'Grandpa and Me Ice Skating' by Norman Rockwell: story below!
First, I think it's disappointing there are so many companies still doing business in Russia. (But, I confess, I didn't know they were doing business there in the first place!).
I've picked out some you may find interesting from businessinsider.com . This information was posted on March 10, 2022.
Mondelez International (Oreo, Ritz, Cadbury, and Trident) remains but is scaling back a little
Mars (Whiskas, KitKat, Pedigree, Chappi, Sheba)
Kimberly-Clark (Kleenex, Kotex, Cottonelle)
Coty
Hilton
Hyatt
Marriott
Citigroup (working towards exiting Russia)
Bridgestone Tire
Pirelli
Caterpillar (long history in Russia)
John Deere
Cargill
Otis Worldwide
Whirlpool (limiting production in Russia)
It was a bit of an education for me to realize what Mondelez and Mars manufacture!
Please note that this is not a complete list. Let me know if you have more recent/improved information.
Here's the very short story I wrote during a ten minute on-the-spot writing challenge at an Uxbridge Writers' Circle meeting. The 'prompt' was the picture above called 'Grandpa and Me Ice Skating' by Norman Rockwell.
Grandpa was a boring old man with white whiskers and deep wrinkles. He sat in his recliner and it seemed to me that he spent more time snoring than he did talking. He must have had so much he could tell us about, so many interesting things, but we didn't hear any of it.
But he was the best Grandpa in the whole wide world when we went skating. Somehow his stiff body would unwind and energy seemed to travel from his toque to his toes. His scarf would fly around this way and that as he spun and twirled. He skated backwards at an atrocious speed, often barely missing us. We would watch in awe, the cold seeping and creeping until we realized we hadn't moved for several minutes as we watched his show.
One afternoon, as he untied his skates, I plucked up courage to ask him how he learned to skate like that.
"Ah, I was a hockey player many, many years ago."
"Wow. With the NHL?"
"Yep."
"That must have been the best.'
"It was okay, but we didn't wear helmets like your Mom makes you wear."
"I'd like not to wear a helmet."
"You could hit your head on the ice and end up like me."
So, I always wear my helmet. I don't want to get wrinkles like my Grandpa.
PS Despite my lack of focus some days, I'm on page 123 of the first (rough) draft of the 5th book in the Meg Sheppard Mystery Series.
Vicky Earle Copyright 2022