Remember Pam Demick?

 

She came around a couple of years ago and made quite a fuss. No one knew where she came from, though some pointed to China. She took the world by storm and overpowered many across the globe. She took their breath away.

So many others say they were touched by Pam while having a Corona. She loved crowds.

Even the president noticed Pam with a daily press conference to talk about her and with little information, suggested we all stay home. If we had to go out to, say being ‘essential’ like police, nurses or the janitorial staff, wear a surgical mask and gloves and stay 6’ apart.

While the bodies were piling up, the government was giving away FREE shots in hopes that it would work and everyone could go back to normal.

They say Pam is still around, but our interest faded. The mask came off, the festivals restarted, offices reopened but everyone was used to working at home in their pj’s. No one told us to, but we got bored being inside all day.

Years from now, the history books will report the day that Pam Demick arrived and changed the world. Other than the toilet paper aisle emptied and there was no traffic on the road, I  didn’t notice any difference from my daily retired day.

 I still wear a mask at the Tummy Temple so the security cameras don’t know who I am.

Anticipation of Inauguration

 

I was born under the reign of Truman. He’d delivered the A-Bomb to end the World War three years before I arrived. I was born in the beginning of the Cold War but also the bloom of baby boomers. There were electrical appliances, televisions, monster movies, automobiles and single-family homes called the suburbs.

Ike, the famous general who oversaw D-Day, followed ( for General Doug was too controversial when he wanted to start WWIII and was fired by the haberdasher to fade away) and started the highway system so all the cars could use cheap gasoline and travel through the states to promote tourism and easily move the military.

He was followed by JFK who seemed like a young good-looking speaker who convinced the republic as a Catholic he was better than a vice president who looked bad on black and white television.

My parents didn’t talk about politics and the local newspaper was concerned about liberal civil rights taking over Dixie and commies. None of my friends talked about politics so we just went merrily on our way until the president got his head blown off in Texas.

On the way back to Washington, the vice president, LBJ, got sworn in next to the bloodied widow. After a few days out of school watching the parade of a caisson carrying a flag draped box followed by a riderless horse to the constant thump, thump, thump drum beat, we moved onto the Beatles.  

LBJ decided he didn’t want the problems of the Vietnam War (Truman had already gotten us into the Korean war to fight the commies, who were our allies in WWII, but had a more authoritarian agenda after their Bolshevik revolution and when dividing up the spoils of war, wanted a bigger piece of the pie) with Ike using the same goal of defeating the commies in Vietnam, which he handed to JFK, but he also had to worry about Cuba so he decided not to run for the next election. That was in 1968. That was my first voting experience.

I voted for Humphrey because I thought he could further the War on Poverty and Civil Rights agenda LBJ was pushing through congress; but he lost to Nixon who learned how to shave.

In 72, Nixon got reelected though I think my vote went to McGovern or John Hospers (Libertarian) received one electoral vote from a faithless elector in Virginia?

After tricky Dicky couldn’t find a way out and resigned, Jerry Ford pardoned him from his transgressions but will be remembered for his bad golf game, fumbling upstairs and getting shot at by Charlie Manson’s girlfriend. He lost the next election to a peanut farmer from Georgia.

Carter got wrapped up in an oil embargo while trying to find a peace process for Israel and Egypt, but the American Embassy in Iran was invaded with all personnel held hostage.

An actor came on the stage and was elected in 1980. Regan was a good speaker and greeted the hostages back from Iran. He tried to get rid of the commies in south America, but that didn’t work well either. His wife wanted a war on drugs, but elected officials don’t do well at fighting wars. By now I’d settled into a polling station of my ole elementary school two blocks away, though I may not have voted for the winner.

Ronnie got reelected in ‘84 but the democrats’ Mondale was a wuss (a problem that befalls them). Regan brought down the Berlin wall as the Soviet Union fell apart. Getting wounded in an assignation attempt just endeared him to the population as Ronnie lost his mind.

 After his two terms, his oil baron vice president was elected over another weak democrat. Bush, the elder, continued the conservative agenda and enjoyed the Gulf War, but regrated not finishing off Hussain. He’d leave it for his son.

A strong democrat huckster from Tennessee came along and got the attention of America with a campaign of promise and Fleetwood Mac. Clinton showed the youth factor and was a good speaker and seemed to get along with everyone. He had enough energy to get reelected but ran into problems with an intern and lost all credibility.

At the turn of the century, HW’s son, George W was elected over Clinton’s vice president by hanging chads. Then 9/11.

As the country collected in horror of being attacked, the president had to become more than a cowboy to commander in chief. Invade other lands trying to wipe out the evil from ‘terrorist ideology’ that would convince someone to strap a bomb vest on and blow up whoever was around. Can we pay for it? Don’t worry about debt, we’ve got caves in mountains to bomb.

By 2008, the country was ready for a change. A black man from Hawaii (yes, that is a state) came along with the campaign of hope and America turned a page. A young man named Obama with a vice president Biden, who had worked congress the way LBJ did for Kennedy, was overwhelmingly elected over weak republicans. He tried to set up a universal health system but the congress wasn’t so quick to spend more money. After two terms, he turned the democratic party values to the wife of a former adultery president and it did not go well.

On the scene came a real estate mogul and another television actor with no political experience, but with a forceful threatening message won the hearts of the misguided and set about renovating the people’s house to his grandiose taste. For four years, the news was filled with Trump’s actions to the joy of some and the horror of others. Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic happened and he didn’t know what to do. He assigned his vice president to inform the public of the plague, but he kept stepping in throwing politics and accusations before the well-being of the public. The daily reports with the charts and graphs and the log lady and Yoda, only wasted air time. “Wear a mask”. “Stand 6’ apart”. “Don’t worry we have plenty of ventilators”.

The next election in 2020 did not go so well for him, so he complained and people listened, to the point when his vice president with the fly on his head was to officiate the transfer of power, his MEGA band attacked and invaded the halls of Congress.

The next four years were Clinton’s vice president Joe (now rightly elected president after some ague) trying to repair foreign trade agreements. Inflation was high but there were more jobs and the stock market grew. In the background, the constant complaining by the former president kept the social media busy.

I’ve watch several of these inauguration procedures on black and white television. Many old white folk get bundled up (because it is cold outside in January on the Congress steps) and quietly wait for some old preacher or judge reach out a book (could be the holy scripture or the Sear’s cataloged) to take the oath and swear before all that are present and before whatever mystical religious spirit that following the words said through the ages that he (so far) will abide to the ancient constitution and the laws of the land and proceed to take the office of the leader of the free world with the purpose of providing safety for all the nation and a promise to further the prosperity of all people who live here.

In most of these procedures the previous president attends to give a hand shake and past the torch to the new administration. This transition passes the atomic codes and the keys to the White House.

Following in the swearing in to the oath of office, everyone sits back to enjoy a parade. Every state in the union is represented by a marching band or military unit (no tanks) but no floats or balloons like Macy’s. After all these proud Americans walk by, the ‘new’ president and his entourage of hanger-on’s and security personnel climb into armored limos to drive to the White House to the frozen cheers and flag waving watchers who have been waiting to see someone wave at them. It is free to stand on the sidewalk and wait in the cold.

There is a formal dance at the end of the day, but most television has moved onto the nightly roundup of sitcoms and commercials.

From what I remembered, the presidential transition was the promise of a new idealism and a hope for better days to come. The ‘new’ CEO of the United States of America has to settle down in the Ovel Office with a new staff of folks who will advise and provide current data to help make positive decisions. We will all stand when he walks in the room.

Yet this election has been so controversial and the citizens of this nation are so polarized fired by religious fervor and constant media productions of violence and death on screen. There is anticipation for the inauguration and what follows, but I have no control over the future.

As the podcasters speculate what tomorrow holds, I will settle back and watch the show and hope to live long enough for all of this mess to be over. One step at a time.

Civility

 

Civility is the act of showing regard for others by being polite, like the civility you showed in speaking kindly to someone who has hurt your feelings. Civility comes from the Latin word Civilis, meaning "relating to public life, befitting a citizen," in other words, being friendly and nice to everyone.

Civics is the study of the rights and responsibilities of citizens in a society. It includes the study of civil law, civil code, and government, with a focus on the role of citizens in the government's operation and oversight.

Civics is often taught in K–12 schools as part of the social studies curriculum. It's typically based on political science and law, and is closely related to other academic subjects, especially U.S. history.

Decorum

Decorum is proper and polite behavior. If you let out a big belch at a fancy dinner party, you're not showing much decorum. This noun is from Latin decōrus "proper, becoming, handsome," from décor "beauty, grace," which is also the source of English décor

Politeness

Politeness is the practical application of good manners or etiquette so as not to offend others and to put them at ease. It is a culturally defined phenomenon, and therefore what is considered polite in one culture can sometimes be quite rude or simply eccentric in another cultural context.

While the goal of politeness is to refrain from behaving in an offensive way so as not to offend others, and to make all people feel relaxed and comfortable with one another, these culturally defined standards at times may be broken within the context of personal boundaries – this is known as positive politeness.

Respect

Treating someone with respect means: • showing regard for their abilities and worth • valuing their feelings and their views, even if you don't necessarily agree with them • accepting them on an equal basis and giving them the same consideration, you would expect for yourself. Respect begins with oneself.

I am of an age when the lights went down in the theatre people remained silent and still to watch the performance. If not, they were escorted out by an usher with a flashlight. Then the audience started to talk, throw things and move around destroying the experience for me. I don’t attend the grand halls for big screen entertainment due to the audience.

If there was a dispute with a retailer over a price or customer service, a quiet request was made to talk to the manager and come to a concordant without a discord disturbing other. I hear people start raising their voices and turn the other way to avoid anyone who feels privileged enough to be a Karen.

I see videos of people throwing things at fast food establishments for the minimal complaint or tourist creating a fuss enough to hauled away by the authorities or the highway cut off that turns into a shooting.

It seems, to these old eyes, that whatever was taught in school or church or home about civility is ancient history. I certainly don’t know all the ‘new’ cultural whims and ways or rules of the game, so I’ll just try and use the ‘Golden Rule’.

I know when it is late and people get all liquored up, people may react with uncommon violence to no meaning, but the reactions of those around is worrisome.

Thanks for the day

 

This day in November is the day we are to give thanks, following the tradition of the Puritans who invaded this country and under their religious delusions feasted with the folks who were already living here on their abundance before they decided to drive them off.

This one day in November is the day the banks shut down and the government offices close and families gather to travel far and wide to sit around a table and gorge with football in the background and plenty of libations. The conversations at the dining table might be catching up on lost connections with photos on phones or battles over opposing preferences.

With addition to the menu and hosting family members and their offspring’s, there is the time and space to house these people after the dining is over. There is Uncle Jack, who by the time the Macy’s parade has started, is already hitting the bourbon on the sofa. There are the rug rats running amok around the table knocking things down and causing a furry until they fascinate on their electronic devices. The kitchen is full of chefs and one wonders should be have a health inspector to check these dishes before devouring them? The tradition of having the ladies crowd the cooking while the gentlemen lounge out of the way involved in sports banter and alcohol until called to the table.

I don’t attend family gatherings for festive food and loud conversations or venture to a dining establishment where some smuck is working in the kitchen when he wants to be home with family but is preparing the dining experience on this special day under a screen showing the football game and expected a large time for the cold meal of prepared food under a heat lamp. 

 

On this day, my mind wanders to the formal dinners. Long tables with place settings and assigned seating at an RSVP. These dinners had proper attire and time schedules for seating and delivery of the meal by servers in white gloves with constant attendance to refilling drinks and removing plates. No one would move until the head of the table announced the meal, perhaps blessed the food, and indicated we were to begin dining. We all paused to use the correct utensil for the appetizer while trying to make polite conversation with the people close enough to hear your voice. These dinners were not to feed the guest, but to mingle strangers. Most portions were small and the plate removed as your purpose was to converse rather than dine. When the coffee arrived, the meal was over and everyone moved onto the next course.

The gentlemen would move to the library for cigars and brandy while the ladies would move to the study for some cognac and chatting while the attendance cleared the table, guided the children into a separate room and prepared the space for entertainment.

The wealthy would provide live music to get the men/women back together for conversion or perhaps a physical activity as a dance.

At the end of the evening, with a cordial passing knowing the response must be matched or succeeded by another event. Other endings may provide financial connection or possible romantic conclusion.

Today, I give thanks for waking up. That is always a plus. I give thanks for not being in pain. I give thanks for getting enough grub and libations to get through the day without having to ride in the rain. I give thanks for not having to follow football and give thanks for stretch pants. I give thanks that the politics are over and…. what? who won? Never mind.

Sidewalks

 

I’m an urban boy. I grew up in suburbia with rows of single-family houses that all look alike. Each were on a paved street with curbs with overhead lights. Between the street and the well-groomed lawns is a sidewalk.

A walkway is any type of defined space or pathway for use by a person traveling by foot or using a wheelchair. These may be pedestrian walkways, shared use paths, sidewalks, or roadway shoulders.

The sidewalk was to deliver the pedestrian to a post office, dry good store, mercantile merchant or tavern avoiding the mess made from the horse drawn carriages in the street.

Before anyone had access to an automobile, we walked. For long distance, we took public transportation, but schools and churches and groceries were close enough to walk to and back without total exhaustion.

My friends were within walking distance. Our favorite hang-outs were within walking distance. Before I could ride my bike in the street, I circled the block on the sidewalk.

Though the sidewalk technically belonged to the city, people took pride in sweeping the leaves and shoveling the snow to clear the pathway. Kids could use the sidewalk to play marbles or as a pallet for chalk masterpieces until the rain came.

Could always tell the boundaries of the city for that was where the sidewalk ended. Instead of a flat secure walking surface, there were hills of tall grass and gullies to hike through to get to friends in the county. The only other option was to walk in the street dodging motor vehicles.

When relatives would come into town from the country, there was a pride of having a sidewalk in front of our house for easy access.

I sit on my porch as the sunsets and have brief conversations with neighbors walking by on the sidewalk. They bring their dogs or roll their children but are close enough to recognize faces and make a brief connection moving east or west. Joggers use the street, for it is wider and in this neck of the woods have fewer delivery trucks to avoid.

DIRE

 

Reporters and broadcasters have been using ‘dire’ to describe some of the war descriptions and one wonders?

Dire refers to situations or events that cause great fear and worry. A dire calamity causes much suffering. If a family is in dire need, they need immediate help. Dire predictions or warnings tell us that a disaster may happen in the future.

Dire and fury share a history in Roman mythology, as each of these words is connected to the Erinyes, the avenging and terrifying deities of ancient myth who tormented criminals. The Romans referred to these goddesses as either the Dirae or the Furiae. The former is from the Latin word dirus, from which dire is descended, and the latter comes from furere, from where we get fury.

The word dire is often found in conjunction with straits; in dire straits is used of a situation that is very bad or difficult. Our records indicate that this phrase began to be used in English at the end of the 18th century, when it appeared in Francis Fawkes’s The Argonautics of Apollonius Rhodius: “When now the heroes through the vast profound, Reach the dire straits with rocks encompass’d round.”

There are terms of disaster, catastrophe, calamity, cataclysm, tragedy, act of God, holocaust, accident, mishap, misadventure, mischance, setback, reversal, reverse of fortune, contretemps, stroke of ill luck, problem, difficulty, heavy blow, shock, buffet, adversity, trouble, misfortune, ruin, ruination, tribulation, woe, distress, casualty, bale, mishanter but calling a situation and calling it ‘dire’ seems there is no way out.

George Custer knew things were ‘dire’ at the Little Big Horn. The folks in the Twin Towers on 9/11 were pretty much in a ‘dire’ situation.

I’ve been in some unsavory or tight spots, but somehow always found a way.

Besides those of us who are on the other side of the world, dining on the veranda in Italy or climbing the trails in the Alps to watch the sunrise, will have some sympathy or empathy for the daily reports of people being blown up with no place to run to and then check the phone for some senseless influencer’s opinion or the latest must-have gadget. Stay tuned for the video.

It’s the time of the season for shopping...

Or should I say, “It is the time of the year to balance the GDP and make it/break it retail?”

Not one to put up seasonal decorations and at an age when there is no one else I buy presents for, December 25 is only the one day a year when the Tummy Temple is closed.

The walking downtown to the department stores to find my mother some fragrance she can store with her collection at her make-up stand or some gloves or scarves but never anything personal. Dad would get a tie or a bottle of Old Spice and usually a jigsaw puzzle for my brother and I’m done.

Christmas was the special time of year for my dad. He would fill the living room with loot to unwrap, then stack to show his appreciation for the family. I carried the tradition, even though there were no children to enjoy Santa, it was a futile procedure for entertainment and storage. Live trees were the norm, but with more animal’s pine trees in the living room were not optimum.

Today instead of window shopping or wandering the malls in search of a way to waste your money on that will either be a cherished memory or regifted next year.

What will be on your shopping list? Now that we stare at screens all day, all those little pop-ups are now converted into ‘fake news’ enticing a rabbit hole to take your money. Would you buy this kitchen appliance because it was endorsed by a pot smoking felon? Nothing says loving like another appliance for the kitchen or a replacement oven. Clothing goes out of style or wears out; jewelry goes out of fashion and timely items just fill up the closet.

We shop when we need something necessary. We shop for food or we will die. We shop for transportation or take the bus. We shop for affordable shelter that is large enough to fit all your stuff in hopefully in an area where you can tolerate your neighbors.

Then we shop for schools and churches and employment so as to afford more stuff we don’t need but spur of the moment purchases due to advertising (which filled my career convincing you that if you bought something, it paid my salary). Marketing and promotion are only feeding our dopamine and greed.

This year it seems mini-chainsaws, cordless vacuum cleaners and weighted blankets seem the trend this year. You can shop for drugs but you can’t buy wellness. You can shop for gym wear, but you know no one is going to the gym after age 25. You can shop for entertaining electronics that will take 6-months to learn how to us the upgrade, but you can’t buy happiness. You can shop for intimate items, but you can’t buy love.

The experience of shopping is just spending time together and that is priceless.