Ten Degrees

7:05

8:47

It’s 8:00, and we’re both up, unsettled by the news of what’s being called “Epic Fury,” a seemingly all-out war unfolding in the Middle East. It’s not just Iran being struck, but much of the surrounding region as well. At the moment, Hegsseth is on television, rambling through what sounds like one questionable claim after another, all under the direction of our “brave” leader—bone-spurs Trump. “This is not an endless war,” he insists, without acknowledging the widespread damage across the region. His final words linger: “The war will end on Trump’s choosing, nobody else’s.” Scary. He ends his talk with no plans, just prayers. 

Sunday felt strange for another reason: the absence of ice fishing on the lake. On Saturday, it had been lively, not only with fishermen but with families simply enjoying being out on the ice. Yesterday, though, there was hardly a tent in sight.

Thunder Bridge

Our morning passed quickly, much of it spent listening to updates from the Middle East—what else? No mention of Epstein, nothing about Congress questioning Hillary and Bill Clinton.  Around 10:30, I headed out for my usual Sunday stroll around the Chautauqua Institution. Though the streets were snow-covered, they weren’t icy or slippery, thankfully. On my way out, I ran into our neighbors walking Ripley.

Walking The CI

Brick Walk

I was home by 11:30 and having lunch an hour later—two fried eggs with avocado and tomato on toast, simple and delicious. I looked for something to watch and sampled a couple of thrillers, but none held my attention, so I switched to some NBA basketball. The afternoon slipped by, and by 5:00 I was showered and ready to head out to dinner with our friends Linda and Ron.

I should mention I’ve given up on both Paper Girl—too repetitive—and The Hallmarked Man, which feels endless; I’m only 20 percent in with 80 percent left to go. Instead, I started Nineteen Minutes, a much-recommended thriller by Jodi Picoult.

3:32

5:38

We picked up Linda and Ron at 6:00 and drove a couple of miles to Pueblo Real, a fairly new restaurant in Mayville. It was busy for a Sunday evening. We ordered Mexican beers and studied the enormous menu. Evie and Linda chose Mexican salads; I went with enchiladas verdes, hoping for something memorable, but they were average—nothing special. We left around 8:00 and were home by 8:20. Evie was tired and headed to bed. I stayed up, searching again for something to watch, and finally settled on The Sandhamn Murders, set in Sweden, and watched the first two episodes.

Just a reminder, Putin is quoted in 2014 as saying, "We could take Kyiv in two weeks," and his military planners assumed, before invading Ukraine in February 2022, that they could take Ukraine in three or four weeks. Four plus years later, Russia still has not taken Kyiv and has lost 1.2 million military personnel.