Definitely morning. I’m starting to fall into the old man routine of succumbing to the siren song of shut-eye around 9 or 9:30, but I still get up at 5am or shortly thereafter every morning, hit the bathroom, put together my cold brew concoction, and head downstairs for a couple hours of writing and catching up on news, along with videos posted by a guy who goes around cleaning up yards that have turned into neighborhood eyesores. There’s something about that transformation from before to after.
Author: tallthinman72
Epstein, Epstein, Epstein
Has anyone else had enough of reading headlines about Trump doing the next unreasonable thing unilaterally, whether it’s tariffs or blowing up boats in the Caribbean or suggesting Venezuelan air space is closed via a mere tweet, or signing executive orders left and right?
It appears Congress, and Republicans in particular, have taken a powder, chosen to make a statement by not taking stands on much of anything except draconian legislation, and unforgiveable cover-ups, and unswerving support for an incompetent Cabinet and a criminal lowlife who sits in the Oval Office, plotting his next distractions and retributive moves.
It’s such a cascade of bumbling awfulness that many may be starting to feel like we’re on our own, ungoverned, forsaken. Trump, Vance, Hegseth, Kennedy, Bessent, Patel, Bondi, Leavitt… oh my.
What the hell, MAGA?
High Steaks
I know we can derive our protein from plants and fish and such. And large scale cattle production is a proven environmental hazard. But…
I tire quickly of contrived grievance and outsized passion, i.e. certain animal rights folks who need to tone things down a bit. Species who can’t speak for themselves may need advocates, but let’s take a closer look.
The beef, pork, and poultry lobbies will argue that they’re just responding to demand for their products, perhaps as an attempt to redirect the blame and the conversation. But they’re not wrong, as far as the demand piece goes.
I guess what I’m getting at is that, personally speaking, I might be willing to evolve in my understanding of protein consumption if someone can present an argument that reconciles the myriad small-scale meat processors– i.e. hunters– who are basically engaged in the same endeavor of killing for food (and sport) but don’t carry all the extra baggage of methane production and possibly inhumane living conditions and treatment.
Humans are at the top of the food chain. We’re omnivores. Maybe there is no other argument that needs to be made, except for a focus on the stewardship of resources. Meat has been a means of survival and part of our diet for a long time, albeit not as long as foraging for twigs and berries. I see no reason for looking askance at someone simply because they enjoy a nice medium porterhouse.
What would become of the huge numbers of cattle and hogs and turkeys and chickens if they weren’t slaughtered? They’d still need to be fed and housed. Do they then become someone’s pets, or just released to fend for themselves?
And what of local deer populations, or the numbers of other wild animals who aren’t on any endangered species list? It seems hunting seasons make sense for at least two reasons: population control and food on families’ tables.
Going meatless is a tough sell, for various reasons.
Go-tos
Depends on the season, though one of them is a standard across the board: I have to have comfortable footwear, to keep the feet happy.
Right now, as winter approaches, the second item would have to be something that keeps my bony frame warm, for hanging out in a house we keep at 68 degrees no matter how cold it gets outside– which means it can get a bit chilly around the edges sometimes. This is usually a sherpa lined hoodie of some sort, from now until sometime in April, or at least a base layer over which I add other items.
Functional, hardly ever fashionable.
Outsmarted?
It is difficult to think of anything that, now that it’s here, we’d be better off without. I don’t believe the technology itself is a problem. Maybe it’s more the issue of its advent, arriving before anyone realized they needed it. Or maybe it’s the evolution of it, everything added on that has led us down some road where we’ve become obsessed, and islands unto ourselves, or we’ve succumbed to the siren song of relentless marketing and variations on evil intent, i.e. surveillance, spying– all the Big Brother stuff.
What’s not to like, for example, about a handheld device that serves as phone, decent video and still camera, GPS guide, list keeper, means of written communication across the miles, access to the world wide web, etc.? Trouble is, we’ve let the technology gain the upper hand. And, of course, people will find devious ways to use it.
When it comes to AI, the important thing to remember is the word that begins with A. Humans are still the real thing, though we’ve begun some sort of descent to a place where we give up control, become too dependent on something that can only ever approximate the intangibles of a soul.
The Other Side of the Desk
I guess, if I’m being honest, the hardest decision was one I used to make on a daily basis when I was on call as a substitute teacher. When one principal or another would call first thing in the morning, I would get a pit in my stomach and reluctantly get ready to go in and face kids who, like me when I was their age, would lick their chops at the sight of a substitute.
Getting married? Not difficult at all. Uprooting and moving to seminary with three small children? Made sense to us, with a manageable amount of trepidation but not overly difficult. Retirement? Yes, please!
Maybe the hardest decision I never made was to apply myself, find work that was more up my alley, and earn enough money in the course of my working years to enjoy retirement with a bit less stress over finances.
Filling
Daily writing prompt
Do you or your family make any special dishes for the holidays?
Nothing too exotic, though my wife came across a recipe for stuffing from Kamala Harris that we’ve been using for the last few years. Delicious! Besides that, it’s the same fare we’ve had forever– turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, green bean casserole, butternut squash, corn, cranberry sauce, and oftentimes some sort of store-bought rolls. Though, on occasion my wife will make some homemade potato rolls, which are pretty popular and quite tasty.
Then there are the pies.
Hmm…
Daily writing prompt
If you didn’t need sleep, what would you do with all the extra time?
Find a third shift job that I could see myself doing, maybe look for a bigger place, or at least one where I’d have room for a woodshop and my wife would have a bigger space for her embroidery efforts, then hone my woodworking skills and start a small business.
I’d probably try to read more, play the piano and guitar, maybe learn a language or two, watch some late-night soccer matches or something.
I guess it might depend on whether or not others didn’t need sleep, too, or if it was just me. If it’s just me, there’d be a lot of alone time to fill. I’d have to find some way to turn my brain off every now and then.
Today’s List
People who make a conscious choice to park their asses in the passing lane; people who pull out in front of you and then dog it; entitled, pretentious snobs.
These are the first things that come to mind. It could be a totally different list tomorrow. I don’t know if there could ever be a perennial Top 3. Well, with the possible exception of entitled, pretentious snobs– that one might always be there.
OK, one more– fickle technology. Or opening a sleeve of crackers without ripping the packaging. Or opening a box of Bel Vitas or cereal without tearing the closing tab apparatus. Or cracking an egg and having to pick out pieces of shell. Or wimpy, under-cooked bacon. Or most diner coffee.
That last one probably inched me closer to pretentious snob. But once you try Starbucks or Ca Phe, there’s no going back.
A Few
My wife, my children, spouses, and their children, my siblings and most of their spouses, and anyone willing to speak out in opposition to the paper-thin veneer of authenticity Donald Trump and his ilk present to the world. Folks like Paula Poundstone, Texas Paul, Danainspired, Rachel Maddow, Lawrence O’Donnell, Jen Psaki– pretty much everyone at MS Now– along with Adam Kinzinger, Father David, the late night hosts, and any members of Congress exhibiting an ounce of courage.
3 Cents' 