Skoda Octavia IV estate - in my garage

When ordering the car in January, I was told the queue for manufacturing slots ends in the 26th week of year and I should have braced myself for delivery in late July or early August. This was not an issue for me, since the Megane has served me well and the new car would have an even longer lifetime. In late January it turned out the vehicle had its manufacturing slot booked for the 9th week of the year. It arrived from the factory quite fast, also my lessor handled all registration-related formalities without further ado and hence the car was ready to be picked up on 19 March.

As the only Skoda dealer in Poland co-operating with my employer is based in Poznań, I had to take a day-long trip there and due to work-related constraints I ventured there on Monday, 25 March.

I was positively surprised by how cheap the train to Poznań was, since from times I travelled there often in business, a single ticket cost my employer around PLN 150. My second-class Intercity ticket bought six days in advance set me back only PLN 58.65. Given the journey duration of 2 hours and 50 minutes (and running punctually like a clockwork), this finally makes a tempting proposal.

I got to the dealership by public transport (35 minutes from Poznań Główny station to the outskirts of Komorniki seems a decent result). An hour later I was at the nearby petrol station filling up the car. I returned to Warsaw via old DK92 national road up to Konin, with a lunch stopover in Września, then headed for A2 motorway.

First driving impression - I am positively surprised by the fuel consumption, especially since the engine is not run in yet. The average consumption on my way from Poznań to Warsaw according to the car's computer was... mere 4.8 litres per 100 km. I drove moderately dynamically outside town and set tempomat at 105 kmph at motorway. The outcome gives hopes for low appetite for petrol in out-of-town trips once the mileage hits 5 digits.

Second driving impression - this vehicle is a tablet on wheels. I am overwhelmed by plenty of electronics out there and still find my way around the link between the car and my smartphone. Though must I say the user's guide in concise and written in plain Polish.

Third impression - can say little of how dynamic the car is, because of unfinished running in. It feels the engine is still factory-numb.

Fourth impression - Skoda engineers have fitted the car with tens of practical solutions (not confuse for gadgets).

No more impressions so far, since from Wednesday on I have resisted the temptation to use the car purposelessly, so it stays parked in the garage, waiting for a longer journey to my in-laws in Sieradz (due tomorrow). No photos since the car belongs to my employer, do not look out for it on WN plates - PY ones are in use.

Belgorod engulfed in warfare

Since the beginning of the russian invasion to Ukraine, the attacked country wages a defensive war. In simple words, it has fought in its own territory (defined as internationally recognised borders in place until early 20214), but has not attacked the enemy’s land. Such approach gave a clear picture who had trespassed whose territory, but at some stage of war turned out to be insufficient to tip the scales towards the one we keep our fingers crossed for.

In the past days, with unhidden delight, I have kept track of destruction wrecked to the empire of evil. Each demolition of an oil refinery is a proper blow to the russian economy. Decreased supplies of fuels dent the country’s revenues (less money on armaments), impair transport as well as contribute to shortages of energy, which are detrimental to the military factories. Every day I watch the shelling of the city of Belgorod located close the Ukrainian border. This area of russia is currently war-ridden and residents who have not decided to flee are experiencing a bit of what the tormented Ukraine has endured for over the last 2 years.

Currently also the civilian infrastructure in russia is being destroyed, civilians in putin’s land are wounded and killed. Call me a scoundrel, but I could not care less. That accursed nation has to pay the price for all the evil its president is doing. Tactically, the strategy of attacking the invader’s area prompts the russian army to retreat to guard its lands, giving some relief from warfare to Ukraine. Such strategy also buys time and defers the probably inevitable confrontation between NATO and russia.

Speaking of the imminent war, I still believe with proper deterrents in place, russia might hold back from attacking any NATO country. But to make it happen, NATO countries need to get their act together to rebuild their military power (depleted by aids to Ukraine) and demonstrate their solidarity.

If the war indeed breaks out, the question is about targets and scale of warfare. Experts claim the enemy will still lack potential to trespass far and wide into NATO territories, but targeted shelling is perfectly conceivable. To paralyse life in large areas, russia only needs to destroy key elements of military and civilian infrastructure. Our homes might not be destroyed, but we might need to get used to conditions in which residents of Kiev had to live for several months, i.e. electricity outages, lost Internet connections, lack of warm water or heating.

Good times are not ahead. Even if the war fortunately does not break out, we as a mankind will need to make sacrifices to prevent the planet from becoming a hell due to global warming.

Z-generation

I suppose all readers know well what the term used in the title stands for. In case somebody needs to catch up, I divert to a dedicated wikipedia page.

Over the recent time young adults (nearly a decade younger than me, or even younger) have become nefarious for their distinctive approach towards work and towards life. Some hailed them "a snowflake generation", referring to their fragility and shortage of resistance to hardships of adult life.

Although the introductory paragraph might suggest I am critical towards Z-gen, I appreciate many foundations of their mindset. They fight for a work-life balance, in practice reaching out beyond the older generations' hollow declarations. They want to break out of chasing after money and material goods. Instead, they yearn for experiencing and spending time with nearest and dearest. They realise the treadmill of older generations gets them nowhere.

The above at first glance holds true, yet there is an inconsistency in how they want to achieve their goals. If I were to come up with only one critical remark towards Z-gen, I would say they do not understand causations. The pleasures they want to draw from life cost money, but unlike my peers, they refuse to toil away to earn it.

I have recently read a series of excellent articles (by enlightened conservatives from Klub Jagielloński) in which one of the authors posits generation Z is the natural effect of generations X and Y. A younger generation naturally contests the values of an older one. Generation Z however, wishes to freeride on the fruits of the previous generations' hard work.

I generally blame parents of Z-gen for how their offspring interact with the world. Also confining to one child only by many couples has done its bit. Parents of two or more children need to share their attention between them, while siblings need to mind and take care of one another. In a 2+1 family the focus is on the only child, who often is treated like the hub of the universe (and as an adult holds out for such treatment).

I also hold it against Z-gen's ancestors that current youngsters are not taught how to deal with criticism and lack a sense of responsibility. Children should learn from their own mistakes and from early years realise, to a moderate extent, there are prices to be paid for misdeeds. A dose of humility, when confronted with someone else's wisdom and subsequent ability to admit one's mistakes would definitely come in useful too.

In the era of affluence parents tend to give children too much, often to make up for too little time or attention dedicated to their offspring. Such upbringing does not teach youngsters they need to work hard to deserve something.

Besides, far too much protection from the cruelty of the nasty world is given. Suffering is an indispensable part of life and children should be slowly tamed with it, to help them accept life is not a bed of roses. The sooner they realise it with wise aid of their parents, the less painful the clash with tribulations of the adult life will be.

I wonder what happens once the Z-gen take over as major part of the labour force and once they begin to take up managerial position. The economic growth might slow down, however with the benefit to the planet, so such prospect is not entirely gloomy.

A residential property - what makes it a good dwelling?

In the previous post I attempted to unravel factors which impact attractiveness of a property's location. As a follow-up to those musings, I complement them with thoughts on features of a specific dwelling, which make it a comfortable place to inhabit.

Layout is the key, I would respond, if somebody asked me about only one characteristic to be taken into consideration. The term, nevertheless is broad is could be broken down into a few sub-features I pay attention to.

Shape of rooms determines their functionality. A possible square-like rectangles are preferable. I am not fond of hexagons, triangles, half-circles and the likes. Tram-like rectangles also do not add to practicality of an interior.

Most people appreciate natural daylight at home, hence reasonably large windows, orientation of rooms against cardinal poinst and lack of nearby buildings which obscure the sun play a vital role in choosing a flat. I am of the opinion too much sunlight in summer might be cracked down on with blind rollers, while insufficient sunlight cannot be made up for. My own preference would be to have a living room with windows facing south and/or west, kitchen to the east and/or north, while for bedrooms I have no clear preference, albeit I lean towards getting up with the sun, so I tilt towards eastern exposure.

With respect to the layout, one of major questions is whether to have kitchen as a separate room or to make it a part of a dining or living room, often with limited access to daylight (no dedicated window). I see drawbacks of both solutions, but lean towards a separate room with a table for daily dining. Nevertheless in crampy dwelling a kitchen combined with a living space appears to be the most reasonable choice.

Before COVID-19 the optimum number of rooms (in Poland we count rooms, unlike in the UK, where bedrooms are counted) was equal to the number of inhabitants, e.g. a dwelling suitable for a 2+2 family would consist of a living room and 3 bedrooms. These days, when people work from home, one could argue more space is needed to fit a dedicated desk, yet not necessarily in a separate room, such needs could be met by larger bedrooms too.

A storey on which a dwelling is located does matter too. The higher you live, the more sunlight and the less noise you get. I am not fond of ground floors and last floors. I actually do not mind neighbours above me, but the prospects of heating up or leaking roof would not encourage me to live on the top storey. Also the lack of lift on higher storeys is a nuisance. It is healthy to take the staircase, however I prefer it to be a choice, not a must.

The last, yet quite important to me element are amenities outside a dwelling:
- a balcony or a terrace (to hang out in warmer half of the year),
- a basement (to store tyres, bikes and other stuff not most desirable at home) and
- a garage (no need to mention the comfort of having a vehicle protected from the elements of weather).

Again, the good features a property has, the more expensive it is. Needless to say, comfort of living has its price.

A residential property - what makes it well-located

After a note on the prospects of the property market for Poland, some random musings over features a comfortable dwelling should have. I split my considerations into two posts, with the next one about the very property characteristics and today's post focusing on location only.

Experts in unison claim location is the core driver and property intrinsic value, since it cannot be subject to makeovers or refurbrishments. Valuation of a location might be triggered by changes in surrounding areas, which are beyond a property holder's control.

A good location for most people means access to transport links, including reliable public transport, paved roads in the countryside, lack of traffic jams or dual carriageway in the (not too close) vicinity. Commute times to workplaces and schools are usually the best benchmark for one's individual preference, however they might change over time (one day children finish school, you may change a job or your office might be relocated).

For me a decent location is the one where I am not car-dependent. Trips to work and getting about town should be convenient with public transport (cheap, reliable, frequently running), by bike or on foot. I am not giving up on motoring, yet the car should wait its turn for longer trips outside Warsaw and for situations when it is indispensable.

While living next to one of busier streets in Ursynów, with 4 lanes in both directions and drivers tending to speed through a section just outside my window, I got sensitive to noise. When buying a next property (most probably a bigger flat), I will strive to avoid dwelling where the level of traffic noise increases drastically after opening a window. Same goes about the air quality. In Warsaw, despite traffic-generated air pollution it is still far better than on the outskirts or in provincial Poland, where folks still incinerate whatever cheap they can to heat their houses.

Although online shopping is getting more popular, avoiding visits in grocery shops and supermarkets is impossible. A well-equipped shop in which most or all everyday needs can be met, located within walking distance from home is a vital determinant of a proper location.

Green areas - parks, forests, meadows in the vicinity are definitive upsides, but trees and grass instead of paved areas in the immediate neighbourhood appear equally important, especially when they give shelter from more and more frequent summer heat.

Needless to say each of us has amenities appreciated within walking distance from home. These include nursery and primary schools, bakeries, restaurants, hairdressers, health centres, community centres, playgrounds, swimming pools, gyms, libraries, craftsmen. The infrastructure for comfortable daily life also defines what the note is about.

Last, but not least (note the phase has been overused in essays written during high-school English classes), the housing density matters. It is not a pleasure to see your neighbour's dwelling from your window, not to mention other buildings take away sunlight, especially in autumnal and wintry months, when it is most yearned for.

Property prices generally tend to incorporate the factors above, but they are subject to fads. Some districts are considered prestigious, others unattractive, despite having all makings of a decent location. Some does of cool head and not following the crowd might help find a superior price-to-quality trade-off when searching for a place of residence.