Women are traditionally seen as “weak” and “fragile”. The last 100 days in Ukraine have shown that we are also strong, resilient, courageous and can take “whatever-it-takes” to the next level. I want the stories of these women to be known. I want the world to see that it’s not just an abstract “people”, but that behind each story there’s a beautiful and powerful little princess or queen.
God bowed his tired head.
- Peter, is it everything for today?
- No, God, souls from Kyiv region are still waiting for God's judgment.
- Bucha and Irpin? Call everyone. It's simple: everyone to heaven.
- Without a trial?
I will post this one as is, just with a translation for my English-speaking friends. No comments.
“We were going to the bathroom, sleeping and eating the leftovers of the food in one basement. Once uncle Kolya captured a pigeon, it was probably the fifth or sixths day. We fried it, and ate it. And then it made all of us throw up.”
I feel I’ve always had more in common with my grandmother in character than even with my parents. She’s strong, courageous, positive and very very kind and generous. And yes, she has so much more patience than I do. And even though other relatives spoiled me more as a kid, while grandma Nina was more strict, she has always been someone I’ve looked up to.
I have to share it.
So I’m sitting at home ploughing through a bunch of emails, trying to get less behind my stuff. A phone call comes in. Our aviation medical doctor. Weird. I had not contacted him, I just passed my pilot medical last month and I’m not aware of any issues. Besides, it’s a Sunday afternoon. I answer.
On a Saturday afternoon I was driving back from my dad’s place after dropping 12 boxes of medical supplies donated to Ukraine via Maple Hope from a medical warehouse owned by the ex-boss of the ex-boyfriend of my (current!) landscape designer. Everybody pitches in with whatever they can, and it’s so heartwarming to see. Our dispatchers brought warm clothes and gave money, my skater friend got gym passes and medical supplies from her fitness store, etc etc etc. I was driving and thinking how grateful I was for everyone’s support, regardless if one had any prior connection Ukraine.
Since the first days of the way my regret that that… I was not MIG-29 type rated. But then I thought maybe I can do even better
Many people in Canada and the United States want to help, but don’t know where and how. Many people come to airshows, admire the technology and skill – wishing it was used to save lives. Maybe now it can!
To the surprise of the entire world, Ukraine is fearlessly holding Russian advances back. But as much as the entire world is encouraged and inspired by the Ukrainians, we often feel helpless wanting but now knowing how to help. Here is a message that may answer it for you.
It seems like staying physically away from the war zone must be easier. And I don’t even dare comparing my situation to that of people are hiding right now in bunkers in Ukraine. But still wanted to share with you here a “brief inventory” why I don’t have any fuzzy feelings left to that centre of the world’s evil called russia.
February 24, 2022. 4am. It’s still a bit chilly, just below freezing. But no rain or snow today, just some clouds. The city is sleepy, and the first cars start moving - early morning delivery and bakery workers. Someone comes back home from a late party. Someone is just leaving the hospital after their night shift working. Kids are finishing up their last morning dreams before having to wake up for school….
I looooove food. I grew up in a Ukrainian family where all women knew how to cook really really well – and not exactly low calories food. Well, almost all women – I don’t cook, it keeps the world a safer place. Or simply because the life is so crazy busy that I can’t possibly find time to do it. And – although I can cook and even pretty tasty – I often favor time allocation towards more “productive” work. Anyways, not the point.
I’ve been on different ends of the spectrum of “being-out-of-place” age-wise. It all had its challenges. It also taught me that if someone else thinks you are too young or too old to do something, you have a prime chance to prove them wrong!
Hello fellow aviators and air travellers,
Many of us get to see the world and enjoy an exciting lifestyle. But it also comes at a price of constantly disrupted workout routine, diet messed up by easily available junk food and accumulating fatigue aggravated by jet lag. Repeated over the years it translates in low productivity, poor physical shape, or even loss of pilot medical and various health problems.
But it does not have to be that way!
Today is the Orthodox Easter. I had a long drive today and time to think. Looking back at the last weeks, where our life as we knew it changed beyond recognition, I realized I felt... peace.
I’ve always been somewhat different, and my life is backwards. I had been a university student and a part time high school language teacher at the age of 15 – time when most people are still thoroughly enjoying their childhood.
Today, I’m a new competitive athlete, 2 years into the sport of figure skating. Many skaters are retired before their 20th birthday. I’m 36 and I’m writing this on the flight back home from my first international competition, Winter World Masters Games 2020 (WWMG2020) in Innsbruck, Austria.
It is a very sad day, because Anna Sky Dancer is completing her first part of the Canadian Arctic Aviation tour, phase 1 (Western part). I may rejoin the Tour in the Phase 2, on the East Coast of Canada. This part is still in the planning stage at this time. But for now, it’s time to go home soon. It’s a bittersweet feeling. I missed home, family and team of the flight school. I met many new friends here up North, and I know that I will be back here. I tried not to make it too hard, and “rip off the band-aid”: a few hugs to the team and the Fort Smith welcoming ground crew, and I was on my way to Fairview, AB.
The trip was scenic, but it was more and more “civilized” scenic. More groomed fields, more towns, bigger and bigger every time.
We have quite a big road map for today – half a dozen wheels-up airshows for communities around Yellowknife. Ken Fowler with the Rocket and Jim Hrymack with the Harvard faster and longer-range planes) take the Eastern route, Ross Granley with the Yak 155, Tanya with the Nanchang and myself with the citabria go North.
Until about 10 years ago, Nanchang was the primary Chinese military trainer aircraft. It looks like a fairly old warbird, but this one was built only in 1983. They are robust and capable, but were intentionally designed with small fuel tanks: so that the Chinese student pilots would run out of fuel and crash within the Chinese borders before they get a chance to defect. So we are now sure that Tanya will not leave the CAAT for the same reason :)
We had a long day ahead of us: transit to Fort Simpson with several wheels-up airshows, visiting the school, flying Fort Simpson airshow, and then another transit – to Yellowknife. But we were on the other hand looking forward to sleeping in the next day.
Nancy mentioned that since the beginning of the trip, she was riding nothing else but a twin otter, so I offered the citabria ride.
In Wilfred’s B&B in Fort Good Hope, we started the day by cooking our breakfast with whatever we found in the fridge. Then went to meet the local school kids. The principal explained that they would have classes today as usual, just they will “take the class to the airshow”. I wished my school principal was that cool back then!
