Tuesday’s Theme Music
Mood: Moontalized
And just like that, summer struck back. A friend wrote in an email about meeting up for a beer, “Is it PC to refer to this pleasant time of year as ‘Indian Summer?’ I sure hope so.”
Yep, autumn and autmer and sumumn have all been displaced for summer, if we use the weather as a ruler. It’s September 24, 2024 on the calendar. Here in Ashlandia, that should translate to autumn, or ‘fall’ as many locals call it. But with the low only dipping into the middle sixties last night and an expected high of 95 F, this Tuesday has summer scrawled all over it. Add in a deep blue sky tinged with hazy edges, and it feels like June has fallen on us once again.
There’s all manner of news spreading across the wires today. Good stuff like new 2024 election trends and Trump’s claim that if he loses this time, he’s done. WTF news about a blizzard in South Africa. Gold hit an all-time high, Texas is suing the Biden Administration, and Hurricane John is a cat 3 striking Mexico.
Oh, and Earth is closer to getting that ‘second moon’ we’ve always hoped for, though it’ll be just a temporary addition. Call it a trial run. We’ll need to be careful in how the new moon is introduced and ensure that it gets along with the old Moon. It’s used to being the only moon, so there’s some trepidation that the new and old moon will go after each other.
I was outside in the backyard at 3 AM (yes, it was a cat thing) when I was overtaken by the stunningly clear sky and brilliant, bold moonshine. I stood out there alone for a while, sucking in the fresh air and stargazing. That probably contributed to The Neurons posting a Thin Lizzy song, “Dancing in the Moonlight (It’s Caught Me in Its Spotlight)” in the morning mental music stream (Trademark two-step). The song came out in ’77 but it doesn’t get much radio play in the U.S. these days.
Stay positive, be strong, lean forward, and vote blue in 2024. I have reached the bottom of my coffee cup, so I am facing a personal sad time. Here’s the music! Cheers
Sunday’s Political Thoughts
Down in North Carolina, we have a Black Republican who disparages Martin Luther King with juvenile insults, mocks school shooting survivors, insists that Michelle Obama is a man, and would’ve joined the Ku Klux Klan if they accepted Blacks.
It gets better.
Mark Robinson, the GOP’s overwhelming choice for nominee for the North Carolina governorship, has been around for several years with these outlandish claims. He and his claims were so out of there ridiculous that Trump eagerly endorsed him.
Now, more is coming out about Robinson. Evidence shows he’s been visiting porn sites and commenting online. He’s for slavery. Would buy a few himself.
The topper? This is an Evangelical.
Let’s pause and wrap our heads around the things Robinson says with what an Evangelical is supposed to be in the world of Christianity.
This is the GOP: a warped amalgam of American values, history, and political positions. Besides Trump and Robinson, there is JD Vance. He’s Trump’s running mate, out there lying about his Ohio constituents by claiming some of them are eating their neighbors’ pets. He agrees it’s a lie, but the lie is too important to their message to drop. Doesn’t matter to him that he’s endangering his constituents with his rhetoric…even as he calls for the rhetoric to be cooled because of threats to Trump.
Is that fucking twisting, or what?
As late night informercial offers used to declare, “Wait, there’s more!”
Elon Musk has become quite enamored with the right wing which Trump and the GOP are. So much that he took up Trump’s defense in the weirdest, most twisted way possible when pop star Taylor Swift endorsed Kamala Harris for POTUS.
“Fine Taylor … you win … I will give you a child and guard your cats with my life”
Weird has become popular to describe Trump. But the reality is, that party is getting more twisted. Sure, these are leaderships I’ve highlighted, but it’s their supporters and the party which keep them in power.
Vote blue. Please.
Saturday’s Theme Music
Mood: Sumumnsatting
With change of season almost on us and the world’s relationship to the sun shifting, the sunbeams jumped right into my bed through the room’s sliding glass door, illuminating me and my faithful buddy, Tucker (pronounced Tuck-ah). Time to get up, I think I said, and he replied, Time to eat.
Sumumn still holds on, dropping cool nights on us, like 50 F last night, but taking us to pleasantly warm temperatures, like 82 F today. A finely consistent coat of gilded sunshine holds the days while nights are wrapped up in clear, starry skies. This is Saturday, September 21, 2024.
After reading some of Trump’s latest stuff, I read about Danica Patrick’s declarations about being between a Republican and an Independent. Danica Patrick is a retired race driver who is always down on Vice President Harris. She’s also Aaron Rodger’s former girlfriend. Patrick commented, “I think our country should be run by someone that knows business and has integrity.”
Well, as true experts will clarify for you, running the nation as a business is not realistic; a nation and a business have different goals, with a nation being concerned about its people welfare and security, and the multitude of issues and needs which fall into those wide buckets. A business is focused on making a profit. Those are contrary end-goals.
Patrick doesn’t mention that she’s voting for D.J. Trump. I can’t believe that she would if she’s realistically assessing Trump’s business acumen. After that, discussions about Trump’s integrity can open. Documented as being a consistent liar, he’s also demonstrated that he’s out of touch with the nation’s history and needs, flipflops on his positions based on what he believes voters want to hear (see abortion and Project 2025), and if you believe the lawsuits and commentary from New Yorkers, he regularly stiffs contractors. Trump’s business bankruptcies are also well-chronicled.
Anyway, out of that, Hall & Oates began playing in the morning mental music stream (Trademark trumped) as Der Neurons called up “You’re Out of Touch” from 1977. Hall & Oates were a musical duo whose sound was stamped all over the popular music scene. Living in the barracks in the Philippines at the time, I’d hear this song being played in others’ rooms, and regularly hear it at the Airman’s Club. It’s encrusted in my psyche.
Stay positive, be strong, lean forward, and vote blue in 2024. Coffee is being swallowed in fine gulps. Here’s the music. Cheers
Friday’s Political Thoughts
I’ve been reading about an Ohio Sheriff and his political stances. Portage County Sheriff Bruce Zuchowski calls immigrants “locusts” and suggests writing down Kamala Harris supporters’ names and addresses. His idea is that’s where he’d have people send ‘illegals’.
He finished one post, “With elections, there are consequences.”
Which is true but can be construed as intimidating, and has been by several citizens. The real question is how appropriate is it for an elected official who is armed and charged with protecting and serving the community to basically post an intimidating speech?
Sure, it’s free speech. Not much thinking seems to be attached to it. He refers to Vice President Harris as a “laughing hyena.”
Of course, he insists that his doxxing was misunderstood. He claims, “I am a Law Man…Not a Politician!” He notes that he is sworn to protect ALL citizens, but after this sort of inflammatory posts and opinions, doubt about his willingness to protect all citizens has been sown. A thinking person would have understood that.
I suspect from all of this that Bruce Zuchowski is a Trump/Vance supporter. His views, insults, and characterizations certainly fit their hateful and divisive mold. Portage County deserves better, and I hope that he’s voted out.
Vote blue in 2024.
Thursday’s Political Thoughts
Peter Sage’s blog post today was titled, “Three Corners of An Intersection”. It’s a tale of political signs.
Peter installed his sign first, Kamala Harris – 2024.
The next day, a neighbor responded with a Trump in 2024 sign across the street.
The day after that, a third neighbor put up a handmade sign against Trump.
There’s no sign on the fourth house at the intersection. They must be the undecided.
IMO, this pretty well paints the political scene of the United States in 2024.
Thursday’s Theme Music
Mood: repetigird
Thursday, September 19, 2024, kicked off split between sunshine. One end of the sun was bathed in refreshing warm gold light. The other end was dim, caught in shadows. The situation is slowly changing as the sun lifts over the barriers and heaves into the sky. Which, accidently, sounds like the sun might be puking up there.
58 F here and now, we have blue skies in the main, with some haziness coalescing along the horizons, especially to my west, where the valley flattens out. Yesterday presented us with a gorgeous warm but not overbearing afternoon of sunshine and breezes. Today might duplicate the results, with a high of 79 F being batted around.
Speaking of weather, I’ve been reading about the U.S. healthcare system’s ranking compared to like countries. Yes, that’s a non-sequitar, ain’t it? Few should be surprised that our nation was ranked last, with higher costs, lower levels of service, less access to care, and shorter life spans. I find the comments of Dr. Joseph Betancourt, President of the Common Wealth Fund, relevant.
“This report reveals that our health system is continuing to lag far behind other nations when it comes to meeting our citizens’ basic health care needs. The US spends more on health care than any other country, and Americans are sicker, die younger and struggle to afford essential health care. We spend the most and get the least for our investment.”
“As a primary care doctor, I see the human toll of these shortcomings in our system on a daily basis. I have patients who need medications they can’t afford. I spend time going back and forth with insurance companies who have denied care I know my patients need, and I see older patients who arrive sicker than they should because they’ve spent the majority of their lives uninsured.”
Reading newspaper, magazine, and online articles, I’ve encountered the story he tells again and again. Worse, the laws and actions the GOP and the right wing are initiating are compounding health issues for women by inserting the state and religious views into the transactions. Neither have a need to be there, and both are detrimental to good health practices. Trump and his concept of a plan would most likely worsen the situation, as he’s for business, against government, and has little empathy for the middle class and below. This fuels our need to vote blue in 2024.
We ordered six more Harris-Walz yard signs last night. These are earmared for friends who are looking for yard signs. One woman said she’s putting on on her fence, facing her Trump-supporting neighbor. All turned down bumper stickers. This is a blue to purple area, with a lot of red inflammation around the edges. My friends stated that they have real concerns about what those MAGAs would do to them or their car; yes, we’ve seen the videos and heard the threats MAGAs like to issue.
Without great surprise, I read of an EPA IG report that said top EPA officials had retaliated against whistle blowers. This was done under the previous administration.
Ah, moving on through the morning. I have Jackson Browne singng “The Pretender” in the morning mental music stream (Trademark calloused). The Neurons brought it up when I was sipping coffee, watching cats wash after they’d eaten, studying the line of the morning sun moving across the backyard. Then the songs’ lines came up, “And when the morning light comes streaming in, we’ll get up and do it again.” Yep, that’s where I stand. Time to do it again.
Be strong, stay positive, test negative, and vote blue in 2024. Here’s the music. Cheers
Wednesday’s Political Thoughts
Taylor Swift endorsed Kamala Harris for President of the United States in 2024.
The GOP candidate, Donald J. Trump, reacted strongly, ‘truthing’, “I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT.”
That reaction is symbolical of Trump’s maturity and life approach. Such behavior probably posts Ms. Swift’s case for not supporting Trump.
What prompts me to think about it and write about it is another writer asking via a headline, “Opinion: Why is Trump picking a fight he can’t win with Taylor Swift?”
Matt Lewis is the author. He writes a reasonable column about a reasonable question, if the subject, Donald J. Trump, was a reasonable person with reasonable self-control.
But Trump has shown himself not to be a reasonable person. He’s revealed himself to be petty. He’s demonstrated that he lacks self-control. The governor on his mental processes seems seriously damaged.
And that’s why he should not be POTUS: because he can’t stop himself from instigating and pursuing petty fights. A petty person is not what we need as the leader of our nation.
Vote Blue in 2024.
Mail Concerns
I echo the concerns Annie brings up as Jessica Craven noted in her blog, Chop Wood Carry Water.
USPS performance has tumbled since DeJoy’s ascension as Postmaster General. Whether it’s incompetence, the tortured desire to run the USPS as a business and turn a profit, or actual maliciousness for reasons only known in his mind and private circles, deliveries are taking longer, more letters are being returned as undeliverable, and rural post offices and stations have been closed, raising the challenges of doing even the most mundane business at a post office.
It’s a concern going into the elections. Democrats use mail-in ballots more than Republicans. D.J. Trump actively rails against absentee and mail-in voting and is already establishing the foundation to challenge and throw out ballots received via mail.
Reach out to your senators and representatives. Add your voice to these concerns. And vote blue.
Tuesday’s Theme Music
Mood: sumummry
It’s another mediocre sumumn day, for which I’m thankful. Clouds blinker the blue sky and sunshine enough that we’re guessing, based on the past and science, that they’re up there. Rained yesterday in the early hours and became a pleasant day. Didn’t touch anywhere near the projected high. More of the same is filling my dance card, with the current temperature stumbling up through the fifties, rain expected this evening, and a high in the mid to upper 60s. All degrees are in Fahrenheit. That’s how we roll in Ashlandia, where we still use inches and feet. The air is okay, though, at 31 as an average.
Much as I’m snarking about our sumumn weather, things have taken a nasty turn in Europe. Heavy rains and flooding have struck several nations as Storm Boris terrorized the continent, while Portugal fights wildfires. Canada’s 2023 wildfires have issued a dramatic impact on the global environment, dumping huge amounts of carbon into the air. SoCal in the U.S. continues fighting and containing wildfires. North Carolina has been struck by a historic flood. Weatherwise, the world is experiencing some ugly trends.
If you need a distraction from the weather disasters, we still have war happening in Europe between Russia and Ukraine, and war between Israel and Hamas. Oh, yeah, and sports all around the world, and elections, and movies and books.
I have an old Mazda commercial going though the morning mental music stream (Trademark aging). I asked The Neurons, “WTF, dudes?” They giggled back. Here’s the song/commercial.
I wonder where that kid is now.
That isn’t today’s theme music, regardless of how much The Neurons lobby. Fortunately, after a little stumbling around, making coffee, feeding cats, staring at the weather, reading the news, and sipping coffee, The Neurons changed it up, bringing in Collective Soul with “The World I Know” from 1996. Now that’s an apt theme song. I have my little corner of being, with its weather, air quality issues, wineries and theater, and music, local politics, and friends. That’s the world I know. The rest flows in through media outlets or dribbles in via memories.
Stay positive, test negative, be strong, and vote blue in 2024. COVID cases are trending up, in case you missed that info. Time for another vaccination shot. Enjoy the music as I enjoy my coffee. Cheers
Michael Seidel, writer 