NO TV. NO RADIO. NO LIVESTREAMING.
Life’s hard enough as it is. No need to subject oneself to torture.
Stupid GropenFuehrer Supporter Quote of the Day
Courtesy of Doug Burttram on Facebook (regarding Guantanamo): “Obama wants his Muslim brothers out so they can kill more Americans, what other possible reason would this Muslim loving fool do this?? Think America Obama has done everything in his power to pull America to its knees. Thank God for Trump!!#”
Beware America. Someone with a vote equal to yours (or perhaps more equal if he lives in a less populous state) actually believes this.
Trolling the Trumpistas
I’ve spent a couple of weeks on Drumpf’s Facebook page. I try to remain as calm and as polite as possible. I make repeated attempts to engage rather than return the invective that I have received in abundance. I haven’t shied from pointing out to others that should consider that they are not as smart or informed as they think they are, and that their opponents (not me) are perhaps as smart and informed.
All I can come up with is that Trump’s supporters need to hate. They need an enemy. There is no reasoning. There is no demonstrable truth. I’m not just writing them off with “haters gonna hate”, because I think it 1) says nothing, and 2) signifies a refusal to seek other means of communicating. I do agree that a large core of Trump’s supporters will never change. But this is just too fucking scary to ignore.
Sometimes I try to have a little fun. I shouldn’t. The commenters seem to be frighteningly immune to humor, especially about themselves.
Throw Some Paint at the Wall
I’ve been way too careful about my writing.
I don’t put anything up until I’ve really had time to think about it, rethink it, and then rewrite it. Rewrite many times. But enough of that. That means that I rarely post.
I post for whomever may show up at the game, but I mainly just post for myself.
I mainly post for myself, but I keep my children in mind. Would I want them to read this now? In 5 years? In 10? After I’m dust and ashes? The world is not going to remember me. I may have grandchildren, but I was so old (41 for the first) when I had kids that it’s entirely possible that I won’t live to see them. It’s even more likely that they won’t remember me. I tell my children about my grandparents, but I don’t think that much of it will stick. They both had a chance to meet my Grandma Ida, but Jolee doesn’t remember her, and Sam has just impressions. Fortunately, they know all four of their grandparents. But the inter-generational time expands, and we lose touch. It’s not like it’s easy to get records, either. One grandfather’s name can be found on a ship’s manifest at ellisisland.org. For the other grandfather there is one that is similar but doesn’t quite meet the criteria. The grandmothers were born here, their fathers were not.
Anyway, I still need to write, and so I will just toss this stuff out and see what happens.
Sorry if I bored you, better stuff coming.
Where’s that F#@!ing Gr0uNdhog?!
It’s snowing. It is not pretty or scenic or quaint or anything like that.
OK, it’s not a lot of snow, at least for New England.
But I’ve done my time! I was here last year! I went to grad school in Wisconsin! I’m looking forward to global warming! I want to convert my snow blower into a go-kart and drive it over snow-free roads and fields, defiling the ecosystem and being a nuisance!
I get my revenge on nature!
However:
I am not shoveling or firing up the snow blower. It will be in the 40’s tomorrow, and I am going to let old Sol do the work. Ya use your brains or ya use your back. I think my brain might might give out first, but at least I’ll be able to stand up and walk (as long as I’m not chewing gum, cf. Gerald Ford).
In related events, the crew represented in Goodfellas decided they had had enough and had our little friend did his own grave.
- (Mandatory Credit: Photo by Quirky China News / Rex Features (1689244a) )
It’s Oracular Marmota monax Day!
One of my favorite holidays! When he says “6 more weeks of winter,” I ask “Only?”
What I Threw Out Today: A Pan Pipe
Every object tells a story. I didn’t toss this in the garbage. I just left it behind in a cafe. I hope no one thought that it was an IED. 
What I Threw Out Today: The Organic Chemistry Textbook
The process continues.
I try to think of why I hang on to things. My mind strains to think under what conditions I would actually need an organic chemistry textbook again. To be totally honest, I’m not sure why I needed to study organic chemistry in the first place. As a requirement for graduate school in chemistry, pharmacology, biochemistry, etc, it makes sense. To be a doctor? Most of us don’t remember anything about organic, except that we had to take it and a lot of people really hated it. 
I didn’t hate organic. I thought it was sort of interesting. I think I kept the book because 1) I thought that I might need it, though who knows for what, and 2) I hated the idea that after spending so much time studying something, it would all just go away. Could I get 5% right on those tests I took all those years ago? Why on earth did I spend all that time and treasure learning something the veterinary school admissions committee must have known I wouldn’t need and that I would almost certainly forget?
Lastly, I wonder whether somewhere this book wouldn’t be of use to somebody somewhere, in a place where there aren’t old textbooks piling up in landfills or being carted off to get recycled?
The Meta-Bug 