An Almost White Christmas

Well, we did have some snow on Christmas Day. Quite a lot of it melted, but some settled and whitened everything. Since it is that time of the year, I am going to include some "snowy VT" photos in this post and no, I did not take them myself.

According to a YouTube video I watched recently, the UK is heading for a massive housing crisis. Owning your own home will become virtually impossible for just about everyone. If I have correctly understood this video, it all started with building companies buying up lots of land for building. Well, perhaps that was not such a bad thing, as you do need some land if you want to do some building, I suppose. Then the building companies found that the price of building materials and higher labour costs meant that it was impossible for the builders to build anything affordable, so they stopped building, rather than build and sell at a loss. Then lots of bricklayers and other people who used to work in construction left the UK and they went elsewhere. Then the banks stopped lending to building companies, as their cashflow had dried up, and so the building companies could not build any new houses even if they had wanted to! 

What a flipping disaster! Then, according to the video, in the future lots of building companies are going to be bankrupt and foreign companies will then buy up all of the land and / or properties in the UK, so all Brits will have to rent, forever and ever!

There are some things that I do not agree with in this video. First of all, just after the Second World War, there was a massive shortage of housing in the UK and this was made worse by the destruction caused by Nazi bombing. Well, this problem was gradually solved, over the years, so maybe the current problem will gradually fade away. Secondly, many people inherit properties from their parents and / or grandparents. When first time buyers are struggling to get a deposit together, many parents lend them some money and help them to buy their own home. Thirdly, we have got a bit fixated on the idea that builders build houses and then you borrow a lot of money from a bank, so that you can buy the house or apartment. But maybe there are other options, other possible ways of encouraging home ownership without following this particular formula. Lastly, I think that the full results of the process described in the YouTube are not going to be evident for at least another ten or twenty years and I might not even be alive then! What a cheerful thought!

What worries me (or would worry me, if I were to be living in the UK) is the appalling growth of Islam. Even if you are an atheist, anyone with half a brain can see that the Muslim faith is incompatible with many of our beliefs and traditions in the UK. There are, I am sure, many kind, generous and good people who are Muslims. Hooray! (Yes, and maybe some Christians are not all that they should be.) The bad news is that quite a few Muslims also seem to be involved in (or quietly agree with) some pretty dreadful things: terrorism, honour killings, female genital mutilation, murdering Jews, pedophilia, grooming gangs etc., etc. Then there are things like halal slaughter and the introduction of Sharia law courts. This is not multi-culturalism: it is a Muslim takeover and it is at the expense of many freedoms and traditions that most Britons hold dear.    

Bulgaria seems to have its knickers in a twist about the Euro. For goodness’ sake, this nonsense of Bulgaria joining the Eurozone has been talked about, discussed and debated for nearly twenty years. Is Bulgaria part of the EU? Oh yes, it is. Therefore I find it rather ridiculous that so many Bulgarians are negative about the Euro. If you want the omelette, then you have to break some eggs. I have not heard anyone complaining about airports, roads and bridges being upgraded with money from the EU.  

Well, we did not do much for Christmas. Ira still has a very bad sore throat and feels pretty rotten. Neither of us seem to have much energy! Anyway, we had some roast chicken and it was yummy.

The other day we had the great marmalade-making session. We do this every winter. You need lots (and I mean LOTS) of special oranges with thin skins and no pips. Then I cut the job of “top and tailing” them all, chopping them into quarters and putting them through our rather splendid Bosch mincer.

Irena and I had quite a big argument about politics and the Ukraine / Russia war. She got rather upset. Well, I just cannot believe that anyone can support Putin. He is destroying Russia. He is not saving or rescuing it! It is not the case that NATO wants to invade and occupy Russia. NATO is a DEFENSIVE alliance. The whole blooming world thinks that Russia is in the wrong. That is why Japan has given Ukraine a lot of financial support. Australia recently gave Ukraine 49 American-made Abrams tanks. It is insane to argue that Putin was justified in attacking Ukraine because he wanted to stop Ukraine from joining NATO. After Putin's armies attacked Ukraine, Finland and Sweden were both in a big hurry to join NATO!

Putin is a scumbag. So many Russian young men are either dead, disabled or living in exile, as they do not want to be sent to the front line, the "meatgrinder". The Ukrainians say that they didn’t attack his palace. Well, I do not know what to believe. When the Ukrainians decide to get rid of somebody, they usually do a professional job. Zelensky has been talking to Trump at Mar-a-Lago and that is a waste of time because Trump is Putin’s puppet. I do not understand how or why Putin is able to control Trump, but he really seems to be pulling Trump's strings. I have watched several YouTube videos that were made by American professors of Psychiatry. They argued, very calmly and rationally, that Trump is mentally ill.

When the weather gets a bit warmer, we are supposed to be going to Dryanovo, to the huge second-hand furniture place. Ira wants to buy some more small tables and a rather posh and old-fashioned clock.

When are we going back to Daveri? Not soon enough, if you ask me! I finding living in an apartment rather claustrophobic. In Daveri, it is easy to get out into the fresh air and find things to do in the garden and around the house.