Sunday, 5 January 2025

Aligned

A rare alignment in the heavens – you will need to click to enlarge this image  of ulica Ogrodowa in Sułkowice last night in a new tab, then open in new tab to see full size. Look into the top right; you will see a crescent moon, between its horns (barely visible but there) is Saturn; then in a straight line from Saturn, through the Moon, you'll see Venus. Saturn, the Roman god was described as a god of abundance, wealth, agriculture. Saturn's mythological reign was depicted as a Golden Age of abundance and peace. Venus, the Roman goddess, was the Roman goddess of love, beauty, desire, sex, fertility, prosperity and victory.


These days, living indoors in big cities bathed in nocturnal light, we lose the old familiarity of the night sky. Our forefathers would have easily been able to point to most of the constellations in the sky. And alignments as unusual as this one, would have been endowed with a special significance – a portent.

On my walk this evening, another frosty night (-4.5°C) I was followed home by a kitten. My first thought was that it had escaped from one of the farms along the main road through Jakubowizna. So I walked the length of the road and then back again, pausing at each house, at each gate along the way to see whether the kitten would pop through the railings having found its way back home. But no – it would shortly reappear and chase along after me. We did this right to the station, and the past the last house it followed me along my lane, to my działka. The kitten, about five months old, is (according to Moni) a calico (tortoiseshell white)/tabby female. I took a mugshot of it and posted it on the Chynów community Facebook page, advertising a kitten found. Two people immediately reposted. I will go back to check whether any posters have appeared along the street in Jakubowizna – if no one responds, it looks like I will have been adopted by a cat.

Now, given that Moni's late cat was called 'Jowisz' (Jupiter), this one has to be named after a planet too, and given the propitious alignment of Saturn and Venus in the heavens, and that it's a female, the only name it can have is 'Wenus', diminutive 'Wenusia' or just simply – 'Nusia'.


If an ad does appear for a lost kitten, Nusia shall be returned. (Having lost cats in Jeziorki, it's good when someone does respond to a 'gone missing' poster.) If not, it seems that fate has brought us together on a frosty winter's night when Venus, the Moon and Saturn were aligned.

This time last year:
2023: A year in travel

This time two years ago:
Letters to the Postman

This time three years ago:
Progress at Warsaw West station
[The end is in sight – this summer]

Wednesday, 1 January 2025

Poland's progress

Today is the first day of Poland's six-month presidency of the Council of the European Union, and is an opportunity to look at the country's recent progress and future prospects. This blog post will be a purely subjective big-picture view (after all, if it's macroeconomic data you want, you can look it up online). 

My views are based on observations, anecdotes, countless discussions with people in business, gut feeling (or instinct), as well as something metaphysical – intuition.

You can look at Poland from close up and point to the negatives – stubbornly high inflation, deteriorating current account, demographic collapse, geopolitical threat, and the precarious economic situation of its major export markets. Yet I remain optimistic – as do the analysts. The OECD's latest forecast for Poland's GDP in 2025, published last month, points to a likely outcome of 3.2%, up from the 3.0% expected by economists for the whole of 2024. This puts Poland into the group of best-performing EU economies, and far outstrips the UK, currently struggling to avoid falling into recession (again). Unemployment is historically the lowest it's been since the end of communism (when in effect it was hidden). Poles are wealthier than ever, which is reflected in their tendency to buy new cars and travel on exotic holidays.

Thirty-five years ago, when finance minister Leszek Balcerowicz unveiled his plan to transform Poland's collapsing command economy, there was a joke going around: "There are only two ways in which Poland's economy can be fixed: the normal way, and the miraculous way. In one, the Blessed Virgin Mary descends from the heavens, raises up Her arms – and the economy is working. In the miraculous way, the Poles do it for themselves." 

Looking around Poland today, I see a country growing in self-confidence, increasingly at ease with itself. The new roads and railways, the new office developments, the logistics centres, the data centres, the refurbished buildings, the countless restaurants, cafés and bars, do not fail to impress. 

So how did all this happen? Miracle or Poles' own efforts? A bit of both. Strokes of luck, good macroeconomic judgment and above all, the determination of a people wanting to better themselves through hard work.

Believing strongly in behavioural economics, I sense that determination is a key factor. It is not controversial to rank populations in terms of their height or body-mass index or (more controversially), IQ. But I'd suggest something more radical – ranking countries by the determination of its entrepreneurial and managerial classes. And here, observing two groups, two nations, from close-up, I'd say that Poles tend to show greater determination, more fire-in-the-belly, more get-up-and-go, than contemporary Britons.

This is purely a subjective view. But seeing the ease with which British companies and British shareholders sell up to foreign bidders makes me think that as a nation, Britons are more content to sit on bags of money than to manage businesses. Tesco, Aviva, Sage, W.S. Atkins, Cadbury's, Pilkington, BOC – a few of the UK firms that came to Poland and sold their business units here to their foreign competitors. The collapse of the UK-owned motor industry is another case. Rolls-Royce, Bentley and Mini are now German-owned; Land Rover and Jaguar Indian-owned; MG is now a Chinese car brand. 

Poland, on the other hand, started from a different position. One (miraculous?) reason why Poland's economic transformation – tough as it was at the outset – has largely been successful is the way the state-owned industries were privatised. These did not end up in the hands of thuggish oligarchs who corralled enough share certificates from workers to become owners of factories, mines and refineries, but were sold to foreign investors, most often corporations. The new owners brought in new technologies and new management methods, and while not always successful, new value was created for the Polish economy as a whole. 

One that I visited before Christmas was the Reckitt factory in Nowy Dwór Mazowiecki, which had been a state-owned Pollena soap factory. Today, the plant is five times bigger, and produces detergents for domestic and export markets, while still employing the same number of people (2,250). Reckitt produces several billion dishwasher tablets there, which are sold in 34 countries around the world. Another factory I have visited in Twining's tea factory near Poznań; a marvel of automation that exports tea to over 90 markets. The Polish head of the factory is also responsible for running Twining's tea factory in the UK. Twining's' owner, Associated British Foods, also has its world-foods factory in Poland, near Zielona Góra,, making Patak's, Rajah and Blue Dragon sauces there, again, mainly for export.

My observation on foreign direct investment is that in most cases, the investor is so happy with the way things are working out in Poland that profits are reinvested here, and new jobs are created. The list of companies that keep growing their global-services hubs in Poland includes Shell, HSBC, Standard Chartered Bank, GlaxoSmithKline and AstraZeneca. Managers visiting from London are amazed by what their Polish employees can do. "Can you do this?" "Yes we can!" "Quantitative analysis?" "Yes!" "Can you find another 50 maths PhDs?" "Yes!" And so it grows from year to year. "Can you jump this high?" "Yes we can!" "Can you jump this high?" "Again – we can!"

And here's my fundamental question: Can Poles jump for themselves

Can Poles set up their own companies and grow them, rather than merely manage them (well) for someone else? I believe that as Polish businesses mature, they will be increasingly set on foreign expansion. The UK is a target-rich environment for them. Last year saw the acquisition of Thomas Cook (the world's oldest travel agent) by Polish firm eSky, a start-up 20 years ago; fresh-fish distributor Copernus from Hull by Suempol, Andover Trailers by EmTech, and John Menzies News Distribution by InPost. These come on the heels of the acquisition of JDR Cables (factories in Hartlepool, Littleport and now Blyth) by TeleFonika Kable, and of Rawlplug by Koelner.

The further acquisition of British businesses by Polish ones will be a litmus test of the condition of both economies' level of determination. Poland is increasingly seen by the UK media as an economic success story, and its political influence in Europe is growing. 

May's presidential election will be one to watch.

This time last year:
Time, memory and consciousness

This time two years ago:
Hottest New Year's Day in Warsaw ever 

This time four years ago:
Wealth and inequality – an introduction

This time six years ago:
Gratitude for a peaceful 2018

This time eight years ago:
Fighting laziness – a perennial resolution

This time eight years ago:
A Year of Round Anniversaries

This time nine years ago:
Walking on frozen water

This time ten years ago:
Fireworks herald 2015 in Jeziorki

This time 11 years ago
Jeziorki welcomes 2014

This time 12 years ago:
LOT's second Dreamliner over Jeziorki

This time 14 years ago:
New Year's coal train 

This time 16 years ago:
Welcome to 2009!

This time 17 years ago:
Happy 2008!

Tuesday, 31 December 2024

2024 – a year in numbers

Well, it's that time of year again, when I can reveal whether or not I'm in better shape than I was a year ago. Age takes its toll, but I'm not into the notion of eternal youth. But by maintaining a regime of exercise, good diet and moderate alcohol intake, I intend to keep my active life going on as long as possible. Healthy body – healthy spirit. This post stands as a guide for the future.

So – did I beat last year? [numbers on a gold background = personal best]

Measurable and manageable
2018 201920202021202220232024
Paces (daily
average)
11.4k12.0k11.1k11.2k11.6k11.9k12.1k
Moderate to high 
intensity (mins)
N/A243035445051*
Alcohol drunk
(units/week)
19.7
18.515.514.113.713.613.3
Dry days over
course of year
196198208231234249243
Days with zero
physical training
271711229106
Press-ups/day60908320232628
Pull-ups/day75111112614
Sit-ups/dayN/AN/A1619253334
Sets of weights
exercises/day
2.22.32.41.11.62.52.7
Squats/dayN/AN/AN/A28404547
Sets of back
extensions/day
N/AN/AN/A0.31.32.84.5
Plank time (min:
sec/day average)
N/A3:404:114:214:585:556:17
Portions fresh
fruit & veg/day
5.25.35.46.16.36.77.3

* daily average Jan-Jun, see below

Exercises, described

Walking/paces – touch and go after my recent torn calf muscle. I failed to hit my target for this year (12,200 paces a day, every day for 366 days), but I bounced back after two and half weeks of recuperation. So, this year (12,100) is still a best, beating my pre-pandemic record (12,000). The 'moderate to high intensity walking' metric is only for January to June inclusive, as my Huawei phone on which the app ran failed finally in early July. The replacement Samsung Health app counts this more generously than Huawei, so I don't want to mix apples and pears here. Since starting to keep count, I have averaged over 11,235 paces a day, every day, since 1 January 2014. According to Samsung Health, I'm in the top 3% of all users.

Alcohol intake:
I have massively reduced by alcohol intake – in 2014, the first year of measuring, it was 33.4 units per week (it must have been more than that in the days before I began to measure). For the third year in a row, I managed to get below the current NHS guideline limit of 14 units per week (2 units = 50ml of vodka at 40%, or 150ml of wine at 13.5%, or half a litre of beer at 4%). I achieved this by restricting my drinking to social occasions (family Zoom calls included), with the occasional beer on long summer walks. Zero alcohol for two-thirds of year, which of course includes Lent. Two consecutive days a week with no alcohol, another rule. However, fewer alcohol-free days this year means lower consumption on days when I did drink (5.8 units vs. 6.1 units per drinking day).

Press-ups: focus on quality over quantity (hence much lower numbers than in earlier years). To qualify, the body must go down to the floor so the nose touches it; then up with arms fully locked at the elbows.

Pull-ups: again, proper sort, so fewer. From 'full-dangle' position, up to chin touching the bar, then down to full-dangle, then repeat. My record (only achieved five times this year) is nine in one go. Indeed, on hearing the news that Trump had one, I channelled my anger into two sets of nine pull-ups; a best-ever, and one that I feel I'll never beat.

Sit-ups: feet wedged under the sink, knees bent, back flat on floor, then sit up, right elbow touching left knee, then down, back flat on floor, then sit up, with left elbow touching right knee. 

Weights: with two x 5kg dumbbells, one set of each: 10 x lateral raises, 10 x internal rotator cuff, 10 x external rotator cuff, repeat that lot two or three times, plus 30 back-bends with dumbbells in hand. 

Squats: 
standing upright, heels raised, squat right down, stand up straight again, repeat (typically do this while kettle boils). Still not able to squat down fully after tearing my right calf muscle.

Back extensions: lying stomach-down on my ZemBord™; legs rise up behind back like a scorpion's sting, moving centre of gravity, causing me to rock forward until my nose touches the ground. Hands behind head. (More here about the apparatus and the exercise.) One set = eight forward-and-back rocking movements.

Plank: holding myself up by forearms, toes on the ground, back absolutely straight. Record time eight minutes and 15 seconds; more usually, two lots of three minutes with a short break in between.

Portions of fresh fruit & veg: one portion = 80g. Daily staples: apple (or fresh-pressed apple juice); banana, cherry tomatoes, berries, spinach, beetroot, chickpeas or lentils or beans, parsnip, grapefruit and/or orange/tangerines. A significant boost this year, due to my weekly shops at Lidl where the fresh fruit & veg selection is superior to that in Chynów's Top Market.

So – tomorrow starts another year, and having set myself the goal of beating last year, and being a stronger and fitter (and more self-disciplined) man aged 68 than I was at 67, off I go, getting on with it… May it remain thus for a long time to come. 

And a time to offer up my gratitude for having been so healthy so far.

This time last year:

This time three years ago:
2021: a year in numbers

This time four years ago:

This time five years ago
2019: a year in numbers

This time six years ago:
2018: a year in numbers

This time seven years ago:
2017: a year in numbers

This time eight years ago:
2016: a year in numbers

This time nine years ago:
2015: a year in numbers

This time 10 years ago:
Economic forecasts for 2014 – and 2015?

This time 11 years ago:
Economic predictions for 2014

This time 12 years ago:
Economic predictions for 2013

This time 13 years ago:
Economic predictions for 2012

This time 14 years ago:
Classic cars, West Ealing

This time 15 years ago:
Jeziorki 2009, another view

This time 16 years ago:
Jeziorki 2008, another view

This time 17 years ago:
Final thoughts for 2007

Sunday, 29 December 2024

Local hellos and a farewell for 2024

A short post about what's changed in my neighbourhood over the past 12 months.

Pavement along ul. Wolska (below): excellent news for local walkers, especially on misty winter evenings. Road safety and civilisation go hand in hand. This gives me a new way to walk to/from the shops – longer than along ul. Wspólna; more paces. 

New way between Machcin II and Adamów Rososki: the situation where a local thoroughfare is both a public right of way and also private land might have been resolved, with a new track carved out from scrubland. parallel to the disputed one. Still unclear as to whether this will become an access road to a new house, or a long-term solution to the right of way issue.

The former BP petrol station on ulica Grójecka (otherwise known as the DK50) finally opened as a TransOil station in April. No real change over what was there before – I guess the same operator with a different franchisor. Same assortment in the shop; locals say petrol prices here are cheaper than in other petrol stations. Below: awaiting the green light to open, late 2023.

New housing: at least four new house-starts in my immediate vicinity this year, though only one is nearing completion. All are detached dwellings on their own plots. One exception lies further north, in Sułkowice – a four-story block of flats between the railway station and police-dog school (below). Construction started in the spring; interesting to see when the first residents move in.

A goodbye-hello this year to certain roofs in Grobice. Storm Boris hit Central Europe on 14 September bringing deadly floods to Czechia and the south-west corner of Poland. Here, a bizarre situation. In the neighbouring village of Grobice, a localised wind of intense energy tore the roofing off five or six houses and barns, and hurled garden furniture all over the place. Passing through today, I can report that repair work is almost complete, though the scaffolding is still up.


VeloMazovia: Signs have appeared indicating a new long-distance cyclepath for the south of the province. However, there's still no information online as to how it connects up, or how far it will go. Left: the route as it goes through Sułkowice, along ul. Ogrodowa, over the DK50, then along Chynów's ul. Główna. Then down to Warka? Find out soon!

Christmas lights in Chynów. Not much I know, but another spark of local pride, another reason to be cheerful at this dark time of year. And no need to translate the slogan – a sign of increased openness!

Luxor Kebab opened in October on ul. Parkowa, giving Chynów its first sit-down restaurant since the J&B Snack Bar closed in the summer of 2022. Three point five stars as per Google Guides – bez szału (no big deal). Not the best, but far from the worst I've eaten – but it's here! I go for the medium beef kebab with spicy sauce in thin pita bread, 22 złotys.

Discovering the forest west of Hipolitów and Sułkowice: not anything new, but a magical place that I only discovered this year; an unusual landscape featuring eskers (below). More here, here and here.

Farewell to Browar Perun? In summer, a neighbour told me that the local craft brewery in Budziszyn had gone over to part-time production, with workers laid off. Asking about its fate in Piwnica Konesera in Chynów, I was told that indeed the brewery has closed for good. This sad news is not shared by the Perun website as of today's date. In my time, I have supped back some truly excellent beers from this place. The key to survival in this business is good distribution (check out just how many restaurants sell wine by Winnica Turnau).

This time last year:
An Alternative Theology

This time two years ago:
From the Long Review of 2022, Pt IV

This time three years ago:
S2 tunnel under Ursynów opens

This time four years ago:
The first year of Covid-19

This time five years ago:
Last night in Ealing, twenty-teens
[A strangely prophetic post, suitably dream-like in quality]

This time six years ago:
The Day the World Didn't End

This time nine years ago:
Hybrid driving - the verdict

This time 11 years ago:
Pitshanger Lane in the sun

This time 15 years ago:
Miserable, grey, wet London

This time 16 years ago:
Parrots in Ealing

This time 17 years ago:
Heathrow to Okęcie

Saturday, 28 December 2024

Radom

Radom, a city of 200,000, has largely bypassed my attention, other than changing trains at the main railway station. It is Poland's 13th most populous city; other Polish cities of similar size (Gdynia, Rzeszów, Toruń for example) I've been to many times, but in my 27 years in Poland, I've visited Radom only once, for  a conference in about 2006.

Although the city has mediaeval roots (unlike, say, Białystok), and a long tradition of manufacturing industry, Radom lacks self-confidence, self-promotion and a sense of its own importance to Poland. When its textile industry collapsed at the end of the communist era, Łódź reinvented itself; Western consultants drew up a plan and the city made it work. Today's Łódź (120 km west of Radom) has attracted waves of foreign direct investment in new factories and shared-services centres as well as being a hub for the creative sector. And Lublin, 100 km east of Radom is establishing itself as a centre for life sciences. But Radom – once famous for typewriters, sewing machines, leather shoes and Kalashnikovs – lags developmentally behind all other Polish cities. As of the end of last month, the Radom sub-region's unemployment rate, 12.3%, is the highest in Poland, and the city of Radom's, at 9.4% is more than double that of Łódź (4.4%) or Lublin (4.0%).

When the current provincial borders were drawn up in 1999, the city authorities fought hard to ensure that it wouldn't end up in Świętokrzyskie province (capital city Kielce, pop. 190,000). And so, Radom became a part of Mazovia, Poland's wealthiest province, thus massively reducing the potential inflow of EU funds.  

Below: how I imagined downtown Radom is how it actually is. On the skyline – the towers of Radom cathedral. A misty day in late December. Important not to get the wrong impressions at first sight. Postwar tenements three or four stories high. 


Most of the city centre architecture dates back to the second half of the 19th century; the opening of the Iwanogorod (Dęblin) to Dąbrowa Górnicza in 1885 was a massive boost to Radom's industrialisation, bringing coal from the Tsarist parts of the Silesian coalfields. 

Below: view along ulica Marszałka Józefa Piłsudskiego. In the mist, the garrison church. Properly restored, and hopefully a portent of things to come. There is potential here to kick-start that transformation that Łódź is experiencing – public and private money building a new city based on what was best in the old.



Left: spotted on a fruit-and-veg vendor's wooden hut, a heartbreaking notice, hand-written by a lonely 65-year-old woman looking for someone to take her in for Christmas Eve. 


Architecturally, Radom is clearly a post-Tsarist city. There's little of the Art Nouveau flourishes that enliven Polish cities that industrialised within former Austro-Hungary or Prussia/Germany. Many buildings have potential for transformation, as Łódź proves. Below: many public buildings in need of a lick of paint. 

Below: and now – a surprise: the Bernardine monastery complex, dating back to the 15th century. Although the facade is spoiled by the entirely faux addition to the roofline on the left (the beige bit with the semi-circle over it and a two-dimensional 'tower' stuck on top. Makes the church look like the factory outlet in Piaseczno or a Chinese town meant to look European.

Below: inside the Bernardine church, a nativity scene (one of the largest I have seen). Just look at that flock!

Below: Radom's 'fara' or parish church, founded in the 14th century. Radom has a lot more historical heritage than I had expected


Below: a 25-minute walk from Radom Główny station to the city's old rynek (market). The town hall is on the right-hand edge; the Jacek Malczewski museum is across the square on the left.


I feel Radom has huge potential. Poland's significant rearmament programme will benefit Radom as the city's factories are already ramping up production of infantry small-arms, such as the modern Grot ('arrowhead') assault rifle, supplied to the Polish army, to Ukraine – and to US special forces. [Cue Elvis Costello's Shipbuilding.]

Radom deserves the attention of foreign investors interested in Poland as a location for manufacturing or shared-services. I shall return to soak up the city's klimat in summer.


This time last year:
New bridge over the Czarna

This time two years ago:
The Long Review of 2022 - Pt. III

This time three years ago:
The Person Who Contemplates Not.

This time six years ago:
2018 – a year in journeys

This time 12 years ago:
Wise words about motoring

This time 13 years ago:
Hurry up and wait with WizzAir at Luton

Friday, 27 December 2024

Jacek Malczewski exhibition, Radom

An extremely important exhibition from the point of view of Polish art history, and one that could easily have slipped under the radar. Advertised extensively on Koleje Mazowieckie trains' TV screens – but nowhere else – the exhibition, Perspektywy ('Perspectives'), brings together paintings by Jacek Malczewski from 16 museums and from private collections across Poland. His paintings are grouped together alongside those by his contemporaries by theme. 

These include fauns, satyrs and nymphs in clearings and glades, by rivers, often with the artist among them, pan pipes, goats' hooves; allegories of Poland's enslavement and rebirth; many self-portraits with classical allusions, Polish landscapes, and – here and there – fantastical visions. 

The exhibition shows works by artists with whom Malczewski had master-student or friendly relations, but also those whose work could have influenced his painting. The context of the title is provided by the juxtaposition of work by artists such as Jan Matejko, Józef Mehoffer, Julian Fałat, Leon Wyczółkowski Olga Boznańska and others. By displaying works that influenced the development of his art, from his early technical studies to the rich symbolism of his later pieces, the exhibition is a journey through the life and works of a great artist, that explores the main threads appearing in his painting.

For all but the last 11 years of his life (Malczewski died at the age of 75), Poland was partitioned between Russia, Austro-Hungary and Germany; Polish artists straddled those borders. Born in Radom (under Russian occupation), Malczewski studied and later taught in Kraków (under Austro-Hungarian occupation). When the First World War broke out, Poles living under the Tsar had to fight against Poles living under the Austro-Hungarian Emperor and the German Kaiser. This reality is shown in the many paintings inspired by Poland's failed risings in 1831 and 1863, the repressions that followed, and the eternal hope that one day Poland would be free and reunited.

As the exhibition comes to an end, it occurs to me that being able to see all these Malczewski paintings  under one roof again is not something that will happen for a long, long time. And displaying them in the context of his contemporaries may not happen again. It runs until 9 January; normal ticket price is 40 złotys, but if you come by Koleje Mazowieckie train and show your ticket, the price tumbles to 10 złotys.

This time last year:
Back out into the open


This time three years ago:
Wintery gorgeousness and filthy air

This time four years ago:
Jakubowizna – moonrise kingdom

This time seven years ago:

This time 10 years ago:
Derbyshire in the snow

This time 11 years ago:
Is Britain over-golfed?

This time 13 years:
Everybody's out on the road today

This time 14 years ago:
50% off and nothing to pay till June 2016

Monday, 23 December 2024

Busy rails ahead of Christmas

The new railway timetable takes a bit of getting used to. There are two more pairs of express trains hammering down the tracks between Piaseczno and Warka – I especially like the loco-hauled ones.

Below: the northbound TLK Lubomirski express (on its way from Zakopane to Kołobrzeg) approaches Chynów station on the southbound (down) track; it's overtaking a northbound Koleje Mazowieckie service that's just stopped at the northbound (up) platform. Note the red light on the front of the loco, indicating that it's running on the 'wrong' track. This procedure means the local train doesn't have to wait several minutes to let the express pass it on the main line. Running resumes along the normal track on the other side of Chynów station. 


Below: just beyond the level crossing on ulica Spokojna, between Chynów and Węszelówka, a southbound InterCity train, the Siekiewicz, bound for Kraków. It's on the northbound (''up') line. Again, note the red light on the front along with the two white lights, denoting that it's not where it should be.


Below: same spot, literally 30 seconds later, a southbound Koleje Mazowieckie train heading for Radom, on the right track, having been overtaken by the express a kilometre or so south of Chynów station. Travelling on this service on Saturday evening, it reeked of perfume and booze! Christmas comes but once a year...


Below: ten minutes later, another train passes. This time, it's the southbound Lubomirski, heading for Zakopane. It's nearly 80 minutes late; unless that local service above is held at Warka, the delay will extend.


Below: level crossing at Janów, about halfway between Krężel and Michalczew stations. Light drizzle.

Below: there in the distance, the lights of Michalczew station. It's a ten-minute walk; my train home is in 15 minutes' time;


From hobbling to limping to walking with a limp to walking with a slight limp – two weeks on, Today's the fifth day of my return to an average 12,000 paces a day. I can't run, but pain-free walking has been achieved.

Below: the abandoned goods yard by Chynów station. The tracks were ripped out in 2020. Today this empty space acts as an informal station car park during weekdays. Interesting to consider by when this hectare of well-located land might be developed.


UPDATE 23.12.2024: Today's TLK Lubomirski running to time, and on the right track – because the 13:16 Koleje Mazowieckie service from Radom is ten minutes late.


This time last year:
My Covid-19 experience

This time three years ago:
Television times

This time four years ago:
New asphalt for Jeziorki - or Dawidy?

This time seven years ago:
What did you do in the First World Cyber-War?

This time eight years ago:
Solstice sunset, Gogolińska

This time 13 years ago
Extreme fixie

This time 15 years ago:
Poland's worst railway station

This time 16 years ago:
Last Christmas before the Recession?

Thursday, 19 December 2024

Deny, distract, dilute

Here's my assessment of the current 'drone flap'. 

Sometime in mid-November, craft of non-human origins began showing up over military bases in the UK and US. These incursions were unprecedented in intensity and duration. The bases have been associated with the storage of nuclear weapons, something that UFOs and Nukes author Robert Hastings says has been happening since the 1940s. These anomalous craft typically show no heat signature detectable to infrared sensors, flying in from the sea in silence, and demonstrating endurance well beyond that of any human-made battery-powered drone, staying aloft for several hours at a time. They were untraceable and unaffected by counter-drone technology. If these are foreign-made drones, the technology is way more advanced than what the US has.

Whereas the UK 'drone' sightings blew over without attracting too much mainstream-media attention, in America, the public, the media and Congress were less willing to let it go. From CNN to Fox News to smaller outlets, right across the political spectrum, the 'drone incursion' story wouldn't fade. It remains in the headlines to this day.

After the first wave of anomalous sightings, the news cycle refuses to move on from on the drone-incursion story. And so, word goes out – flood the fields. 

Air Force, Army and Navy bases start putting their own, identifiable, drones, into the night skies, with transponders off, and where possible, with position lights switched off. Lots of them. Night after night after night. At the same time, the social media is flooded by Travis Trailerhome and Betty Bigbutt posting footage of airliners taking off or landing at night, accompanied by shrieks of "Wow! Unreal! Aliens!". Hobbyist drone jocks practice flying their Black Friday bargains after dark to get in on the act. Amateur CGI enthusiasts of lesser or greater skill levels start posting their clickbait fakery, hoping the algorithm will help monetise their channels. Recordings of spooky sounds emanating from car radios. The more laughable the fake, the better. The more glaringly obvious missightings from America's none-too-bright community, the better. 

And at a joint press conference held on 17 December by the Department of Defense, the Department of Homeland Security , the Federal Aviation Authority and the FBI the message was put forth that: "Having closely examined the technical data and tips from concerned citizens, we assess that the sightings to date include a combination of lawful commercial drones, hobbyist drones, and law enforcement drones, as well as manned fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, and stars mistakenly reported as drones. We have not identified anything anomalous and do not assess the activity to date to present a national security or public safety risk". The message from White House national security communications advisor  John Kirby and others is – we know that these are not foreign adversaries. We know that these are not our own craft. But we don't know what they are; however, whatever it is that they are, they're not a threat to our safety and there's nothing to be alarmed about. 

This is frankly laughable. This might serve to allay the concerns of the casual observer, but to anyone thinking critically about the issue, this message does not wash at all.

There is a secret so deep that the US military is willing to look incompetent rather than to come clean with the public. 

This time last year:
Pain and questions of loss

This time two years ago:
No true beauty without decay

This time three years ago:
James Webb Space Telescope launch

This time five years ago: