Hanging On By A Thread

So many of us are hanging on by a thread as this new year begins. 

We're dealing with massive wildfires. Even if we aren't directly impacted, many of us are heartbroken as we see the devastation. Many of us are very fearful about what the incoming regime is going to do to our country. We fear for our democracy, for our freedoms, for our rights. We fear for this country we love.

And many of us are dealing with terrible weather. The hours of darkness are long and seem never-ending. The frigid weather and prolonged darkness make coping even more difficult.

I cannot begin to imagine what it must be like to lose absolutely everything: home, cars, clothing, furniture, photographs, family heirlooms, everything. I was thinking recently about what I would do if I were suddenly faced with having 5 minutes to grab the essentials and vacate my house. My first priority, of course, would be loading my dogs into my small SUV. Then I would grab their beds and a large bag of dog food, plus food bowls and a water bowl. And I can't forget their collars and leashes. 

After my dogs, I would grab my laptop, two external hard drives, and my camera bag with cameras and lenses. If time remained, I would grab armloads of clothing and shoes and throw those into the car, plus my prescription and over-the-counter medications. And since it's winter time, I would grab some cold weather gear, such as a coat, winter hat and gloves. 

With the coronation of the new supreme being to the throne in Washington, DC, happening next Monday, millions of us are understandably concerned, scared and stressed. 

There's nothing I can do to change history, but I recently bought a package of sage that I will use, following the native American instructions, to purify my house. I will not watch the inauguration / coronation, but I will do as recommended and have my television on during that time to any other channel. That way the bloviator will not get credit for having the highest television ratings ever in the history of the universe. I know many others who plan to do the same thing.

With these things in mind, I want to share something from a Facebook page known as Juno's Place. 

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We’re heading into the darkest days of winter - it’s important to self care, even if that’s just getting one thing done in a day.

DEPRESSION TIPS:

Shower. Not a bath, a shower.

Use water as hot or cold as you like. You don’t even need to wash. Just get in under the water and let it run over you for a while. Sit on the floor if you gotta.

Moisturize everything.

Use whatever lotion you like.

Unscented? Dollar store lotion? Fancy 48 hour lotion that makes you smell like a field of wildflowers? Use whatever you want, and use it all over your entire dermis.

Put on clean, comfortable clothes.

Put on your favorite underwear.

Those ridiculous boxers you bought last christmas with candy cane hearts on the butt? Put them on.

Drink cold water.

Use ice. If you want, add some mint or lemon for an extra boost.

Clean something.

Doesn’t have to be anything big. Organize one drawer of a desk. Wash five dirty dishes. Do a load of laundry. Scrub the bathroom sink.

Blast music.

Listen to something upbeat and dancey and loud, something that’s got lots of energy. Sing to it, dance to it, even if you suck at both.

Make food.

Don’t just grab a granola bar to munch. Take the time and make food. Even if it’s ramen. Add something special to it, like a soft boiled egg or some veggies. Prepare food, it tastes way better, and you’ll feel like you accomplished something.

Make something.

Write a short story or a poem, draw a picture, color a picture, fold origami, crochet or knit, sculpt something out of clay, anything artistic. Even if you don’t think you’re good at it. Create.

Go outside.

Take a walk. Bundle up if you have too. Listen to whatever birds winter where you are, watch the squirrels, admire whatever lights are in the trees. Go to the mailbox, send a letter, a bill, a card.

Call someone.

Call a loved one, a friend, a family member, call a chat service if you have no one else to call. Talk to a stranger on the street. Have a conversation and listen to someone’s voice. If you can’t bring yourself to call, text or email or whatever, just have some social interaction with another person. Even if you don’t say much, listen to them. It helps.

Cuddle your pets if you have them/can cuddle them.

Take pictures of them. Talk to them. Tell them how you feel, about your favorite movie, a new game coming out, anything.

May seem small or silly to some, but this list keeps people alive.

*** At your absolute best you won’t be good enough for the wrong people. But at your worst, you’ll still be worth it to the right ones. Remember that. Keep holding on.

*** In case nobody has told you today I love you and you are worth your weight and then some in gold, so be kind to yourself and most of all keep pushing on!!!

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So let's try to be nice to ourselves and to each other, ok?

Fluent in Silence

I saw a quote the other day that said, and I'm paraphrasing here, if you're too tired to speak, sit beside me. I am fluent in silence. 

I love this quote, because I, too, am fluent in silence. I love silence. And I detest noise. If there is any noise ongoing in my house most of the time, it's a smooth jazz or classical radio station. I do sometimes have the television on, but I watch very little live television. I much prefer to record programs so I can later fast forward through the endless barrage of screaming commercials. 

Many Americans, it seems, are uncomfortable in silence. I prefer to read or to go for a walk, either alone or with one of my dogs. They are great silent companions.

Winter is the perfect silent time of year. Nobody is mowing the lawn or doing other noisy outside work. Windows are tightly closed against the cold. Snow helps to muffle outside sounds.

Remember the popular 1960s song, The Sound of Silence?

That song came to mind early one morning as I sat in my office, reading a book of historical fiction on my Kindle. My dogs were snoozing on the floor near my chair. The only sound was the whirring of a space heater nearby, doing its best to warm up the room.

I was reminded recently that I like silence. Unlike so many people, who can't stand silence and who want to fill the void with noise, I much prefer silence to noise. Sometimes I will listen to background music, but most of the time I live in silence. I don't need the television on to provide background noise. 

I love the sound of nothing. Sometimes I can hear my dogs gently snoring or dreaming. But otherwise I surround myself with silence. I absolutely hate the sound of the furnace running. There has always been something about that sound -- the frequency, perhaps? -- that has really irritated me.

There is nothing wrong with silence. The silence of the wilderness, broken only by the chirping of birds, the crunching of leaves beneath my boots, or the sound of rushing water -- those are noises I love. 

Some people, my daughter among them, dislike silence because she is very social and spent most of her formative years in an orphanage (I adopted her when she was n11n years old). Even today at 31 years old she hates being alone. 

Some dislike silence because it causes them to think about our insecurities or things we prefer not to face. I think this fear of introspection is a major reason so many dislike silence. Social anxiety is another reason

I have always been a quiet person. It's just the way I am. Even as a child, I preferred reading to playing with other kids. The Scholastic book fair was a highlight of my school year. I don't make noise. And I don't like noise.

I wish the world had a greater appreciation of us quiet ones, the thoughtful ones, the contemplative ones.

Everybody Can Do Something

Several massive wildfires are tearing across the Los Angeles area, killing people and destroying thousands and thousands of homes and other buildings. 

I am proud that my small state of New Mexico, with a population smaller than that of Los Angeles, is sending 25 firefighters and fire engines to help battle the blaze. Canada has sent aircraft to drop water on the flames. Oregon and Washington State have sent firefighters and equipment. Mexico also has sent firefighters.

While the incoming president can do nothing more than criticize California's governor, the leaders of other states, Mexico and Canada are actually doing something to help. Imagine that. States are sending personnel to help their fellow citizens who are being devastated by these uncontrolled fires. 

This is what it means to be an American. This is what it means to be human. 

It means that we set aside our political differences and reach out to help our fellow citizens in need. It doesn't mean attacking other politicians just because they happen to be from another political party. It means reaching out to help. That is the American way. That is what we expect. If parts of the southeast are badly damaged by hurricanes or tornadoes, Americans gather to help. They prepare food for the victims. They help clear debris. They provide housing for people until they can get back on their feet. They step up to help animals, both domestic and wild, to treat animals surffering from smoke inhalation and burns. They give terrified animals a safe place to stay until they can be reunted with their families. They don't say, oh you're from a Republican state. I'm not going to help you.

Has the richest man on the planet pledged a few billion of his massive wealth to help? Of course not. All he has done is to blame California Democrats for decriminalizing looking, which he claims has encouraged looting. The governor shot back that looting is still a criminal activity. 

Seven years ago, he asked how his companies could help with the fires in southern California. This year, he cosignied wild accusations about various Democratic politicians and conspiracy theories about California’s water reserves. He even Particularly suggested that the L.A. fire department’s “racial equity plan” contributed to the devastation. Firefighters working hard to put out wind-fed blazes were faced with racial hostility from some o his more than 200 million followers on X.

Obviously Musk missed this part of his training to become a US citizen. He needs to check his misogyny and racism, which he clearly brought with him from his native South Africa, at the border. 

This is a natural disaster of the greatest magnitude. If he isn't willing to offer help and spare a few coins from his immense wealth, he needs to shut the hell up.

I have donated to both the World Central Kitchen, which is on the ground feeding victims and emergency responders, and to the Pasadena Humane Society, which is helping animals lost or injured by the fires.

I may not be a multi-billionaire or even a billionaire, but I at least know enough to do the right thing and help where I can.

A Sad Four-Year Anniversary

January 6, 2021, was an absolutely terrifying day. 

It wás a day I could never have foreseen, and it's a day I will never forget. 

I know what I saw on January 6, 2021. I watched in horror. I will not forget. I will not forgive.

I know who was responsible. I know whose words and actions resulted in the deaths of several law enforcement officers. I know whose words results in more than a million dollars in damages to the US Capitol. I know whose words threatened the lives of members of Congress.

I was one of millions of Americans who watched in horror and disbelief as the outgoing president of the United States incited his followers gathered in Washington, DC -- at his invitation to attack the US Capitol building, smash windows, destroy property and hunt down members of Congress. Among those targeted by the mob were then-Speaker of House Nancy Pelosi and Vice President Mike Pence. And now, after 4 years of a normal presidency led by a compassionate man who genuinely cares about this nation, we are facing four more years of lies, chaos, divisions, graft, corruption and attacks. 

I remember watching the crowds of protesters on television, smashing windows, macing police officers and forcing their way into the US Capitol building, where they did $1.5 million in damage. Members of the US Senate and the House were hustled off to safe places to protect their very lives. Protesters were calling out 'Where is Nancy?' as they searched for then-Speaker Pelosi. 

They constructed a gallows on Capitol grounds, ostensibly for the hanging of Vice President hi I'mPence, who refused to delay or prevent certification of the votes. More than Year 140 police officers were injured in the riot. Some committed suicide in the days following the attack. Attacking America's leadership and congressional building is not making America great again. One would have to be stupid, brain dead or brainwashed to believe this is the way to make a nation great.

All of this was done at the behest of the outgoing president of the United States, in an effort to stop the certification of the Electoral College vote confirming that he had lost the election. 

Despite frenzied calls from members of his staff and administration to call in the National Guard to restore order, the outgoing president refused to lift a finger to stop the protest. Eventually the vice-president called in the Guard after several hours. The outgoing president reportedly watched the riots and the protest on television with great glee. He also refused to call off his goons that were attacking the US capital.

And now, here we are again, with the traitorous former president set to take office again on Jan. 20. He has promised to pardon those traitors who were active participants in the insurrection, setting them loose on our government and citizens once more. 

I am a 23-year employee of the federal government, now retired. I spent the majority of my working life as a federal employee. Watching these goons attack our government buildings and elected officials, with the complicity of the outgoing president and some members of Congress, infuriates me to this day. I love my country and I am proud of my government service.

The former president, who has never been held accountable for his actions that day, is in my opinion guilty of inciting an insurrection. Protesters reported that they showed up because the president told them to. The protests were well organized in advance. This was not a spur-of-the-moment gathering. And they most certainly were not, as one congressional apologist stated, simply a group of tourists vising the nation's capitol. Certain members of Congress were, to one degree or another, complicit in the insurrection, having taken some of the insurrectionists on tours of the Capitol building the day before the insurrection.

This insurrection was not about protecting our freedoms or defending America, as the traitors claim. It was about trying to overturn a free and fair election so the outdoing president could remain in power. He simply could not accept that he was defeated at the polls. And he ran for the highest office in the land in 2024 solely to stay out of prison, He doesn't love this country. He doesn't want -- and never has -- done the work a president should do. He loves the attention, the publicity, the perks. He most certainly does not love America or her people.

The riot of January 6 wasn't about making America great again. It wasn't about patriotism. It was, and still is, about a childish, spoiled narcissist -- now showing obvious signs of dementia -- who has never been held responsible for anything in his life throwing a temper tantrum that resulted in the deaths and injuries of many people.

January 6, 2021, was a very sad and very frightening day in American history. More than 1,200 protesters have been charged with crimes related to the events of January 6. Nearly 900 have pleaded guilty or have been convicted of crimes. Some have been sentenced to several years in prison.

I fear for our country once the instigator and ringleader of the insurrection takes the throne once more. His entire platform is about nothing but revenge and retribution. He has chosen members of his cabinet who are unqualified and whose appeal to him is that they will do whatever he tells them to do.

How far this once great country has fallen.

Stay In Your Own Lane

 I have an idea for this new year, and for always.

How about if we all stay in our own lane and mind our own business?

If I choose not to eat pork, that's my business and nobody else's. Don't tell me that i's OK to ear pork just once. No, it isn't.

If I choose to buy an American car rather than an import, that is my business. If I choose to have my dogs sleep in my bedroom but not on my bed, that is not anybody else's business. If I choose not to drink alcohol -- you got it -- that is my business alone. If I follow a particular religion that isn't yours, accept my decision and move on. I shouldn't have to, and I won't, justify or explain my decision. If I support a woman's right to choose and you think abortion should be illegal, we should agree to disagree. YIf yu love shrimp and I think shrimp are disgusting, great. Your choice is no more correct than is mine. 

See how easy that is? You live your life and let me live mine. If we all did that, the world would be a much nicer, happier, more stress-free place. 

And truth be told, we are not likely to convince others to not eat pork or to buy only American cars or to convert to a particular religion. The only way to force others to follow the same things we follow is by force. And most of us don't want to be forced to do anything. And we certainly don't want to have our choices removed or even limited.

So if I choose to adopt a dog rather than buy one from a breeder, that is my choice. If you choose to purchase a purebred dog from a reputable breeder, that is your choice as well.

We are fortunate to live in a nation where, for the most part, we are free to make our own choices. But sadly, ultra right-wing forces are hard at work trying to take many choices away from us. They are trying to dictate how teachers can teach certain subjects, or which books can be offered in libraries, or when or if women give birth. 

This is wrong on myan many levels. Freedom of choice is one of things that has made this nation great. I don't want to be told how to vote, or which books I can read, or which kind of dog I can have, or where my dogs should sleep.

I want to have my freedoms to choose. And I suspect most people do, too.

I Want To Do More

I started writing this post on January 1, the start of a new month and a new year.

This is the time of year when people make resolutions, pledge to lose weight, be nicer, travel more, whatever. I don't make resolutions. But this year, I want to do more. 

More what? You may ask. I'm not sure at this point. But I want to do more to make this world a better place for people and for non-human animals. Perhaps this week's passing of former President Jimmy Carter, who devoted his life to doing more, has inspired me.

I can do more photography. I can do more writing. I can do more travel. I can donate more money to my favorite charities. I cut way back on my donations in 2024 due to the outrageous cost of everything, particularly food. Both the quantity and the amount of my donations dropped significantly from 2023. For 2025, I want to donate more money. I also want to save more money, to replenish my savings.

I know that 'doing more' is a very vague goal, not the kind of goal recommended by people who know about how to achieve goals.They recommend setting small, achievable, measurable goals. But 'doing more' is the best I can do at the moment.

A lot will depend on what happens in our country under a new, greed-and-chaos-driven administration. Will grocery prices skyrocket from the impact of tariffs imposed on goods imported from Mexico, our number one trading partner? Mexico is the second largest supplier of agricultural products to the US. Canada is the largest.

While no one can predict in detail what will happen, it seems certain that the US is in for a rough, chaotic four years. I will try to do more wherever I can.

Watching with Great Trepidation

New year. New month. New day. New calendar. 

The question, of course, is what will this new year bring? Will it bring success or great joy or prosperity? Or will it bring us failure and sadness and struggle? 

No one knows what this year will bring. The pundits may offer their predictions, but who really knows? 

I think the only thing for certain is that this will be a year of chaos, divisiveness, greed and all the other things the incoming president has promised. And frankly, these are not things to which I am looking forward. 

Mass deportations? Rollback of environmental protections? Tax cuts for the super wealthy? More struggles for the middle and lower classes? Endless insults? Tariffs? I think all of these things are a given. 

I am enjoying watching the various magat factions attacking each other. I can only hope they all self-destruct.

Once again the sane among us will be forced to watch our once-great nation become the laughing stock of the world, thanks solely to the orange skinned buffoon and his sycophants.

This year could be particularly bad with the supreme Court, the White House and both houses of Congress controlled by the same ultraconservative, radical right-wing zealots. 

There really is no way to prepare for what the next 4 years will bring. All we can do is watch with great trepidation and fear for our country.