Welcome to the first day of summer for those living above the equator. Sunny skies and 85 F are in our valley’s forecast today. It’s a pleasant 68 F right now.
Of course, if you’re south of the equator, welcome to the first day of winter. Stay safe and warm down there.
Oh, and Happy Father’s Day in the US.
And Happy Pride Month in the US.
Eureka, Utah, has been evacuated due to the growing Iron fire, a somber reminder that we’re in wildfire season. People are out using power tools right now, which is permitted in the early morning, when it’s cool.
It’s a lazy morning for me. Still sobering up from my dreams. Experienced many vivid ones. So I’m being lazy with my theme music, and posting a few things from the net. They caught my attention and add perspective on what continues to go on with the corrupt Trump administration and their leader’s many failures.
On that, I’ll move on. Today’s music is “Lonely Boy” by Andrew Gold. Song came out in 1977. The Neurons set it off in my morning mental music stream after I looked at some photos of Trump at the G7. I thought, wow, he looks so lost. And, well, lonely. Like he has no friends and has no idea of what to do. Because nobody wanted to be with him. They know what a pompous fool he is/
May your days, whether they’re summer or winter, be filled with the warmth of friendship, love, and hope.
Saturday, June 20, 2026 — Ashland, southern Oregon.
We’re on the threshold of summer, among other things. Cool this day. Sitting at 75 degrees, 85 F is the expected high. I’ll accept that all day, especially when it cools at night.
Aging is a wrecking ball on Mom. She’s already gone through her new meds for an infection. The next pill was supposed to be tomorrow, three days after the first. But she thought she took the first one on Tuesday and then took the second on Friday. Insists she’s right because the date on the pills say June 16.
But my sister, Gina, picked up the pills on Wednesday, June 21, and took them to Mom. Showed Mom the screen notification from June 17 that shows the pills are ready for pick up. Mom refuses to admit she’s wrong.
Speaking of wrecking balls, how ’bout that MOU with Iran to cease hostilities? Seems like it’s already fracturing.
Part of that MOU was that the Strait of Hormuz would be open. Headline today:
Now it’s descended into another little pissing contest about whether the strait is closed and what caused the breach that enraged Iran.
As a wrecking ball of a president, former President Obama remains the most popular living POTUS, former or current, with a favorability rating of 59%. Trump came in just above former President Biden, at 39%.
I expect those positions between former POTUS Biden and Trump to slowly reverse with aging. Trump’s Iran disaster is still sinking in, as is the mess Trump has made with the once beautiful Lincoln Reflecting Pool. Those not part of the MAGA cult will turn more on Trump as his economic policies continue tanking and his many broken promises and claims sting more people. Like:
Immigration policies
No new wars
Reducing costs and improving affordability
Claims that Trump is a ‘unifier’ and ‘peace president’
Trump’s insistence that he would cut the national debt
The Epstein ballroom, which Trump said would require no taxpayer money
Full and unredacted release of the Epstein files
Then there’s his absolute grifting. Trump is getting wealthier; billionaires and millionaires are doing well. But most of We the People are not feeling it. Although the national average gas price gas dipped to about $4.00 a gallon and consumer confidence ticked up a little, average Americans are feeling the stress of inflation and high costs. 45% have canceled their vacation plans for the year.
Your Trump Quote of the Day:
Today’s music is “Wrecking Ball” by Miley Cyrus. It’s because I often think of lyrics wrong. I was thinking about rainbows, because it’s Pride Month. To me, Miley sounds like she’s singing, “I came in like a rainbow.”
Wrong! The right lyrics are, “I came in like a wrecking ball.”
Doesn’t matter to My Neurons. They’re still singing “I came in like a rainbow” in the morning mental music stream.
Sing it along with me. In the name of Pride.
May your day be free of wrecking balls and their impact.
Ashland, southern Oregon — Wednesday, June 18, 2026.
We’re sitting in 72 F. Sun was out but clouds have moved in, murmuring about thunderstorms. One source said today’s high will be 98 F. Another said 91. I think the second one is correct.
We’re all abuzz about Trump’s deal. Fought a war — sorry, conflict — for it, and all we got is a lousy tee-shirt.
That’s the bottom line. Reviews on the left side of the political spectrum can be summarized, “Are you kidding me?” The right side is trying to rally to support Trump but I think the NY Post’s headline says it for many:
As part of Operation Epic LOOK — SQUIRREL!, Trump’s Iran war did give Trump some respite from his failing economy, the Epstein files and Epstein ballroom, and the mounting court losses.
Overall, though, in a resume of bankruptcies and failures, this will go down as Trump’s biggest. The ‘Iran conflict’ will be the crown jewel in the write-ups about his ranking as ‘the worst president ever’.
Your Trump Quote of the Day:
Unfortunately for Trump, we have documents and videos from his speeches, texts, and interviews. They don’t align what his claim about getting 99.9% of what he set out to do.
It’s good to record what Trump is saying now and what he said a few months ago. Because in a while, perhaps a few months, perhaps a year, Trump will claim, I never said that. Because that’s what he consistently does.
Shaking my head, I was laughing to myself about Trump’s deal with Iran as I made breakfast. It’s like going in to get a pay raise and promotion and coming out agreeing to work more hours, with more responsibilities, with the same title and pay.
Spying on me, The Neurons broke out “Deal” in the morning mental music stream. The Grateful Dead tune is about being cautious about the deals you make.
Sample Lyrics:
Wait until that deal go ’round Don’t you let that deal go down, oh no
Costs a lot to win Even more to lose You and me bound to spend some time Wonderin’ what to choose
Trouble for Trump, he thinks he’s a military genius. He thought Iran would be a cakewalk. Once again, the truth — Trump is a liar and con man, and not a genius — has been revealed.
I hope you make better deals for yourself than Trump did for the nation. May peace and grace carry you today and every day.
Collections from BlueSky, Facebook, and other social media platforms.
Trump and Iran have a Memorandum of Understanding about not shooting and killing any longer. Much is being said about the $300B portion of the MOU. None of that money is supposed to be from the US government.
Tell you, what, though. Trump has established a pattern of being opaque about money, where it came from, and where it went. Trump made claims about Mexico paying for the wall. Cutting the national debt. Money for the Board of Peace. Trump makes big, headline-grabbing claims that rarely materialize as truth.
Trump claimed he would release the Epstein files and then tried to write it off as a hoax and keeps using every trick possible to keep them from being fully revealed. Likewise, Trump resists releasing his full income tax information, leading many, including me to wonder, what is he hiding?
Then there’s the ballroom, which was to cost US taxpayers nothing, and now — yeah, you get it.
Ashland, southern Oregon — Wednesday, June 17, 2026.
72 F. Our heat advisory has been lifted. Today’s high will be 95, compared to yesterday, which was, what, 95? Today’s low was 59 while yesterday’s low was 61.
I took some time out this morning to check on wildlife warnings. An abundance of bears, and aggressive deer are being reported. No cougars this year (so far). Nothing reported in our immediate neighborhood.
It ain’t over, but out there in G7 land, Trump isn’t looking good. In fact, his appearance makes President Biden’s end of term appearances fantastic in comparison. President Biden looked trim but old; Trump looks old, tired, obese, weary, and depressed.
Lot of noise about the terrible deal Trump made is circulating. As expected, Trump is threatening to start bombing Iran again if the progress he wants isn’t made. So much peace!
Bombing Iran must be kept as an option because Trump is running out of options. He has so much losing going on that Operation Epic LOOK — SQUIRREL! is in danger of collapsing in a puddle of orange. The ballroom keeps getting negative price. The Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool is sadly reflecting Trump’s poor taste and low abilities, and looks pretty damn ugly. Trump’s Iran War deal seems like a shoddy temper tantrum that brought nothing of value to the world. And prices remain up.
Your Trump Quote(s) of the Day:
Just another reminder of all the things Trump claimed and promised and failed to do.
Today’s music came about from doing happy dances to things going wrong for Trump. Quick mental flash: I know some readers would say, well, then, you don’t like America if you wish things bad for Trump, because he’s our President.
Yeah, bullshit. He’s doing it for himself. Glorying himself. Disrupting because it arouses his hardcore supporters. They like it so Trump does it. Making them scream his name satisfies him, and provide succor about the real failure he’s shown himself again to be.
So the song is “Don’t Dream” by Crowded House. Came to the morning mental music stream because I was thinking, yeah, don’t dream it’s over, a warning to myself. Trump is resilient. More Teflon than old Ronnie R. And MAGA is boneheaded, and the GOP are desperate. So, it’s not over till the fat orange guy is out of the White House.
Hope your dreams thrive and fly. Take care of you and yours.
Another hot day in the valley. Blue sky was tinged with smoke from a fire north of us. That smoke has receded.
The temperature now is 89 degrees. Today’s high will be 99 F.
A late start for me today, as we had Food & Friends deliveries. A sadly short list is one way to look at it, because we wonder, what happened to the people previously. On the other hand, less people need the service, right! At least in our area and the route we do. The truth is, we don’t know, and can only guess.
Mom’s home buyer backed out. The realtor ascribed it to cold feet as the reports and inspections had not even been completed. Our realtor is going to talk to the second-ranked buyer to see if they’re still interested.
Our big news is that Trump celebrated his 80th birthday and stayed awake! He held a UFC event, Operation Epic IT’S ALL ABOUT ME! on the White House south lawn, a solid performer under Operation Epic LOOK — SQUIRREL! umbrella of distractions.
Trump is a peace president. A violent blood fight at the home of We the People is a perfect demonstration of how much his words really mean.
Your Trump Quote of the Day:
When Trump said, “I would never condone violence,” it had an asterisk. Trump only condones violence to celebrate himself, to entertain himself, to distract others from his grift and corruption, have people riot and try to overturn the election, and to kill other people via the military to show how tough he is. Otherwise, he would never condone violence.
Trump says peace is at hand with Iran. I don’t believe him. He’s lied too many times to accept at face value.
Trump said that his war saved Israel from nuclear extinction. Trump also said that the bombings he ordered last June, 2025, destroyed Iran’s nuclear program. And he had already claimed victory dozens of times earlier this year. He claimed that the war would be over by April 22, 2026.
Trump always insists that everyone is lying, especially the media. “Fake news!” he shouts. Documentation shows he’s done it well over 1,000 times.
Yet, he wants us to believe them now, when they report that ‘he’s won’. How can we when he’s conditioned us to disbelieve everything being said?
Trump’s name has been removed from the Kennedy Center. The Epstein ballroom is still illegally under construction. There are stories that the work Trump had done at the Lincoln Reflecting Pool is shoddy and already coming apart. Just like his lies, isn’t it?
Let’s see how much he starts caring about inflation now that he’s declared his war with Iran over.
In honor of Trump’s White House fight, My Neurons summoned an old disco-oriented song to the morning mental music stream. Carl Douglas wrote and performed “Kung Fu Fighting” in August of 1974. A global hit, it was on the radio often and I heard it often as I finished high school, graduated, and joined the military. I always thought it a silly song but it hooks me with the lyrics and melody.
I hope your day comes with good news and a good life.
Got to run now. Two dental appointments. First in Medford, the next in Ashland. It’s all about my final implant, where the cyst was removed from my gums.
Ashland, southern Oregon — Saturday, June 13, 2026.
Another June morning. 63 F, it feels cool and comfortable to me, “chilly” for my wife. Today’s high will peak in the mid 90s. A heat advisory is on for tomorrow as temperatures are going over 100. Temperatures are expected to drop on Tuesday — a little.
Nothing new from my family and Mom in Pittsburgh. Going through dreams occupied my morning.
I enjoyed this morning headline:
Trump’s name removed from Kennedy Center after blowing past deadline
One small step for decency, democracy, and justice.
Do we really need a monument to remind us of Trump’s ego? No. Sure won’t help with any problems we face. It’s just more by Trump, for Trump.
Seven states led by Democrats — Connecticut, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Oregon and Washington — have withdrawn from the ‘Freedom 250’ fair. The states withdrew, citing costs and politicalization.
It started out as a celebration of the United States. As with anything with Trump involvement, he’s slowly made it less about that and more about him. For example, after many musical performers bowed out, Trump decided to replace them with himself as the opening act. He plans a ‘rally’.
Trump’s war with Iran goes on. The war has clocked 105 days. Peace is close, both sides agree, then argue about whether the other is telling the truth. It feels like, “Pot, meet kettle,” to me.
Gas prices in the US have dribbled down over the past few days as peace in Iran seesaws. Many best-case scenario project gas prices will drop to $3.75 gallon on average by November. In most dire predictions, $6.35 a gallon is projected as the national average.
Self-Focus: AI found that Trump frequently centers himself in posts, with roughly 1 in 11 posts being self-praise, and his name appearing as the most common positive reference.
Conflict & Adversaries: Many posts involve accusations, criticism, and disputes, portraying Trump as both a victim and a winner in political and legal battles.
Posting Habits: Notable patterns include heavy capitalization (16% of posts), late-night posting (midnight–6 a.m.), and recurring themes of praise, boasting, and accusations.
We didn’t need AI analysis for these conclusions. They’re self-evident, something who isn’t part of the MAGAsphere has noted for years.
Your Trump Quote of the Day:
“Wrong Again” Trump was wrong again. We the People built this nation. Men like him just conned people to make money from what others built.
Playing “Spelling Bee” this morning, I laughed and put in Levitake as a word. “Not on the list”, the system responded.
I think it should be. Levitake: to lift and remove something. In use: “They worked through the night to levitake Trump’s name from the Kennedy Center.”
The music playing in today’s morning mental music stream is “Fantasy” by Aldo Nova. The 1982 song started playing as The Neurons spied on me doing my dream review. It was because of the night breeze coming in the window, cooling me.
May your day progress with peace and grace, and bring you an abundance of joy and love.
Sunshine. Blue sky. Cool now — 68 degrees — but climbing into the upper 80s again today.
Reports from the Eastern Front were about Mom suffering. A storm knocked out power. Afterward, the temperature climbed into the upper 80s and the humidity was high. Mom was in pain with headaches and other problems. Nothing we could do…
When Mom and I text, she often repeats the same questions and statements, frequently almost word for word.
My sister, Gina, sent texts relating all that remains to be done on Mom’s house, and the progress of things. She’s doing the work of five of us. But she’s supposed to be going on vacation two weeks from now, plans established last year. The house closing is scheduled for July 23, which suddenly seems very close.
Despite Trump’s talk of peace deals and the war being over, Trump’s war with Iran grinds on. Trump said something like we could get a deal as early as this weekend, but he’ll say anything.
A report came out in the “The Independent” that Trump’s support among Independent voters is sinking. The losses are among young Independent voters, along with Hispanic voters. Trump’s support with older, white Indpendent voters is unchanging.
A lot of the news is about Elon Musk becoming richer, thanks to the SpaceX IPO. Paul Krugman did a fine job of relating how little Musk actually accomplishes to become as wealthy as he is. Like Trump, Musk made a lot of promises. Much of what he promised was supposed to be done by 2025, but it isn’t. Krugman reminds us of what a disaster X has been since Musk bought Twitter, and how Wall Street bankers are still sucking on those losses.
In other Trump news, Trump used Ariana Grande’s song, “Bye”, without authorization. Grande immediately responded, “Please do not ever use my music in relation to this barbaric, inhumane, heinous nonsense. F*** ICE.
Reading of that, My Neurons responded by instantly playing “Bye” in the morning mental music stream. I thought I’d share it with you. *smile*
Your Trump Quote of the Day:
I hope your day proceeds safely, securely, happily.
Ashland, southern Oregon — Thursday, June 11, 2026.
It’s blue skies and warmer temperatures for us today. Like the weather has just awakened to the season and decided, alright, let’s go.
Tear it up, break it up, go for it. That’s Trump. He alone decides what ‘we’ the nation will do. This is true whether we’re going to war, escalating violence, tearing down the White House, remodeling it, building, modifying, or renaming monuments.
Trump ignores the law, goes around the requirements, skips past reviews. Then, as work begins and We the People protest, we go to court. While the issues are adjudicated, Trump keeps tearing and down and building. He’s been doing this with attacking Iran, building the Epstein ballroom — well, it’s a long list.
It’s also a giant middle finger at We the People, our political norms, checks and balances, laws, and Constitution.
The GOP is okay with it. Him. Speaker Johnson metaphorically shrugs. The media tiptoes around what he’s doing, because the other thing Trump does is threaten. His administration holds a bunch of keys. Everyone knows it. And Trump has demonstrated he has no concerns for anything and anyone but himself. Beyond his words, his policies reflect it. He thinks, oh, the war will end and prices will drop.
Really? Is that what happened when prices rose during COVID?
Your Trump Quote of the Day:
Trump was lying, of course. He always lies. He began acting like a dictator on day one, and still is.
That’s why protests are important. When Congress stands aside, SCOTUS enables, and the press backs away, We the People must stand up.
Show up again. Keep showing up, please. We don’t like the direction Trump is taking us and must change it.
Today’s morning mental music stream song is “Invisible Sun” by The Police. I was reflecting on my childhood and pictures of smoky, polluted skies we would see in the newspaper. By then, our skies were much clearer and cleaner. Now, Trump is turning it back in the name of making money.
Sample Lyrics
It’s dark all day and it glows all night Factory smoke and acetylene light I face the day with my head caved in Lookin’ like somethin’ that the cat brought in
My hopes for you are that the sun is warm, the air is fresh and clean, and your spirits are high.
It’s another cool June morning in Ashland’s valley. Also damp with light rain. I’ll take both over the dry, hot weather which had been predicted for us. Right now, it’s 53 degrees F with clouds and expected to reach 64.
My sister has continued reporting on emptying Mom’s house. The ‘metal guy’ came and hauled away metal shelves, chairs, tables, junk. As she lists the accumulation and where it was found — behind or in the shed, in the garage — it becomes a reflection on how we make plans and set things aside, then forget about them. I confess, there’s probably a chunk of stuff like that in my life.
Each time that I share a story like this with my wife, she responds, “Don’t you think your mother wishes she did a death clean?”
No; I don’t. Mom isn’t involved. The FAMILY might wish it so, but Mom is in many ways removed from the process.
Technically, it’s the trust run by Junior which refused to hand over the records. Don’t doubt that Junior didn’t ask Trump about it before saying that they’re not handing over the records.
If it was anyone else not handing over records, Trump would immediately be declaring, “So CROOKED AND DISGUSTING!!! WHAT ARE THEY HIDING!!!”
TDS — Trump Double Standards — are Trump’s only standard.
“He broke every record. He sleeps all the time, during the day, during the night, on the beach. The only guy could fall asleep on the beach with the press watching,” Trump said, seeming to reference a clip of Biden filmed while he was vacationing.
Trump added, “When you love your job, when you love your country, and when you’re in a position like we are, future king, highly respected, crown prince, and, in my case, president, you’re thinking about your country.”
Trump has been photographed multiple times sleeping in meetings recently. Using Trump’s logic, Trump must not love his country.
Today’s music is from Sammy Hagar. His song, “There’s Only One Way to Rock” was released in 1981. It’s in my morning mental music stream today due to one phrase: “It’s a fact and you know that it’s true.”
Trump’s war with Iran isn’t a war but a conflict. It’s not that long, even though it’s 100 days and longer than he said it would be.
It’s also true with Epstein’s ballroom. Trump made it all about the need for a ballroom and then flipped his reasoning when private financing stalled, and made it about ‘security’. But the facts are facts; they are documented.
And you know it’s true.
May peace and joy grace your day in all and every meaningful way.
Michael Seidel, writer 