Ukraine remembers Chernobyl

From the Globe & Mail, Wed. April 26, 2006




Ukraine remembers Chernobyl
ANNA MELNICHUK
Associated Press
Kiev — Bells tolled across Ukraine and mourners carried red carnations and flickering candles to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Chernobyl nuclear explosion Wednesday, an event that continues to scar the psyche of the ex-Soviet republic.
The April 26, 1986, pre-dawn explosion, to be marked in Ukraine with daylong events, became the world's worst ever nuclear accident, spewing radiation across vast stretches of Europe. It cast a radioactive shadow over the health of millions of people; many believe it contributed to the Soviet Union's eventual collapse.
“My friends were dying under my eyes,” said Konstantyn Sokolov, 68, a former Chernobyl worker whose voice was hoarse from throat and lip cancer. Mr. Sokolov was among hundreds who gathered for a pre-dawn ceremony Wednesday in the Ukrainian capital, which President Viktor Yushchenko attended.
“I try not to recollect my memories,” Mr. Sokolov said as Orthodox priests led the mourners in a somber procession. “They are very terrible.”
In Kiev, bells tolled 20 times starting at 1:23 a.m., marking the exact time of the explosion at Reactor No. 4 at the Chernobyl nuclear power station.
Closer to Chernobyl in Slavutych — the town built to house the Chernobyl workers displaced by the accident — the commemorations began an hour earlier to coincide with Moscow time, which was used in the then-Soviet Republic of Ukraine at the time of the accident. Residents laid flowers and placed candles at a monument dedicated to Chernobyl as sirens blared.
Mykola Malyshev, 66, was working in the control room of Chernobyl's Reactor No. 1 at the time of the explosion. He said the lights flickered and the room shook. The workers were ordered to the destroyed reactor, but when they got there, their co-workers ordered them to flee and save themselves. “They told us, ‘We are already dead. Go away,'” Mr. Malyshev recalled at the Kiev ceremony.
The explosion tore off the plant's roof, spewing radioactive fallout for 10 days over 77,220 square miles of the then-Soviet Union and Europe.
At least 31 people died as a direct result of trying to keep the fire from spreading to the plant's three other operating reactors. One plant worker was killed instantly and his body has never been recovered. Twenty-nine rescuers, firefighters and plant workers died later from radiation poisoning and burns, and another person died of an apparent heart attack Death tolls connected to the blast remain hotly debated, as do the long-term health effects.
Thousands have been diagnosed with thyroid cancer, one of the only internationally accepted illnesses linked to Chernobyl, and the UN health agency said about 9,300 people were likely to die of cancers caused by radiation.
Some groups, however, including Greenpeace, have warned that death tolls could be 10 times higher and accused the UN of whitewashing the long-term effects of the accident in order to restore trust in the safety of atomic power.
Around 350,000 people were evacuated from their homes following the explosion, never to return. A whole city, Pripyat, and dozens of villages were left to decay, and experts say some may not be habitable again for centuries, perhaps even longer.
Some five million people live in areas covered by the radioactive fallout, in Ukraine, neighbouring Belarus and Russia.
Valentyna Abramovych, now 50, her husband and their infant son were forced to evacuate their home in the Chernobyl workers' city of Pripyat, leaving behind all their belongings. They were shuffled around, first to a nearby village then to a relative's house.
“Every day, I would watch television and expect to hear when we could come back,” Ms. Abramovych said. “When they said we could never come back, I burst into tears ... We feel like outcasts. No one needs us.”
Ukraine hosted competing scientific conferences on Tuesday as this nation of 47 million and the international community tried to make sense of the catastrophe.
Radiation and health experts from international bodies such as the International Atomic Energy Agency, the World Health Organization, the European Commission and the United Nations discussed what the world has learned from Chernobyl — and what it can do better to prevent a similar tragedy.
Some Ukrainians sought out more private places to remember.
“The whole country grieves and the whole world joins us in this grief,” Lena Makarova, 27, said as she visited the Chernobyl museum in Kiev.
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EVERYONE NEEDS A SUPPORT SQUAD! by Libby Gill

EVERYONE NEEDS A SUPPORT SQUAD! by Libby Gill
Back when I was an entertainment executive, I used to attend management retreats at ritzy resorts in Laguna Beach or Palm Springs. The chairman would bring his team from business development, finance and marketing who would gather to discuss company issues, ending each session with a rousing chorus of the boss's trademark chant, 'Costs down, revenues up!'
While they were focused on the studio's problems, I'd fantasize about having my own corporate retreat attended by a team of brainy folks dedicated to sorting out my personal and professional life. My very own Support Squad. I'd picture myself at the head of the table wearing a stunning Armani suit and tasteful Tiffany earrings - this is my fantasy, after all - while my team brainstormed business strategies, overhauled my fitness regimen, and advised me on my love life.
When I left the relative safety of the corporate world and decided to go it alone, at a time when most people thought I was far too old to be publishing my first book and starting my own business, I knew my Support Squad would help me prove them wrong. There was just one problem. I didn't have a Support Squad.
Not to be deterred by this small detail, I decided to enlist a team to help me start my coaching and consulting business as I pursued my writing career and adjusted to single life. I started by asking my former boss, Andy, if he would serve as my business mentor. He immediately said yes, and only later confessed that he'd had no clue what I needed, but hoped I did. Emboldened by my first successful recruit, I added a financial advisor, a physical trainer, a landscape gardener, even a great group of girlfriends who shared my passion for theater and travel.
Some, like the financial advisor and fitness trainer, were paid professionals. Others, like the gardening pal and the girlfriends, offered their support simply out of the goodness of their hearts. It wasn't always clear exactly what role each person would play, but as long as they were enthusiastic, or at least willing, to help me change my life, I knew we'd figure it out as we went along. And we did. Eight years later, my Support Squad has seen me through more changes than Carrie Bradshaw has shoes.
What kind of support do you need to see you through the major transitions or daily dilemmas of life? Whether you want assistance with work, kids, fitness, finances or all of the above, recruiting your Support Squad isn't as difficult as you might think. Start by making a list of friends, colleagues, or relatives who might be willing to help you meet your goals. And if you don't know what your goals are, clarifying them can be your team's first endeavor. Pick the least intimidating person on your list for your first recruiting conversation, working up to the more challenging ones as your confidence grows. Follow these simple steps to solicit support and build your squad:
1. State your goal. It could be, 'I'd like to begin a fitness program,' or 'I want to start my own business.'
2. Make your request. 'I'd like you to be my workout buddy,' or 'I want to hire you as my business coach.'
3. Negotiate next steps. Whether it's a paid professional or a friend, determine exactly what form their support will take with regard to timing, location, length of commitment and payment, if any.
4. Evaluate on an ongoing basis. If your goals are clear and measurable, you'll be able to determine if your team has helped you reach them. Add new members as the need or opportunity arises.
5. Be sure to give back. Volunteer to be a part of someone else's Support Squad.
Congratulations, you're on your way to creating your own customized Support Squad to help you travel hopefully toward transforming your life!
Libby Gill is a personal coach, lecturer and author of “Traveling Hopefully.” Libby welcomes comments and questions at AskLibby@LibbyGill.com.
http://www.bridgettwalther.com/default.asp

What if you have a terrible illness? Can you just 'ask the universe' for a miracle cure? What if you have a depressingly difficult situation to contend with? Can you simply 'order up' a trouble-free transformation? Well, you can ask, but... by making your request as reasonable as possible, you're much more likely to get a quick, pleasing result. If, for example, you ask for insight, tolerance, understanding and the ability to feel OK... the universe is pretty much obliged to help you! Once it does, you are then in a much better position to help yourself.
Jonathan Cainer
http://www.bubble.com/

Back from Whistler

and i just want to return to the mts!