August 16, 2026

 Sunday. Left at 9:30. Blacksmith. A new test for the knee. Mild, sunny, but the sky full of stretched out white clouds. Light winds from what appeared to be the northeast. Berenkuil to de Bilt and around Zeist. Under the trees, the pavement still damp sporadically from yesterday's rains. Otherwise, little evidence of that rain, although without it, it would probably have been a lot more dusty in the woods. Sunday riders out in force. Past Woudenberg and Griftdijk, Haarweg. The by now usual picture of stunted corn near the more fully-grown kind, cut fields partially yellow, trees and bushes apparently in survival mode. Not too much motorized traffic on the Amerongseberg. Back up in Leersum, toward and past Ginkelduin. Pretty quiet also, until the Haarweg running alongside the closed freeway, where there was notably more car traffic than usual. Hoogstraat, Ruiterberg, Zeisterweg to the top. No power, but the knee seemed to be holding up. Back around Zeist to de Bilt and Møs. Yesterday's AD, where they don't really cover the world. In other news, reports on various Russian strikes on Ukrainian targets, and Ukrainian strikes on sites in Russia. In greater Ukraine, Russia seems to hit mostly civilian infrastructure, but in the Donbas (Kramatorsk and Slovajansk) the bombing supports military aims, which seem to be coming into view, given that there, too, Ukraine mostly lacks defensive means against Russian air assaults. For its part, Ukraine seems to be hitting all kinds of sites essential for Russia's war, which may explain why the current Russian attacks aren't as large as feared. Today perhaps the largest drone attack on the Moscow region of the entire war, while the Kremlin faces growing difficulty in recruiting enough men for military service (in lots of cases the equivalent of a well-paid premature death). There is growing speculation over a new, national mobilization, which surely will cause a new mass-flight, which for its part could also further weaken Russia's war economy. If Ukraine's strategy is supposed to pressure Russian elites finally to take a stand against the president, his people, and his war agenda, it's perhaps better that NATO continues to respond in a low-key way to Russian drone incursions, as last night over Rumania. A firmer response--against Kaliningrad, for example--could have the effect of rallying Russia's elites around the Kremlin; it would confirm the Russian president's line of being faced with an aggressive, hostile alliance. Hostile, let's hope so; aggressive not so much. In the thirty-odd minutes on the bench, two or three drivers ignoring the do-not enter sign at the Kievitstraat.

August 12, 2026

Wednesday. Left a little after ten. Blacksmith. Warm, not yet hot. Blue skies with blown-apart contrails and other white smudges. Moderate winds out of the east. Singel (neighborly chat) to Koningsweg and Wayen. At the Langeweg, one patch of stunted corn, followed by one where the crop looked normal. ARK with some fast-moving barges. One farm outside of Houten where they still find it necessary to run the sprinklers on the grass alongside their driveway. Schalkwijk bridge, then dead-ending into some roadwork on the kanaaldijk. The town of Schalkwijk. One modern windmill visible in the distance next to the church. The time is long past to worry about those kinds of things. Lange Uitweg to Lekdijk. A guy using a high-pressure hose to clean between the bricks at the end of his driveway. People seeking direct sun in the recreational area behind Tull en 't Waal. Lots of activity on the canal in front of the Beatrixsluizen. Barges and pleasure boats in line, other barges pushing off to join. It must still be possible to navigate west on the Lek. Jutphaas back to ARK and Gele brug. More river cruise ships moored than normal, probably because these really can't use their normal routes, such as the Rhine river. Into the city and Møs. Drought and solar eclipse news in the paper (AD), along with the story about the American president's double plane switch after the recent NATO summit in Turkey. There are many angles to this story, but one perhaps not discussed explicitly enough is Tehran's determination to take the fight to the enemy. This is not unprovoked by any means, but perhaps more significantly, it suggests that the regime's interest in a peaceful outcome to the war is low, just like its concern for the well-being of its population. A U.S. response to a successful attack on the president's plane is too horrible to contemplate, and yet, elements of the Iranian regime apparently worked hard to make such a strike possible. During the half-hour or so on the Kievitstraat side, three or four drivers violated the do-not-enter sign without so much as batting an eye. 

August 10, 2026

Monday. Left a few minutes before ten. Blacksmith. Sunny; not warm, not cool; moderate breezes out of the northwest. Clouds in the distance, especially to the north. City getting back to work, though still quiet. Around the Jaarbeurs to Oog in Al, across the ARK to Groenedijk. Burgemeester Middelweerdbaan and Landschapsbaan, eventually Zandpad. Then Heldamweg to Dorpeldijk, left toward Harmelen, right onto Tiendweg, Breudijk to Kortjaksepad. Hollandse Kade majestic in every direction--Kanis, Woerden, Kockengen--with everything still green. Just one walker and two cyclists on the way to Spengen. Not a soul on the road there. Some traffic on the Geerkade and Portengense Zuwe. Portengen itself almost nothing. Even less human existence along the Grote Heicop, and the superficial view to the north was wide and unspoiled. Tailwind along the ARK, all the way to the Demkabrug with its ridiculous ramp on the city side. Straatweg the rest of the way, with broken glass on almost every block. At Møs a rather thin AD, with little serious news beyond new troubling reports on the drought, here, and next door, in Germany. One new Wildberries story: how, thanks to a licensed Carrefour distributor in Armenia, it can offer all kinds European-made brands. The brands themselves usually have stopped doing business in Russia a long time ago, but, as this and earlier reports point out, they could go the extra mile and withdraw the licenses in question also. None of the dreaded reports yet on massive Russian ballistic missile strikes on Ukraine. Elsewhere a possible explanation in reports on new North Korean support for Russia, both troops and missiles. It suggests that even though Russia is reported to build ballistic missiles at a fast pace, stocks may not be sufficient to try to overwhelm Ukraine and its people. Kyiv, meanwhile, has scored another hit on a oil and gas refinery complex deep inside Russia. The more damage to the Kremlin's war economy, the better the chance the president's position gets undermined. In the half-hour on the shady side at Møs, much evidence of the return to town of students (appearing anxious, and for some reason generally dressed in white).

August 9, 2026

Sunday. Left at 10:10. Blacksmith. Warm, sunny, with some thin, stretched-out white clouds to the south. Very little wind. City very quiet, and so were Groenekan--by way of Hooge Kampse Plas--and Maartensdijk. Cyclists in Lage Vuursche, still not fully open. The air was dusty on the roadway due to the gravel riders alongside it. Soestdijk and the Eng. Some corn looking well, another patch where it seemed stunted. To Soester Hoogt, where near the top the turn has been adjusted, probably to slow down descenders from the other side before they reach the roadway. Around Soesterberg to Schaerweijde; around Zeist toward De Bilt and Møs. Yesterday's paper reporting additional information on Ukraine's strikes on Russia's Wildberries warehouses: not only does the on-line retailer have a separate section with military hardware in support of the war, they also owe a lot of money to a big Russian bank that itself is in trouble. If Wildberries can't meet its financial obligations, that bank may get into trouble, causing a wider financial crisis which for its part would make it harder for the Kremlin to finance its war. What we have (had) now is what you could call "total war": strategies going well beyond the military battlefield and targeting the opposing society's ability to sustain the war effort. Russia has attacked Ukraine's civilian infrastructure since it failed to accomplish a quick break-through in 2023, but Ukraine in the past year or two increasingly has taken the war to Russian society too. Also, where the Kremlin has tried to shield ordinary Russians from a full mobilization, so Ukraine's Western friends have mostly tried to tell themselves that they're not really in this war, in spite of many pledges, and evidence, of support. The Russian president may soon have to face the music at home for pretending there isn't a war going on, but Western governments should already feel very uneasy about the slow pace with which they have tried to increase their production of missiles, anti-ballistic missile systems, and other military hardware. Western leaders are already in trouble for the way they have pretended to their constituents that Ukraine's war in the end isn't really ours, because it is. The unease could soon turn into regret, even shame, and it would all be earned. On the shady side at Møs, a person found it necessary to conduct an on-screen, speaker-phone conversation for fifteen or so minutes. Why not, since we were the only two people there? As that very important conversation continued, the last bit of the paper, AD, on the sunny side of the building (four cars ignoring the do-not-enter sign in fifteen minutes). Letters to the editor on the special subject of the heat this year. It may not have been a representative sample, but maybe it was: what's the problem with nice, warm weather? So much better than rain and gray skies. In a month or so, we'll be back enduring those conditions. There's climate change and such, but I'll be gone by the time that becomes a real problem. And so on. Presumably, these letter writers occasionally look at their paper and what it reports on some of the other effects of all this pleasant weather. But maybe not. It's much easier to ignore news you can't use--until that news stops ignoring you.

August 8, 2026

Saturday. Left a little before 10:30. Blacksmith. Clear skies, a white smudge here and there. Warm. Light, apparently shifting winds. The usual Saturday traffic in town. Vecht westside; pleasure boat traffic, out-to-lunch fatbiker. Op Buuren, and a little impatient coming off the Oostwaarderbrug. Then Zuilense brug and Maarssenbroek. Haarrijnse plas and Rijneveldsche Boschpad. Past Gieltjesdorp toward the nature trail to Laag Nieuwkoop. Grass has been cut everywhere, in places perhaps earlier than normal, for example the west end of Gerverscop. Bike path to Woerden, then Cattenbroek, very peacful. Enough time to notice the partly-hidden, huge barns of the dairy producers. Achthoven to IJsseldijk and Meerlobrug. From the Nedereindseweg a farmer visible with his tractor, running a pump to spray water over his land. The water was black. Racers making the turn to Nedereindse Berg. Merwedekanaal back into town. Out-to-lunch fatbiker. Everything normal, except for the drought.

August 7, 2026

 Friday. Left 10:03. Blacksmith. Overcast, with many shades and shapes of gray. Here and there a sliver of blue, and toward the end even a minute of light rain. Light winds out of the southwest. Berenkuil, KNMI, toward Zeist. Bisschopsweg toward Bunnik, then left, toward Tiendweg and Bunsinglaan. Right at the Driebergen train station, toward Odijk, then left: a quiet Rijnseweg all the way to Sterkenburg. Zuwe to Watertorenweg and Tuurdijk (the lone tree). The fields a mixture of yellow and brown. One or two growers busy spraying, which is still allowed. 't Goy, past Houten, and toward Schalkwijk. Tetwijksepad and the towers of Culemborg; Achterdijk and the view of Schalkwijk's V-shape. Lekdijk and bypass to Beatrixsluis and Sluispad. Jutphaas and Merwedekanaal back into the city and Møs. Still only AD, which covered the armed drone next to a Ukrainian transport plane at Leipzig the other day. We, here in Western Europe, may not consider ourselves at war with Moscow, but Moscow sees it differently. The paper was quiet on the fact that Ukraine has run out of defenses against Russian ballistic missiles. That's an eerie and ominous quiet before the storm. After all, for the Kremlin, its war against Ukraine has always been about submission. From its perspective, this has to be the moment to escalate in order to force Kyiv to its knees. It may not be possible to achieve a break-through at the front, and Russia itself is surely taking a beating from Ukraine's drone offensive. But how long will Ukraine be able to take a sustained Russian missile barrage on its civilian and military infrastructure? The way we've gotten to know the Russian president, he must be issuing orders for his military to find out, and soon. Apparently, there's little to nothing Kyiv's friends and partners in the West are able to do to help on this particular, potentially life-or-death, issue. 

August 2, 2026

 Sunday. Left at 9:55. Blacksmith. Warm, not hot. Some white in the skies. Light, eventually moderate, breezes out of the east. Straatweg out of town. Notably busier than at nine. Maarssen to ARK eastside, and Maarssenbroekdijk-Otterspoorbroek-Woerdenseweg. There are some of the original places left, but most on this sheltered stretch is modern and upscale, often decorated with expensive vehicles. Toward Breukelen alongside riders on the other side of the river. Pleasure boats on the river--pleasure boats everywhere. Across the ARK and north toward the Angstelkade. Deserted, but pleasure boats audible on the other side of the reeds. Heading east, a brownish puddle of water on the road--out of place, since our last rain of any significance dates back to a week ago. Loenersloot and west, toward Vinkeveen. Sunday cyclists everywhere. Bikepath Groenlandsekade to Baambrugse Zuwe and its opulence. Hotel Plashoeve hanging on from an earlier era. With all the money on that stretch, there should be a way to not only preserve, but also restore it. The way it looks these days, it could be gone soon if nothing changes. Bridge between the lakes open. Later, puddles on the asphalt, but here because of the low-lying road, so low that at times the water on the other side of the reeds seems to sit above it. Left at the village, toward Demmerik. The little bridge at the edge of town opened, for the pleasure boats, when it came into view. A young woman, also stopped at the earlier barrier, on her way to Kasteel de Haar. Her speed was higher both times--until it wasn't. Donkereind, Portengen, the skills bike path to Gieltjesdorp, then Haarzuilens. Smalle Themaat, Lint, and 't Zand to Gele brug, and back into town. In the news, the next round in the Washington see-saw: maybe we won't allow Ukraine to produce Patriot missiles after all, and let's hold off on the announced devastating strikes on Iranian civilian infrastructure. Peace is at hand once more--until it isn't. Ukraine, meanwhile can't defend itself any more against Russian ballistic missiles, even if it can still strike all kinds of Russian targets.