Ashland, southern Oregon — Tuesday, November 10, 2026.
Today began with some clouds. Sunshine won for an hour and then fog rolled in. Fifteen minutes later, the fog passed on, leaving us with blue sky flavored patches of clouds. Our temperature scaled the mercury to 69 F before receding to its current 51.
It came through just a short time ago that the Republicans are relying on Jim Jordan and John Thune for ‘leadership’. Which means, they will support Trump and stay the same course that took them crashing through the blue waves.
Trump, as noted in another post, is still floating on clouds of lies, delusions, and faux machismo. After Donald Trump floated ideas about changing his immigration, his MAGA base threw a tantrum. Trump quickly shifted to TACO and reverted to form.
That tells us a lot about how the Republicans, MAGA, and Trump, are planning to play the next two years. They’ll continue their ways, trying hard to obstruct the Dems. Trump and the GOP aren’t going to do anything to improve affordability in the US — especially if the Democrats are sponsoring the legislation.
I’m just floating through days myself right now, hitting medical appointments, adjusting to news, going on with my writing endeavors, living my best life, even if it sometimes feels very mediocre. The Neurons inserted a Modest Mouse tune into my morning mental music stream, “Float On”. Song came out in 2004 and was written about the politics of the time as George W. Bush led the United States into wars with Iraq and Afghanistan based on rumors Dick Cheney floated about WMDs.
Trump is doing his dance once again, singing a weave of lies, blame, and misinformation mesmerized and fooled so many in 2016 and 2024.
That must be qualified. Some were fooled because they weren’t paying attention. They liked Trump’s sound bites about affordability, releasing the Epstein files, and no new wars.
Stalwart MAGAts were not fooled. They knew what Trump was, and they liked it. Trump talks about hating others, and they like that because they hate others, too. Trump also blames the ones he hates for what happens to him, and those stalwarts like that because they like to blame the ones they hate for what has happened to them.
White Evangelicals weren’t (mostly) fooled. They’re interested in a Christian nation, as long as they can re-define Christianity (and American history) in ways that make them feel righteous and justified in hating others and preaching hate.
The wealthy were not fooled, either. They see Trump as a wealthy but useful idiot, cutting regulation, encouraging greed and profiteering as long as they gave him a taste.
Nor were the rock-hard conservatives like the Heritage Foundation fooled. They also saw Donald Trump and his stalwart base as useful tools for breaking the norms and precedents established through 250 years of existence as a nation. They disliked the direction of the country because it was too liberal and progressive, and they really prefer kings and dictators.
Those are the groups who sit in Trump audiences, regurgitating “Lock her up” and “Let’s go, Brandon”, limited in scope about what they’re able or willing to see and accept. Despite the blue wave of the 2026 midterm elections, those are the groups Trump is trying to win over again.
Just watch Donald Trump’s 2026 song and dance.
First: Trump thinks himself very popular. Why, if he was on the ballot, the results would have been very different. Even though all the accepted and respected polls tell Trump that most of the nation dislikes and disapproves of him, he insists otherwise.
Third: Donald Trump is very contrite in an interview. Yes, I went through this yesterday, and some media, as they so frequently did with Trump, tried to humanize and normalize him.
How long did that last? Why, within a few days, Trump was doing his regular dance moves.
Fourth: The midterm elections were stolen!
Gasp! How is that possible! It’s never been claimed before — except, of course, by Trump and MAGAts, people who can’t believe they lost and refuse to accept the evidence right before their eyes.
Donald Trump has declared the Iran war he started as over, effectively over, or won before, and told the world that it would be over in a few weeks when he started the war over eight months ago.
Donald Trump also said he would not start wars, that he would stop war.
Your Trump Quote of the Day:
Donald Trump also said he never promised he would never start a war.
The next step will be Trump declaring that the economy is doing great! Prices are already coming down! They’re coming down fast! We’re in a golden age. A gaggle of distractions will be released, like this one, trying to change the subject.
Next, we can expect Trump to blame former Presidents Obama and Biden. Why, it’s their fault.
It’s the same ol’ song and dance that Trump was doing in 2015 – lie and blame others. Accept no responsibility. As the blue wave demonstrated in November of 2026, Trump’s song and dance is so yesterday.
A change is needed. The blue wave was the beginning, but a lot of work remains to be done.
Ashland, southern Oregon — Monday, November 9, 2026.
Autumn is clicking in the valley. Changing leaves and falling leaves: we have both! Rain and sunshine, chilly nights and sluggishly warm days? Yes!
It rained this morning. 53 F now, sunshine and dark clouds fence. Rain skirts in and drifts out.
We did our Food & Friends deliveries today, so I’m late posting things. Adding to my tardiness was breakfast out at a local favorite, Brothers.
We’re moving toward winter solstice, the longest night of the year. Came to me this morning as I crossed rooms and noticed how dark everything seemed because clouds were blocking whatever sun managed to clear the mountains.
Thoughts about being in the dark multiplied. As it happens with life, we’re often in the dark, waiting for decisions or see how someone else acts or responds, to health issues to…well, it’s a big list, isn’t it?
We know the Dems are taking over in January. But who will be leading the Dems? We’re in the dark at the moment.
What will happen with the Iran war? In the dark, aren’t we?
And what will Trump do between now and the end of his term? Lot of expectations and predictions based on his past but we’re in the dark. We wait in the dark to see what Trump’s next distraction.
Will prices go down? Will AI take over and build giant robots which become our overlords? In the dark.
And, thanks to Trump and his DOJ, we remain in the dark about exactly what the Epstein files hold.
The Neurons ran with being in the dark, producing “In the Dark” in the morning mental music stream. Billy Squier wrote and performed the song, releasing it in 1981. The lyrics are all about how you might feel in the dark.
The other part of this how woefully Trump is in the dark, deliberately so, about how unpopular he is. His policies are failures for We the People unless you’re among the wealthiest of the people. Then Trump’s policies are just peachy. If you’re wealthy enough that you live off the profits of your stock investments and don’t worry about the costs of things like food, housing, gas, energy, and healthcare, then Trump’s world fully fits your needs.
I hope you find comfort, love, and peace whether you’re in the dark or in the light.
I was reflecting on a Trump quote I shared in an earlier post. It triggered a need for a sports analogy for me.
Ordinarily, I avoid sports analogies when addressing politics. Such analogies are generally lazy, lowering politics and their outcome to the same level as pastimes which have grown into enormous, profitable businesses but are meaningless in the long run. Sports preoccupy many people and divert their attention from real and serious matters. (Some will rebut, that’s exactly why sports are needed, to divert us from all the problems we face but I’ll leave that diversion alone…)
First, the Trump quote:
I want to add context. Trump made his statement on the day on which a blue tsunami took national elections in a stark repudiation of the direction Trump was taking the United States.
Additional context: when Trump took office in 2025 after winning election in 2024, the GOP took control of both chambers of Congress. The Roberts Court already had a right-wing tilt built into it. In essence, conservatives, led by Donald Trump, controlled the Federal government.
Donald Trump won re-election by making many promises, among these, starting no new wars, lowering prices on day one, and ending Russia’s war with Ukraine.
Trump said at his inauguration that he wanted to be remembered as a uniter and a peace president.
Since taking office, he’s broken many promises. While he’s become quite wealthy, many Americans are coping with an affordability crisis. People are struggling with food, housing, insurance, and energy prices, among other things.
Here’s where the sports analogy enters.
First, let’s pretend that Donald Trump is the head coach of a football team.
Trump’s team started aggressively but undisciplined. They stalled their own efforts with penalty after penalty. It was like they didn’t understand the rules and refused to accept the rules.
His team has not scored any touchdowns. They fumbled the ball away multiple times, challenged rulings on the field, and lost, setting them further back.
The offensive side of the ball couldn’t advance the ball down the field, so they kicked it from far away from the goal and scored a few points. The defense is worn down because the offense no longer has anything left.
The other side, meanwhile, has grabbed the momentum. Their defense has been playing strongly, keeping Trump’s offense from advancing, and now the offense has scored multiple times.
And here is Donald Trump, head coach, walking to the locker room at halftime, beyond by over twenty points, saying, “We’ve played the greatest first half in all of football.” It’s a delusional halftime speech from a coach refusing to look at the scoreboard.
As I watch, I think, Trump still refuses to admit how miserable it’s going. He’s going into the locker room and won’t make any adjustments. He’ll just keep trying to do the same miserable, failed plays.
Beautiful day outside. Something in the air. The sky is a fantastic BLUE and the sunshine is sharp and bright.
It’s 49 F degrees outside, rising to 58 F today. We might see 60. Overall, a crispy autumn day.
My sister, Gina, took Mom to vote yesterday as well as taking Mom to her doctor’s appointment. Gina treated us to regular updates about Mom’s awareness of what was going on and what was expected. Gina concluded that Mom needs to be in a nursing home.
The midterm elections were held in the US yesterday. The projected blue tsunami came through even stronger than expected.
I’m sure there are many who think as I do, that the midterm election results are in with good results for We the People but the mango maniac still remains in a seat of power. Trump may be contrite today, blaming others for his mistakes, but Donald Trump will come raging back. Don’t let your guard down.
Your Trump Quote of the Day:
Even after the decisive Democratic victories in the midterms, an election specifically about the success and direction of the nation, Donald Trump refuses to accept the failure of his policies and practices.
With all that bubbling in my thinking, The Neurons pulled up “Right Here, Right Now”. This Jesus Jones song reflected exactly what my main body of thought was reporting. Take a pause, right here, right now, to accept the win because we’ve been waiting for it but now that it’s not over.
Trump has become a bad television show or movie, one you stay with because it becomes so bad, it’s funny.
Unlike those television shows and movies, Trump is a real-life challenge to our norms and acceptable behavior, with far-ranging repercussions emerging from his action.
We rolled into Tuesday, November 3, 2026 — Election Day in the US — with Trump and his policies and administration growing less popular. Donald Trump has fired effort after effort to enhance his standing. He’s offered payments, subsidies, and benefits to offset the impact of starting a war in Iran, driving up prices, and causing death and chaos. He’s even portrayed himself as various respected people like superheroes and saints. Nothing is swaying the voters because the pain from Trump’s failures is cutting too deeply.
As part of Trump’s flailing desperation, he turned again to Iran. New attacks were launched, resulting in greater confusion and tension about what was going on with the war. Donald Trump previously said no attacks on Iran were planned and also mentioned that the war was over or won, that the war wasn’t a war, and that gas prices would quickly come down, soon.
Your Trump Quote of the Day:
Trump was trying to say that the US isn’t at war because there was no shooting going on — never mind the death and destruction already caused by the seven months of war already endured.
Unfortunately for Donald Trump, commander-in-chief, the US announced new military strikes on Iran shortly after Trump’s convoluted weave about what constitutes war. The timing between Trump’s defensive explanation and the new attacks left Trump looking like an a) an idiot, b) a liar, c) out of touch, d) not in charge, or e) all of these things.
Trump already attempted to reduce the impact of voting by mail. Recent elections showed more Democrats than Republicans voting by mail so Trump tried an end run, attempting to slow down the mail. This slowdown affected rural areas more sharply. Rural areas in the US tend to lean heavily Republican, so these postal measures have paradoxically created the highest risk of ballot rejection for the very demographic that Trump historically needs, rural voters.
Trump also attacked voter registration in California and other states, and tried intimidating state voting officials. In parallel, red states attempted to reduce voter participation by onerous voter registration and ID laws, closing voting locations, and prohibiting water in line.
With none of that working, Operation Epic LOOK — SQUIRREL! went into action.
Operation Epic LOOK — SQUIRREL! is Donald Trump’s recurring project to keep people distracted from what’s going on — especially bad things like a war not going as planned, prices rising across the board, and a rising national debt and a growing deficit. Worse than all of those things for Donald Trump is the specter of the Epstein files and what they tell about Donald Trump, and Trump’s declining popularity.
Under Operation Epic LOOK — SQUIRREL!, Donald Trump has launched a succession of distractions. These include trying to renovate the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, demolishing part of the White House, starting construction of a new, gigantic White House ballroom, festooning the Oval Office with tacky gold decor, paving over the historic Rose Garden, tearing up a golf course, cutting down trees, arbitrarily declaring new names for places, sending ICE into US cities, abducting the sitting president of Venezuela, and of course, attacking boats at sea, killing people, and starting the war with Iran.
Whew! That’s not even a complete list!
The distractions aren’t working. In fact, many of them blew up in Trump’s face, acting as a catalyst to decrease his popularity and approval ratings.
I yawned when I read Trump’s latest desperate distraction.
There are a number of legal, political, and logistical impediments to Trump’s grand declaration. Besides those aspects, I’m dubious of Trump maintaining the focus and political will to do this. I put this alongside of many other Trump announcements, like eliminating the national debt, prices coming down on day one, no new wars, prescription drug prices being cut by hundreds or thousands percent, and stopping the Ukraine War before he even began his second term.
Donald Trump makes many promises. Few promises result in anything close to what he claims. Instead, he’s enriched himself, increased division in the nation, and is inflaming the affordability crisis.
A change is needed. I hope enough people realized this.
That last headline is interesting. It highlights Trump’s patterns, IMO.
Trump likes to lie to win over voters (which some admire because he’s ‘telling it straight’ to them, in their mind). Then he makes solemn promises — over and over — about the great things he’ll do for people and the nation. Righteous declarations follow about who he is — a peace president who stopped eight wars, a unifier, a churchgoer who cares about everyone, a person who would never condone violence.
Then Trump broke many of his promises. Donald Trump often claimed that wasn’t what he said, that wasn’t what he meant, or that he was joking.
Next, Trump cut funding to programs and services. Some was done in secret, depending on the category of spending and how his ‘base’ feels about it. However and whyever Trump cuts, repercussions emerge. Experts often warn Trump and his supporters that those results will probably happen, but they ignore them, because TRUMP.
Then, lo, the results come in, almost as predicted. People become angry. If the angry people are part of Trump’s base, he slowly, belatedly, tries to fix things. Trump’s typical fix is usually a cash offer of dividends, subsidies, assistance. Those things sound terribly socialist, because such government handouts are branded as socialist by the right, but that’s okay; that’s Trump and his base.
That’s different.
It always is one standard for Trump and his supporters, and another for everyone else.
It’s the Trump Double Standard.
The debacle with the farmers can be traced across Trump’s second term.
Farmers’ problems began well before Trump came into office the second time as climate change, widespread heat, and drought changed weather patterns, and insurance costs skyrocketed. But I want to specifically address how Donald Trump’s actions actively worsened the situation for American farmers.
DOGE cut USAID funds because America First. As part of those cuts, the Food for Peace funds were cut. While the Food for Peace program fed people outside of the United States, Food for Peace bought billions of dollars of produce from American farmers. Just like that, that market was gone. Thank you, Donald Trump.
At the same time, funding for programs like the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) was frozen, leaving farmers who had already invested money into soil and water conservation projects completely in limbo regarding federal reimbursements. Thanks again, Donald Trump.
Then, while farmers and most Americans were struggling to pay bills, Trump launched his war against Iran, immediately affecting global oil shipments and the international supply chain, resulting in higher prices for oil, diesel, and fertilizer for farmers. Thank you a fourth time, Donald Trump
Donald Trump’s solution for the problems he caused American farmers from the 2025 DOGE cuts, lost global markets, and higher prices from the 2026 Iran war was to throw money at it. Just days before the November 2026 midterms, the USDA scrambled to pledge $15 billion in emergency ad-hoc aid.
It’s too late for many farmers. They already declared insolvency. It’s also too late for those who are planning their fall purchases and next year’s crops. Not for the first time, Donald Trump, self-proclaimed expert in so many fields, failed to grasp the powerful negative impact of his decisions. And not for the first time, Donald Trump has No. Way. Out.
Thank you again, Donald Trump. Thank you for worsening the situation for farming in America. Thank you for raising the prices of food staples, oil, gas, diesel, and fertilizer. Thank you very damn much.
Ashland, southern Oregon — Tuesday, October 27, 2026.
Here we go, another rainy autumn day, snow on higher elevations further north, shifting quickly from fall toward winter. Light blue splashes between white clouds smeared with gray. Rain rushes down and moves away. Another wave comes and goes.
It’s 42 F. Been 42 F since I got out of bed hours ago. High is supposed to be 48 F.
We’re all welcoming the rain. Lovely witnessing brown fields become green again.
Today’s music is “The Walker” by Fitz and the Tantrums. Came out in 2003. It entered my morning mental music stream today after I made my colonoscopy appointment. November 3 and 10 were offered first. But those are the Tuesdays after my next two BCG washes, so no thanks. The colonoscopy calls for a limited diet for the four days before the surgery, and the BCG can afford mood, energy, so on.
“The Walker” also fit my mood (and The Neurons’ thinking) because we’re closing on the national 2026 midterm elections. It’s like, here we go, just next Tuesday. Trump is already stumping that anytime someone he endorses loses, it’s a fake or stolen election — or ‘something smells’. Never offers any evidence, because there isn’t any. Now Donald Trump is offering money for reporting voter fraud.
It’s another Trump stunt, another facet of Operation Epic LOOK — SQUIRREL!
In effect, Trump is begging voters, “Please don’t judge me on my record. Don’t judge me on the desultory Iran war I began. Don’t judge me for not releasing the Epstein files. Please, please, don’t judge me on the affordability crisis and rising prices. And don’t judge me on the many lies I’ve made or the money my family and I made while in office. Don’t judge me for the pardons and the pay to play that’s going on.”
Trump was especially upset by how much better former President Barack Obama is polling compared to Donald Trump. Former President Obama is so much more popular than Trump! Showing how hurt and angry he is, Trump threw a fit on social media, ranting about Bill Maher. “Distraction, distraction, look at me, listen to me, love me!”
Trump’s justice department is trying to bring cases they failed to win before, and judges are slapping them around.
Ooh, crazy’s what they think about me Ain’t gonna stop ’cause they tell me so ‘Cause 99 miles per hour baby Is how fast that I like to go
Can’t keep up with my rhythm Though they keep trying Too quick for the lines they throw I walk to the sound of my own drum We go, they go, we go, hey yeah, yeah, yeah
Oh, here we go Feel it in my soul Really mean it, mean it, so go Gotta feel it, honey takes control Really mean it, mean it
May this October day find you healthy and well, no matter what your season is.
It’s all about the danger within now. It begins with rising prices. Keeps us distracted, part of Donald Trump’s Operation Epic LOOK — SQUIRREL! The war does its part to distract us, keep us turning our heads.
Then we have the many competent and capable people Donald Trump has fired. Trump has attacked every institution, and assails and threatens freedom of speech and freedom of the press.
Ashland, southern Oregon — Monday, October 19, 2026.
I don’t know about everyone else but October is running a fast pace. Today is busy with appointments and contractors coming by. My wife completed her mail-in ballot yesterday, and I need to do mine this week.
A cool day, with clouds hiding the sun and filtering its light and warmth. Rain threatens. Right now, it’s 52 F and we might make it to 60.
Nothing from Mom or my sisters yesterday or today, both a relief and a worry. I’ll take relief for 100, Alex.
As I’m push for time, this is short. Nothing about Trump. I have a song stuck in the morning mental music stream. Titled “Expressway to Your Heart”, the song was released by the Soul Survivors in 1967. I honestly enjoy this song. Nice rhythm is embedded in it, and it’s easy to sing along. I also like little flourishes they use — changes in tempo, the organ, the piano, the use of traffic sounds, the electric guitar. Loved hearing all of that when it came out when I was 11, and I still like it.
For a bonus, this is video from early days of “American Bandstand” and a young Dick Clark. I didn’t watch the show consistently but had many friends, especially females, who set their schedule around it. They liked hearing the music but also seeing the clothes and make up being worn, and the latest dance moves. Watching it makes me smile. It’s terrific, when you think about it, that we have a technology that allows us to revisit moments like this from our past.
Watching this video from 1967, we have no sense of all the drama going on in the world. These are just young people enjoying music. No sense of the demonstrations taking place, the social change being pursued. During that era, we had the cold war boiling along with Vietnam, and still stood in the shadows of WW I, WW II, and Korea — and that was only the wars overtly involving the US. Many other wars and conflicts rage.
Comparing this time to now, we can how far we’ve come but how much further we have to go. We also see how some things haven’t changed much.
Back in 1967, voters were standing up for equal rights for women and minorities. The nation was trying to move away from ‘separate but equal’. Integration was replacing segregation.
And now, almost sixty years later, it feels like Trump is trying to drag us into the 1950s. Donald Trump and his administration are moving against equality, rewriting history to downplay the parts of anyone except white men, even trying to downplay the role of anyone but Republicans. Trump a war that he promised he wouldn’t, a shadow that won’t go away.
Then we have the Epstein and the disgusting revelations in it.
Long sigh.
On to other things momentarily. May good things happen to you today.
