Update

This is the first time that I have written a piece for my blog in a long while, as not much has been happening. As usual, NO ONE has been writing any comments on my blog. It is rather depressing!

Has the Bank of England interest rate really gone up to 4%? Will it be going higher? I am very glad that I do not have mortgage in the UK. 

I really do not think that the war in Ukraine is going to end next week. However, a rapid collapse of the Russian army really does look like a possible outcome. The deployment of modern tanks could completely change the overall balance of forces on the battlefield. This will probably happen because the Russians have hardly any tanks left, apart from some ones that are really old and outdated. When the war started more than a year ago, Putin thought that he was going to capture Kyiv in a day or two, but it all went horribly wrong. This just shows that predicting the future is a hit-and-miss affair, especially in a war. Part of the problem is that Putin is doing everything he can to conceal what is actually happening, whether it is the horrific numbers of Russian soldiers who have been killed or injured or the damage that has been done to the Russian economy. On the whole, I would say that the information that has been given out by the Ukrainians has been a lot more reliable and easier for other countries to check.  

My feeling is that the International Criminal Court’s arrest warrant for Putin means that there will be no negotiated settlement. (How can you negotiate with a wanted criminal?) The war will therefore continue until one side or the other collapses. Well, the Ukrainians don’t feel like surrendering at the moment, so maybe the Russians will be the first ones to crack.

Joining the VT Walkers has been a good idea. I have discovered quite a few really good walks around the VT area.

I had my second lesson with my new student, Dara, yesterday and that went rather better than the first one. In fact, she had been asking her parents to test her on the Maths cards I left for her! Of course, I used to be a Year 5 class teacher and so I am not used to teaching such a young student. Really it is not really so difficult. You just have to make everything very simple and be patient. 

Dara's parents live at the Villa Maximus in Velchevo. It is an amazing house. It used to be a guest house and the “Villa Maximus Guest House” sign is still outside. There still is a price list on the wall in the main hall. 

Dara’s father has a Tesla. He thinks that they are great cars. He says that the only real problem with them is the lack of charging places.