Polyticks
I hate to start the wrap-up of the past year with this, but I’m a news junkie and I start everyday going to several news sites (not FOX) to see what is going on in the world plus listening to the constant stream from NPR and all I hear about is our CEO of America.
After the failed insurrection from the first term, he has had four years of festering his defeat and planning his retribution. He dumped his family and other handlers who could restrain him, to gather a posse of unqualified and ill-informed whacko’s who feed his bias with fictional stories while pampering his ego. His sequel to the presidential power, with the Supreme Court supporting his ‘immunity’ for actions made in office, he comes out swinging. On day one, his majesty immediately starts signing ‘Executive Orders’ declaring the old president is over and now we have a new royalty.
Congress seems befuddled by the chaos and bowing to the wishes and whims of the renewed president. They conform legislation for a ‘Big Bad Beautiful Budget Bill’ that is vague enough to be interpreted in various ways by the courts and misunderstood by the public. There was so much confusion, the government had to shutdown for a month.
ICE (The United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement) was created to detain and deport “criminals, murders, troublemakers, mentally deficient, rapist, terrorist, feeble minded, drug dealers, money launderers, agitators, escaped prisoners, gun runners, human traffickers and the worst-of-the-worst on the face of the earth” without due process. To assist in cutting crime, our commander-in-chief deployed the National Guard, border patrol and even sent in the marines to various cities with unknown results.
DOGE (Department of Government Efficiency) was created and appointed to the richest man on earth (never elected) to close agencies and fire staff with a promise of saving $$$. The newly found best buddy got bored with the job and went back to driverless EVs and space. Doge folded.
The ‘people’s house’ was architecturally and interior redesigned to the ‘Royal Palace’ with paving over the Rose Garden, adding flagpoles, renovating the Lincoln bathroom in marble, gilding the oval office and destroying the East Wing to build a ballroom.
There was a celebration of 250 years of a US Military with troops dressed in fatigues shuffling down the street followed by squeaky WWII tanks topped with waving soldiers to the few bystanders watching this dull parade, acquiring Greenland, making Canada the 51st state, Gulf of America, Dept. of War, no Dept. of Education, no virus, blow up narco-terrorist speed boats, pirate oil tankers, no trans, ban books, no fat or bearded military, tariffs, sanctions, what happened to the wall, golf, polls and rallies, Epstein files, MAGA, healthcare subsidies, food prices, work without paycheck, more Executive Orders, Panama Canal, defund NPR, home prices, interest, reporters, Kennedy Center, Dozing Don, no climate change, Teflon Don, Blame Sleepy Joe, NEW Chicago Pope, Rootin’ Tootin’ Putin, Israel vs. Trump vs. Gaza, Trump vs. Ukraine vs. Russia, no penny, Presidents’ Walk of Fame, gerrymandering, Aid and Food Banks cut, blockade another country, new Trump class battleships, halting wind energy and reviewing Voter Registration requirements.
Health
This year the ole bones are catching up with the number of laps around the sun. At first, I noticed my left-hand shaking. Picking up the coffee cup and everything went sloshing about. My right hand wasn’t as bad, but it had a quiver. Parkinson’s? Genetic? My brother has it. Just result of heavy drinking? Stress? Either way, it is my writing hand so my signature on checks is starting to look like a doctor. After self-diagnosis, limited drinking and the tremors went away. Another self-diagnosis, go back to drinking and the twitching went away. The bank will cash my scribble.
Then, I started having back pains. Getting out of bed, I started to shuffle walk and was too tight to pick anything up (good excuse). After self-diagnosis, drinking and sitting and scrolling the screens did not further the harm though the cause was unknown.
My internal doctor realized, there was plenty of peeing, but not much pooping. Self-diagnosis connect the bad back with an intestinal backup so a few chocolate squares, and a blow-out and I was back to being regular without pain. I can still belch like a sailor.
Looking at your hands show your age. Age can’t be hidden. I noticed, for the first time, bruising. At first the thought was liver spots, but they went away. Seems old age causes thin skin and a bump can look awful. Ask the president.
My nails grow fast but are now splitting. I notice picking the guitar, the get caught on the strings. I apply a calcium nail strengthen, but still has to trim the claws every week.
Along with the thin skin and the tired old bones, I lost a tooth. I didn’t actually lose the tooth; it broke off when I was eating a hamburger. Seems my teeth, that I brush everyday but have not have a professional peer into my mouth since 1971, are aging. Luckily, there wasn’t an exposed nerve or blood, but I can whistle through the gap. Maybe I’ll have to wander down the street to visit a DDS but at this age, do I want to replace the choppers? No, I did not put the tooth under my pillow so the Tooth Fairy could bring me a nickel.
Probably the most disturbing health issue happened on my daily rides to the Tummy Temple. The normal 5-mile trip became a chore during the summer. Even starting early in the morning, I’d come home soaked in sweat and huffing and a puffing like never before. On a least one occasion, I unmounted and walked home, stopping now and again in the shade to catch my breath. Some days I would get home so exhausted I’d have to lay down. Whether it is the lungs or the heat or the ticker, little task become overwhelmingly difficult. Down shifting and riding slower hadn’t solved the problem. Perhaps it is time to check out the e-bikes for that added push needed? Perhaps the food delivery service will be necessary to continue to eat?
According to my ‘To-Do’ list, it is time for new eye glasses. The frames are getting loose, there is some sort of fog in the middle and I’m holding the glasses up when trying to read through bi-focal. Most of the times now, I take the glasses off to type on the screen. Might try the new optometrist at the mall and see how that view goes?
With all the internal discomfort and the external stretching and itching, the body clock for resting is on some sort of wave length I’m not accustomed to. A 12-pack used to put me to sleep, but now the body just toss and turn under the loose covers. Hourly trips down the hall to empty out then try and try again, the mind won’t shut off. Checking the clock every hour, it seems around 3AM is when the relaxation starts to take place. REM sleep occurs between 5AM and 10AM, but not always. Daytime naps don’t work. Getting old is not for the weak.
Will see what 2026 has to offer.
Weather
After the cold, spring came with the sound of birds, sunshine and enough rain to get everything green. Perfect weather for rocking on the porch at night with a nap or two.
Then it got HOT! From comfortable to sitting in front of a fan sweating. Walking around in my yard in my skivvies wasn’t any cooler than laying on a beach towel inside and walking up dripping. Triple digits day and night.
Once it was time to put away the fans and the heater came on, it got COLD! Temperatures dropped quickly and another layer was required to run outside, feed the critters, then dive back under the covers.
Yard
Still feeling too awkward to whack and hack the yard, branches fall out in the spring breeze and had to be dragged in the back and cut to put in the trash. Vines are abundant crawling over the porch and the back of the house.
Whether it was the construction on the street or something from the neighbors, the daily buffet seemed to be overrun by little pink tails. The regular Critters won’t dine when they are around and I can’t seem to chase them away, so bought some Rat Poison on Amazon and put out wherever I saw them scatter to under the tall grass. That didn’t seem to work, so I got another ‘more powerful’ batch and haven’t seen them since. Unfortunately, this stuff must smell good and the container started getting chewed into. I put the container where I thought no one could get to it, but it was too late. Seems, Rocky had a taste and died. Gave him a regal open-air burial for the hawks and crows to dispose of.
On the plus side, Al came back.
I had some VHS videos of ‘the making of Puppywoods’ transferred to DVD some time ago, but they are ‘copy protected’. I finally took them into my computer shop and have them converted to movies I could load on my YouTube channel. It worked, so I bought another laptop.
Clothing
Without the need to put on my fancy pants to attend a dance or go to church or attend a formal soiree, I donated all my ‘dress’ clothing. I have no shirts with collars. The summer requires t-shirts and shorts and the winter require layers of sweatshirts and fleece pants. Same ole every day and I seem to have more than enough in my size till the end of time. When the skivvies get too holey; Amazon delivers.
House
The year started out with a bit of snow and there seemed to be a problem at the cities’ water treatment plant and the tap went dry. No water. Luckily, I could use the snow for the toilet and I had enough bottled (and canned) water in storage to get through a dry week.
One of the house chores is to vacuum. I purchased a small vacuum, a cordless vacuum, a hand-held vacuum and even a cordless scrubber to move the piles of dust bunnies into the trash. I step over the vacuum plugged into the hallway hoping to not trip over it and some future time will be the motivation to press the ‘suck-up-the-dirt’ button.
Eating for one still get a pile of dirty dishes and washing them to only get dirty again, I bought paper plates and bowls. Even found some bio-degradable utensils to use.
Still the sink always appears full and my house mouse keeps stealing my sponges to chew on.
GCCP (Grove Crest Colonial Place Civic Association) has resurfaced. When I moved in, there was a tight group of patrols for the Neighborhood Watch, letters of events and crimes in the area. Then the interest faded away. Now the GCCP is back on email discussing the rezoning of property codes in the area. Small patches that were doctor offices or retirement homes are being demolished for a construction of a 3-story red brick square apartment or condo building. Maybe this goes along with the removal of old cape cods (like my own) to build gigantic mac-mansions priced for millions and raising all us other folk’s personal property assessment and taxes? Maybe they are the ones who convinced the city to install a ‘speed table’ next to the alley? Maybe they are the ones who had the city dig up holes to check the gas/water lines then repave the street?
Transportation
The year seemed to be rolling along when I suddenly got a flat tire. Stuff happens. A leisurely walk to the Pedal Power station and in a few minutes got a replacement and a small charge. Keeping both pumped up and rolled on through the rest of the year.
The first of next year I’ll take my pony in to get a new saddle and check out the e-bikes? I’ve done some online research and the prices range from $400 to $2k+. I need to get on one and give it a test drive. Size of tires? Disc brakes? Lights? Kickstand? Rack? Weight? Recharge?
Conversation/ Entertainment
Lunch recordings – reunions. Had a few lunches with ole school mates and work mates. Nothing reveling except memories of strangers, but I took my recorder and could listen to the conversation later. That was reveling.
Music. Every day I try to listen to some music. I seek out new sounds but this year, nothing caught my ear. Everything sounded like a format and nothing surprised me, so I had to go back decades and review my life soundtrack.
Social Media
News (Truth or Dare) is coming from every source imaginable. Opinions, bias, fake videos get conglomerated with established reliable reporting. You decide what you want to believe.
Reels (or TikTok video clips) appear everywhere. Short clips that can be created or recording an actual event. Seems this is the way we communicate now.
Movies/television are not on my calendar, but notice every day there are recommendations of the best to watch. Like music, they all appear the same so I don’t waste my time. I’m tired of sequels.
Security was a surprise this year. Changing passwords were required. Verifying not a robot before logging onto an account became prevalent. Number codes sent to telephone or email accounts confirmed you were you. Trying to remember all the passwords. Hasn’t gotten to facial recognition… yet.
Ads must be working because they are all over the place. They are every third post scrolling. There are the annoying pop-ups and the constant ‘best off’ products from whatever sites shopped before. Easy to see what the computer remembers about your purchases.
Ai, ChatGPT is all the rage. The talk of the town is the computer that can talk back to you. Whatever the computer can find on the web that you have posted or linked to or browsed and forms a profile of your interest. You see what you want to see and you hear what you want to hear.
Influencers used to be called advertising sales people. Fashion, cooking, candle makers and other entrepreneurs’ businesses have brief videos promoting their products and services. See more information in the comments below.
Blog
Nimrodstudios (25,781 readers, 120 articles)
Names became a fascination this year. First, the old pictures of school mates had names like David, Jeff, Bill, Mary, Sally, Judy and now the names I hear on the radio are Rafael Nam, CRund Abdelfatah, Ramtin Arablouei,
The Musical was written and recorded in various methods years ago and this was just an explanation of what I was thinking at the time.
Subscribe seems to be how creative folks want you to permanently link and support their site.
Just Another Life (811,420 readers, 2,489 articles)
Delivery seems to be the wave of the future for this ole coot.
Vote – detention – corruption – chaos is all post that I couldn’t resist trying not to be offensive but stating the mysterious governmental agenda.
Pot, I found, could be mailed across the country. I tried it and it worked. I’m on someone’s mailing list now and they have my credit card information. It wasn’t what I remembered but it was wacky weed.
Health seemed to be the theme for this year so I am still trying to self-diagnosis and convince myself I can make another lap around the sun.
Brotherhood of the White beards – reunions of all the geezers and so far, survivors gathering for a drink, a bite to eat and some laughs. While we still can.
Secrets, at this age, are more important and fascinating to hear than what aches and pains there are or what the grandchildren are doing. Let loose those hidden jewels that make you who you are and can be put in your obituary.
Cleaning, next to Godliness, are constantly on my mind but never seems to get done. That may become my legacy?
State became a thought of what makes, what was first called colonies, states of the union, united under the stars and stripes but each with their own unique qualities, governments and borders. This current administration seems to be passing more responsibly for education, homelessness, energy, health and services back to the states to control; like voting.
Data centers – Ai – Algo Rhythm are the hot subjects. Giant buildings requiring a steady flow of electricity and water to quickly reply to your question. If looking for employment, should your application be reviewed and approved/deny by a computer? Algo Rhythm will review where you’ve been and keep plying your passions.
Sons of Jack & Marion was just a review of a quick lunch with some ole high school/college friends. Gifts were given but the conversation was not recorded. These reunions were also commented in repeat.
Food and eating have linked into health and what is my daily decision of mission. Now a new question arises. Do I go out and forage for grub or do I have it delivered?
Superman was a quick thought I had to get out of my head and on paper (or screen). That is what this blog is all about. A journal of a single earthling.
Food
I’m not Hungry? I’ve tried all the staples and treats and nothing interest me anymore. Worse than that, many dishes don’t taste good. Even desserts don’t entice me.
Cooking is mostly rewarming something out of a can in the microwave. Now and again, a pot or pan may be heated up on the stove to quickly boil water for noodles or fry a ham steak, but then they have to be washed. Chicken seems to be dry and bland and beef seems to be revolting to my stomach. There just is no interest in the kitchen.
Delivery seems to be the method of the future. Seems everything I’ve been peddling out for can be driven up in a box truck and placed on my deck. No muss. No fuss. And one bill to be paid at the end of the month. Or am I just getting lazy?
Budget
I didn’t buy any major expenses this year (except 2- laptops) and I keep track of where every penny (or now nickel) goes. I looked at my bank account balance every 1st and 15th of the month and noticed I was getting near $40,000.00. I wondered why I could save, so I made $50k a goal. It is nice to know I have more greenbacks stuffed under the mattress for a rainy day. This doesn’t sound like a lot of you, but through the years and five different banks, I’ve had zero or less balances, so this is a major deal. With all the news chatter of the zillions of dollars floating around and the constant rises in home assessments and utilities and insurance, I’ll try and stay on top of my bills. If I cut out the alcohol, that would save me another $5k a year. Will see how this new delivery project goes?
Finally reached my credit card limit with the delivery guys. Amazon, Instacart, DoorDash have made it too eazy peazy. I could increase the limit, but this is a lesson. I’ll pay the $850 balance and wait until the check clears until I place another delivery order. Cutting back on some foods and limiting frivolous spending will make the monthly spreadsheet smaller with ONE bill for food at the end of the month.
New Year’s Resolutions
Two thousand and twenty-six. What will it bring? There will be more polytics than most of us cannot tolerate without posting some offensive meme. There will be more well done far fetched short videos of destruction, brutality, body shaming and silliness filling our screens like some bazaar movie opposed to reality.
I see on this first day of the two-thousand and twenty-six years of our Lord, the latest trend is to pay NO TAXES as a protest to the current government. With a $38+ trillion-dollar deficit, will the bank make more loans? Will our military occupy another country to sell the oil? If all the wars are over, who will buy our weapons?
Finishing off this ceremonial bottle of bubbly, will that be all the adult beverage for the month? Will sobriety motivate me to accomplish my chores?
Another year in Just Another Life.
