January 24, 2026

Saturday. Left by 10. Nikor. Cold but sunny, just some thin, white could cover to the northeast. Light winds out of the east. West side of the Vecht all the way to development at the end of the Daalseweg. Places sheltered from sun and wind still a little damp, and there, it also looked potentially icy in a few places. Zuilensebrug, back across at Maarssen, ARK to Woerdensweg. Back across the canal at Breukelen, then Angstelkade. The land at rest everywhere. Loenersloot bridge to Loenen, then Vecht. Scheendijk torn up, so Gunterstein to the open part. Not busy anywhere, but people out everywhere, on bikes, walking, running. Veenkade, Herenweg, and Oud Zuilen back to town. The Greenland crisis has been diffused, but the American president makes sure the NATO crisis continues, most recently through his ignorant and insulting remarks about the allied contributions in Afghanistan. Last night on the BBC there was someone from his world shameless enough to defend it, but on this side of the Atlantic there can't be any serious people left who will put any stock into an administration under such leadership, or, for that matter, a country that elects a person such as this one not once, but twice. However, the conclusion that "Europe" needs to take care of itself has been obvious for a year now; what matters--and what should be the focus of everyone's attention--is what "Europe" is able to accomplish concretely here. The list of priorities is long, but none is more urgent than providing Ukraine the wherewithal to survive and to force Russia to stop the war. Not too much in the news about that, recently.