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. 

The world against Putin, the Ukrainians fight back, RIP Magda, reasons to smile and the stories of our week.

Sunday 6th March, 2022.

Despite everything that is going on, there are always reasons to smile in life. Coffee out with Eladio is one of them.  

Good morning all.

We are now into the second week of Putin's war against Ukraine. I am so shocked at events. I can't believe what is happening and am glued to the news every day. So why I am more shocked at the invasion of Ukraine and not at Putin's aggression in Afghanistan, Georgia, Chechenia or Syria? Because, my friends, Ukraine belongs to Europe and this aggression is knocking on our doors. Just as our ancestors were shocked to the core upon the eves of the First and Second World Wars, we are in a similar position today. If we let Putin continue his diabolical plan, the rest of Europe is in danger too as is peace and unity in the world. 

I have deliberately written Putin's war and not Russia's war as I  believe  many people in Russia are silently against it. Outwardly demonstration against it is dangerous and many have been arrested. In these past 10 days Russians have taken to the streets, including the elderly  activist Yelena Osipova who reportedly survived the Siege of Leningrad. They have arrested more than 7000 people, including children!

Yelena Osipova arrested for demonstrating against war in Ukarine. 

Foreign press has been suppressed and any Russian media reporting unfavourably on the invasion, a word they are not allowed to use, can now be sentenced to up to 20 years in prison! Just in case, the BBC pulled out its news staff there and can only now report on Russia from outside Russia. The West has also suppressed Russian fake news or disinformation news sites such as Russia Today or Sputnik. Other foreign news outlet have followed suit, such as Spain's state TV who Oli and Miguel work for; RTVE. Soon we will have no independent reporting from Moscow. That also means the Russians are only fed government controlled news outlets. That then means many Russians believe their government and think that the invasion (a forbidden word) is justified and that their troops only target military objectives. Many Ukrainians have family in Russia and I have read accounts of the latter not believing the images sent to them of Russian civil bombardments. That is because the Russian people have been brainwashed by Putin and Putin alone. 

The rest of the world is mostly against the war which is getting more and more violent, as I am and fervently so.  The Ukrainians are valiantly fighting back and creating resistance to the stunned no longer called "Red Army". I believe Russian troops lack morale and motivation.   They also lack strategy and it seems are having problems with food and fuel supplies on Ukrainian terrain. I read that they were given rations for 3 days as Putin thought he win over Ukraine in that time. They have been forced there and I truly believe those Russian soldiers on Ukrainian soil are not happy with their lot.  Most of them were not told the truth of the mission. I think many must feel hesitant  attacking their "brothers" as after all these two countries are intrinsically linked in many ways. They will not have the motivation they had in Afghanistan - if they had any at all - or Syria. This is Ukraine, a country close to their hearts. If history were to repeat itself, the Russian people and only the Russian people could be the downfall of Vladmir Putin, a dictator not unlike Hitler in his quest for expanding his empire. He wants a return to the USSR but the world won't let that happen or at least I hope it won't.  We can impose as many sanctions as we want but Putin will remain in his bunker in his mad bubble and continue his madness.  They say a picture tells a thousand words. Well this one does. It shows how Putin is alone in the world - sitting at his famously large table and a photo of Zelensky eating with his team. I don't need to say more. The picture says it all.

Putin alone, Zelensky with his team. 

It is the ordinary Russians who will suffer and only they can topple him down just as their grandparents and  great grandparents toppled Tsar Nicholas II. Could history repeat itself?  Meanwhile, Putin has sent hit men to Kyiv to kill the courageous President, Zelensky but wouldn't it be great if Putin himself was killed by henchmen from his own country?  There have been 3 assassination attempts on his life which, according to The Times, were foiled because "disaffected FSB (secret service) officers leaked the details. No doubt, the CIA are looking for him like they did with Sadam Hussein and Osama Bin Laden but that could take years. Without Putin the world would be a better place. Right now we are witnessing the worst war in Europe since WW2 and we don't know when it will be over. With valiant Ukrainian resistance and military help from the Western world this could be a long drawn out war. But it could also end fast if Putin ramps up the bombing.  Putin should look at his history books though and remember how the small country of Finland beat the Russians in the last century or how they left Kabul with their tails between their legs. In 1939 Stalin attacked Finland expecting it to fall within days but the Finns fought back and it was almost  a year before the Winter War was over. The Finns  did this fighting in a similar way to Ukraine. I think Putin thought the invasion would be a push over and that he would get rid of Zelensky and replace him soon with a puppet leader. But he was wrong. Volodymyr Zelensky has emerged as a national hero. He was once an actor and clown. Now he is not acting and there is no fun in his motivational speeches and videos. The world is taking him seriously and he has the backing of the whole country. He is the force behind their resistance. 

Volodymyr Zelensky has emerged as a national hero

He is in fact Jewish which would not matter at all but Putin is saying his invasion is to "denazify" the country. I would say that it is Putin who is emulating the Nazis as I mentioned above. Photos of a fake Time magazine cover insinuate that.  Let me share it with you.

Fake Time magazine cover that captures the spirit of our times

Putin is now threatening the world with nuclear power. But would he press the button? We don't know. I sincerely hope he won't but he is mad enough to do so. He has been mad enough to bomb the Ukrainain nuclear power station in  Zaporizhzhia which it now controls. It is Europe's largest and imagine if it had been blown up completely. There is a photo circulating of a dove over Putin's head which I don't need to describe as you can see it below. 

The photo that brought me trouble on Facebook

I innocently posted it on social media and as a headline wrote "f*ck Putin". I was shocked when I got sudden replies from an enraged pro Putin Russian. She was none other than a former colleague at Nokia who used to be the head of communications for Nokia Russia and when we worked together we became good friends. She told me in no uncertain terms how wrong I was and that the Ukrainian government was fascist and that her country followed Putin 100% and that he had no other option than to invade the country. I was stunned. It was evidence of how many Russian people are brainwashed by Vladimir Putin. I looked at her Facebook feed and it was full of venom against the west. Instead of getting into a verbal brawl I chose to delete her comments. What would you have done?

With the most draconian sanctions ever, Putin and the Russian people are being cornered financially and technologically. Ukrainians are calling for the west to close its air space - a "no fly zone". If Nato did so it would have to fight Russian aircraft and that would mean entering in military conflict with Russia and the start of World War 3. For the moment that is completely off the cards. Sanctions are the answer for the moment. Before the invasion Biden and other leaders repeatedly said NATO would not intervene, possibly giving Putin more motivation to invade. I am not sure if it is off the cards forever. Nothing ever is. We only have to remember when the US said it would not enter the two last World Wars and that they did eventually. Maybe "eventually" is the wrong tactic as meanwhile many people's lives will be destroyed, not to mention a whole country. But then when I read that Biden told the Finnish PM he would intervene if Russia attacked Finland which is not a NATO member, I wondered why Finland and not Ukraine. 

Commercial airspace is being shut to Russia, Turkey has blocked the Black Sea for Russian ships, Apple has stopped sales of its products in Russia and even Boeing refuses now to maintain Russian owned Boeing planes.  Many other companies have followed suit including Visa and Mastercard (ouch).  The west has blocked half of Russia's reserves, many Russian banks have been blocked from the Swift international payment system and there are restrictions on Russian assets in many parts of the world. The super rich oligarchs have been targeted too and it goes on even to include sport and culture sanctions which means Russian athletes will not be able to compete in any international sporting competition.  And even though no country is sending the military to fight on the ground, many are sending military equipment. The fact that Germany is one of  those countries is considered historical.

 But  there is also a cyber war playing out that is hurting Russia. Those fighting, including the group Anonymous, are playing the Russians at their own game and they are winning. Hundreds of Russian sites have been hacked as has Russian TV. Hackers were able this week to air the Ukrainian national anthem on Russian TV as well as non doctored news on the invasion in Ukraine. 

Anonymous cyber warfare against Russia

It all feels good and I can only imagine these tactics are providing ammunition as morale for the Ukrainian people. The world is against Putin that is obvious. The only "if" is China but even China would not want to be seen as a pariah country like Russia and be subject to sanctions  as, after all, the world is their market. So they are being very cautious. Putin's only friend is the Belarus dictator, Lukashenko from where he lets the Russians attack Ukraine. His country will soon be subjected to similar sanctions and so it should. 

Meanwhile an estimated 1.3 million Ukrainians have fled the country and up to 7 million could do so if the war carries on for long. Where will they go? Many to border and EU countries. Luckily the EU has stepped up and is waiving visas and such to allow them entry. But how awful to have to leave your country, your home and your life and see your country slowly being turned into rubble.  Since the war began my thoughts have often turned to a Ukrainian woman I know very well; Zena who lives and works in Spain and was my father's weekend carer. If you know a Ukrainian I think the emotional impact of what is happening gets even stronger. I am relieved though that her family hails from Ternopol near Lviv in the western part of the country, near both the Polish and Belarus border. It seems the only safe haven right now and many Ukrainians are flocking there or passing through on their way to Poland. But even so Zena and her family are afraid. Right now Lviv is safe but for how long? 

Our stories of the week pale in comparison. We are lucky that Ukraine is over 4.500km away and that Spain is not one of Putin's targets. But in the end we shall all be affected one way or another. Life is a lottery and despite our nasty ex KGB operative invading our home - he once worked alongside Putin - I have nothing to complain about.

We left green and leafy Asturias last Sunday at around midday vowing we would be back as soon as events let us. The highlight of the day was lunch at the La Cueva restaurant in the small village of Alar del Rey in the province of Palencia. The food is smashing to use an old fashioned term. Here is Eladio about to eat his bowl of bean and hare stew. Hare as meat is pretty rare these days and not something I would ever choose but my husband loves it.

Lunch at Alar del Rey last Sunday

We were home just before 6. As soon as we had settled in we drove to Oli's flat to see the grandchildren and take them presents - toys I had bought in Llanes. We also took a basket heaving with wonderful Asturian products for their parents. We only went on a quick visit and were home for dinner and then to bed. It was wonderful to be in our own ginormous and comfortable bed - no bed in the world beats it for me - but I found it hard to sleep. That's maybe because I was back to reality - FT in the room next door.

I was up at 6 am on Monday morning. I had an appointment with the Social Security people about my retirement pension application which I had made on 10th February, 2 days after I turned 65. The appointment was in Aranjuez - a pretty town - but so far from home; 60km o so. That's because I couldn't get one anywhere near home on an earlier date.  I'm glad I went as some information was missing from my application which I had done online. That was rectified and I was told I had to wait up to one and a half months for the application to be processed. Meanwhile, I wouldn't get paid of course. What a pathetic system. It should be automatic for God's sake. But I got good news on Thursday morning. It seems my pension application has been resolved and approved and I shall be one of the few fortunate pensioners in this country to receive the maximum pension. I read that out of over 9 million pensioners in Spain only  a few thousand receive maximum payment. I obviously deserve this as I have been paying taxes and contributing to my pension for 40 years. But I was worried something would go south. For once I got some really good news. When I get my first pension payment we shall go out and celebrate. We need reasons to celebrate these days. 

That early morning excursion plus having slept probably not more than 4 hours the night before, had me shattered all day.  In the afternoon I had a quick skype call with Amanda to catch up. Then we were out again to join Oli and the kids as Miguel was working late this week not arriving home till 11 pm. Thus we had dinner together and we helped Oli bathe Elliot and Juliet. The most challenging part was getting Elliot into his pyjamas. I remarked to Oli that I had managed to do so and she laughed and said "yes, but you are sweating". I was hahahaha.

We were home on time to see an interview on TVE1 with the Spanish President Pedro Sánchez which mostly focused on the invasion of Ukraine. Coincidentally Miguel was one of the cameramen at the Moncloa palace, the seat of the Spanish government. RTVE which is state owned has to tow the party line in a way and I would have liked to see the interviewer, Carlos Franganillo, corner him more. He tried to but in far too subtle a way. He tried to pressure the President into answering why Spain was not sending arms  to Ukraine like other EU countries. Most of us watching reckoned that's because it is a coalition government and Podemos, the communist party, in coalition would not agree. They still think diplomacy is the way and it is not as we have seen.  Shame on Spain I thought. But maybe Franganillo's question nudged the President to change his mind as two days later, Sánchez, made a volte face when he announced that Spain would be sending offensive military equipment. This is on top of what the EU as a whole will be sending. 

I slept better than night. But I imagine my dear friend Sandra who lives in Brussels didn't. Sadly, her mother Magda aged 96 died on Monday morning. She had been ill and in hospital and even had Covid and was not able to recover. So sad. I last saw Magda in March 2019, just before the Covid lock downs. Here is a lovely photo with her; one I treasure.

With Magda in Brussels in March 2019

I was glad  that Sandra's brother and daughter, Paul and Ambra who live in Italy were able to be with Sandra and Magda. RIP Magda. Magda's life was not easy. As Sandra her loving daughter said in her tribute at the funeral on Thursday, Magda made three great journeys in life. The first was from Hungary in 1947 all the way to India and then in the 70's to London  - she had dreamed of a house with a garden in England as a child. Her final journey was to live with her daughter in Brussels a few years ago. Magda married an Italian and her journeys helped her learn English and Italian and no doubt some French. She was never the wife of a husband who kept her. Instead she set up her own business as a textile agent in London when they moved from Bombay. Magda. I loved knowing you. You were fun to be with. Not many ladies in their mid 90's can manage a Facebook account and current technology but you could.  You were a strong and wonderful woman. Magda survived the war in Hungary and would be appalled by the invasion of Ukraine, just as my mother would have been.

Tuesday dawned and as there is no peace for the wicked, my morning was to be interrupted by a journalist, Jessica, from the TV station Cuatro (Programme called "Todo es mentira"). She wanted to interview Felipe. I hoped she wanted to interview us too but she didn't which had me a bit wary. She came at around 10 am and knocked on his door repeatedly but he wouldn't open although he did talk and agreed to be interviewed later. And he kept his word. At 3.30 or so Jessica met him outside our house and interviewed him. As usual he said he wasn't a KGB spy and didn't belong to the mafia. He also told her, as usual, that he wasn't leaving until a judge ordered him to do so. Well, there is nothing new there. He did however threateningly remark that the judge might be on his side. If he is I think we have proof that someone somewhere is protecting him. Is he an informant here in Spain? I sincerely hope not.  

None of this made me happy and made me long for a carefree world. I want normal life back; no Covid, no invasion of Ukraine and no invasion of my house. Only then  will our normal world return.

However, we try to lead the most normal life we can. We went on our walk and again that afternoon joined Oli and the kids to give her a helping hand until Miguel was home. That day was Shrove Tuesday (Mardi Gras, Martes de Carnaval) and it is a tradition in the UK to eat pancakes. It isn't here but it is for me. Shrove Tuesday marks the beginning of Lent after which Christians are supposed to fast for 40 days. We won't fast for 40 days but we ate the pancakes which are made of flour, milk and eggs, all not to be eaten during Lent. I wonder if anyone does this anymore. I suppose Lent is a bit like Ramadan. The fasting is in imitation of Jesus Christ's fasting in the wilderness before his crucifixion.  I made the pancake mix in the morning and on our way to Oli's house bought strawberries, raspberries and cream as one of the fillings. I started making them at 7.15 and I only finished at 8 pm. Making pancakes at Oli's house reminded me of my mother making the Russian version of pancakes - blini - the difference being the latter contain yeast - for a blini dinner with colleagues and friends. She was in the middle of making them when she cut her finger - she actually cut it right off - and was taken to hospital. The dinner went ahead though and she came back with her finger whole again thank goodness. It went ahead because I took over making the blini. I must have been only 15 or so and it was quite a challenge. I had my Aunty Masha - my mother's younger sister - to help but it was only verbal help as she was on crutches after a hip operation. I do remember that the blini dinner went off well in the end. These were my thoughts as I made pancakes on Tuesday night. 

The pancakes I made for Shrove Tuesday at Oli's house

Soon it was time to help bathe the babies again and we only left at around 10 pm feeling, I have to confess, exhausted. But, it had been fun.

We came home to watch the tail end of the news. That day the Russians had blasted the telecommunications tower in Kyiv and a 60km long convoy of Russian military was heading there too - it is still held up, mostly stuck in mud.  Notice the spelling of the Ukraine capital. I was brought up to write Kiev but that my friends is the Russian spelling, not the Ukrainian. In the same way I now no longer refer to "The Ukraine" but to "Ukraine". I always used the former but learned recently that after independence in 1991 when the USSR fell, the latter is the official name of the country. I do know though that neither the Ukrainian nor the Russian languages include the use of the article "the". So maybe this makes sense. If you have ever listened to Russians speaking English you may have noticed some of them not using the article "the". That is the telltale sign they are Russian (or Ukrainian). 

Soon it was Wednesday and that day I had no urgent appointments or journalists coming - I can't take anymore of the latter.  So that day we did the food shopping as after our trip to Asturias and return our cupboards were getting bare. We love our food shopping outings as we don't do much else exciting these days. They are always accompanied with coffee out together and Wednesday was no different. On my desk at home there is a picture of the two of us shortly after we met and fell in love in the summer of 1980. I noticed I had a cup of coffee in my hand. So it seems our coffees together are something of a tradition; a tradition I started when I first met my husband who was not then a coffee drinker. In that picture I was just 23 and Eladio 35 and we have been in love ever since. That is another reason to smile. Oli pointed out my hair looked good. It was curly because I must had a perm which were so fashionable in the late 70's and early 80's. I wouldn't want one now though. It used to make my hair very frizzy. 

Coffee time with Eladio in 1980, the summer we met and fell in love. I wonder who took the photo because I am not looking at the camera. I remember Eladio's top and my cheap white necklace. Who would have known then what the future held in store for us? 

That day we went again to Alverán where we usually go and where Abel, the waiter, serves us our coffee just as we like it. The sun was shining and I captured a smiling Eladio having his coffee in a carefree moment. He later took a photo of me with my coffee.  That's the one I have chosen for this week's feature photo. A photo of peace and calm in the middle of turmoil. 

Eladio smiling over his coffee at Alverán on a sunny day this week.

 

I posted these photos on social media with the comment "there are always reasons to smile" and there are. Happiness, I have learned and always say, comes from the small moments of joy in life such as coffee together in harmony. I'm sure you agree. So what are our reasons to smile? Our marriage which is like a rock, our family, Pippa (of course), our financial stability, the country we live in with all its faults is still marvelous, our relatively good health (that should come first perhaps) and above all the peaceful life we live. If I think about the poor Ukrainians suffering, I have absolutely nothing to complain about. Our worries are just minor, including the horrible Russian squatter. He has invaded our house but we know that at some time he will go. It is our grandchildren who give us perhaps the biggest joy. And here they are aged nearly 2 and a half years and 6 months. 

Our grandchildren, Elliot and Juliet, the loves of our lives; another reason to smile. 

Once again in the early evening we drove to Oli's house to give her a hand with the kids. We caught Elliot trying to eat spaghetti and I have to share this funny photo.

Elliot having dinner (hahaha)

For some reason he hadn't eaten at school that day so Oli made his favourite meal: "spag bol". It's most children's favourite dish and with my girls it was no different. When they were small I would take off all their clothes while they ate it hahahaha, so as not to stain their clothes.

Soon it was bath time and I helped bathe both babies. It was exhausting but fun too. I love the moment when I pick up baby Juliet from the water and also when I wrap a towel around Elliot and take him to his bed to dry. His trusting little eyes look up to me and we gaze at each other with love. 

We were home earlier that night just as the news had begun. It was dire, Russia was stepping up its military attack and cities in Ukraine were being bombed right left and centre. The war will go on and it's hard to watch.

Thursday came and the weather was to take a step for the worse. After weeks of glorious sunshine, it was supposed to rain and it did robbing us of our walk.  But Spain needs the rain so our walk didn't matter. They talk about mad dogs and English men in the rain but I have lived too long in Spain to want to go for a walk and get wet. We did go out though on two small errands, always an excuse for a coffee out. Our first destination was the local health centre where I had to request a new card after the change from residency to Spanish nationality. Finally I am in the system with my new DNI (documento nacional de identidad). From there we went to Alverán where we had a coffee. I had a "vigilante" (sort of straight sugary croissant) with my foamy coffee. It was to celebrate that my retirement pension application had been approved, word of which I got that morning.  

Celebration coffee (just as I like it) with a "vigilante" on Thursday

Once again in the early evening we went to Oli's house to help with the kids and once again we had dinner together. I brought ingredients for a chicken salad and Oli made a Catalan dish called "calçots". These are a type of green onion or rather onion or leek sprout. They are grilled or baked and served with romesco sauce which Oli made from scratch. We loved the combination. 

Calçots with romesco sauce

Bathing Elliot was a challenge again but worth it for that wonderful moment when I carry him in my arms wrapped in a towel and our eyes meet. God bless Elliot and little Juliet.

We were home on time for the news. That day the team from TVE1 were broadcasting from the Polish Ukrainian border. Oli, as a journalist, told me that that is where she would want to be right now; me too. So many people have gone there to help the refugees. I wish we could drive there and pick up a family to bring them here. If I were younger I wouldn't hesitate. Others were crossing the border into Ukraine to join the fight; some of them were non Ukrainians who would enlist in the international brigade. Good for them. By Thursday the news was dire. Macron spoke for 90 minutes on the phone to Putin and later an aide said the worst was to come. He intends not to stop until he has taken the whole of the country. After the assassination attempts on Zelensky's life  he no longer appears on videos by known landmarks so as not to be targeted. Targeted were Ukraine's main cities, including those with access to the sea. The final target will be Odessa, the prize as well as Kyiv of course. The Russian troops don't seem to be discriminating between military or civilian targets and there are thousands of casualties. In some areas people are without water or electricity and of course finding food must be hard and dangerous, not to mention it is freezing cold everywhere. 

We watched the news and then two programmes covering the war until very late. I woke up on Friday morning with a cold. Worried it was Covid I took a lateral flow test. Phew it was negative. The last thing I need right now is Covid. 

That morning Oli and I drove, with Juliet in the back, to the courts in Móstoles again - yes, that God forsaken and ugly suburban town outside Madrid. Apologies to anyone from Móstoles but I hate it so much because of the court which is so hostile to us. Even they though should admit it is an ugly town. What are its saving graces I wonder? I haven't found any. Well, maybe, yes, the saving grace is a court official called Luis who is the clerk in charge of the court where our hearing on 17th March will take place. He is always kind enough to let Oli, the baby in her pram and I into his office. He remains neutral but is not hostile and that day explained the legal situation. What we learned that day was a relief; the court case will  focus exclusively on the economic dispute; nothing else. Good. As to the date of eviction, set for 4th April, we learned it would probably be later. Oh well. 

Oli dropped me off at BM a quality supermarket where I buy our fish. The only drawback is the fishmonger counter queue. I was there for half an hour but had brought back fresh hake for dinner. Oli and the kids came for dinner that night instead of us going to her her place. That was because Lucy had left for the weekend and we didn't want to leave FT alone in the house. No, we can never do that I'm afraid. Dinner was simple and healthy except for the "I keem" (Elliot's pronunciation of ice cream)  and we had it in relative peace. 

We were in bed late, by about 10.30 and again watched news about Ukraine. I cannot get enough of it I'm afraid as I watch in trepidation, worried about how Putin will then expand beyond the country it is now destroying. 

Saturday dawned and as usual my first thoughts were about the war. Yesterday the situation in Ukraine can be best summed up by a map I stole from yesterday's edition of The Times. Well, I am a subscriber so I suppose the paper won't mind.

The situation in Ukraine yesterday, according to a map published in The Times. 

It is obvious from the map and the Russian tactics that the the objective is Odessa, Ukraine's port on the Black Sea. Capturing Odessa would cut the country off from the sea creating a land bridge with Crimea. It would also basically destroy Ukraine's economy, blocking exports of cereals, animal and vegetable oils.   Yesterday a cease fire that had been agreed to create a humanitarian route out of the town Mariupol on the sea but the Russians did not keep their word and continued bombing it. Today there will be a fresh attempt. 

After reading the news I did the daily Wordle game in both English and in Spanish and got better results than usual.  Today, I did the English version in just 2 attempts (fluke probably). Maybe that has to do with my asking friends on Facebook what words they use at the beginning. I had been using mostly "adieu" to get in as many vowels as possible but had also tried others. That day my first word was "arise". I was in luck as the r, the i and the s were in the mystery word and all in the right place. I got it in 3 tries. I was even luckier with the Spanish version; my first word being "aireo" and got it right on the second guess. If you are interested, these are the words some of my friends suggested for the first guess: story, opera, stair, stare, spate, resin, fault, satin, grout, and aside. What are yours?

Yesterday was the quietest day of the week and we were given time off vs a vs looking after the grandchildren. We went for our walk in the sun and returned to make a delicious lunch of stuffed shoulder of lamb. I spent the afternoon in between reading news of the war and watching the final episodes (again) of Line of Duty. I am now watching the much calmer and peaceful period drama, The Gilded Age by the maker of Downton Abbey. It is set in 19th Century New York .

Today is Sunday. We are alone except for FT (fed up of his presence) and we have no special plans for today. The day is ours for the taking but we can't leave the house so I suppose our day will pan out much like yesterday. I am not complaining. There is nothing to complain about when people are suffering the invasion of their country. God bless Ukraine. 

With that said, cheers till next week.

All the best Masha