Moving on to the early hours of March 1, I meant to start checking the large partition of the new external HDD before going to bed, but there was no time to do so and still get in bed at 5:15 AM, so I connected it at 8:45 AM, after waking up to pee, and started checking that huge partition then, before getting back to bed. And that time I did manage to sleep better… Though there was an unpleasant moment when I woke up for good, seeing as I was woken up by a cramp.
I went out at 4:20 PM, jogging part of the way to the big Mega Image from Vitan, though I stopped to also quickly check a Shop & Go on the way. The food for Liza was on sale, but dad said he had just found the kind for kittens, buying some of that, so I was looking for the kind we usually get for her, but it seems that the only kinds that were available during that period were that one for kittens, with chicken, and those for adult cats with turkey or salmon. Still, Liza did eat the kind with salmon before, when that one with chicken was also unavailable for a while, so I got the four I could get from there, the offer being four for the price of three and only five being left on the shelf. And I was done quickly enough, so I only jogged a small part of the way back and even checked the Mega Image next to Tei as well, finding plenty of the kind with salmon there but not buying any more. I had meant to get eight more, and should have done so, but decided to get back and ask dad first…
I was back at 5:40 PM and did ask him, and after showing him that Liza did eat that kind as well, he agreed that I should get eight more. So, after just having a slice of something sweet he had brought and leaving again a little after 7:05 PM, I checked four Mega Image locations on the way to Obor before finally finding some more in one, and also getting some more of that zacusca for him from there. Then I also quickly checked a Profi when I got to the Obor area, just taking a few steps inside, bought a pack of biscuits from a Ukrainian brand from that Auchan, and also checked that Carrefour, mainly looking for cheap eggs again but forgetting to even look for those sold by piece after finding no expiring ones, so I didn’t get anything.
I did buy from Kaufland, however, heading straight to the bakery area after washing my hands and getting some things that had evening discounts, and then plenty of vegetables that had deep evening discounts as well. Getting larger red potatoes, since dad won’t use smaller ones, meant digging through multiple crates, and I got what I could find without getting to the crate that was at the very bottom only for another customer to also move the last one left on top of it as I was selecting, discarding those that didn’t seem good enough at a closer look, and at that point I saw that most of those in that crate were much better than what had been in the others, but that guy and one other person started going though it and it seemed fair to let them do so, and they took pretty much all of the good ones by the time I got back there, after getting beets and carrots. Then, after also checking the expiring products but not finding anything interesting, I realized that closing time was less than ten minutes away, though there had been no announcement, so I went to the self-checkout… And again ended up with the jacket’s sleeve stuck in that magnet, since I keep all the coins there. Tried to pull away, but couldn’t, so I had to call an employee to help and she said she’ll try when I told her that I’d rather not tear the jacket, but she nevertheless yanked it loose, and while that didn’t cause an actual tear, that spot does look somewhat damaged, so there will be consequences in time… Either way, I asked what that magnet’s for and she confirmed what I had been thinking, that it’s to remove anti-theft devices, but couldn’t they find some other solution?
By the time the machine refused to accept the mushrooms as the correct item and I had to call that employee again to override that, the store had closed and I was rushing, even more so since another employee came to stand next to me and seemed impatient… And that caused me to simply forget about those bakery products, which were in the bag hanging from my neck, so I apologized to that other employee for holding her up, went to retrieve my things from the cabinet… And suddenly realized that I hadn’t paid for those products. So I went back, wanting to be fair, and just told that employee what had happened and handed her the money, thinking she’ll sort it out, but she wanted to do things properly, entering the products and giving me a receipt, but even though you can select multiple items and she saw that they were all in a single bag, she first entered only the bagels and then put the bag on the scales, then found that she had nothing else to place on the scales after also entering the croissant. And I didn’t think to tell her to just put something else there, since the machines tend to be lenient with the weight of those products, and she couldn’t log on, so she had to call another employee, explain what was going on to her as well, and after that other employee sorted things out I could finally be on my way.
Since that took several minutes, I then grabbed my things and rushed outside, arranging them in the bags and backpack there… Which actually took less than I thought, so I was already walking away at 10:20 PM and got back here at 11:15 PM, the snow and muck making me slower, plus that I stopped at a location of my bank, to quickly check that my card still worked, since it had also been in that pocket from my sleeve. And after I got back I told dad about the whole thing and he berated me for going back, saying that I shouldn’t have done so and that the fact that it had taken so long to sort it out was a sign of that, repeating that a few times, and also saying that you don’t get far with fairness, don’t gain anything and so on, when I said I wanted to be fair. What a good example he is…
Either way, I then put some of the things away, realized I had somehow lost a small bag while I was in Kaufland, then ate that croissant and a can of sardines and one of the bagels as lunch, went to have a quick shower well after midnight, the fact that the water wasn’t exactly at a comfortable temperature helping me finish faster, and got back in the kitchen just before 1 AM. I still failed to stick to the dinner schedule, however, still having things to do and also lettuce to deal with, so I started to eat dinner at 3:20 AM and finished at 4 AM.

After all of that, I didn’t sleep well the next day either. Even though I only got up for good at 12:45 PM, I only napped for a matter of minutes after waking up to pee around 9:20 AM. I did nap for another hour or so in the afternoon, then meant to get some more sleep in the evening, but first cooked, to use those rather spoiling mushrooms purchased from Kaufland the day before, and if I thought I’ll be finishing around 9 PM, then having lunch and then crawling back in bed for another couple of hours, it was almost 11:15 PM when I finally started having that lunch, taking so terribly long to cook…
I should really stop thinking that there’s anything I can actually do… I keep getting in that spiral of getting more depressed because I take so long and can’t do things right, which causes me to get even slower and less coordinated, even getting some sort of mind fog and shaking, which in turn makes me even more depressed and so on. And all that time spent cooking also meant a lot of time on my feet, and my right foot was burning again, and my back was also hurting to some extent. But at least the food turned out good, and I also boiled the carrots for the salad I had at night then while cooking, and if I only managed to start eating dinner at 3:05 AM in spite of that, at least I still managed to finish at 3:40 AM. And as I was getting dinner ready, a little before 2 AM, the check of that huge partition of the new external HDD also finished, so it took just over 41 hours, and no problems were found.

The plan was to continue from where the previous personal post left off, writing about running a half marathon distance on March 5 and then going back for the odds and ends between the two runs that came before that one, but after planting trees, attending a protest and wandering around yesterday on absolutely no sleep, and therefore also “celebrating” World Sleep Day in that manner, writing about all of this seems like the better idea. And I’ll start from the evening of March 18, when I spent over two hours in bed but only slept around one, which was all the sleep I was going to get until this morning. But I was really breaking down that evening, really crashing after I got up, having pushed myself too hard for too long… But I somehow managed to push myself yet again, so I guess that’s a matter for another time and now I should just get back to the rest of that evening, when I mostly wasted time on the toilet, only getting the tiniest bit out, and also just failed to stick to the new schedule for dinner, only starting right at 3 AM and finishing at 3:45 AM, but at least I managed to almost get ready to leave, putting almost everything I wanted to take in the backpack and jacket and deciding what I was going to wear.

Some minutes after 5 AM, I did get in bed for a little while, to mark the separation between the days, setting an alarm for 5:30 AM, in case I’ll end up falling asleep. But there was no risk of that and I got up again at 5:25 AM, then wasted some more time I didn’t have on the toilet, despite feeling that I had to go, realized that I had forgotten to clip my nails and did that, then ate an apple, yogurt and cereals, and a sweet pastry. Going in the clothes I was wearing inside meant that there was no need to change, but it was going to be cold and windy, so I added a hoodie and another shirt. Then I cleaned the litter box, brushed my teeth, finished getting ready, peed and rushed out a little after 6:45 AM.
Just like back in November, I had to use the metro and had dad’s metro card, but I had to be at the Opera Square at 7:30 AM, so I had calculated that I had to leave at 6:45 AM at the latest, being a couple of minutes late making me jog to Dristor, getting there at 7 AM. Seeing as I ended up reaching Opera Square at 7:20 AM, I guess I didn’t have to jog, but I couldn’t be sure of that, and plenty of the volunteers were already there by then anyway. So I also took a seat in one of the buses, nobody ending up sitting next to me, and we left at 7:45 AM. A few had been late, arriving after 7:30 AM, but one guy was just getting there as the two buses drove away, so he ran across the road and just reached the door of the one I was also in when it left the Square, the driver stopping for a moment to let him in as well.
It was almost 9:10 AM when we reached the location, in Giurgiu, almost at the border… And it was definitely cold and windy. The temperature should have been around freezing at that point and the day’s high was supposed to be around 5°C, but we were on a riverbank and completely in the open, so the fact that it was quite sunny made it manageable, but definitely still unpleasant, and when the wind was really picking up I was freezing even while working, with all those clothes on me and the thick apron we were given over the jacket, and the cap I grabbed from there over my hat and the hoodie’s hood also pulled up over both, plus that thing around my neck and pulled up over the mask.
But I mentioned that apron, which was the first thing we were given, though bottles of water were there, so the first thing I took was one of those, putting it in my backpack. Back to the apron, there were different ones for volunteers and employees of the sponsor, with the employees also receiving a cap. But other volunteers were also talking about taking a cap and some did, and at that point, seeing as the caps were placed after the aprons and I had stepped out of the line to put the apron on right after receiving it, not realizing that the line continued for the next “steps” as well, I didn’t know that I wasn’t supposed to and just grabbed one and put it on after getting back there, and I may well end up using it regularly. Then I also took gloves and a sandwich, which was small, just in a bun, but tasty, and waited for the water to be heated in order to have a tea as well. And it was only as I was waiting that I realized that thing about the line and that, by stepping out of it after the apron, then just reaching in to grab a cap and gloves, and then moving to stand in the separate line forming for the sandwiches, which was sort of merging with the first one in that spot, I had missed the spot where participants were supposed to sign the list and be given the wristbands with the color of the plot they were assigned to, so I finally did that as well… Or at least that’s how I remember it now, though there’s also a chance that I actually did that before standing in the line for the sandwiches, not that it makes much of a difference, since I eventually did everything I was supposed to… And received, or more exactly took, even more…
After a talk that was shortened as much as possible, the organizers standing in the shade and therefore freezing even more than the rest of us, a little after 10:05 AM we started working. And forming teams was only suggested, in fact even being specified that those who want to work alone can do so, and that was exactly what I did, never trying to find a teammate and nobody trying to join me, or even to help temporarily for that matter. But the ground was easy to dig, so even considering my lack of strength and weight, I did quite fine. I was getting worried when it did seem to get worse after the first few holes, as I was moving away from the river, needing to first get through the layer of grass and occasionally also deal with some roots, but it wasn’t bad even then, and later, after lunch, when I mostly worked at the other end, close to the top, it again went well.
We had many species to plant, ranging from trees to small shrubs or bushes, those sometimes being so small that it was hard to tell where they had been planted, and even to potted plants, which were the easiest, since we had been told to just dig a hole the size of the pot and drop it in. And the idea was to plant something that’d be close to a natural forest, the species mixing, so each was free to choose what to plant and where, and while some rushed to the potted plants and those quickly ran out, I started with the hardest part, taking some trees with longer roots and managing to plant ten by 11:40 AM, at which point I took a break. After planting 40 back in November, when I had a teammate, my goal for that day, working alone, was 20, and I actually only set my mind on that after seeing how soft the ground was, since at first I was thinking that I’ll be completely content with 15, so ten meant that I was halfway to the best case scenario after what I thought was less than half the time, since the schedule we had received on the bus stated that we were supposed to work until 2 PM, with lunch coming after that, before leaving.
Things didn’t go that way in practice, however. I went to have another tea, seeing something dark in the cup and asking the person who was there whether it was supposed to be like that, but deciding to keep it after she said that traces of coffee were left in the machine heating the water. Then I also asked whether I could take another sandwich, after seeing others doing so, and that resulted in an awkward moment, since when I was asked which kind I felt the need to say that I didn’t know I could take another and asked for whichever kind the person who was there wanted to give me, or whichever kind she still had more of, repeating that a couple of times while she repeated the question. But eventually she asked whether a vegan one was all right, and indeed almost an entire crate of those seemed left, while those with meat seemed down to about a third of one, so I agreed and had one of those… And I must say that, despite the very pleasant past experiences with their vegan or vegetarian food, that was neither filling nor exactly tasty. But it was food, so I finished it, then went to pee… And heard the announcement that lunch was starting, even though it was only a couple of minutes after noon. But what was said was that those who want to stop can come for lunch, so I went back to work for a little while, planting two more trees before nearly everyone else left and I also stopped again, washed and disinfected my hands one more time and also went to have lunch, at almost 12:20 PM. And I’ll also mention here that, after looking around for a free spot, nearly everyone else already being there by then, I ended up sitting across from that same guy who had been my teammate back in November of 2018, who had also arrived at Opera Square at the same time I did, and again was also on the same bus, just like in November of 2019, though now he was with his girlfriend as well.
Either way, lunch was good, and a little after 12:50 PM I went back to work, finding that only those tiny saplings were left, so I took eight and started looking for spots where I could plant them, most of those left being either in the particularly steep area at the top or on the side, next to the speakers, since I was on the first plot, and I had planted a tree there before taking the break and knew all too well why people didn’t want to go there. But I also spotted a few places which seemed to have just been missed, where I didn’t have to deal with such a steep slope or the loud speakers, and either way those tiny saplings meant that I had less to dig, and while in a couple of cases I ended up initially making holes that were too small for the saplings to get fixed in place, so I had to pull them out and try again, I was done sooner than expected… Though apparently just in time.
Plenty had left right after lunch, in fact enough of them having asked to do so for one of the two buses to be filled and drive away, and those who drove there on their own could leave at any time they wanted, so far fewer had been around to begin with, but those also started walking away soon and some of the last ones left were pointing out that workers were coming in, though they had started from the other end of the area, to check our work and finish what was left to do, also using machinery to dig the holes in seconds. But I just focused on what I had to do, only realizing when I was done, at 1:30 PM, that I was pretty much the last one left on that plot. And I was just taking a few last pictures, after climbing back to the top and dropping off the shovel and bucket, when one of the organizers walked past, asked whether I had arrived with the bus and said that we were leaving in at most ten minutes. So I went to pee again, finding no water left in those portable sinks but fortunately two jugs next to one, so using one to wash my hands and then hurrying away. I also grabbed another bottle of water and asked where to drop off the gloves and apron, but while I did leave the gloves there, I was struggling to untie the apron and the organizers wanted to hurry, only a few people not being back at the bus yet, so I was told to leave it on and maybe give it back on the bus if I’ll want to, the fact that I wanted to give it back in the first place seeming to surprise, though I had seen at least a few others doing the same… And I ended up keeping it, realizing that an apron with that large pocket was very different from the useless vests received before, and may prove quite useful.

Either way, the bus drove away at 1:45 PM and dropped us off back at Opera Square just after 3 PM, and once again nobody sat next to me. But I still had a lot to do that day, the clear part of the plan being to attend the protest against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which was organized by many groups and likely to draw a more notable number of participants. Since it was supposed to start at 4 PM, in Victory Square, and at 6 PM it was supposed to continue with a march to the nearby Russian Embassy, I could have rushed back here to change and then go there, but I saw little point in attending that first part, before moving to the Russian Embassy, and had the metro card, which allowed me to check some locations of Kaufland and Penny I wouldn’t walk to, looking for the things I hadn’t been able to find on Thursday.
As such, I took the metro to Pacii (Peace) station… Which also seems oddly appropriate, now that I think of it, though I didn’t realize it at the time, the reason for going there being that I had seen locations of both stores nearby. I probably wouldn’t have gone there if I’d have checked the Penny catalog again in the morning, since it was listed as one of the two locations where the cornmeal I was looking for wasn’t available, but I only saw that when I grabbed a catalog from there and looked again, after searching for it and then also asking an employee, who told me that if it wasn’t in the cornmeal area, it means it’s not available. Still, I bought some roes, since I had been considering it and wanted to at least get something, since I hadn’t left my stuffed backpack in a cabinet and at least one guard had kept his eyes on me, though they didn’t do any more than that.
At Kaufland I did put the backpack in a cabinet, then peed and washed my hands, having to wait for my turn when I went in but finding the bathroom empty and a cleaner at work, with her cart blocking the door, when I came out of the stall. Then I thoroughly looked for the bio (organic) olive oil that was on sale, finally finding it in a spot that was well away from any area where it should have been. That left the 500 ml bottles of Pepsi Max that were supposed to be 0.03 RON each, in exchange for recycling five things, and I had three such vouchers, after having found two on Thursday. I wouldn’t normally drink something like that, but it was a good opportunity to see just how that campaign worked, and just then I was also thinking that it could help me stay awake, and in the fridge from that area I found two left among the many of each of the other kinds. A woman came next to me as I was searching, asking me to at least show her the bottles I had found, so she’ll know what to look for, but she was obviously unable to find any more… But, if after finding the other spot where those bottles should have been completely empty I was ready to resign myself to just getting two, she also asked an employee, who apparently happened to have just been bringing some more, being yet to place them on the shelf, and when she spotted me still in that area she actually told me about it, so I also went there and could get all the three I wanted. Then, at the self-checkout, I first bought the olive oil separately, then the Pepsi, wanting to be able to just walk away in case the discount won’t apply. But it was actually even higher, the three bottles costing 0.06 RON. That receipt wouldn’t open the gate, however, and an employee told me that it was because the value was so low, and to scan the one for the oil, which did work.

And this is how far I got before midnight. Maybe I’d have managed to add the part about the protest before going to bed in the morning, if I’d have done pretty much nothing else during and after dinner, but I decided to leave it for later, just uploading the pictures from the planting and making some changes to the last paragraph above. But I managed to write the rest on Monday, so Monday evening I edited this to add everything else as well.

Since by then it was too late to still get back here before going to the protest, before walking away from Kaufland I took my time to try to stuff everything in the backpack and jacket, to keep my hands free, and on the way to the metro station I also drank one of the bottles of Pepsi, which did seem to make a noticeable difference in terms of helping me stay awake. My neck was really hurting, on the other hand, and the pretty heavy backpack digging into my shoulders, since it just has those ropes as straps, definitely didn’t help, and I was also worried about that bottle of olive oil, in case I’ll somehow hit something with it or if the backpack would tear, since it wasn’t sturdy to begin with and it’s old and I “tortured” it a lot over the past decade, so tears are starting to appear.
There wasn’t much I could do about it at the time, however, so I just got back to the metro and kept going, reaching Victory Square at 5:35 PM. Since the march was supposed to start at 6 PM, I used the exit that’s on the other side of the square, thinking I’ll be able to get to that central area a little easier… Only to find it completely empty, not a single person still being there. As I made my way around, I saw some news crews still in the area, but the protesters had clearly started the march earlier, because I could see the flashing lights of police cars in the distance, at the Russian Embassy.
So I rushed there as well, reaching the Embassy at 5:45 PM and mostly just taking pictures, even when that meant squeezing past reporters and probably ending up in front of cameras quite a number of times. There were a few chants in English, and I joined in some of them, and there were also a couple of attempts to shout something in Romanian, though for obvious reasons those had little success, most of what was chanted or even spoken being in Ukrainian, and most participants, or at least most of the active ones, seeming to be Ukrainian. And the Ukrainians gathered in front of the Embassy’s entrance seemed to be quite organized, judging by the smoothness of the chanting and the way in which the one with the loudspeaker said something and the rest responded, the problem being that those who weren’t Ukrainian couldn’t understand what was being said, much less join in.
I heard of estimates of 500 participants, but I’m not sure there were that many at the peak, though the total might have been around that number, since it wasn’t long before some started leaving, yet small numbers continued to occasionally arrive. The Greenpeace members, whose signs and banners tying fossil fuels to the war and green energy to peace had been very visible until then, were among the first to walk away, and I heard Petruta say that she had heard that they had gotten scared for some reason. And since I mentioned Petruta I’ll also say that, while I recognized a few other participants, she was the only one of the “old guard” that I saw, and she also mentioned that few people from her “bubble” were present, even if said “bubble” was obviously much larger than the one I was thinking of, since the few she was greeting were completely new to me. She left quite quickly, but at least she was there, despite having been among the organizers of another planting event that day and also volunteering to help the refugees whenever she can. But, of course, attending such an event is among the least things one can do, so I’m the one doing far too little, many of the others helping in more direct ways.

I had meant to at least stay until 7 PM, but the numbers had started to drop even before 6:30 PM, the pain in my neck was worsening and I also started to need to pee again, so I walked away at 6:45 PM. At first I was thinking that, since I just wanted to see what I’ll find in the Obor area on the way back, which included checking that Kaufland for evening discounts, it was so early that I should walk there instead of taking the metro again, but after stopping on a bench to rearrange some things and rub and stretch my neck for a while, I realized that I could also have a look through that Auchan and then check that Penny for that cornmeal as well… Plus that the need to pee was becoming quite pressing.
Still, I didn’t use the toilets at the metro station, and also didn’t look for any in the Obor shopping center, just going straight to that Auchan and getting a few things, including some kefir for dad, even though I hadn’t taken his store card and therefore didn’t get that 5% store credit for it, and he was also apparently sleeping at the time, so he only replied to the SMS I sent when I got there, to ask whether I should get some and how much, some two hours later. That meant that, by the time I retrieved my things from the cabinet I had placed them in, the situation was desperate, so I threw those purchases in a bag and rushed to that Carrefour, just barely managing to put everything in a cabinet and close it without peeing myself. I actually feared that I wasn’t going to make it to the bathroom, but I somehow did, then had a look through Carrefour, didn’t find anything to get, retrieved my things and dropped them off again in a cabinet at Kaufland. I didn’t enter just then, however, instead going back out and to Penny, where I did finally find that cornmeal… Which had apparently just been brought, even though it should have been on sale starting on Wednesday, the area being completely full and none of the packages being opened, and the cashier also saying that the cheap cornmeal finally came in when she saw that I was purchasing some, adding that she was going to get some herself, to see how it was. I said that I also wanted to see how it was, not having bought any before, which seemed to surprise her a little, but then she said that she didn’t remember it being too good, but at that price it was worth it… And then she actually closed her lane and walked away right after checking me out.
After getting back to Kaufland, adding the cornmeal in the cabinet and washing my hands, I checked the bakery area, saw that the evening discounts had applied, but just got a sweet pastry and two buns. Had meant to get another one of those baguettes, but by the time I got a paper bag another customer had grabbed two of the three that were left, and then also took the third just as I meant to reach for it, and the only bread I could consider getting was of a third kind, one which I had considered before but never bought, and after thinking about it for a while I decided against getting any then either, the discounted price being close to the full price I’d pay for others, even if I’d have otherwise been willing to ignore the fact that the ingredients include sugar and dextrose and at least try it once. Either way, I then checked for other evening discounts, but the only thing I bought was some wild garlic, albeit ten bundles of it. And then I wandered around, grabbing a bread for dad and two expiring things and wanting to see whether there’d be any new or increased discounts at 9:30 PM or 9:45 PM. There were none, however, so I eventually made my way to the self-checkout, the machine again telling me to scan the product first after placing the wild garlic on the scales but charging me correctly and allowing me to continue after I just picked it back up and set it aside, so there was no need to call an employee. And then, despite taking some more time to arrange everything in the backpack and a couple of bags, I ended up putting all the heavier items in the one sturdy bag I had, so even though the just over 15 kg I found after getting back that I had on me shouldn’t have been that much of a problem, having more than half of that weight in that one bag meant that I rather struggled on the way back to the metro station.

I did consider moving some things around, but the metro came almost as soon as I reached the station and I decided to just push through, getting here at 10:35 PM… And being surprised to find that dad hadn’t yet left. Once he did, I rushed again to the toilet, the situation again being rather desperate by that point, then put the purchases in their place, had the banana that was left, since he hadn’t taken it, and that sweet pastry, and went to the bathroom and to shower at 11:45 PM. At first the water seemed just warm enough to feel comfortable while it ran on me, but not warm enough to dare to stand and continue with the rest of my body after washing my head, and since I was so exhausted and needed a hot shower, I ended up letting it run on me for a long time… And just as I finally managed to get myself to stand and continue washing, it suddenly became noticeably hotter, and I therefore ended up staying there even longer, only finally coming out a few minutes before 1 AM. However, I then spent some time on the computer, only actually getting back to the kitchen at 1:20 AM, and I still had to wash most of what dad had left and do a few other things as well, and when it was clear that I won’t start eating dinner before 3 AM I decided to add something to what I meant to eat, ending up starting at 3:15 AM. But, in spite of that and of the rather “hot” salad, one small tomato being the only different ingredient, the others being a large regular onion and a small red one, some garlic and some wild garlic, I still managed to finish at 3:45 AM, so only five minutes later than I now mean to.

Later edit: I seem to have forgotten it at the time, but two weeks later I realized that this is most likely when the self-checkout machine at Kaufland refused to take any of my money and asked for an employee, so I did have to call one after all, and she seemed rather suspicious after I explained what had happened, but after logging on, doing something to let me try again and seeing that I could pay on that second attempt, she walked away. And the reason why I’m quite certain that this is when that happened is that I recall thinking that the reason had likely been that the bills had been so badly bent because of what I had kept them in while planting trees, and that I seem to remember it happening at the Kaufland from Obor, and this is the only time I went there after planting trees during these weeks.

After seeing Russia’s nauseating celebration of eight years since the annexation of Crimea, I stumbled into a good article about the failure of The Budapest Memorandum and its implications. What it shows is that the Western powers were as hesitant, or more exactly as cowardly, back then as well, wording it in a way that didn’t really offer guarantees, to the point that the support already offered now apparently respects the letter of the agreement, even though it obviously can’t in any way be seen as protecting Ukraine, and it definitely didn’t protect it at all in 2014.
That makes the fact that Ukraine is likely to agree to a neutral status, and likely also to restrictions on its military, pretty much an admission of defeat, and not only of Ukraine. Russia will be entirely justified in seeing this not only as a victory at the present time, but also as a clear signal that the door is left wide open for their next move, likely to come in a few more years. I mean, it’s one thing to realize that NATO is a defensive alliance that only works as long as it doesn’t have to actually defend, as long as it can keep running away from the very purpose it was founded for, and therefore admit that Ukraine, and in fact any country that’s actually threatened, by Russia in particular, and would therefore need it, will not be permitted to join, but quite another to actually agree to give up on even striving, and demanding, to join, in exchange for some other assurances in the form of an agreement that once again won’t even be worth the paper it’s written on, because Russia doesn’t care about treaties and agreements and is audacious enough to reach for everything it desires and the West, whether it cares or not, is cowardly enough to not stop them. The repeated statements that NATO remains “united” even against a no-fly zone, not to mention an actual direct intervention, is proof enough of that.
The European integration of Ukraine is a completely different matter, and will be a huge problem for reasons that go beyond the obvious, such as corruption and the rule of law, or the immense costs of rebuilding, EU membership also carrying expectations of a certain mindset and worldview shared by leaders as well as by the society as a whole. Hungary or Poland, not to mention the United Kingdom, and to a somewhat lesser extent several other countries, show what happens when that’s not the case, and in Ukraine’s case it’d probably be even worse, and that isn’t likely to change in the foreseeable future. However, the integration of the countries that are currently under threat from Russia, so Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova, into the military alliance created specifically to protect against just this threat, should be a given, and the countries threatened by China, the obvious one being Taiwan, should likely follow. Otherwise Russia, and maybe later also China, will just keep pushing, keep taking, and sooner rather than later force the West into another terrible, devastating, great war on their own terms. I’ll keep saying that this could have perhaps been prevented almost entirely back in 2008, but acting now rather than later may still prevent the worst of it.