I Hate Winter

 I hate winter… I hate winter… I really hate winter.

I see absolutely nothing good about winter. It’s dark. It’s cold. It’s dry and brown and ugly outside. It usually snows once or twice. I feel housebound. All I want to do is sit inside and eat and sleep. I have no energy or desire to do anything. I have been doing a lot of reading so far this winter. Walking the dogs separately every morning when it's below freezing is definitely not the highlight of my day.

The only positive I can see about winter is putting the weighted blanket on my bed. It supposedly helps me sleep better, but I'm not sure it does as I have sleep issues. But it is incredibly warm, which is great on cold nights.

Snow can be beautiful from a distance. The photo shows my view of the Sandia Mountains. But this is as close to snow as I want to get.

I will probably make a pot of chicken noodle soup today. I eat a lot of soup and stew during the winter, and it's nice to make it myself. Homemade food makes the house smell so good, something that packaged foods just can't do. 

Soup, hot herbal tea and hot multigrain cereal are often found on my table. But these things provide only a very brief respite from the cold. 

I can't wait for spring!

What The Season Should Be

Best Black Friday deals on holiday hosting must-haves

Editors' favorite Black Friday deals in 2023

Last chance for super deals!

The first two are just some of the numerous headlines on CNN.com, which is allegedly a news site. In reality, it is sort of a news site, but half the front page is nothing but advertisements masquerading as news.

The third is from a Kohl's department store e-mail.

Already I have seen a television commercial featuring a very expensive Lexus SUV with a big red bow on top. Really? How many people can afford one or even two fancy new cars for the family as seen in these ridiculous commercials? And with payments of "only $599/month plus tax".

And as the push for holiday spending, and the search for "the perfect gift" accelerate, I expect to be bombarded by ever more commercials, e-mails and snail mail ads. 

The older I get, the less tolerant I have become of the never-ending push to buy...buy...and buy some more. Just charge the items to your credit card, and then start paying the bill off at 30 percent interest! I just heard that a fair number of Americans is still paying off last year's holiday credit card charges.

We are such a consumption-driven society. So many in this country, even more so around the world, are struggling to get the barest necessities -- shelter, food, healthcare -- that it pains me to see so many spend so much money they can't afford (don't forget that hose credit card bills will start arriving in January) on things many of the recipients don't want and don't need.

My daughter needed a new suitcase, so during her Thanksgiving visit I had her pick the one she wanted online, and I ordered it for her. She will have it by Tuesday. She also needs a new air fryer to replace the one that broke. I also ordered one of those, and she will have it next week, as a birthday gift. Those things aren't exciting or glamorous, but they are practical and they are what she needs. She doesn't have a high-paying job, so she doesn't want or need fancy things. Instead, she wants practical things, as well as clothing for her toddler.  I am happy to help with these necessities.

So in addition to providing essentials for my daughter and grandson, I will donate to my favorite charities. Donations will likely be smaller than usual this year, due to the high cost of everything I pay for, as well as some unexpected recent household repairs.

This year, as every year, I encourage people to practice the true meaning of the season. Spread joy. Cherish family. Help others as you are able. Be kind. Be generous, if not with things or money, then with your time. Be a good person, not just now but throughout the year.  And it doesn't matter whether you celebrate Hannukah or Christmas or another festival.

Life is good, and I am happy to be able to help the less fortunate among us. Whether it is donating a bag of groceries, buying a suitcase or donating money, I enjoy helping others.

And that is what the season should be about.

A National Shame

I find it unconscionable that in 2023 America, more than 44 million people cannot afford to buy food for themselves and their families.

Food insecurity, as it is called, has been one of the causes about which most care for decades. My church in California used to have 'food barrel Sunday' collections of non-perishable food once a month. I donated through the government's Combined Federal Campaign every paycheck to the local food bank. I never miss an opportunity to donate food to any food drive of which I become aware. I donate once or twice each year to my state's largest food bank, which provides food to smaller food projects throughout the state. I also donate a couple of times each year to Meals on Wheels, which provides hot meals and companionship to the elderly in their homes.

Yesterday my city's police and fire departments collected food donations at several grocery stores in the city. When I dropped off my bag of groceries, I chatted for a couple of minutes with one of the firefighters. He said the response had been good. As I talked to him, I noticed a woman and her son of roughly 10 years old hand two cans of food to one of the firefighters. 

I buy canned goods such as soup and vegetables throughout the year when they are on sale. I do the same with boxes of cereal and packages of pasta. Then I add some of my stock of non-perishable food to the bag. 

I live in a state that is rather poor, and food insecurity is a real thing for many. One in every seven people faces hunger. One in every five children faces hunger. 

Our schools now provide free breakfast and lunch to every child, with a focus on providing locally produced and nutritious food. During summer months when schools are not in session, some school districts offer sack lunches for students. Others send children home on Friday with enough food to get them through the weekend.

This is what we need -- creative ways of ensuring that our children have enough food to grow and to learn. 

I saw a story on the national news yesterday about a 17-year-old Iowa farm girl whose parents allowed her to take 1/2 acre of their land to grow fresh produce for the local food bank. Fresh produce is always needed by food banks. This young lady crew tomatoes, green beans, peas and lettuce.

The next year she expanded her mini-farm to a full acre and added more than a dozen new crops.  She gave more than 7,000 pounds of fresh produce to nine local food banks. Next year she hopes to expand her farm to 2 acres and donate produce to a dozen groups. Others are getting on the bandwagon by donating seeds for food crops.

This is a wonderful example of what an individual can do to help ease hunger in our nation. We can't all farm a couple of acres of land, but I believe each of us can do something. If we can't donate money, maybe we can pick up an extra can of soup or vegetables when on sale. Maybe we can volunteer at a food bank. 

It continues to sadden me to realize that the United States still has so many people struggling to provide food to their families.

So I ask my readers, during this season of giving thanks and throughout the year, to please remember our less fortunate neighbors and do what you can to help.

No Place for Religion in Government

Religion should have no place in politics or in the government.

I don't care which religion, if any, people choose to follow. They are free to practice their religion privately as they wish. But there is no place for any religion in government. And a person's religious affiliation and beliefs should play no role in that person's appointment, selection or actions in office.

The United States, according to one source, is the first explicitly secular government in history. The country is supposedly a secular society, but several Republican candidates for the presidency are using religion to appeal to potential voters with promises of making their beliefs into law. The US is not, never has been, and should never be, a theocracy.

Religion may have its place in our society, but the government, at any level, is not the place. This means that religious groups should be forbidden from  trying to pass legislation that controls what others can do. If you don't believe abortion should be allowed, then don't have an abortion. But don't try to force your beliefs about abortion on others. The United States, according to one source, is the first explicitly secular government in history.

If you don't believe in birth control, then don't use birth control. But don't try to make it illegal for others.

If you don't believe in same-sex marriage, fine. Don't marry someone of the same sex as you. But you don't get to make it illegal for others to marry someone of the same sex.

Prayer has no place in our public schools. To whose god are we to pray? The Christian god? Allah? A Buddhist god (which one? There are many). A Hindu god? Which lone?

Taxpayers should not be forced to pay for vouchers that are to be used at private, religion-based schools. Not only is this practice wrong, as it supports religious institutions with tax dollars, it also hurts public schools by reducing funding that is based on the number of students attending a given public school..

This country's pseudo Christians would have a conniption if suddenly schools started allowing prayers to Allah or to the prophet Mohammed. 

The United States was not founded as a Christian country, and it remains a country free of an official religion. Those who want to live in a country where there is an official religion, and that have 'religious police' to enforce the religious rules of life, should consider moving to Pakistan, Iraq or perhaps to Saudi Arabia.

In the United States, we have the freedom to practice whichever religion we choose. We should also have freedom from religion.

I have friends who follow a variety of religions: Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, protestant and Catholic forms of Christianity, as well as no religion at all. They are not my friends because of their religious beliefs. Quite simply, I don't care which, if any religions, my friends choose to follow. We don't discuss religion. It is a personal matter, and it needs to remain a personal matter.

So the recent movement known as Christian nationalism concerns me. I repeat again, the United States is not now and never has been a Christian nation. People should not be forced to be subjugated to anyone's religious beliefs.

Attend the house of worship of your choice. Pray to the god of your choice. But you don't get to force everyone else to adhere to your religious beliefs.

It's Too Much

It's just too much.

What is too much, you ask? Everything is too much. Endless television commercials for 'moderate to severe' fill in the blank medical condition. Already the Christmas commercials have started. Cable news has wall-to-wall coverage of Israel's war with the terrorist group Hamas. Ukraine's war with Russia is yesterday's news, I guess, as it isn't mentioned at all.

There has been yet another mass shooting, this time in a quiet city in Maine that took 18 innocent lives. Appeals for money are arriving in my mailbox on a regular basis. Text messages from politicians clutter my phone, despite my being on the totally useless do-not-call list, something that politicians can use with impunity. I delete each message and block the phone number that sent it, but that doesn't stop the begging for money. And these aren't local or even state politicians, but from other states.

And now the weather is turning colder, a lot colder. I hate cold weather. I always have and I always will.

I canceled my planned trip to Rome over Christmas when the airfare would have cost more than twice the price of the all-inclusive trip. I canceled February's planned trip to Portugal because the flight schedule would have required me to pay for two additional nights, including a layover in London, where hotels are in the $300 and up range.

So I have absolutely nothing to look forward to until a trip to Yosemite in May.

Winter is supposedly a time to rest. Well, sitting home on a cold, dark winter day is not my idea of rest. I need to be doing something to exercise my mind and my body.

I hate winter. Always have. Always will.

Enough of the Disgusting Commercials

Dear people who generate television commercials. I am sick and tired of looking at people’ armpits and crotches, and hearing about butt crack deodorant.

Is there nothing that is off-limits in your insatiable drive for money money money money money? Certain things are simply too personal or too disgusting to be shown in a television commercial. 

Imagine how I felt yesterday morning as I was eating breakfast and watching the news when they went to yet another commercial break. And what did I see? A commercial for butt crack deodorant!

Even if there was no actual butt crack illustrated on television, the image is indelibly imprinted in my mind. This ranks right up there with a very graphic commercial for some sort of spray to add to a toilet bowl after somebody takes a dump so it smells better.

I hope the butt crack deodorant company goes out of business, and soon. It’s bad enough being bombarded with an incessant stream of loud, in-your- face, screaming, insipid commercials. But this is beyond anything I’ve seen. Enough already!

Losing My Spirit of Generosity

I am usually a very generous person, but I am not feeling it this year.

I’m not sure why, but I just don’t feel like donating money anywhere. I know the need is huge, and I still care about the dozen or so causes that I support. But I’m really tired of being hit up for money at every turn. I suspect I feel this way because the need is so great and the demands are so great that I feel that no matter what I do, it won’t make a difference.

I once donated $500, which is a lot for me to donate, to a local branch of a national organization that provides hot meals to the elderly. Before I knew it, I was being asked to donate another $1,500. That did not happen. And then there’s a group to which I no longer donate that in two successive years asked me to donate for either two or three consecutive months, going so far as to include a convenient remittance coupon and return envelope for each of the hoped for donations. That didn’t happen either, and I no longer support this organization.

So far this fall I have received three requests for donations from a local charity that serves the homeless. And while I may feel sorry for the large local homeless population, or as the politically correct term for homelessness is, being “unhoused”, it is not a cause that I support financially. I just don’t. And bombarding me with requests for money isn’t likely to change my feelings about this.

I know it’s just a matter of time before the note cards, calendars and address labels start cluttering my mailbox. And I really hate that nonprofit organizations waste so much donor money on these gifts that I don’t want and don’t need. In all my many years of charitable giving, I have never decided to make a donation because it sent me a calendar or a bunch of useless note cards.

I would love for someone to do a study of donors to non-profit organizations and profile donor reactions to how they are approached for still more money. Do frequent appeals work? Does hitting up those who have recently donated for still more money actually work? Does receiving an unsolicited calendar or address labels generate additional funding?

I would love to know the answers to these questions. In the meantime, I will decide how much, how often and to which charities I will donate. Nagging me for still more donations does only one thing: it irritates me and me less likely to donate.