A Fine Rain

No, not as in "Twas a foin rain, me lads. Aye, th' crops be needin' it".

But as in droplets so fine it is more like driving through thick mist. It has been raining all day and yesterday too. I doubt you could measure the actual precipitation without a very scientific device. I'm not very scientific. The dogs outside food dishes are empty of water.

If I wanted to live in Vancouver I'd have moved to Vancouver.

We took food up to Lena's Mother in the hospital as Lena has gone to Dnipropetrovsk for three days for work or for her doctorate dissertation, I don't know. The hospital is quarantined so Tanya could only take the food to the front desk and a nurse will take it to Lena's Mom. The circulation in her legs is so bad because of diabetes. She should have been in a year ago but... She was to the specialist in Krivii Rih yesterday and will go again Saturday. Andrei will drive, for which I am thankful.

The dogs took themselves for a walk today. They hang around the yard after a bit and don't go far. They wait for their "go back in your pen" treats. Good Ukrainian bureaucrats, they have to be bribed to do what they are supposed to do. Kuchma and Tanya are in conflict. She doesn't like muddy floors and he doesn't like getting his feet washed in the tub. Kuchma loses.

Because it was cold and damp, Tanya made chicken giblet soup for supper. Chicken hearts and minds, er gizzards are cheap and we like them, so bleah to you.

The news tonight says Ukraine will buy flu vaccine from Canada. And Russia. And Switzerland. And make it here in Ukraine. And... This I assume is for prevention of the next round scheduled for spring. the election will be over by then so maybe we won't have a flu epidemic.

They claim over 1 million sick and 90,000 in hospital (jumped from 60,000 fter the weekend) but fewer than 200 deaths. The only person acting intelligently at this point is the President who says the country is suffering more from political flu than the actual disease. The government has no money so they are demanding that the national bank finance both Euro 2012 and fighting the flu epidemic from reserves. Yushchenko has vetoed both, citing devaluation of the hrivna. No wonder the IMF have pulled out with parliament acting like idiots.

The Globe and Mail has a good report on the flu situation in Ukraine. It would be funny if it were not true.

"You catch it from imported food and clothing that isn't clean," said Mr. Barsadanyan, an 18-year-old first-year medical student. He is not worried because he heard that the Ministry of Health has "sprayed the city with the necessary products."

I don't know what you folks are doing, but I'm eating lemon, raw onion and garlic to keep my immune system healthy. In Canada it would also serve to keep other people away from you, so you would not catch germs.