Going electric / new routines

A double post to catch up on recent events.

Going electric

So the time came to invest in a new car. The old car failed its yearly checkup which was a good excuse to renew. Given the long delivery times and the high price tags on electric cars with long range, the choice landed on a plugin hybrid, a Skoda Octavia from 2021.

A Stockholm cityscape in spring. Copyright Frederik Jensen 2022.

Given we get a charging station at home, the short distances can be all electric while at the same time there is no range anxiety.

Luckily there is now also a plan for establishing charging stations at home, yours truly accepted the nomination to become chairman for the board and we got a 20-4 majority vote for proceeding with charging infrastructure in the garages.

New routines

There is still war in Ukraine. Last time I checked was less than 5 minutes ago. However, even war becomes routine. With Russia's withdrawal from the area around Kyiv and with Ukraine counter-attacking and checking Russian advances elsewhere, we no longer live in constant fear of Russia taking over Ukraine and continuing into neighboring states.

We check-in with my wife’s relatives in Ukraine daily. The sounds of air sirens followed by sheltering in bomb shelters is now a daily habit. But regardless, spring is here, potatoes need to be planted, we can speak on internet whenever and as much we care.

Gränna, Sweden. The ferry from Visingsö arrives on a calm spring evening. Copyright Frederik Jensen 2022.

We have guests staying with us for some time now, an opportunity for the kids and me to practice our Ukrainian and to be good hosts for as long as needed. While I can't stop Russian tanks with my own hands, we make our own contributions to defend the values of freedom and democracy and cooperation as the path towards a better future for all of mankind.

Slava Ukraini!