My wife and I and others were being chased by zombies. Fighting them off, we’d taken refuge in a large building. Seemed like some manner of old mansion, maybe. Don’t know.
During the fight, I’d managed to arm myself with two weapons. One was a large but old revolver. Basically, a six-shooter. The other was a modern 9mm handgun, black and cold.
I kept one in each hand as I met the new people, survivors like us. It was chaotic. I was edgy, tense, a little angry. People seemed to be doing stupid things, leaving doors and windows open. I kept going around, closing these things, looking for food, telling others to be careful.
They didn’t seem to be responding well to my comments. They weren’t angry or anything but seemingly oblivious. As I processed that, I concluded that I needed to establish a safe little place for me and my wife in that larger area, and went up some wooden stairs in such of such a place.
I kept my weapons with me. At one point, though, talking with another, I noticed that the revolver had some pink material. Opening the cylinder, I found that each round had the striking end covered in a bright pink wad of cloth, a safety thing I concluded, with some alarm. If I’d tried using that weapon, it probably wouldn’t have fired.
Meanwhile, I wondered, was the 9mm okay, or did it have something like that? But I’d seen the magazine and I thought I’d fired it once without problem, so I thought it was okay.
The dream ended with me trying to remove the pink wadding from the revolving.
Summer remains in full effect here. While it’s a pleasant, blue-sky 70 now, we expect 94 F to arrive before the sun curves out of sight.
Papi says, that’s okay. Let’s get something to eat, clean up, and take a nap.
With little surprise and total arrogance, Trump insisted on a huge fireworks display for the 4th. Per nature’s rules, that caused pollution which resulted in unhealthy air for We the People living and visiting there. The situation was made worse by the extreme heat the area is experiencing. Saturday’s temperature reached 103 degrees F that day. The extreme heat caused the pollution to linger.
I have “Cinnamon Girl” stuck in my morning mental music stream. It’s dream related. I had three dreams last night and one involved a woman with cinnamon-colored skin. With my wife, she and I were taken aback by the woman’s beautiful skin. She was petite, barely more than a girl. We saw her three times in the dream but never spoke with her. Instead, we would be walking through the throngs, look up and say, “Look, there’s the cinnamon girl.”
So, here is the song by Neil Young and Crazy Horse.
May happiness and joy fill your Monday and carry you into a brighter, better future.
Ashland, southern Oregon — Thursday, July 2, 2026.
It’s blue-sky Thursday. Admittedly, that’s the July norm for our parts. 61 F now, our high is jumping into the mid eighties today. There’s a good feel to the air. Papi and I sat back and sucked it up for a while. I went back in, and he commenced a vigorous pre-nap cleaning.
No smoke, either. I feel for places enduring wildfire and its smoke and its impact, such as Utah. I understand from my sisters that their area is insufferable due to high humidity and high heat. They’re trapped under that dome of dangerous heat affecting 160 million Americans.
I’m feeling so good today, it’s almost criminal. Had amazing dreams and a solid night of fantastic sleep.
Mom has been quiet. As has two of my sisters, on vacation. Hope it’s because all is well with all of them. Fingers crossed, knock on wood, etc.
What can we say about Trump and the news at this point that hasn’t been said? Empty promises, lying to promote himself, extending the Trump touch to everything, he gets wealthier while whatever he touches withers and collapses, decaying and fading.
Trump, though, feeds off others’ energy. He’s a strange, unusual creature. That’s why he likes to do rallies, have them all smiling hopefully up at him, agreeing with all he says as he spins stories about his greatness, ‘telling it like it is’.
Job numbers were down. Analysts expected 100K and only 57K were reported. Unemployment also ticked down but that’s because less people are participating in the work force. It’s at its lowest level since 2021. We won’t know what it all means for months but the people embroiled in it probably will tell you, “I know exactly what it means: the economy sucks.” The questions about why it sucks will rage on.
My wife told me of an interview with people in Florida that she watched. Asked about the economy and Trump’s increasing wealth, one said, “He’s not doing anything for the middle class but he’s certainly enriching himself.”
While I like hearing that from others, hoping it’s a sign that people are shifting from Trump, I read — but couldn’t vet — remarks from the MAGAsphere that Trump is so smart, and that’s why he’s making money. *gag*
More news came out about the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pond and Trump’s ‘renovations’, aka Algaegate. Now they’re saying toxic materials were used. Bad for the environment, but that’s never been a Trump worry, long as he has a golf course.
The Epstein files still haven’t been fully released. Although not fully financed, the Epstein ballroom construction rolls on. With Trump’s manhandling of it, the nation continues to stumble through the celebration of 250 years.
He is wrong, of course, but it’s not surprising that he believes it. Being told by staff, friends, and family would let him shrug it off, as they knew he wanted to do. As he’s not a student of law or history, neither of those aspects would affect him, either. Since his bottom line has and is always how can he make things better for himself, how he can make himself look better, and how he can make himself richer, he was happy to run with what he was being told.
As usual, Trump heard what he wanted to hear, so he could think what he wanted to think, and do what he wanted to do.
My thoughts this morning were a stew. Jobs reports, working people, the upcoming holiday, and the struggles with affordability. Tasting it as I stirred, The Neurons emerged with “Blue Collar Man (Long Nights)” by Styx. The 1978 song is all about working and making a living, and the determination to get ahead.
I’m off to other matters. Stay comfortable and safe, whatever conditions come at you, and go with grace and peace.
Ashland, southern Oregon — Tuesday, June 20, 2026.
Blue skies and sunshine. A light wind is blowing. Temperatures are creeping out of the fifties through the sixties, heading for the seventies.
Hmm. Almost the reverse of the Trump administration. They’re creeping back toward through the seventies toward the fifties — the 1850s.
Hope they’ve read “Yesteryear”. *lol*
Back to the weather. The Gingerboi, Papi, declares it almost perfect. If not for the wind, he says…
Had an excellent sleep last night. My dreams had me laughing. I’d read again a historical novel, “The Winter King”, and watched again “The Last Kingdom”. I then ended up dreaming of myself as basically a character in those settings last night. They were fun dreams, and did not have the bloody violence of the television series or novel.
The War between Trump and Facts continues. In this episode, he battles on against what our eyes show: the Great American State Fair is another Great American Trump Mess.
Reputable reporters and bloggers reported low turnout for the heavily-hyped Trump event. Trump declared there were 45,000 people attending but offered no evidence of that while others provided photos
You know, I side against Trump. He’s lied thousands of times about multiple topics. He repeats lies — like how great the economy is doing and how much respect the nation has gained. Hard data and anecdotal experiences expose his lies.
Then, there is Algaegate, the ‘redoing’ of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool. Trump began by denigrating how it looked, dismissing what others did to fix. He bragged about how great he would make it look, what a great deal he got to make it happen, misleading us about the price while doing so.
Then the results came in, and its horrible. And the story grows about who did what behind the scenes — driving across the pool, using materials on it for which it isn’t suited, spending more money than claimed. It was supposed to cost $1M to $2M. He’s now had $16.4M spent on it.
There’s that expression, once bitten, twice shy. Other sayings proceeded it: a scalded cat fears cold water. The point is that we learn to distrust. Once mislead, we’re skeptical. Once hurt, we keep our distance.
Trump does not respect that at all. But that’s how I respond to all his claims. Any trust which may have been there is gone.
Here’s today’s music from the morning mental music stream, “Once Bitten, Twice Shy”, by Great White.
I hope you have a gloriously happy but safe day. Go with peace and grace.
Blue sky, cool air, and sunshine marks the valley. We’re at 59 F and expect a high of the upper seventies.
In Mom’s world, it’s been quiet on her health. No feedback from her visit to the hospital ER and the tests they ran. On the housing side of it, there’s a good offer on Mom’s house. I voted to take it, but they have opted to wait and see if more come in. The offer expires tomorrow night.
In depressing US news, the Roberts Court ruled Alabama can use its new Congressional map. A lower court found it racial. But the Roberts Court, hiding behind the shadow docket, said, “It’s good,” without bothering to sign their opinion. This is the John Roberts’ legacy.
Trump’s legacy is war, lies, and fake news. News reports are bubbling over the job reports. Based on economic factors and indicators, economists were expected another bad one. Gosh, somehow the Trump appointee managed to find ‘good’ numbers.
No, the numbers aren’t sterling. I expect them to be revised downward in a few months or exposed as fake. That’s in keeping with Trump’s preaching. He’s always shouting fake news, fake news while lying about what’s happening or planned.
He lied and promised no new wars, claimed the war was over, and we won, and yet, the war goes on. So, no, I don’t believe anything come out of the Trump administration.
I don’t have a Trump Quote of the Day available. Instead, I offer this image of Trump celebrating Pride Month.
I got a song stuck in my morning mental music stream: “Nothing Gonna Stop Us Now”. The song, from 1987, was performed by Starship. It’s the theme song to the move, “Mannequin”. I have never seen it.
I don’t know why The Neurons planted it in my morning stream. I was doing my dream recall routine and the song started. It doesn’t seem to be specifically related to any part of any dream, though. Hope you enjoy it.
Enjoy your first June Friday! Hope peace, happiness, and joy fill it.
Papi was as pleased as he ever shows himself to be when we opened the back door and called his name. Standing, stretching, he paused to wash, then began to trot towards us, then stopped to stretch, and finally walked over, sat down, washed, and looked up: “Oh. Hi. Didn’t see you there.”
Good to see him.
56 degrees F here, roaring power lawn equipment has replaced the sounds of surf. There’s no beach to ponder, no waves to assess and admire, no fresh ocean air to breath, no ‘sea breeze’ to battle as I walk.
Bummer. It’ll be 85 and dry here…
One thing that struck us yesterday coming home was how empty the roads were. Motor homes were especially absent, but in general, it was light traffic to moderate traffic. Long stretches of secondary roads were driven where we met no other cars, followed no vehicles, and had nothing in our mirrors. It did not seem like the holiday traffic — or even the coastal traffic — we’ve encountered in previous years.
Gina, my younger sister, makes progress selling Mom’s possessions: $530 has been realized.The dining room table, chairs, hutch and sideboard are gone. Gina is wheeling and dealing. Someone shows interest, she reaches out, negotiates, shows them what else is available. More prospective buyers are coming by tomorrow. Vacuuming, sweeping, dusting, and polishing is underway. Our oldest sister is driving in from Georgia to help out this week.
Iran says that they’ll control the Strait of Hormuz and that their nuclear program isn’t being discussed. They’re proposing ‘fees’ instead of tolls or taxes to use the straits.
It’s the same kind of deals we often see on the local levels when our local government wants to raise money but knows that ‘taxes’ will cause a backlash. The answer: fees. We see it with airlines, too. Security fees, handling fees, administrative fees. Not charges, not taxes, not tolls — fees. I remember once reading that Texas had no taxes but they charged fees on everything.
Besides the Golden Age of Corruption, it’s the Golden Age of Fees.
Economists note that the US has been adding to its national debt at the rate of $5,000,000,000 per day since October of 2025.
In an interest coincidence, October of 2025 is when Trump demolished the White House East Wing to begin building the Epstein ballroom under Operation Epic LOOK — SQUIRREL!
Today’s music is by Night Ranger. The Neurons unlocked it when I was in bed this morning, remembering dreams and drifting in and out of sleep. During that fugue state, “When You Close Your Eyes” from the 1980s began playing in the morning mental music stream.
As I remembered the song, I also remembered this was one of the songs I heard while visiting Mom and family after returning from Japan on military duty. My youngest sister and I were together. The song came on the radio. She smiled wide and said, “I love this song.” *smile*
And I realized that’s why the song came into the morning mental music stream; that sister had been in my dream as a young person.
I hope this day is going well for you, and you enjoy a day of peace and grace. If you can’t have that, I hope you can at least have a good meal and some happy times.
Michael Seidel, writer 