Birthday Lunch

~ Clarissa

I don’t know why they go for this takeout theme at a very expensive café but it’s friendly to Orthodox fasters, so I went for it.

I’m not only about food, though. My first article at the fancy Ukrainian literary portal goes live tomorrow and I’ll share the link. I literally broke my brain trying to write in the most elegant Ukrainian I humanly can but all that will be lost in Google Translate.

For my birthday, N gave me a Faberge egg in Ukrainian colors that plays Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake. In Russia, Swan Lake is always played on TV when the Duce of the moment croaks, so I’m hoping this is a good sign.

Mike Johnson didn’t disappoint and managed to squeeze into the Ukraine aid bill the wording that the goal is Ukraine’s victory over Russia. The next step is to massage Biden into agreeing.

So yes, good day, good news.

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Published by Clarissa

10 thoughts on “Birthday Lunch”

  2. Happy Birthday! My youngest daughter turns 30 today too. I know a bunch of other people with April 18th birthdays. And my sister had a birthday 2 days ago. Mine is next week. So, a big birthday season. Both your breakfast and your lunch look wonderful. I’m happy for you that there was a bit of good Ukraine news in the aid bill. 

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  4. What now, downvoter dude or lady, as the case may be? You are opposed to roasted broccoli and celery juice? What could you possibly dislike in a food picture?

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    1. I’m not the actual downvoter, but I found the idea that getting Biden to agree to the Ukraine bill will require any massaging laughable. Happy Birthday!

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      1. Thank you but have you seen the recent statements from Sullivan and Austin? It’s a horror show. Not only were they not supportive of anything resembling Ukrainian victory, they were prohibiting strikes on Russian refineries and weapons factories. Since this is an oft-repeated position of the Biden administration, why is it laughable to say that Biden doesn’t support victory for Ukraine? For two years, the Biden administration forbade any Ukrainian strikes on the Russian territory. How can one interpret this other than that the administration wants Ukraine to lose?

        I’m asking completely seriously and in good faith. I want to believe that Biden is on our side but I’m seeing zero Patriots, zero F-16s, and lots of shooting us in the knee.

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        1. This specific bill does not give Ukraine F-16s. It’s a continuation of previous levels of support. That’s why I don’t see why Biden wouldn’t immediately approve it.

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            1. Biden is not giving Ukraine enough weapons to win. I’m not disagreeing with that at all.

              Doing everything to make sure Ukraine doesn’t win is incompatible with giving it the moderate level of support it has been getting. Or keeping it on life support, if you will.

              Doing everything would mean giving it no support at all.

              I agree that the Biden administration has been discouraging Ukraine from attacking anything on Russian territory and forbidding it from doing so with the weapons it has supplied. Forbidding Ukraine from that would involve making any continued support conditional on Ukraine not doing so with its own weapons. I don’t think anything about such negotiations has been made public. Maybe the administration is making such demands behind the scenes.

              I probably misinterpreted what you said as “getting Biden to agree to sign this bill would require massaging”.

              The wording that the goal is Ukraine’s victory over Russia on a bill that doesn’t give it new weapons means nothing. And that’s why I’m sure the Biden administration will be happy to join in. I will believe that Johnson actually means it when he gives Ukraine different weapons.

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