Like mother like son, the barbaric war in Ukraine into its 5th week, I finally got Covid! Farewell Suzy, the clocks go forward and other stories.

 Sunday 27th March, 2022

It was great to have Suzy back for a week and also lovely to see her reunited with her nephew and niece. She's gone now but we hope to see her soon again. 

Dear all. I hope this blog post finds you well when you read the stories of this week. This week I got Covid which was inevitable as both Eladio, Lucy and Miguel got it last week. So far, Olivia has resisted. On Thursday Miguel tested negative for the second time and on Friday Eladio and Lucy also tested negative. I still have it but very mildly, thank goodness. Covid 19 started now over 2 years ago and I really had begun to think I was invincible. But I am not. In most countries restrictions have been lifted but the virus has by no means gone. The only good thing is that thanks to vaccines most people only get a mild version of Covid. It is not as dangerous as it used to be and we shall probably be living with it always. 

The Russian army is not proving invincible either as the war goes into its 5th week since the invasion on that fatal day 24th February last. So far more than 3.5 million refugees have left the country. As to the casualties, many of them have been civilians showing just how barbaric Putin is. There have also been numbers leaked of Russian soldier casualties which go from 7000 to over 9000. If this is true, then it is the Russian Army's worst loss at war since WW2. So far the Ukranians are resisting despite Russia's scorched earth policy, bombing towns such as Mariupol to almost complete destruction. Surprisingly though on Friday an announcement from Moscow put a different light on the war in a sudden change of plans.  It was stated that the first part of the "special military operation" had been accomplished" (I'm damned if it has) and that the Russian Army would now focus on the "liberation" of the Donbas region. How are we supposed to interpret this and can we even believe it? I think this is a way of saying but not wanting to admit that the war on the whole of Ukraine has not gone well for them. As to taking Donbas and keeping Crimea, I only hope they have another think coming. Ukrainians are going to hate Russians to the end of time. That's what Putin has achieved. Troops in Russia are not having a good time. Each day must be horrific as they realise their Ukrainian brothers are never going to meet them with flowers but with more bombs while they freeze and run out of rations.  

Last Sunday was not a good day. It should have been as last Sunday 20th March was apparently "International Happiness Day". I didn't feel happy, rather a bit miserable and irritable. That was owing to the terrible night I had with Elliot. I reckon I only slept a couple of hours. He woke up fine and walked down the steps on his own. He came into the kitchen with a big smile on his lovely little face and he made me happy in that moment. Later his parents came for him and then stayed all day. If you don't have grandchildren you don't have to suffer baby paraphernalia or sticky fingers and stinky nappies. It reminds me of when we were young parents with our baby girls. 

I was in desperate need of a walk and even though I didn't feel up to it we went as I really needed it. While on the walk the girls (Olivia 36 and Suzy 37) had a go at the family albums and came up with some priceless photos mostly dated around 1987 when I was about 29 and Eladio was about 43. The girls were 1 and 2 and 2 and 3 in some of the photos. What treasures they came up with. That certainly took me back to the time we were young parents, to times gone by.  I realised just how Elliot looks like his mother when she was his age. One of the photos Oli shared was of him on a horse. I actually thought it was a bad photo of Elliot on a horse. But no, it was my younger daughter. He is the spitting image of her; like mother like son.  If she hadn't got out these pictures I don't think we would have realised just how alike he is to when she was a baby. 

This was Olivia aged about 2. 

Below is a recent one of Elliot where you can see he looks just like her. Amazing. 

Elliot is the spitting image of his mother at his age. 

Oli sent us some more treasures. One was a rare one with my parents, the girls (Oli posing just how Elliot often does), my darling Aunty Masha and a very young me. My parents must have been about my age now in that photo. 

A rare photo with my parents, Aunty Masha and our girls when they were babies. Circa 1987

There was one too of both girls. They are wearing some new "Yorkshire" branded aprons I think I still have. There again Oli looks just like Elliot. 

Suzy (left) and Oli (right in the white apron) in about 1987 or 1988 

Seeing Oli and Miguel today dealing with two small babies does not make me nostalgic for those days as they were difficult times. Of course we adored our children but babies are a handful and we had virtually no help whatsoever. Later we took in au pairs and I have encouraged Oli to do the same but she stubbornly refuses. It's understandable then that she is permanently tired. I remember that feeling.

In fact I felt just that when we returned from our walk. I also had a headache and funnily enough a back ache which I blame on the mattresses I slept on that night. They are too hard for me. Thus I took to our own bed and later sent Eladio to sleep in Oli's room as he had Covid then. I took a paracetamol but was not able to sleep. I did in the end when I took a sleeping tablet and was able to sleep from 3.30 to 5.30. The family had all had lunch without me which made me feel guilty but I swear I was so shattered I couldn't leave the bed until 5.30. Probably that's the day I caught Covid. 

I then joined the family. 

Olivia, Elliot and sweet little Juliet at our house last Sunday

All of Elliot's toys as well as many of my ornaments which he keeps breaking were all over the place as were the imprints of sticky fingers and the odd broken biscuit. It was all so chaotic. As I am a bit OCD about tidiness I set about clearing up - no mean job. Elliot had tea at our house but not Oli and Miguel who left at about 9 pm. They couldn't find the car keys so took my Mini which has one baby car seat. So far they haven't found them. 

That night it was just Suzy, Eladio and I at home  - I do not count "he who shall not be mentioned" (hwsnbm). In any case he didn't leave the house all weekend, thank goodness .Roll on 30th March, the day he has supposedly agreed to leave. Will he I wonder?

Suzy and Eladio had some dinner which got cold while Oli and Miguel searched for their car keys. That was when I made my disappearing act and went upstairs to my room to sleep on my bed. Sleep freedom was amazing. That night was the best night's sleep I have had in ages. By the way, before switching off the light, worried I might have Covid because of my "fatigue" that day, I took a lateral flow test. It was negative again making me feel smug as if I was invincible. I later learned I am not. 

I woke up on Monday to rain.  It was actually 21st March, supposedly the first day of spring but it didn't feel like it. We had more bad news that day. Lucy rang to say she also had Covid. Thankfully, she was feeling fine. Who were not feeling fine were Oli and Miguel. Both of them had the "runs" a sort of gastroenteritis which they reckoned they got from Juliet in one way or another. I felt sorry for them but there was not much we could do.

In fact I didn't do much at all that day. It was spent lazily and leisurely. I really think this is because I desperately need to catch up on my sleep or lack of it and also wind down after the horrible episode in our lives. Felipe Turover has not yet gone so his presence does not allow us to get on with our lives as normal but we now know he will be gone this week coming or at the latest on 4th April. 

I was pleased to receive from Oli, through our lawyers, a sentence from the judge after the trial on 17th March, a date I shall never forget. I loved reading the bit "I condemn FT to leave the house.....". So it wasn't just a settlement out of court, it was a sentence. We also amazingly got the injunction; that is him leaving on 30th. We never expected that so in the end the judicial outcome was completely in our favour. If only it hadn't taken 6 months. It was so obvious he was in the wrong so why did it take so so much time? 

If the 17th March is etched in my mind, 24th February is etched in all Ukrainians' minds; the day Putin invaded their country. We are now into the 5th week of the war; a war of attrition in many ways as Russia destroys everything in its wake but the Ukrainians resist.  Seeing the 90% destroyed city of Mariupol, reminds us all of Aleppo except that Mariupol is in Europe and that scares us. More sanctions were imposed on Russia, peace talks are not working, so Putin intensified his bombing of this country not caring that civilians die while doing so. He is doing so because the war is not going well for him. He thought he would win it in 3 days. He was wrong. He has been labeled a war criminal and that's what he is. He is committing genocide, just as Hitler did. He is today's Hitler and it annoys me intensely we can't do more about it. Sanctions will continue but they are not enough to stop him. Ukrainians are being supplied with military equipment but no country is sending troops to help.  Frustrating doesn't begin to describe it.  I always said I would have loved to be a war correspondent. I am too old for that now but if I was younger I would be out there reporting. I admire all those who have flocked altruistically to the borders to help the refugees or even into the country to fight alongside Ukraine nationals. That reminds me so much of the International Brigade during the Spanish Civil War. That dreadful war also caused a huge exodus of refugees. 

By the middle of this week 3.6 million people had left the country; most of them women as men from 18 to 60 have to fight. Ukraine is the second largest country in Europe and has a population of 44 million. Those who have not left yet either can't get out or they are too infirm to be moved. Many are without the basics for living, water, food, electricity, not to mention mobile phone coverage. Without that they are cut off from the world but we know about their suffering thanks to very brave journalists covering the war.

Tuesday came and I realised that "he" had not left his room for 4 whole nights since Friday. I could not hear anything inside his room and once again began to worry he may have committed suicide. Thus I plucked up the courage to knock on his door. I had not seen him up front for a long time and it was a bit of a shock to see him face to face when he opened his door and was alive. I asked him how he was and he thanked me for asking (I suppose I do  care deep down). I said I was worried as he hadn't left the room for 4 nights. He explained that was because of the weather. I also asked him if he had anywhere to go and if he had any money. He told me he would go to a hotel and that he had money. He can't have much otherwise he would have left ages ago. He then asked me how I was. My answer was short: I would be well once he was gone. Again I told him that he had gone too far and that if in September he had told me of his financial problems I would have housed him for free; if only he had been honest. I think he doesn't know how to as there must be some shame in him. He nodded in response and I turned back on my heels not wanting to see him again. 

That morning the rain stopped, at least enough for us to go on our walk. It felt good. We had to manage lunch on our own without Lucy. The house was beginning to get dirty and that is something I cannot stand. Thankfully she came back that evening as although she had Covid, she has no more symptoms. We already had the virus in our house so her coming back was not going to change things. That day we heard on the news that from tomorrow, Monday 28th March, no one with Covid will have to isolate anymore unless they have underlying health conditions. I'm not sure that is a good idea. 

Oli and family came for lunch and between us all we came up with a full table for everyone. They stayed until dinner time and a good time, if a bit hectic, was had by all. You should have seen the lounges afterwards. Thank God Lucy is back.

I loved seeing Suzy reunited with Elliot and Juliet. Here they are together on a sofa watching Lady Bug, a French cartoon series which my grandson loves and which he watches in French. 

Suzy with her nephew and niece. Happy family moments

At one stage Miguel put some music on in the lounge and we all danced. Elliot loves dancing and it's very funny to watch him.

Once again that night I had some sleep freedom but I didn't sleep that well, waking up too many times. In the end I was up at 6 am on Wednesday morning. I decided to do another lateral flow test as I had the sniffles. I was completely sure it would be negative but I was wrong. 

I tested positive for Covid on Wednesday

There they were, the two lines on the C and the T that showed I had Covid. Oh dear I thought. As I hadn't caught it in two years, I never expected to catch it now but I did. So, no, I am not invincible. I didn't feel unwell. I just had a congested nose and my voice had the sound associated with the common cold. Of course Covid today if you are triple vaccinated is not the same as two years ago. It is so rampant at the moment that it was only a question of time until I got it. I felt fine but in my mind I was a bit worried as Covid can do a lot of damage and I am no spring chicken, aged 65. In any case I felt well enough for a walk but came back feeling tired so withdrew to bed where I spent most of the day. I slept on and off as fatigue set in; a symptom of Covid but thankfully I had no temperature.

But of course being contagious I was now a pariah and was unable to hug and kiss my dear daughter Suzy goodbye when she left for Santa Pola that day. I hope she doesn't get Covid. She's not worried, thinking she too is invincible. We shall see. It was lovely to have her home for a week and I look forward to visiting her at our apartment in Santa Pola when I am better and all this is over - i.e. he has gone. 

Testing positive for Covid meant Eladio could return to our bed which meant goodbye to my sleep freedom but it was lovely to have him back. Thursday dawned and as soon as my husband had had his breakfast he took another lateral flow test. By then Miguel had tested negative twice but not Eladio who was still infected. Oh well, at least he had no more symptoms.

The news that day was all about the war of course but on the home front in Spain we have a big problem related to the war. Because of rising fuel costs after the pandemic and war sanctions, inflation is on the rise. More worriedly lorry drivers are not even covering costs because of the price of petrol so they are on strike and not delivering food and essentials. Thus there will soon be not enough food to feed animals. Eggs and milk and other produce are stuck, unable to be transported and supermarket shelves are becoming bare. This is no joke. The 14 day strike has nearly brought the country to its feet. It's the same with fishermen who can't afford to fish because of the price of petrol and no doubt it affects many more sectors too.  If last week I had seen empty milk and oil shelves I wondered what more would be missing when we went shopping on Friday. The government has come to an agreement with some of the transport associations but not with those who are out on strike. Meanwhile the Spanish PM managed an agreement in the EU summit this week whereby Spain and Portugal will be able to regulate the price of fuel but this won't happen for at least another month. 

Thursday came and for me it was practically a day in bed. On the world scene, crucial meetings were being held about the Ukraine War in Brussels. Nato members met, including Joe Biden, the G7 met as well as the Council of Europe. My main taking was when Biden said that if Russia uses chemical or biological weapons the US would "respond". The Nato summit concluded by agreeing to send new battle groups, some 40.000 extra troops - to reinforce the Eastern flank; namely Bulgaria, Slovakia, Hungary and Romania. EU leaders pledged to send more military equipment as well and the G7 leaders further increased sanctions on Russia, including the possible freezing of gold reserves. Johnson went as far as saying what we all hope will happen, that Ukraine may win this war. Even if it does, what is the cost? The destruction of many of its cities and the killing of thousands of people. After the summit Biden traveled to the border, met with the Polish President, refugees and his own troops. He then went and said that Putin should not be allowed to stay in power. This caused a backlash from the Kremlin who went and bombed the so far safe city of Lviv near the Polish border. So much for the first part of the "special military operation" being concluded. 

There is much talk of the loss of morale of the Russian troops who are not wearing warm enough clothing and who survive on meager rations some of which expired in 2015! So they don't have enough to eat. The Ukrainians do and are well equipped for cold weather.

At home we ate bean stew made by our dear daughter Oli. She must have been feeling sorry for her Covid infected parents and brought some round. It made for a wonderful lunch.

Oli's bean stew

No doubt Russian troops are missing their mother's cooking. Who wouldn't? Their own mothers are horrified at their young sons being misled into a senseless war and many dying in the process. Despite a clamp down on criticising the "war", mothers who are worried about their sons will not be shouted down. 

Not much happened on the home front on Thursday. Well, actually it did. A "burofax" arrived for our unwanted Russian born squatter, Felipe Turover. A burofax is generally some kind of legal warning. That was his 3rd in recent times. Then in the afternoon the police came. They asked for him to come outside with his ID card. I was hoping they would arrest him but they didn't. It is obvious that this man is being watched and has been reported on not just by us but by other people he has duped or owes money to. He is surrounded by trouble whichever way he looks. We just want him to go. Only a few days left now.

Of note on Thursday I started preparations for my father's memorial service in Bradford, England, the town where he lived from 1964 - 2005 and where he taught languages at Bradford Grammar School. I decided to contact the Dean at the cathedral to ask if they would be willing. I got an immediate reply to say they would be delighted. Great!! Now there are lots of preparations for a well deserved send off for my father in the country he was born in and fought for in WW2. Hopefully the preparations will keep me busy for some time and will perk me up. I need perking up right now as I am a bit under the weather both physically and mentally. 

Friday came and it had rained all night. This week has been wet every day but that is good for the reservoirs and the countryside; not good for our morale or our walks though. I can't wait for a spate of sunshine and weather good enough for a trip to Asturias once "hwsnbm" has gone. It was on Friday morning both Eladio and Lucy tested negative for the first time. Thus I was the only pariah in the house that day apart from "hwsnbm" (for different reasons). I was a bit naughty and went out with Eladio to do the shopping, my only trip out of the house this week. I was extra careful and wore two masks. I was surprised to see the supermarket shelves not too affected by the strike. We were able to buy what we wanted and did not do any hoard shopping; another of the reasons for empty shelves.  We had coffee out and we sat outside because of my Covid (sniff). It was cold and raining but nice to be out. I can't wait to test negative and not feel like a pariah. I can't wait either for the good weather to be back.

Saturday was to be cold and wet too. There was good news for Eladio when he tested negative for the second time. Lucky him. As my first positive test was on Wednesday I shall wait until tomorrow to try again. 

Eladio tested negative for the second time yesterday

We managed our second walk of the week despite the muddy paths and puddles. Pippa much appreciated it too. Once home Oli brought Juliet round so that she could go swimming. It was sad not te be able to pick her up but I was scared stiff of passing on Covid and just looked at her with my mask on. 

Saturday was another quiet day. Because of Covid there was no going out for dinner this week but I look forward to doing so next week.

Last night the clocks went forward. To be honest I had to look up whether they were going backwards or forwards. Am I the only one? I always get confused when the clocks change in the summer and autumn. If only we could just stay on summer time always as it means one more hour of light in the evening and I do like long days of light. I don't care if it's dark in the morning so long as it is light in the evening.  

This morning I was up at 7 which was yesterday's 6 am of course; a bit early but there you go. Today is Mothers' Day in England (in Spain it is the first Sunday in May). My dear school friend Geraldine kindly placed some daffodils on my dear mother's grave yesterday. Here parents are also buried at Charlestown Cemetery near Baildon in West Yorkshire. Soon I will be able to do so myself when I take my father's ashes to be buried alongside her, his beloved wife. Thank you Geraldine from the bottom of my heart.

Daffodils on my mother's grave for Mothers' Day thanks to my friend Geraldine.

It's hard to believe she left this world so long ago, 1st October 1999, some 22 years ago. But she is forever in my heart. 

On that emotional note, let me wish you all a happy Sunday and cheers till next week when I hope I have good news for you.

All the best,

Masha

 

Putin's brutal and senseless war intensifies, the week of our trial: a celebration lunch, 2 years since the first lockdown, "bloody weather", Suzy is home, the trial: a bittersweet outcome, oh no Covid finally strikes the family, Fathers' Day and other stories.

Sunday, 20th March, 2022

The family united on the day of the trial. 

Dear all.

How have you all been? I have lots to tell, so let me start. Because of the trial on 17th March to evict Felipe Turover, our unwanted squatter, I had envisaged  an awful week, a week I would have preferred to be erased from my life.  However it  turned out a lot better than I had imagined,  apart from Covid that has now hit us  as you will read later.  For sure I should have no complaints compared to other people (Ukrainians) but my pain is still valid. After all, it's my life and we have been going through hell as you will know if you follow this blog. 

In Ukraine things are getting grimmer and grimmer and I do not see what sort of end we shall see or when that will be. I think there are 3 scenarios: 1) Russia will finally overpower its neighbour but by then the country will be in ruins. If that happened the post war will be very difficult for Putin as Ukrainians hate him now and will rebel under any puppet leader put there by Putin.  2) It might come to stalemate but then could drag on for years or just to a sort of patchy control of the areas that mean most to Putin.  3) Both sides give in, with Russia claiming it has won, even if its troops only overtake the capital and sea ports and claim the disputed areas. Only time will tell but meanwhile thousands are being killed; many, many of them being civilians. 

Now back to my tales of the week which has been one of the most challenging of my life. 

Last Sunday was a happy day for us. That day I took the family out for a slap up lunch to celebrate my very recent retirement. We wanted to go to Filandón but it was fully booked. Many Spaniards, it appears, go for family lunches on a Sunday. Thus we had to choose another restaurant. Our choice was "Quinto Sabor". It is included in the Michelin Guide but doesn't yet have any stars. It should as its cuisine is very creative and it has various tasting menus. We went for a middle of the road one which we loved. I should have taken more pictures of the food like this one of the opening starters.

Just some of the starters 

I love these sort of starters; all very creative and full of explosive taste. Eladio, my husband, is more of a bowl and soup type person but Sunday was my day. Thus we got to taste some amazing food in tiny bits. We had to have a photo also of the two of us celebrating and Oli obliged. I should have looked happier but of course the upcoming trial was in my head as it has been all week. We dared to leave the house that day with FT alone at home and no Lucy. We hardly ever do that but that day we did and we were lucky as he didn't get to know, nor did he leave the house that day. What would the outcome of Thursday's trial be I kept thinking? I had no idea and did not want to raise my hopes so as not to be too disappointed if things went south.

Eladio and I at the celebratory lunch last Sunday

If we all loved the outing and food, Elliot was not impressed. He started off being interested in his surroundings but then began to behave badly making loud noises. He then wanted to breast feed which is becoming tiring for Oli and it was obvious he wasn't going to let us enjoy our meal. So I opted to take him for a walk in his stroller to calm him down. Miracle of miracles, he fell asleep and I came back to the restaurant with a triumphant look on my face. From then on  we could eat in peace. Juliet slept throughout until we had finished. She really is no bother at all which is pretty unusual for a 6 month old baby. Here is Eladio having some quality time with her.

Eladio and Juliet after our meal at the restaurant last Sunday

Spanish lunches are long and celebration ones even longer. We had arrived just after 1.30 and didn't leave till around 5 pm but a good time was had by all. But now as I look back I think this is where Covid was caught and finally hit our family.

We came home feeling full and flopped on the bed. I was aghast to hear that an American journalist and acclaimed film maker, 51 year old Brent Renaud was killed in action; i.e. filming the war - he was shot repeatedly by Russian forces who do not discriminate who they slay. His cameraman Juan Arredondo, who survived, said they had tried to cross a bridge to film refugees leaving when they were shot at by Russian forces at a checkpoint. They apparently continued shooting until Brent was dead from a neck gun shot. This happened in Irpin, a suburb of the capital, which has been under heavy fire. His press pass showed he was from The New York Times but in actual fact he was working free lance at the time of his death. 

The American journalist shot and killed by Russian forces in Ukraine last Sunday

That day too a warning came to NATO as the Russian forces bombed a Ukrainian military base just 25 kilometres from the Polish border. The US authorities warned Russia that if they fired any neighbour of Ukraine by accident or deliberately Moscow would feel the full force of Nato. That, my friends, is akin to saying they are willing to fight a 3rd World War if any NATO country, like Poland, is attacked. Things really escalated last Sunday.

Later I turned to Outlander to watch the final two episodes of Season 5 which recently aired on Netflix in Spain. I am looking forward to Season 6. That night our dinner was a piece of fruit each after which we watched the news again.

Monday came and I was awake at the unearthly hour of 5.30 am. I couldn't sleep for thinking of everything that had to be done this week for the trial: get an updated medical certificate, an updated bank extract to prove FT has not paid since September, get my phone provider contract so as to get the whatsapps with "he who shall not be mentioned" certified by a notary in case they were rejected in court and they are my main evidence as well as get an appointment with the notary. We also had to go to the court again that day to see the clerk Luis to check all was on schedule for Thursday. 

It was the wettest day in a long time and off we went again, Oli, Juliet and I, to see "Luis" the court clerk. We were worried that opposition from FT's lawyer would suspend the trial. We were very relieved to hear from Luis it wouldn't. As we walked out that day our hopes were lifted but I remained cautious as anything could go wrong. It all depended on the judge. We had had experience with 2 left wing women judges who dashed our hopes each time so we worried very much that it would be the same again. Wow what power they have. It was then panic stations to get all the documents needed for the notary to certify my whatsapp chat with "him" since he arrived on 7th January 2021 to now. The problem was getting a copy of my contract with Yoigo but I got it "in extremis". We were at the notary by 1 but unfortunately the notary himself wasn't there. I begged the clerk for the certificate to be issued before Thursday. 

I didn't realise until lunchtime that Monday was 14th March and marked the second anniversary of the first state of alarm and lockdown in Spain because of Covid. I look back with horror at what we have lived through. Amazingly, none of us ever caught it (until now, ouch) or we don't think we did. At the time there were just under 6000 cases and 136 deaths in Spain.  2 years later the figures today are just over 11 million and 100 thousand dead. We could never have envisaged this. We could never have envisaged either that vaccines would come so soon. Without them, numbers worldwide would probably be similar to those of Spanish flu over a century ago. This doesn't mean to say that Covid has gone away and the pandemic is over. By no means, but at least we know how to deal with it better now.  In most countries Covid is under control but funnily enough it is not in the country where it emerged from; China. It is on the rise there now and I wonder why? Well, because all their lockdowns just contained the virus and possibly because the Chinese vaccines are simply not as good as the likes of Pfizer, etc. We also know that we shall just have to live with Covid like we do with the common cold or flu but should still be very cautious. 

Covid no longer dominates the news. Today it is Putin's war in Ukraine and the terrible economic consequences for the whole world. This is going to dominate our lives for a long time, even if Russia finally wins this terrible war because it will not win the post war. Ukrainians will not submit to Putin's dictatorship. 

One woman was very brave this week in Russia. Marina Ovssyannikova, an editor for the state controlled Channel One TV station, waved a poster behind the presenter saying "No war, stop the war. Don't believe the propaganda. They lie to you here. Russians against war". 

Marina Ovssyannikova waving an anti war and anti propaganda banner

You can see the moment  here which no doubt millions of Russians zombied into pro Putin followers by state controlled media such as Channel One, also saw it too. Previously she recorded a video explaining her action saying what is happening in Ukraine is a crime. She urged her fellow countrymen to go out and protest saying the police could not arrest them all. She was arrested of course and for 24 hours or so we knew nothing. On Tuesday she appeared after being given a small fine. However that doesn't mean she won't face jail.  That's why I say she is terribly brave. I wish she could know that her action is now known about world wide. I bet Putin is furious. He cannot control all his people. 

He knows he is not yet winning the war so he intensified the bombardments this week mostly on civilians. It is sickening to watch. It is sickening to see old and infirm people being lifted out of bombed apartment blocks or to know that the pregnant woman whose image was broadcast everywhere after the bombing of the maternity hospital in Mariupol, died, as did her baby. 

This poor pregnant woman being carried out after the bomb on the maternity unit in Mariupol has since died as has her baby. 

That was you Putin. You are as bad as Stalin and Hitler. I sincerely hope one day you will be put away for crimes of genocide. Meanwhile you are bombarding an innocent nation in the same way you did in Syria. I hate you for what you are doing. I don't know what is going on in your head but it's not good. But one thing is for sure, the Ukrainians will hate Russia forever now and Russia will become a pariah state thanks to you. I am disgusted and furious.

On Monday I had a Facetime call with our dear friends Kathy and Phil. Of course I gave them updates on the trial and of course we spoke about the war. Thankfully we had a few laughs too. I need a reason to smile these days. This week has been especially tough.

Again that night I slept badly mostly because of thoughts of the trial. I was awake early on Tuesday morning and had two appointments that day. At 11, I had to be at the bank and at 12.40 at the health centre. That took up most of the morning and it was not easy to get the two documents I needed for the trial; an updated medical certificate of the status of my health after suffering our horrible squatter and a bank extract of income since he arrived to prove he hasn't paid since September. I felt quite a champion when I came home with the coveted documents. But then I got an email from our lawyers that sent a chill down my spine. It was basically to tell me that the court case will be nothing like those we see on TV. She was really telling me that it was going to be a horrible experience. I didn't know it then but she would be wrong. Since that moment I became terrified and was not able to concentrate on anything. All I wanted was for this week to be erased from my life and for the trial to be over. I was petrified of it. 

On a different note something really strange happened that day with the weather. Red dust from the sand of the Sahara desert blew all across Africa to Spain and it even reached Paris and Geneva. I've been told too that it is already in the UK. That morning there was a brownish red coat of sand dust on everything around us. I had never seen anything like it in Madrid. It is a phenomenon seen a lot in the Canary Islands but hardly ever in Madrid. In Spain they call it "calima" (calima comes from the Spanish word "haze" and causes dust and sand brought on from high winds from Africa aka a sand storm). I didn't really know the term for this type of weather and the best I could find when I googled it was "blood weather" - literally  dust coming from the sky brought on I suppose by a sand storm. The colour is reddish brown so I suppose that's why it's sometimes called "blood weather". It was certainly bloody weather in the colloquial sense. Everything looked ghastly, especially the sky which was completely clouded. I've only really ever seen sky like that in India and that is from persistent pollution there. It is said that the "calima" is also pollution. In some areas of Spain it was so bad people were told to stay indoors or wear masks if they had to go out. Calima can cause eye irritation and give you a cough. Eladio who has particularly sensitive eyes felt that more than me. The lawyer of red sand dust made everything so dirty I mused that only normal rain could wash it away. For the record I took these two pictures of our car that day just as we left the house. 

What our car looked like on Tuesday morning thanks to the dust from the Saharan dessert

The car is so covered in the dust you can't see Eladio at the wheel. I think that horrible weather put even more of a damper on my mood that day and I cannot envisage living somewhere with grey or polluted skies, so used I am to Spanish sunshine and clear skies. 

There were no clear skies in Ukraine that day nor have there been since Putin invaded on that terrible day, 24th February. That day the number of refugees went up to 3 million. That day the PMs of the Czech Republic, Slovenia and Poland - don't ask me to tell you their names - got on a train to Kiev to bravely meet up with Zelensky to show their or EU support. We all support him but we cannot intervene; just watch as  Putin bombs civilians. All we can do is send military support and humanitarian aid and take in refugees as well as impose the most draconian sanctions ever seen on Russia.  It is so frustrating. There were more so called peace talks that day between Russia and Ukraine and that day, sadly, Zelensky announced Ukraine would never join NATO - one of Russia's main conditions. That is so unfair.  All through the peace talks, fierce bombing continued. Two more journalists died (from Fox News) and so far we heard 97 Ukrainian children have been killed. The Russians even went as far as kidnapping a whole hospital in poor Mariupol. Why??? They are doing pretty much the same in Chernobyl which is even more frightening. A 36 hour curfew was imposed on Kyiv which braced itself for more bombing. But those left in the capital are not safe in their homes. How terrible to wake up in the middle of the night and find the block of flats you live in has been bombed.  So far Russia's main objectives have been the East of Ukraine and the capital as well as sea ports - not yet Odessa  - but now they are bombing areas near Lviv in the west. Lviv was once called Lemberg and is  apparently a beautiful city. Lviv until that day had been a safe haven for refugees. Not so much anymore. Is there no limit to Putin's war and his ambitions of expansion and making Ukraine fall to its knees. Even if they don't win, they will never give in to his tyranny and they shouldn't. How brave they are. Again I say "Slava Ukraini".

Tuesday was not a good day but could never be as bad as Thursday. If I had been busy in the morning on my paper chase, I rested in the afternoon watching a very addictive British series (a whodunnit) called Liar. I highly recommend it. The only drawback is that it was so addictive I had to binge watch it till the end and didn't go to sleep until past 2 in the morning. The plot was great but also the locations; ones I had never seen. Forever in the background are the salt marshes at the Blackwater Estuary near Tollesbury in Essex. I read somewhere that from the sky they resemble the patterns of the human brain. Whoever chose the location for the series did a great job.

Marsh land near Tollesbury in Essex, a great setting for the thriller series Liar

The marshes though are nowhere near where the story is set; the pretty coastal town of Deal in Kent, a town I'd never heard of but looks particularly attractive.  If you like good mystery and thriller series filmed in great locations, you may well enjoy "Liar". Go for it. 

Wednesday dawned and the sky was still orange and the dust of sand was still everywhere. That morning I had to go to the notary to get the whatsapps messages with "him" certified. That was not easy. In the end I went 3 times. What I did not expect was that it would cost 314 euros!!! At least though finally my paper chase was over. Eladio wonders now what I am going to do with my time now that it is over. Meanwhile our lawyer was negotiating with his lawyer who had rung to make an out of court settlement. We would not agree to any settlement with a proven liar I'm afraid. He also wanted a new set of keys but we refused. He obviously did not want to appear in court but we wanted to see him there. 

I was on edge the whole day and shattered from so little sleep. I had and have the time to sleep but just can't manage to get the amount I need. I told my dear friend Amanda how I was feeling in our Skype call that afternoon which I think helped to calm me down. At least I got everything off my chest. Our conversation of course turned to world events and we remarked just how awful these last few years have been; Covid, the war in Ukraine and on a personal side, our damned squatter.

That day as peace talks were held between the two sides, with Zelensky giving in to becoming a neutral state, Biden called Putin a "war criminal". Too right. That day, the Russians bombed  a theatre with hundreds sheltering there and to top it all they bombed a queue of people, killing ten, in a bread queue!!! It could hardly get worse. It was clearly a civilian building and the Ukrainians for precaution had written the word children in big white letters all around it. The word for children in Russian and I suppose Ukrainian is "dieti"; a word I am familiar with from whenever my mother talked about George and I when we were children. Putin didn't care and then Russian state TV said it was the work of the Ukrainians. How dare they? There were up to 2000 refugees inside and so far only 150 people have been pulled out alive. Thankfully it seems few have died but I call that an attempted  massacre and that means that Putin is not only a war criminal but a mass murderer!

But our day brightened up when Suzy arrived from Alicante. We hadn't seen her since November when my father died. She had come to give us morale support at the trial and for Fathers' Day yesterday. We had a lovely meal together prepared by Lucy and went to bed early. For once I fell asleep early but woke up twice. In the end I got up at 4.45 am!!!!

Thursday was going to be a horrible day. I had resigned myself to that but actually it turned out a lot better. The trial was scheduled for 9.40 and we arrived early at 8.45 or so. Eladio and I went with Suzy and Olivia would be there as soon as she had taken Elliot to day care. Already there were TV cameras. 4 of the 5 biggest nationwide stations came; TVE, Tele 5, Antena 3 and Telemadrid. Conspicuously absent was the left wing pro Government station, La Sexta. Well, they are on the side of squatters aren't they? That cheered me up but not our lawyer Cristina. Lawyers don't like the press and she had advised us against calling them saying the judge might not like it. She is wrong as it is precisely the Spanish media we have to thank for making this case a high profile one. All high profile cases generally go to the top of the queue as was our case. Without our media campaign I am convinced we would still be waiting for justice to move. We went for a coffee and went over all possible questions that would be fired mainly at me. But then something happened which I didn't expect; another offer of agreement from FT's lawyer; this time that he would leave on 30th March and would not demand keys. We still weren't sure so we let our lawyers meet with the judge while we waited outside. Waiting outside too was the culprit, FT looking sheepish to say the least. Oli caught him on camera.

FT at the courts on Thursday

They then came out with an offer we couldn't refuse. In a nutshell it was this: we pardon the debt, he leaves on 30th March. If he doesn't he will get evicted on 4th April and if that happens he would have to pay the debt of over 6000 euros. The added bonus was that he would only be allowed to appeal once out of our house. It seemed for once we had been assigned a sensible and mature judge. He looked pretty senior too. This agreement would be written up by him giving it maximum legal status. That meant there would be no trial as such. We would have liked to see him tried and convicted but would have little satisfaction. Besides, it could go on for months and months if he appealed, declared himself "vulnerable", etc. Also, being a civil, not a penal trial, his misdemeanor would not even be included in his criminal records and we would never get the money anyway as he would be declared insolvent. Thus, grudgingly, we accepted. It wasn't the outcome we wanted as he has got off scot free and can continue to do so elsewhere as the law protects him. But at least it looked like we had a nearly watertight agreement with the blessing of a judge. Thus we agreed and then all went in this time. He sat on the same bench as me but we did not look at each other. The whole thing was very quick and was basically to see if we were all in agreement. As we all walked out Felipe Turover, in a sort of modern day Uriah Heep gestured, bowed his head to the judge and said something like "thank you your honour". I thought that very cynical.

Oli was not with us as she wasn't allowed in but used the time to update the journalists. Suzy, meanwhile, bless her, took care of Juliet. Once downstairs and outside I saw all the TV cameras following Felipe and his pro bono lawyer as they walked down the street. The lawyer told the press there was an agreement and "no comment". We had plenty of comments though. I had 4 interviews, 3 of them live and the one with TVE was over 10 minutes long. 

On TV . what a battle worn face I have

Everyone was saying congratulations as if we had won. We hadn't won as justice was not served but at least we had a pretty watertight agreement and high hopes he will finally go on 30th March. It felt a bitter sweet end to a horrible nightmare. There was relief but also anger that the law permits criminals like him to get off scot free and even provides them with free legal services while we, law abiding citizens, have to protect ourselves and pay steep legal fees and at the same time house them for free. It's not the money I am disappointed about as I know he will never be able to pay, just the fact that the law is completely in his favour.   That's not fair is it? The Times correspondent who I spoke to that day said it was "outrageous". It was but at least it has given us peace. Finally he will go and we will have our lives back. PD truth is though I will only believe it and be able to sigh a breath of relief once I see him go. Until then I still have my worries. 

Later in the day I heard of a case a neighbour is suffering. She has 2 flats which she rents and has had squatters in them for 2 years now with no sign of them going anytime soon. The system and justice in Spain sucks. On the other hand, we got a good judge. The court clerk told me in no uncertain terms that an agreement, however bad it was, was far better than a trial. It seems he is right. This was not the outcome I had ever envisaged but it gave us hope. As soon as I had finished the interviews, two of which were with my very eloquent daughter Olivia  who I cannot stop thanking for all her support, I answered a call from Fernando, the journalist from El País, Spain's top newspaper. It was he who first wrote the article about our squatter if you remember. He had seen me on TVE and wanted to do a follow up story. I was happy for him to do so. This is it (in Spanish). The article will remain in the annals of internet forever, unlike TV coverage. I am eternally grateful to him for revealing the story. So many unjust stories never get to the press but ours did; mostly of course because of our connections and media know how. There Oli played a crucial role. So thank you Fernando again. The only bit I don't agree with you about in your article is when you say the PR campaign did not work. It did Fernando as without it our case would be lying in some pile collecting dust at the horrible courts in Móstoles, that nondescript suburb of Madrid. And you played your part; a very big part. 

We were home by 12, coffee time and it was wonderful for the four of us to be together again and spend quality time as a family. It's not often the four of us are together. Suzy was especially delighted to be reunited with Juliet as she would be with Elliot later in the week. 

Suzy and Juliet - happy to be reunited

But all we could talk about was the case and that will be so for some time now. FT returned and had the audacity to ring the gate bell and expect us to open it (he doesn't have keys - he lost them - to get out he has to climb over the gate). Of course we didn't answer. After climbing the gate he rang the door bell. We wanted him to fester outside in the cold but Eladio gave in. Oli opened the door though and had a few words to say to him. I won't repeat them as they are a bit too rude to write in this post haha. But she got her say. He didn't reply. 

I decided we all deserved a slap up lunch and ordered food from a Moroccan restaurant we like, El Tuareg. The girls and I, including Juliet who slept throughout our ordeal - went to pick it up and as usual I had bought too much.

Oli left at around 4.30 to pick up Elliot and we all retired to rest. I was answering whatsapps most of the afternoon and spoke to my dear friends Sandra and Amanda. I also watched a bit of All creatures great and small which is so soothing and beautifully distracting. Eladio told me a parcel had  arrived from Amazon just before dinner. I told him it was for him - highly unusual. I had bought him a pair of dark blue suede brogue shoes to replace a pair he had lost, we don't know how. It was supposed to be a fathers' day present and he was delighted. I hardly ever buy him anything and was happy to see him pleased. We had dinner together in peace and then I had some quality time with Suzy. There was time to watch the news. The story in the Ukraine continues and I am appalled as I watch all the destruction of civilian buildings and the massacre of the people. 

You would have thought I would have slept better that night but there was little improvement despite taking 2 sleeping pills. I woke up at 6.15 on Friday morning, the first day of the beginning of the end of our nightmare. I spent the whole morning with Suzy. We went food shopping and on errands and had a coffee together at Alverán. I also went to the chemist to get a couple of lateral flow tests as Eladio had a cold and I wanted to rule out Covid. It was after lunch that we did the test. Here he is doing it.

Eladio doing the Covid test on Friday

Every test we have done has proved negative so I was astonished it turned out positive. Finally Covid had reached out house. We had been so lucky  until Friday. However, Covid after 3 vaccines is not the same as it was and is far milder unless perhaps a person is old and has an underlying medical condition. Eladio is 77 but is fighting fit. Thus we all had to do the test; Suzy, Lucy, me, Oli, Miguel and Elliot. Suzy and I went out immediately to buy a whole load of tests - some 18. We sent Eladio to bed meanwhile. Suzy, Lucy and I were lucky, our tests were negative. Oli was lucky too as was poor Elliot who hated me putting the swab up his nostrils poor mite) but Miguel wasn't. He too has Covid. We kept wondering where they caught it and can only think of the restaurant we went to last Sunday for our celebration lunch. The dilemma then was whether or not for them to isolate or not. Eladio wanted to keep his distance as did Miguel. Miguel spent the time at his flat disinfecting everything. Eladio slept for 3 hours. Meanwhile I spent time some lovely quality time with Oli, Elliot and Juliet.We had planned to go to Asturias tomorrow but of course Covid has now ruled that out. Oli is gutted as it was her last chance before returning to work after maternity leave on 7th April.

We had dinner together, Eladio insisting on sitting at the end of our very large dining room table. He didn't seem too unwell with only mild cold symptoms. Miguel though felt fatigue. Let's see how they develop. We shall all have to test ourselves frequently over the next few days.

Eladio thought it best we sleep in different rooms. I thus moved into Oli's room which she never uses and actually had a glorious night. I could watch what I wanted and sleeping on my own was beneficial. I got the best night's  sleep in a long time.

Saturday was fathers' day. My thoughts turned to my dear father, Courtenay Lloyd, who died aged 102 on 8th November last. Here is a photo of us together which I posted a year ago on fathers' day. I think of him every day but of course I probably felt his loss more yesterday.

With my adored father

We had planned a family dinner to celebrate and I decided to make my new French fruit tart cake or a version of it. But I needed some ingredients; mainly cream and jam. Off I went to Carrefour. I got some cream but not the brand I wanted. Suzy called to ask me to get milk to take to her friend's house where I was to pick her up after shopping. I could hardly believe there was none. This is what the milk shelves looked like.

Empty milk shelves at Carrefour yesterday

You are probably asking why. The answer is simple. There is an ongoing lorry strike due to the increase in the price of petrol. The increase means it is not profitable for them to transport food or anything else really. It's the same for fishermen, many of whom are not going out to fish. Then too the vegetable oil shelves were also empty as were some of the cereal shelves. Oil and grain which Spain exports from Ukraine and Russia is not getting here and if if it is it is not being transported. What a sorry state we are all in because of Putin's brutal and senseless war. 

I arrived at Suzy's friend's house in the rich town of Pozuelo. We had time for a coffee together before coming home for lunch. I had made stuffed shoulder of lamb which Eladio was supposed to monitor in the oven - it came out a bit dry but was delicious.

Lunch on Saturday

It was lovely to have Suzy with us. She later helped me finish doing the fruit tart. I was happy with the result. I also realised I was feeling so much happier probably because of the relief after Thursday's trial. Here I am proudly showing off the finished tart. I was happy to be cooking again.

Cooking again. 

We were joined by Oli, Miguel and the grandchildren around 5 pm. Both Eladio and Miguel were wearing masks and keeping their distance which made our fathers' day family dinner a bit strange. In the end Eladio didn't even get to try the tart - he was sent into the kitchen to eat on his own. It was decided that Elliot would spend the night with me in Oli's bedroom which has a smallish double bed. That was a huge challenge as he is a bad sleeper. I tried everything; reading, massage, a made up story and too much Fireman Sam on Netflix until he finally nodded off at about midnight. I then turned to my iPad and headphone to watch Killing Eve (it's worth watching) and must have tried to fall asleep at about 1.30. I didn't manage it because I was on the alert for Elliot crying and also because he moves so much and ends up hogging all the bed. So I opted to sleep in the room next door - the green room. As soon as I had snuggled into one of the single beds, he began to cry. I think I had to go into his room about 6 times. In the morning Pippa woke me up at 7.30 and I think I must have managed only 2 or 3 hours sleep. I feel for Oli if that is what she has to go through every night. 

This morning though I had an hour for breakfast on my own and Wordle of course. Elliot woke up at 8.30 and came downstairs with a big smile on his face. He did not remember we had both had a bad night I suppose. Now I have to give him his breakfast so will leave you now until next Sunday.

Let's see what next week brings - hopefully no more Covid. Cheers till then,

All the best Masha 

c

c

My five year journey to retirement, Putin's barbaric war continues, "Slava Ukraini", we will fight until the end, and other stories of our week.

Sunday 13th March, 2022.

Oli and I united and once again at the courts. The battle is not over but we shall fight until the end. 

Good morning friends and readers. It is Sunday again and this post will be post number 950 since I first started my blog 17 years ago in the summer of 2005, the year my father came to live with us. He was my number one fan. All time blog views come to over 700.000 which is quite a lot for a semi anonymous person like myself. I often wonder why people read it. I know why I write it though; a passion to record my life as it goes past so fast. I also write in the context of worldwide events which will go down in history, like the war on Ukraine. You all know I am a news junkie so my blog would not be the same without news and not just mine. My blog reflects my journey in life and I only wish I had started it before. The last 5 years have been a challenging journey for me as most of you know. Five years ago I lost my job as the communications director of the then Swedish owned mobile operator, Yoigo.  This week I became officially retired. 

I can hardly believe that five years have gone past and that I am now nearly officially retired  even though it was against my will, owing to a stupid new law in Spain. I can't believe it is 5 years now since I lost my job as the Communications Director of Yoigo, when I was about to turn 60. That was cruel for a woman my age in Spain with few prospects of ever getting employed again. 

On our walk last Sunday, Eladio and I commented on just how fast those 5 years have passed and how successful they have been despite losing my job.  Against all the odds I somehow survived a bit like the bird Phoenix arising from the ashes, I made a way for myself that I never thought would be possible. It all started with renting rooms at our huge house which without my big salary we could not afford the upkeep. I didn't think anyone would come but they did; many many more than I could ever have dreamed of. I also took small steps to become a freelance communications consultant and that worked out too, mostly thanks to my former Swedish boss at Yoigo. I will forever be grateful to Johan for his help.  At the time we thought that the small compensation sum I received would probably have to be used to finance our lives until retirement but we hardly touched it and were even able to buy a modest house in Asturias. Now we rent it out too and it seems I am in the hospitality business but as my own boss. I had no idea 5 years ago what I would be doing today or how lucky I would be. 

When I heard I was to be made redundant I sort of panicked but then decided that come what may, I would survive and survive I did for 5 years until retirement.  If I look back on these 5 years, since I lost my job  I can hardly believe the journey I undertook and my destination. I always say, quoting from The Sound of Music, "When the Lord closes a door, somewhere he opens a window". He did that for me but I didn't know it at the time. 

I well remember posting a photo of me at the job centre going to sign on for the dole (ouch), This is it. Maybe you remember it. I shall never forget it. 

At the job centre 5 years ago 

So I went on a mission to restart my life; no easy feat when you are a woman aged 60 in Spain. But I did it. I often wonder how. I gathered as much positive energy as I could and I think that my success really came because I was able to deal with failure. I put so much energy into starting again and for sure my positive attitude helped a lot. It wasn't only that.  There was lots of support from family and friends without whom I would not be in the position I am today. So thanks all. These 5 years have been some of the happiest in my life but I had no idea they would be that day when I went to the job centre. In a way I have been semi retired for 5 years enjoying full freedom to do what I wanted. So, now when my official retirement is about to begin, I can reflect on a job well done in many many ways. None of it would have been possible without my dear husband Eladio by my side. 

On our walk we also remarked that all we want now is for life to return to normal. We want to see the end of war as well as  peace for Ukraine, the end of Covid and on the home front we want to see Felipe Turover, our squatter, gone for good.  Only then will we be really free to do whatever we want now that we are both retired. 

Like me, Eladio loves to keep up with the news. Everything we read and see these days is about the invasion of Ukraine. In a way we are watching the war live on TV. Isn't that incredible? Here he is last Sunday with his headphones on at his desk which is next to mine in our colourful and homely study where we both spend a lot of time. It's our den. 

Eladio keeping up with the news - he is wearing an M+S jumper he still has which I think I bought him just after we got married, nearly 40 years ago. I wonder if M+S jumpers last this long these days. 

On the subject of renting rooms, that day we had guests who were actually visitors. Shervan and Pilar came to see our house and the rooms for the daughter of a friend in Dubai who will be coming to study dentistry at the local University in September. We have received guests from the four corners of the world but never a Kurd from Syria like Shervan. Like me, he is married to a Spaniard with roots in the city of León where Eladio's family come from. They made an interesting couple. That day too I got yet another reservation for our house in Asturias in the summer. August is  now practically sold out.  Buying that house in El Cuetu was a great investment. 

Hosting Felipe Turover was not a good investment. He is the only rotten apple in 5 years unfortunately. Media interest has of course declined but that's ok as our PR campaign did its job. Even so we have had more cameras here since and last Sunday Antena 3 came again to report on the situation. The situation, if you don't know, is that on Thursday 17th March, next week, the trial will finally take place. If all goes well the judge will sentence our rotten apple and hopefully he will be evicted not long after; that is if all goes well. That's what I thought until we had a meeting with our lawyers on Tuesday. I cannot trust the justice system after all I have seen. Once again I am telling you that Spain is the world's squatter capital. I still can't believe that justice is on the side of the delinquents and not on the side of law abiding citizens like Eladio and I. Next Sunday you will hear about the outcome. Pray if you believe or just send us good vibes. We need both. 

Pray too we should for Ukraine. The only news this week is about the invasion of this European country. But you know that as no doubt you are following events and are feeling aghast at what you are watching and reading. The war is now into day 18. Can you possibly believe that the Ukrainians have resisted for so long in the face of an overwhelmingly superior military force. Last Sunday I reported that 1.3 million people, mostly women and children, had fled the country. That night the figure rose to 1.5 million.  3 days later it rose to 2 million and today it stands at 2.6 million. Where not many Ukrainian refugees are going is to the UK because of entry requirements. From what I have read it is easier for them to flee the Ukraine than to enter my home country. Shame on the UK government. The government supports the Ukraine but does not let its people in fast enough. On Tuesday Zelensky from his hiding place in Kyiv made a speech in the Commons, something unheard of. He echoed Churchill's words to rousing acclaim when he said "We will not give up and we will not lose. We will fight to the end in the sea, in the air. We will fight for our land, whatever the costs. We will fight in the forests, in the fields, on the shores, in the streets".  Bravo Zelensky but not Bravo Boris. 

The main stories that day and the whole of the week were of the bombing of civilians trying to flee under what was supposed to be a cease fire the Russians did not adhere to. 

Civilians targeted while they try to flee

This is a tactic Putin has used before in Syria and Chechenia. His aim is to crush morale and beat the people into submission. There will be little submission in Ukraine where morale is high, however strong the Russians are. The Ukrainians are fighting for their country and their identity. Even if Russia wins and it probably will soon crush its neighbour, it won't win the after war as it won't be able to rule the people; just as it couldn't in Afghanistan. 

That night we watched an interview with Spain's former PM, Felipe González who celebrated his 80th birthday this week. I remember him as a vibrant young politician. He may have his faults but he has seen a lot and he is wise. That night he said in no uncertain terms that Russia would destroy Ukraine. That put shivers down my spine as I had hoped the end would be glorious for Ukraine. If you have heard the slogan "slava ukraini, the Ukrainian national salute,  you will know it is the new buzz phrase meaning "glory to Ukraine".  In The Times on Monday morning, Admiral Sir Tony Radakin, Chief of the UK Defence staff,  had higher hopes than Spain's former PM.  When asked the same question, if it was inevitable Russia would take over Ukraine, he told the BBC "No, I think we've seen a Russian invasion that is not going well. I think we're also seeing a remarkable resistance by Ukraine". I sincerely hope the admiral is right and Felipe González is wrong. 

Monday was a rainy and quiet day for us. We didn't leave the house that day as we had no errands or appointments. That day was not quiet in the war zone of Ukraine. That day the Russians offered humanitarian corridors for refugees finally but not to Poland or other friendly border countries; instead to Russia or Belarus. How cynical. Again the Russians bombed civilians while fleeing and continued their rampage destroying even schools, hospitals and people's homes. That goes against the Geneva Convention for behaviour during war. The West want to take Putin to the Hague for a trial for war crimes and genocide but I doubt he will ever appear there. Ironically the Hague is in Holland, just where his family are reported to be living in safety whilst he continues his mad invasion and war. I later read they are in Switzerland. They are safe, unlike the Ukrainians. The Chinese have offered to mediate - not a lot of good can come from that, as well as the Turkish Government. I honestly think that diplomacy will not work. To loosely quote Gold Meir, "you can't negotiate with a man who wants to kill you".  It can't work because Putin's demands from Ukraine in order to halt the war are not acceptable. He wants Zelensky to recognise Crimea as Russian and to take over the pro Russian areas in Ukraine as well as promise never to join either Nato or the EU. If he thinks that's going to happen he has another think coming. That day the 27 agreed to fast track Ukrainian entry into the EU, as well as the other Russian border countries, Georgia and Moldavia. Put that in your pipe and smoke it Putin I say. Even Finland where many Russians are fleeing and Sweden are now thinking about joining Nato. There is too a brain drain going on in Russia as an estimated 200.000 have fled the country; a country which is becoming a pariah state with echoes of life under the Soviet Union. 

Meanwhile the rest of the world is seeing the repercussions of the war; energy prices soaring and worries for a lack of sunflower oil and cereals from Ukraine, considered the granary of the world. A litre of petrol in Spain is now around 2 euros, up from 1.4 not so long ago. Food prices are increasing too. Spain alone imports 80% of sunflower oil from Ukraine which is now unable to export anything with its ports under attack. That means prices for snacks such as crisps and tinned fish and even "churros here in Spain will go up too. The US  and UK blocked the import of Russian oil but not the EU which is much more dependent on Russian oil.  That alone put the price up. But can we survive without Russian oil? I wish we could. The canny US government has been in secret meetings with Venezuela and even sanctioned Iran to explore other sources of oil.  Maduro is one of Putin's allies so we shall see. It's funny isn't it how so many wars have to do with oil supplies?

Tuesday was to be an important day for us.  We had a meeting with our lawyers, Vero and Cris in the centre of Madrid. It was to prepare for this week's trial. Their offices are near the Prado museum but we wouldn't see any paintings that day. Instead we went over everything and got updates. Frankly now I do not know what to expect on Thursday. It seems anything can happen so I need your prayers even more now. What this horrible man has up his sleeves is a pack of lies. That night we got a document from his lawyer arguing his case. I should have laughed because it was all lies but I felt like being sick at what I read. None of what was written could be upheld with evidence and it seems he has even lied to his own lawyer. It beggars belief that this man is included as someone playing an important role in helping Putin to power according to Catherine Belton's book, Putin's people; both of them are compulsive liars.  I really hope the judge has read it. I also hope he has done his homework. 

We didn't finish our meeting that began at 10.30 until past 1 pm. Eladio's brother and wife had invited us all to lunch that day but Oli was too tired and wanted to go home. Thus she dropped us off at what was our old house, a flat in the same building as Eladio's brother, where we lived from 1983 to 1985 until we moved to the outskirts to escape the city. We are country mice, not city mice. 8th March was International Women's Day and so we bought some flowers for my sister-in-law as well as some small cakes for after lunch. Dolores had prepared a wonderful dish of chickpeas and vegetables accompanied by fish balls in batter. It was delicious. We ate far too much that day but it was great to have lunch with family members. We were going to take public transport home but feeling full and tired I ordered a taxi on Cabify, Spain's equivalent of Uber which I think works better than the former.

We were home just before 5.30 and felt exhausted. I cheered myself up by finishing the wonderful series "All creatures great and small", a new adaption of a the story of a vet in Yorkshire, James Herriot. I loved the book and read it years ago. To see the Dales on TV took me back to my roots. I love Yorkshire where I lived as a child and teenager. I later read it was filmed in Grassington, a town I know well. 

That night again we watched the war live on TV. That day, thankfully, the Russian troops kept to a ceasefire and some refugees were able to leave bombed out towns. Many times this week they agreed to a cease fire but then went back on their word. Those unable to leave remain in freezing temperatures, many without running water or electricity or even internet.  The freezing cold weather will complicate this war and hopefully loosen morale in the Russian troops. I sincerely hope their tanks freeze with them in it.  There was talk too of the US giving new jet fighters to Poland in exchange for the Poles giving their old Soviet Migs to the Ukrainians - that's because they know how to fly them. Sadly the US later pulled out. 

Everything I see and read since the invasion began reminds me of WW2. What really started that war was when Germany invaded Poland. That's when at least England declared war on Germany and the rest followed. If only we could declare war on Russia because of its invasion of Poland's neighbour. All the voices say we can't because of nuclear weapons. There were none in 1939. So do we have to wait for Putin to destroy Ukraine and then invade other neighbouring countries? Or should we counter attack now to avoid the destruction of Europe? That is the question in my head that I can't find an answer to. I imagine most people can't and there lies the problem of this war. 

It was that night we got to see the document from the lawyer representing "he who should not be mentioned". As I said it had me feeling literally like I wanted to be sick. Thus my sleep, once again, was interrupted by this diabolical man. I had sort of begun to  get used to him in the room next door but now that the trial is coming up, I just don't know what to expect and that has put me in a state of nerves that have me on edge the whole time. I want him out of my head but even more so I want him out of my house. Spanish law sucks. It really does. 

Wednesday came and Oli and I would be going to the Courts again to see for ourselves what tricks his lawyer had been up to and where we stood vs a vs the upcoming trial. It must have been our 10th visit there and what a horrible and hostile place it is. 

The ghastly courts in ghastly Móstoles

But are united in this and we shall fight until the end. The battle is nowhere near over but one day we will win it, of that I am sure. Olivia never leaves our side, bless her. Miguel went with us and I suggested we took a photo to record the moment. It may come in use if one day I write a book about the "spy next door".  We went to see our court clerk, Luis, who seems to be slightly less hostile to us than other civil servants at that god forsaken place. He confirmed the trial will go ahead despite claims from "his" lawyer there was a "defect in form" - some legal technicality. We sincerely hope so. We then went to an office where we could ask for all the reports we had filed and "he" had filed. We then had to go to 6 different courts. We were happy to see that all of his had been filed away and would not be used in court. We must have been there for 2.5 hours but afterwards were rewarded with coffee in a street cafe in the sun. We tried not to talk about our situation and managed some of the time. If Olivia never leaves my side, Juliet, my 6 month old granddaughter doesn't either. She has accompanied us on every visit. She was with us of course when we were having our coffee and I had a chance for some quality time with her. Unknown to me, Miguel, captured the moment perfectly on camera. Here we are, 65 years separating us - smiling at each other. Darling Juliet, you and Elliot are the lights of our lives and help us get through all this.

Coffee with my darling granddaughter Juliet after our visit to the courts on Wednesday where she always accompanies us.

They drove me home and I had event free afternoon. The highlight was a quick Skype call with my dear friend Amanda who is recovering from an operation. All sounds good. 

The other highlight of the day was our dinner that night. They always are. We meet in the kitchen at 8 pm sharp and there and then decide on the menu. On the menu that night were fried eggs. Nothing special you may think but you are wrong as they were made from the wonderful free range eggs we had brought back from Asturias. Divine is the word I used to describe them. Here is Eladio at dinner that night in our big kitchen which actually has a table which is far too small in comparison.

Dinner on Wednesday night - delicious eggs from Asturias

Again we watched the news and were aghast to learn that the Russians had bombed a maternity hospital in the Russian occupied sport town of Mariupol. The images of heavily pregnant women being carried out of the rubble were just appalling. Thankfully the bomb fell on the courtyard next to the hospital. Even so 3 were reported dead. It was this photo of a heavily pregnant woman in the throes of giving birth and being carried on out on  a stretcher that has become one of the most vivid pictures of this dreadful and stupid war. Poor woman. She will never ever forget that day. Who could? If this isn't a crime of war, tell me what is.

Thursday came. We only left the house for our walk which was pretty chilly although the sun did come out. That day was marred for me by thoughts of our ongoing struggle. I spent the rest of the morning working on our defense. I went through his lawyer's opposition document which was full of lies to refute each and every point with our very clear evidence. Later in the day we heard from his lawyer who had not accepted our pardoning him the debt in exchange for leaving. Well, of course he wouldn't. He doesn't care about the money he owes as he knows he will never pay it anyway. Pathetically he had offered to leave on 1st April if we "gave him his keys back". That's such a stupid ruse as we never took his keys away. He lost them. He wanted to trick us into owing up to stealing which we never did. Damn the man. Thanks to him the rest of the day was ruined for me. I couldn't sleep until the late hours.

Friday dawned and brought some good news. My first pension arrived including February's arrears. In a way it was the culmination of my challenging 5 year journey. It's great to have good news now and again. We need it. I had promised to take the family out to lunch somewhere special and swanky and that is what we will do today. We didn't go on our walk as it rained all day - Spain needs rain - and went shopping instead, our weekly Friday shop. At Alverán that day I had two pastries . my favourite "vigilantes" as my first step to celebrate my retirement.

Friday's Fika at Alverán

To be honest, I remarked to Eladio I wasn't sure whether retirement felt like a celebration as it marks the real start of old age doesn't it? His reply was that I should be "jubliant" as retirement in Spanish is called "jubilación"; a time to jubilate, enjoy life, I think. But I am still in two minds about it. We have been talking about retirement since Eladio was about 50 and I was not yet 40 and finally it has come. So am I pleased? I'm not sure. But, as I don't have any chance - the new law not allowing me to work with half of my pension - I just have to accept it. I decided I shall do so gracefully. Thus the two pastries hahahaha.

When we got home and had unloaded the shopping, Oli and Miguel brought Juliet for us to look after while they went for a swim together to do some exercise and have some alone time. They deserve it. I had bought a new "book" for Juliet. It's made of fabric so it went straight into her mouth hahaha. Soon she was sucking her thumb and later slept till they came back for her just after we finished our lunch. What a good baby she is. 

Juliet with her new book and sucking her thumb. Bless her. 

We slept too after lunch, for quite a while actually. I was able to relax that afternoon but not too much as currently I am watching Season 5 of Outlander and there are some pretty violent scenes, hahahaa.

That night we went out to dinner as Lucy was here to hold the fort. It was another little retirement celebration and felt great as we haven't been out to dinner on a Friday night for a long time. We chose the humble Ginos where I had a delicious pizza; just how I like them, deep and crisp. 

Dinner at Ginos on Friday night. Cheers to life (without Felipe Turover I should add). 

We tried to steer away from talking about our number one issue, the squatter Felipe Turover but that is difficult. Instead we focus on life afterwards, after he has gone. Only then will we be able to live in peace, peace we both deserve as "pensioners" - hate that word (oh dear and I am one now).

I slept better that night. It must have been the wine. Saturday came and after our breakfast and wordling (now a verb by the way) where I was quite successful I settled down to write another document for our lawyers; a list of all the reasons the judge should grant us an injunction and evict FT immediately. The list is long. I shared it with the family and them with our lawyers. As, you see, he is always on my mind.

On my mind too is the war in Ukraine. I can't get enough of it because I am so appalled and this is the worst crisis in our lives in Europe. No doubt Putin is watching closely from a luxurious bunker somewhere.  He will not be happy things are not going his way. It has been reported that this is because of bad intelligence, poor planning, wrong strategy, unmotivated soldiers and above all a misjudgement of Ukrainian resistance. But how will he react? He could employ chemical weapons and if he wanted he could press the nuclear red button and annihilate his neighbour but that wouldn't be winning either would it as he would have no country left to rule. It is said he is furious with the intelligence received. No doubt his sycophants do not dare feed him the real news. For now all I can say is "Slava Ukraini" as I watch in horror. 

Yesterday was a very quiet day for us. We went on our walk and then I made a lovely lunch of roast shoulder of lamb. What was not good were the fumes from the oven in the kitchen. We have two very old ovens which desperately need replacing. 

So my friends, this is it for this week. I wish you all well and thank you for your prayers and good thoughts about our upcoming trial on 17th March. 

Cheers till next Sunday when I will either report good or bad news. 

Masha.