kinggimped

kinggimped: I've added my dad's audio for this one, you can listen to it here.

Below is my transcription of what he said.

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Dad: I live in a small town, where everybody knows everybody. I mean, the population is something like 30,000 and that includes the surrounding villages. I managed to 'charm' the attendant at the petrol station to fill up on the day we left. Usually they give a maximum of 20 litres - well, not usually, just in the last 4 days - 20 litres per car, per day. But I managed to fill up 20 litres in the evening, and then 30 litres in the morning. And we just kept on going. I have a 20 litre canister, a can, in the boot of the car. And on the way from home to here, about 1100km, at any opportunity - every opportunity where there was a petrol station without long queues, I would just stop and add whatever I could add, and that's how we kept on going.

And no, we are not going to run out of fuel, because against all odds, I used my head and initiative to keep the tank full.

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kinggimped: My dad is a super pragmatic guy. In a situation like this, he's somebody you'd want on your team. To be honest, I just realised that I never even asked him about the fuel situation. I just knew that would have been the first thing he sorted out.

kinggimped: There are no stupid questions! I can answer this one. My dad is a British citizen, not a native Ukrainian. So the 18-60 thing does not apply to him.

(transcribed from 4-minute voice message, jeez dad, go easy, this is the first question)

Dad: Since December there have been talks and all kinds of speculations about Putin's invasion of Ukraine. We did not believe it would ever happen. We just thought, it's some kind of political manoeuvre to bully Ukraine into doing what he wants, or not doing what he wants. The same goes for the people on the street. I can't say anything about what the government or officials in Ukraine were thinking, they were probably taking it more seriously. It's just, the people in the street, they are very peaceful, a very simple nation. They are very "live and let live", and nobody believed this would happen. Everyone was going about their lives normally.

Now, would I have done anything differently? The only reason I have done everything in the last 4 days the way I've done it, is because for the last 2 or 3 weeks I have been getting a lot of emails from the foreign office in the UK asking me to leave. I just... didn't want to leave. For me, this is home. I live here. My wife, my child. We have a life. A dog, a cat. The normal stuff. And after 17 years, you don't just get up and go.

(deep sigh)

But, the last few days, I could actually feel that the people who were calling me from the UK, from the British Consulate in Spain, they were very worried. Very concerned. And now I know why. Now I know. I had to go to Lviv, about 950km from home, to collect a passport, an emergency passport, called an ETD (Emergency Travel Document) for my daughter, D. And I was very lucky to get it, because 2 days later they vacated the hotel they were staying outside Lviv, and moved to Poland.

(Wife, A, chips in in the background, in Ukrainian)

Dad: (agreeing with wife) Yes, that's right. I went, actually, on the very first day of the invasion. He invaded while I was on the train. So, yeah. Probably I would have done things differently by leaving a week earlier. But I wouldn't have left straight away, because no one - no one - believed he would do it. Nobody believed after the Kremlin and Putin kept on 'confirming' that "we are not here to invade Ukraine". All the news said it's an "exercise", a "military exercise". And when he started to put troops in Belarus, again, all the news, all the reports that were coming out said "this is for a military exercise".

(another deep sigh)

Well, yep, this is what they told their soldiers as well. And now they are paying the price.

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kinggimped: I contacted dad about it as soon as the Russian troop buildup on the borders hit the news. That was over a month ago now, on the 25th January. This was his response.

kinggimped: I can answer this, it's been a topic that has come up many times during our chats. Here's a screenshot of the first time he mentioned it.

My dad has constantly been overwhelmed by the kindness of the local people. Every day, they are out there, handing out supplies, water, food, everything, to those waiting in the queue. And they will not accept a cent for any of it.

That includes medical care - there are people, both Red Cross and local doctors, going up and down the queue ensuring that everybody is safe, if anybody needs any help they give it. Again, refusing to take any payment.

You know, every time my dad gushes about Ukrainian people, he always uses the same word - "simple". My dad is fluent but not a native English speaker, and he sometimes uses words without realising they have a negative connotation... but the word he always uses is "simple". He in no way is meaning to imply that they're not intelligent, which is how some might interpret "simple", as a pejorative rather than what my dad seems to deem the highest of all compliments. What he means is that they are remarkably straightforward, uncomplicated, and pragmatic. They do not have an ulterior motive when they display altruism, or sympathy, or friendship.

He is constantly in awe and reverence of the "simplicity" of Ukrainian people and the kindness they have shown him in the 17 years he has lived in Ukraine. The longer he lives there, the more examples he seems to see of it.

kinggimped: I've added my dad's audio for this one, you can listen to it here.

Below is my transcription of what he said.

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Dad: You know, when Zelensky came to power, everyone was very very happy. And we were very happy, because he's one of "the people". An actor, a comedian... young, energetic... and really, he had a series here, which was called "Servant of the People". It was great fun to watch.

Now, unfortunately everybody had very high expectations for him to change Ukraine overnight into something that everybody wants Ukraine to be. But... a country like Ukraine, with all the corruption that was going on, all the difficulties that it has and had in the past... it didn't happen. Now, slowly slowly, he started to make changes, and everybody started to notice improvements.

Now, his stand, during this war... without a doubt, has made him a hero.

(Wife, A, talks excitedly in the background, code switching between Ukrainian/English)

Dad: Yes, that's right. When he was an actor, many years before he became president, he addressed Putin, and sent a message to him, saying "Don't bring Ukraine down to its knees - I will come to you on my knees. Just leave Ukraine alone."

And now, he's a hero. And there is a post going around in Ukraine, you know, that "some presidents become clowns, but some clowns become heroes". That's so true.

He is very well respected. And he's doing a good job. He didn't run away. He did NOT run away. He didn't hide his family. He didn't send his children to Switzerland. They are ALL in Ukraine. He's the man for the job. At the moment.

Hourly, he gives news. Tells everyone what is going on. He's very hot on social media, and he works it. He makes the media work for him as well.