The Holidays are here...

...so why don't we feel very festive? Oh, maybe because we have a 79 year old toddler in charge of our country, who every day creates more chaos we have to process. Not one segment of our lives is safe from his meddling. We wake up wondering what fresh hell he will create today and go to bed exhausted by dealing with it. I'm firmly on the side of those who have the champagne on ice, ready for when the big announcement is made that he has finally expired. It seems as if he is being propped up by some miracle of modern medicine due to the severe bruising on one of his hands. It appears as if he nods off during cabinet meetings and other public events. He's always pictured sitting behind his desk in the oval office while everyone else stands behind and beside him. He rambles and rants incoherently when he speaks. Every public event is an opportunity for him to expound on why the Dems are to blame for everything. He's a true embarrassment to our country. This week he further cemented his grip on the title of Worst Human Being on Earth by opining that two of Hollywood's brightest and most creative people were murdered because of their political views - not because of an apparent dispute with a family member who took revenge too far. RIP Rob Reiner and his wife Michele. I was reminded just yesterday that among Rob's many fine directorial efforts is one of my favoties, The American President, which contains that amazingly relevant today speech by Michael Douglas as Andrew Sheppard. This speech was the total of Heather Cox Richardson's post for today and it hits so true. We desperately need serious people in Washington. ~ Show season is over for me, as is my run as LeafLady Quilts. The last two shows were good - Topsham was the best of the 3 years I had done that show and Scarborough was good. I just need to shut down the website and the Facebook page, make my final sales tax payment and figure out what to do with the leftover inventory, as well as all my booth setup. I've had some interest in parts but need to put it out there on Marketplace. ~ We got the tree up a week ago and the cookies are all made. Party mix on its second batch. I think I completed my shopping this morning. House is decorated. I put up the outside lights one morning at the beginning of a snowstorm that has left us with a few inches on the ground since. It's been so cold but supposed to warm up for a few days tomorrow. Now to do the cards and mail them, wrap the presents and enjoy. ~ In an effort to not lose all my quilting mojo, I decided to do a Bonnie Hunter project. I'm already 4 weeks behind schedule but will start sewing tomorrow. So far it's just creating small units - LOTS of small units. I stopped following Bonnie years ago because I just couldn't keep up with her. In the meantime, she has slowed down and it turns out she is vehemently anti-Trump. So she's back on my radar! ~ Finally made it to the Wayne Stroll last weekend. Was an enjoyable morning/afternonn with Brenda. Fun things and good lunch. We also checked out Freckle Salvage. ~ D. and I went to a concert Sunday afternoon. The Augusta Symphony Orchestra presented some holiday favorite - Nutcracker, a movie medley,Brandenberg Concertos and the Halelujah Chorus, sung by the CODA chorus. A saw Gabriella breifly but we did not stick around to reconnect after. Good music and great performances. Impressive for such a small emsemble.

Shut Down Over...?

~...for now. Likely to be revisited in January. I admit that Angus King disappointed me when he voted for the new rules which include a "promise" by the Republicans to revisit the ACA rebates in December. I can only imagine the excuses they are already cooking up why they can't do that at this time. Time will tell. At least for now, peoples' SNAP benefits are restored and we have some sort of breathing room. I have made 2 weekly donations to the Sidney Food Pantry. It's so easy to add a few things from their list to my cart. ~ Work continues on the last items for stock for the Topsham show. D. has said he'd help with set up unloading. We're doing Thanksgiving at home rather than in Topsham, as Kattie is moving back in. Her relationship/engagement fell apart (no surprise) and the fiance has decamped for his home in New York. I imagine I will hear all about it if she stops by the show and I will have to make it a point to not get trapped in my chair by her, because she can ramble on. ~ I've missed half of the Tai Chi classes this session so I need to recommit to that. It shows in that I cannot remember the routine once I get home. Must do better at that. ~ We had our first show thi week - just barely covered the ground and was gone by noon. A little more last night but nothing to worry about.

Catching Up

~ In a seemingly predictable move, Vice President JD Vance has telegraphed that he "hopes" his Indian-born Hindu wife, Usha, will convert to Catholicism. As this might be an unlikely outcome, he could divorce her and that would free him to pursue what appears to be an already public relationship with the widow to assasinated Right wing conservative podcaster Charlie Kirk. Vance made an appearance at a Turning Point event this past week at which the two embraced rather intimately, leading to much specualtion. ~ Meanwhile his boss was busy touting his success at solving world wars and the economy, while the Isrealis and Gazans are still killing each other. The government shutdown enters it 5th week today and as of yesterday all SNAP benefits were suspended. Food pantries are scrambling to make up the difference for everyone. And while this was going on, Trump was celebrating Halloween at Maralago with a Gatsby-themed party for his loyalists. And he boasted about having renovated the Lincoln bathroon, replacing a 40's vintage look with too much sterile marble and gold. This a week after he completely obliterated the East Wing of the White House without permits and environmental oversight. All to ostensibly build his gold encrusted ball room that no one else wants. ~ Me, I've been quilting up a storm and did my first show of the Fall season, the SMCC Fall Festival in Portland. Did only marginally better that last year at this show. And learned that the Elfin Magic show the first weekend on December has been cancelled due to lack of participants. So I have just 2 shows left - Topsham the weekend before Thanksgiving anf the Scarborough show the Friday and Saturday after. It's fine - more time for me to bake and decorate. ~ We had the floor and railing toppers of the back deck replaced last week. It's so much better than it was and they did a great job. We're all set for winter, as far as I can see. I need to do some major deep cleaning but it will happen. Looking forward to January when I can start knocking titles off my "to be read" list.

No Kings #2

~ Yesterday we opted for the Waterville location and only made it to the rally (not the march) as there was a previously scheduled vaccination appointment for the other person in this household. We lucked out with a parking spot right across the street from the park and stayed for about 45 minutes to hear several speeches and lots of cheering and chanting. There were people lining Elm Srteet, waving and elliciting honks and salutations (mostly positive) from the cars passing by. We did our duty and were part of the record crowd - 2000 strong - at that location. ~ And this morning, the toddler in chief posted an AI generated video of himself as King, flying a fighter jet spreading feces on No Kings protesters. It seems to be incredibly easy to trigger his insecurities but this is a new low in responses. And incredibly violent because he could not find any instances of violence to call out his goons on yesterday. He thrives on the most violent of actions, thinks it makes him look strong when all it does is reinforce his insecurities. ~ Yesterday it was announced that the Dept. of Homeland Security had purchased 2 new Gulfstream jets for the Secretary's use. All this during a government shutdown. Ah, I see! The government is shutdown for the common people and our needs, but not for the elites in "power" because, well, they are sooo f'ing important. It's just like the signage for Question 2 on this Fall's ballot - "Keep Maine Safe - vote NO on Question 2". A Yes vote would strengthen the language that would trigger a person's guns be confiscated - basically a Red Flag law as opposed to the current Yellow Flag law. The "Keep Maine Safe" language is coming from the 2nd Ammendment folks who want no limit on gun ownership, no matter the cost to human life. I just don't understand it. Of course, I would take away their military-style semi-automatics in a heartbeat. No one needs those guns and they are the ones who do the most damage in the shortest amount of time, which is why they are the weapon of choice for most mass shooting terrorists. ~ Getting ready for the first show of the Fall/Winter season next weekend. Almost finished creating inventory. Then it will be on to holiday items. Getting antsy for it and ready to wrap up this phase of my life. I want to spend the winter reading!

GOT TO ADMIT IT'S GETTING...WORSE!

~ Now we have a threat of armed National Guardsmen being deployed to Portland - the left coast one. Such a gentle, peaceful city. Yes, they had their moments of civil unrest in the past but they are nowhere near the "hellscape" a certain orange buffoon is making them out to be. As usual, he exagerates to inflame and foment unrest to appear strong when all he is doing is compensating for his weaknesses and trying to deflect from whatever is contained in the Epstein files. With this week's release of info, it appears as if Elon was a visitor to the island of misfit pedifiles along with another high profile advisor to the President. He is aiding and abetting all sorts of criminals, along with himself. It won't be pretty when it all comes tumbling down. ~ Closer to home, I have finished the current creations and am ready to start on a couple of tree skirts as well as the remainder of the scented trivets needed. Then on to some holiday runners and placemats. The garden is mostly put to bed, save the leeks which can remain through the first few frosts. I have a stash of green tomatos put up downstairs and plenty of ripe ones in the kitchen. I made a small batch of tomato sauce last week along with 5 pints of applesauce yesterday. I've frozen peppers and have a zucchini (purchased) ready to grate for bread and muffins. We're still eating lettuce from the back porch, and there is a smallish bag of the last of the chard ready for a dinner this week. All in all, despite a couple of disappoinments, I'd say the garden was a success. Oh and 4 pumpkins that surprisingly showed up after the rain a couple of weeks ago. None of them are huge but should should yield enough for a pie. ~ D. is still chasing after healthcare changes - his PCP moved to Falmouth after Inland closed and his cardiologist moved to Skowhegan and then passed away a couple of weeks ago. So he's starting from scratch. I'm so happy I made the choice to stick with Maine General years ago when I ended up with a PCP I was not happy with who was associated with Inland, especially when Inland joined Northern Light. Like D. I would have had to travel to Bangor for some of my care and I wasn't willing to do that. I hope he can get settled soon. ~ Other health news - I got my flu shot 2 weeks ago when I saw my PCP and got my COVID and pneumonia last week. I took Tylenol (no fear of autism for me!) after which helped immemsely with the arm pain. I was a bit sluggish the day after but bounced nack quickly. I should be fully immune by the time show season starts for good in a month.

Our Differences Divide Us..at What Cost?

The past 24 hours has been consumed with news of the assasination of a very conservative right-wing influencer. (Oh, how I wish we could banish influencer as a job in this day and age!). I will not name him, but these are some quotes attributed to him: If I see a Black pilot, I’m going to be like, boy, I hope he’s qualified. – 23 January 2024 If you’re a WNBA, pot-smoking, Black lesbian, do you get treated better than a United States marine? – 8 December 2022 Happening all the time in urban America, prowling Blacks go around for fun to go target white people, that’s a fact. It’s happening more and more. – 19 May 2023 If I’m dealing with somebody in customer service who’s a moronic Black woman, I wonder is she there because of her excellence, or is she there because of affirmative action? – 3 January 2024 If we would have said that Joy Reid and Michelle Obama and Sheila Jackson Lee and Ketanji Brown Jackson were affirmative action picks, we would have been called racists. Now they’re coming out and they’re saying it for us … You do not have the brain processing power to otherwise be taken really seriously. You had to go steal a white person’s slot to go be taken somewhat seriously. – 13 July 2023 ~ And on women - "And I would also tell young ladies, you can always go back to your career later, that there is a window where you primarily should pursue marriage and having children, and that is a beautiful thing." Less than 48 hours later, his assassin has been arrested, thanks in part to a parent who did the right thing and listened to his son and then called the authorities. While I do not condone this sort of violence at any time, I will not spend any time or emotions on greiving for this person, who did nothing but aid the MAGAs in driving a wedge between many factions in this country. We used to be able to co-exist quite respectfully and actually get things done in the US Congress and state houses across the country. But no more - it's all about owning the other side and "Gotcha" moments and performance instead of actual results. Never more true than on display this morning in the press conference announcing the arrest than with the current FBI Director, Kash Patel. (A loyalist hire if ever there was one in this administration.) He named every possible person who might have assisted in the result and proved himself again a complete toady to Trump. The governor of Utah wasn't much better, although he did call for peace and calm, after a few words of praise for the deceased. This man was NOT a true Christian, he was not a true debater. He WAS a powerful influence on the young people he targeted with his performances. I hope hisotry will show what a negative influence that was. I am all in for free speech but not hate speech and not lies. And the misplaced largess of this administration to expend government finances on a) lowering flags to half staff for this "Influencer", b) send the VP out to Utah to have him return the body and family to Arizona on AF2, and 3) suggest he should lie in state in the Capiol is just plain batshit crazy and another example of owning the Libs. Oh, and release the Epstein files NOW!

Writing Through the Storm

~ We are currently about to be hit by the second round of thunder and rain for the day - our first significant rain in weeks. Lawns and crops are brown, well levels are lowering, trees are changing colors already and it's not even September. ~ I say "Bring on the rain" just leave the thunder. It's too jarring in a world that is already on edge from the attacks on our way of life by the government, specifically the Trump administration. Every day brings a fresh assault - today is on our health. Limited authorizations for COVID vaccines, limited supplies, too, I imagine, because what manufacturer would produce enough for the entire population after hearing the government challenge the effectiveness. I know I am ready for my next jab, along with the flu shot. I do not want either of those illnesses to affect my ability to go about my daily life. I have even ordered some new N95 masks as protection until I can get the shots. ~ The sad saga of Mr. Abrego Garcia continues. He was FINALLY returned to the US from El Salvador, telling of all the cruel punishments he received there and was released from custody this week only to be snatched again at his first scheduled report with the immigration authorities. A judge mercifully ruled that the feds cannot deport him to a country he has no ties to after Trump and Bondi announced they would ship him off to Somalia. WTF???? And his attorneys have requested a gag order to prevent Bondi et all from maligning him, as they have been so quick to do in the past. It almost seems as if they have a personal vendetta against him. ~ National Guard troops have been installed in DC, reportedly to restore peace to the crime-ridden streets. However, the latest reports have guardsmen picking up trash and spreading mulch on the sites of national monuments, because the reduction of National Park Service employees has created a need. I'll bet the guardsmen and their families are sooooo happy to have them deployed away from home and family and jobs for those details. And there is talk of the next target of this treatment to be Chicago. Gov. Pritzker is adamant that there is no need, he has not asked or been asked if he wants these troops. All the announced target cities are in heavily Democrtic areas, of course, while the cities with the highest crime rates are all in Red states. Hmmmm. ~ A high profile resistance act has emerged from the left coast - Gavin Newsom has started trolling Trump, making posts on X that mirror Trump's deranged posts on Truth Social. And he's posted videos in the same vein. Dark Gavin is good! And needed. ~ In non-politcal news: The Brunswick show 2 weeks ago was again a success, equaling my $1K take. Great weather and just a few glitches: someone setting up in my space when I arrived (he was supposed to be across the aisle); and a parking space kerfluffle at the end of the day - I thought a couple would be leaving a prime spot but when I got my car they said they wanted to go to dinner so were not leaving. I must have looked desperate because they changed their minds and let me have to space so I was able to load up and be on my way in 15 muinutes with a little help from my neighbors. Next show is in 2 months so I have time to reload and recharge. ~ Given the effect the chaotic tariffs have had on the import economy, it's likely good timing on my part to shut down at the end of the year. Much of the fabric I use is manufactured or at least printed overseas so the price would likely rise. (In fact, I've noticed a steady increase in price the past 3-4 years.) I've tried to keep my prices reasonable but have made modest increases on a couple of things just to keep profits up a bit. I'm trying to use up some dribs and drabs so have a run of trivets ready to layer and quilt. I need to make more scented trivets and runners. I've dropped sachets from my show line up and will give away the few remaining, as I have started doing with the mug mats. And I have a couple of display things I can list on Marketplace before show season gets going for real. ~ Racing has ticked along all summer and this is the last weekend for Saratoga. I'll go out on a limb and say the Sovereignty will be the 3 Year old of the year and maybe horse of the year. Derby, Belmont, Jim Dandy and Travers. Training up to the Classic.

The madness Continues - Sign

~ More unqualified appointments, more lunatic proclamations, and still no release of the Epstein files. I hope he rots in Hell because of what is in them. Based on testimony in other trials, I would not be surprised to find that he savors the taste of sweet young flesh. Because men like him always think they can do what they want and get away with it. I hope I live long enough to see justice served in the matter of DJT. And that his spawn slink off in disgrace, never to be heard from again. ~ My next show is a week away. Brunswick has always been good for about a third of my yearly income. It's that popular a show, in a high-visibility location, with lots of promotion and a team of organizers who treat the artisans with respect. Free lunch, water a plenty, bathroom breaks, help with whatever. This year I will have Betty right next door to keep me sane and right now the weather looks good - 80 and partly sunny with moderate humidity. And I have everything made - just need to finish updating the inventory, refresh the scented trivets and organize everything. Then it's 9 weeks until my next show. ~ Have been slowly working on Freddy's quilt but keep getting stuck or sidetracked. I ran into a digesetive issue this week and resorted to chewable Pepto tablets which helped but led to a freak out when I suddenly was pooping black stuff (a noted side effect of Pepto apparently!). Wondered if there was something elso going on but apparently not as all is back to normal now. Whew! Did NOT need that a week before a show. ~ Finished a 6 week/12 session Tai Chi course this week. It's been about a decade since I did this and I was amazed at how much came back so easily. And, my balance improved so much over the 6 weeks! I'm ready to sign up for Part 2 starting in October and will practice Part 1 at home until then. Have heard that the Fall class will be more crowded - we had at most 6 in the Part 1 class - so might need to resort to a mask. ~ The garden raised bed is starting to produce - tomatos, lettuce, green beans and chard have been harvested with more to come. Not sure the beets and carrots will ever amount to anything - I suspect the soil is not quite right for them. The pumpkins (planted in the ground) are taking off and I noticed a wee small one starting to grow yesterday. Yay! If I get even just one it's a win as I love cooking my own for pie in the Fall. ~ The weather this week has been spectacular - 70s daytime, 50s nighttime and low humidity. Supposed to warm a bit over the weekend and then drop again the end of next week. Keep it up! Although it's been so much easier on the body and for sleeping with the heat pump this year. Best investment.

3/4 of a Century

~ It sounds much more respectable than 75 years, doesn't it? That is how old I turned this past Wednesday. There are days I feel and act every day of that and there are other days I'm still 25 in my mind. (Depends on what music I'm listening to or how much news I've consumed.) No great wisdom to impart at this milestone but here are some observations: 1) I'm happy I was born when I was - I got to experience the hopefulness of having several exceptional men elected as our president. Their leadership was transformational in a most positive way. I also got to experience the low of having one of them taken away far too soon. I still remember that afternoon in junior high, hearing the announcement that the President had been shot, only to learn later that he was gone. In the days following - days off from school - the chaos of having his assassin shot, the transfer of power to a man who would not run when the term he finished was up, the solemnity of the funeral. Aside from the political, I am so blessed to have experienced the music I did - the 60s, 70s and 80s - the folk music, rock and roll, protest music. All hopeful and positive, unlike the grunge, rap, and heavy metal that followed in the 90s and beyond. Some serious songwriting chops back then! And the singers! Ah, Dan Fogelberg, Steve Perry, and more. 2) In some ways I've become more conservative as I have matured and in other ways more radical. The chaos and grift and downright incompetence of the Trump eras have sent me out to the streets to protest, more than once. But I still cling to many of the values instilled in me by my parents - I'd never get a tattoo, likely will never dye my hair a color not found in nature and I don't see any need for recreational drugs. And I have pretty much given up alcohol on a regular basis. I don't see any need to waste my time on what passes for television entertainment these days. It's all low class humor or staged reality tv, designed to appeal to people who are so unhappy with their lives that they thrive on someone else's misfortune. 3) I'm more tolerant of some ideas and less of others. If you do not believe that all people are created equal and have the same rights and that no one is above the law, you are not my kind of person. If you think you are entitled to some special treatment because of who you are, what your name is, where you are from or how much money you have, you are also not my kind of person. If you bully and talk down to children, women, people who are "different" from you, you are not my kind of person. If you mistreat animals, you are not my kind of person. I will do my best to call you out on those behaviors because someone needs to do so. 4) I'm happy I was fortunate enough to finally find a career instead of a job. It was something it turned out I was good at and enjoyed (until the business mindset took hold of higher education!) And I was happy to have discovered what I wanted to do in my retirement. I feel as if I've been moderately successful in my little business. And I'm happy to have realized it is time to leave it behind.

FINALLY - - - MAYBE???

~ The S__T really hit the fan this week when the Trump administration put out a memo that the files related to the Jeffrey Epstein investigation were not being released as there was nothing there..I.E. there was no “list” of his associates to be had. (This after making a huge show of declaring the list would be released as soon as Trump took office and handing out a preliminary summary in fancy binders that turned out to contain only previously released information.) The press went wild, one of Trump’s appointed FBI underlings charged AG Pam Bondi with all sorts of things, and (UNEXPECTEDLY!!!) the MAGA base went absolutely crazy and are turning against him. ~ Trump is currently telling everyone to let it go and move on because there are other more pressing things to talk about. (A move that sort of is a tell that he is likely implicated in this report!) And while I agree because of the disastrous floods in Texas and New Mexico, the president of the largest country in the world should be able to multitask well enough to deal with all this. While I suspect this will not be his undoing I did not see this coming.

One Big Befuddlement of a Bill!!

~ Today Trump's master plan bill passed the House after passing the Senate earlier in the week. This is an monster piece of legislation. It will rip social safety nets away from the most vulnerable in this country, shift wealth up the the 1% who do not need it, and generally make life more difficult for everyone. I'm sick about it. How can these people look in the mirror at themselves and not see the cruelty? The R's in the House actually cheered after the results were announced, amid chants of "USA". Hakeem Jeffries, the House minority leader, spent over 8 hours, starting before 5 this morning, holding the floor and holding up the vote. He reviewed every ammendment the Dems put forth, all of which were voted down by the R's. This bill gives ICE a larger budget than the FBI, and other intelligence agancies combined. And just Tuesday, Trump was in Florida to inspect the latest abomination of a detention center which they dubbed Alligator Alcatraz. Trump's "advisor" Laura Loomer, posted a disgusting "Witicism" on X about how the alligators were going to be eating 65,000 immigrants. These are not serious people! They are all about public perception with no morals or intelligence to make the country better for anyone but themselves. Trump just said the bill will turn the country's economy into a rocket ship. I hope it's not one of Elon's exploding ones. ~ Speaking of Elon, he has surfaced and promised to start a 3rd political party if the bill passes. He certainly went from First Friend to First Foe in a nanosecond! ~ On Sunday, Brenda and I went to the Belfast Arts in the Park show. It was good to see and talk with some of my friends but I was happy not to be participating as they had crammed so many vendors in that everyone was cheek by jowl. I would not have been very happy, that's for certain. I never did spectaculrly well at that show - I suspect it was just the wrong time of the year for quilted things. I did observe that there were not many bags being carried around. I hope that is not a sign of things to come but suspect people may be pulling back on spending. We'll see.

WTAF???

~ After saying 2 days ago that he was giving Iran 2 weeks to come to the table to negotiate Trump goes and bombs their 3 nuclear enrichment sites last night. He truly is a despicable human being. I would sooner do business with a snake! And I'm certain at last night's performance in the White House with Vance, Rubio and Hegseth arrayed behind him they all thought the looked like the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. More like the Four Stooges in my book. (And I guess JD didn't get the red tie memo.) These people want to drag us into another protacted war just to soothe their bruised egos and to make them appear strong. It's the same with their Gestapo-like ICE raids. I don't think the people will put up with much more of this. I HOPE they won't. ~ In other news, I have added a show to this year's schedule. Linda Cohen is curating a show in Wiscasset the first weekend in December. That will mean 3 weekends in a row but it will be a fine swan song. Still working on the Maine wall hanging but it's coming. I should have lots of creative time this week, given the weather forecast - 95+ on Tuesday. Yikes! So thankful for the heat pump! ~ Barely watched Ascot racing this week - too many other activities to attend to. I signed up for 8 weeks of Tai Chi - Monday and Wednesday mornings at the Alfond Center in Waterville. Different instructor than before but it's all good and gets me moving. ~ D. and I attended the No Kings rally in Augusta last weekend. 3000 strong. We did not march - I'd had enough of people by that time - but it felt good to be out there and part of something bigger than myself. I foresee more of this activity in the future, until a change is made.

Moving Closer to Declaring Martial Law???

~ This weekend there were very visible and vocal demonstrations in Los Angeles when ICE moved in to arrest and nab and deport people who were in this country legally - the tactics used were to raid workplaces and to stake out courthouses where immigration hearings are conducted. The protesters were repectful and peaceful but that seemed to not matter to the administration in DC. Trump ordered the call up of 2000 National Guard to "quell the riots" as they are terming the demonstrations. Since the Guardsmen arrived Sunday there have been much more violent demonstrations, seemingly led by professional agitators who make it their business to stir the pot wherever they go. (I would not be surprised to find out these are some of the January 6th rioters who were pardoned. Nor would I be surprised to find out they were hired by some shadow part of the administration to further their agenda of declaring martial law so they can suspend the elcetion process in 2026.) The administration has already launched a disinformation campaign, posting pictures from a 2022 riot and claiming they were taken last night. They don't understand that the resistance includes some very dedicated people who are trained to suss out such bogus posts. (It's usually as simple as a reversed engineeered search on Google.) And what was the dear leader doing while all this was going on? Attending a pro wrestling match in NJ. How fitting. ~ And the long-awaited, highly anticipated break up between Trump and Elon Musk has happened. Musk started the ball rolling with a post slamming the BBB Trump has staked his popularity on, likely because it cut subsidies for EVs. There was a lot of back and forth and hollow threats, culminating with Musk threatening to expose Trump's connections to Jeffrey Epstein and someone in Trump's administration threatening Musk with deportation. Things went silent after that with a proposed make up phone call never materializing. ~ After that, it was exposed how much damage the Doge bros had done to the building housing the U.S. Institute of Peace. Food was left to rot in fridges and staffers desks, resulting in cockroach and rat infestations when the bros abandoned the building. There was also evidence of water damage and graffiti damage. There is still a stand off at the Library of Congress and likely other government departments as lawsuits work their way through the courts. ~ Yestereday it was announced that ABC News had suspending Terry Moran for a post he made on his personal social media account, expressing the view that both Trump and his deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller were both "haters" - (from CNN report: "In the missive, which was posted shortly after midnight, Moran said both Trump and Miller are “world-class haters.” For Trump, he said, hatred is “only a means to an end, and that end is his own glorification. That’s his spiritual nourishment.” For Miller, on the other hand, “hatreds are his spiritual nourishment,” Moran charged. “He eats his hate.”' Miller is a ghoul, willing to voice the extremist views that Trump believes but is too chicken to say. He is certainly a hater and it's hard to believe he actually convinced someone to marry him, although she works for Musk, so she can't be very pricipled. ~ I've always felt that we are somewhat isolated from the nonsense here in Maine but it's coming closer every day. A restaurant in Waterville, the Silver Street Tavern, has for years flown a Pride flag outside in June. This year, a post on Facebook picturing said flag drew a plethora of hate speech, with the usual promised of boycotts etc. We seem to have lost our ability to live and let live in this country. Don't want to be gay? Then don't but you don't have the right to tell someone else not to live that life. Don't want an abortion? Don't hae one but don't take away someon else's ability to have one if needed. Live and let live. Ypur religion is your religion and it does not give you the right to tell me mine is wrong.

A Depressing Day, Start to Finish

~ Before most of the US had their coffee this morning, the House of Representatives passed the orange man's "Big Beautiful Bill" by a margin of one vote. Two Republicans voted with all Dems, one voted "Present" and two did not vote. I suspect the "Present" vote was a pre-planned deal. It now goes to the Senate and who knows what they will do to it. It has so many depressing things I cannot even begin to understand the effects. While the didn't touch Medicare directly, it will likely be cut to afford the bloated spending increases in defense and homeland security. Speaking of HS, in a congressional hearing this week, Secretart Noem was asked to define Habeus Corpus and bombed big time, then tried to talk over the member who explained what the concept really was, not what the administration believes it to be with regard to immigration. ~ Just this afternoon the administration notified Harvard University that it was no longer allowed to accept foreign students and that current foreign students would need to transfer to another institution. The reason given was that Harvard had not protected Jewish students during last year's demonstrations against the war in Gaza. Social media posts today revealed another possible reason - apparently Harvard rejected Baron Trump. I haven't verified this but offer yet another idea - it's more of this administration's attack on higher education they think will result in a less-informed citizenry so they can continue their dirty work of corruption, grift and authoritarianism. Per Thomas Jefferson - “A well informed citizenry is the best defense against tyranny.” ~ Yesterday the Defense Dept. accepted the Qatari gift of the golden 747 palace in the sky, which will fit right in with the Golden Dome defense system Trump has proposed. So no wonder the defense budget is so bloated given these two line items. I suspect this plane will never be ready for him to use while still in office and the thought that it will eventually be a gift to him, not the US, is beyond belief. I'm just waiting for karma to finally rear its ugly head and smack him so hard... ~ And Joe Biden announced over the weekend that he has been diagnosed with serious protate cancer. The was a very respectful social post from the current president (that I;m certain he did nor compose himself!!!) and a disrespectful one from his idiot son. And lots of people saying cancer got it wrong.

And Then They Came for the Librarians...

~ I wrote the following in response to a friend who referenced this article in the New York Times - https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/10/us/education-politics-learning.html?searchResultPosition=3 "I found the New York Times article's title intriguing enough to subscribe so I could read it. Not a hopeful picture of education but here are my thoughts. - I think learning is still a priority for the Democrats and independents of this country and they will always support a free and diverse curriculum. The GOP/MAGA on the other hand, seem to want an uneducated citizenry who will blindly follow whatever leader is in power. Hence, the elimination of the Dept. of Education, attacks on institutions of higher learning, the defunding of libraries and museums, and the latest - the firing of the Librarian of Congress, a smart, well-educated (Strike1), black (Strike 2) woman (Strike3). - In their plans for education as well as their overall political rhetoric, the GOP/MAGAs seem to be capitalizing on the shorter attention span that social media has spawned in the past decade or so - hence we end up with Steve Bannon’s “food the zone” tactics at every turn. - Somewhere along the road we lost the notion that education is not a business. It does not need to make money - it should be an investment in people and their futures and by extension, the future of our country. But politics, both local and national, raised their hand and got involved and here we are. The MAGAs are all about the dollars and so anything that has intrinsic value gets monetized. (See selling off public lands for logging and development.) ~ I fear that the orange man’s choice of a new Librarian of Congress will be yet another unqualified bright shiny object and/or another attempt to troll the Dems. I have worked in a library under a top administrator who received his title because he earned an advanced degree (not in Library Science!!!) and the college administration didn’t know what to do with him so they made him the Dean of Libraries. It was a disaster - he had no idea what anyone in the library did, what the mission was, what basic practices were. But, boy, was he ever good at taking credit for everyone’s work and schmoozing at conferences. He would be Trump’s choice for sure. (Perish the thought.)" ~ And today it was announced that Trump has named one of his gaggle of attorneys, Todd Blanche, as the new acting Librarian of Congress. Blanche is currently the Deputy Attorney General, confirmed in a 52 - 46 vote back in March. He was one of the team representing Trump in the 2024 criminal trial that resulted in the 34 charges against the President. Other clients include Rudy Guliani and Paul Manafort, not known for their scruples or respect for the law. I suppose it could have been worse - it could have been MTG or Bobert, although I guess he's been told by the GOP heads to keep his hands off current members of Congress (see Elise Stefanik.) ~ In other news, Trump has declared that the government of Qatar wants to gift (grift???) him a Boeing 747 with all the regal trappings for him to use as Air Force 1 until Boeing can get the planes he ordered to him , hopefully before he leave office. Of course, there are arrangements that will somehow by-pass the emoluments clause - the plane will actually be given to the military and will transfer to the Trump presidential library once he leaves office. Should be plenty of room in there for that 747 because there certainly won't be any books - Maybe some old classified documents but no books. Good place to note that like his boss, FBI director Kash Patel also has a problem focusing on his daily briefings and "adjustments" have been made. Good God - I just want a competent government, not a bunch of cosplaying social media hounds.

100 Days - Seems Like Forever to Go

~ 100 days into his 2nd term and it seems as if Trump has never left - although it's so much worse because we had that 4 year span of thoughtful, compassionate leadership in between and the contrast could not be more stark. A prime example on display this past Saturday in Rome for the funeral of Pope Francis (who passed away one day after a brief audience with JD Vance!!!). Joe Biden attended with Dr. Jill and they were quietly shown to their seats in the back of the VIP section without fanfare. I would hazard a guess that there are still people who have no idea they were there. Contrast that with Trump, who reports said made a fuss about the seating and requested a change that put him front and center of every shot of the crowd, while he stared at his phone and dozed off in his BLUE suit. (The vatican had requested black suits but dear Donald had to stand out.) And he inconvenienced the Vatican staff by holding a sit down with Zelenskyy 15 minutes before the start of the cermony. It was heartening to hear the cheers and applause that Zelenskyy received when he walked out to be seated (no where near Trump!). ~ I also find it heartening that the protests seem to be growing, at Telsa dealerships and courthouses and government buildings. Senator Cory Booker held sway in the Senate chamber for over 24 hours a couple of weeks ago with support from several of his fellow Democratic Senators. He and Rep. Jeffries held a sit in conversation on the Capitol steps this past Sunday, with people joining them at times. Over 150 college and university presidents have banded together to fight the assault on freedom of speech and the cancellation of funding for their institutions. Within 15 minutes of a judge in Wisconsin being arrested by the FBI for allegedly aiding an immigrant to eldude arrest by directing him out a less public exit in her courthouse many demonstrators showed up to protest her arrest, which looked more like a staged event meant to gin up the base. ~ Quilting continues in fits and starts here. I have been accepted for 3 of the 6 shows I have applied for. And I yesterday received word tht I have a corner for the Topsham show. Will be interesed to see if it results in more sales. I'm wondering what effect all the tarriff shit will have on people's spending this year. On the one hand, people are cutting back - I know I have. On the other, if they can't find things on the shelves at the stores maybe they'll support us! We can only hope!

It's All Gone to HELL!!!!!

~ Well, the orange man has done it. He instituted a series of tarriffs on the world and the stock market reacted immediately by dropping over 4000 points the past 2 days. And is he still in DC to take the heat? Of course not! He's at his "Southern White House", hosting a Saudi-backed golf tournament and a million dollar a plate fundraiser. He also was NOT in Delaware to attend the dignified transfer of four American soldiers who died during a training exercise in Lithuania last week. Instead, he sent Pete Hegseth - what an act of disrespect! It's becoming more and more obvious that Trump has no interest in performing the duties of the office except when it garners him attention and press coverage. He does not care to make the tough decisions the job demands and certainly takes no responsiblity for the dire results of his decisions (or the decisions of his appointed underlings.) Musk received a major beat down in the Wisconsin supreme court election this week - the Democratic candidate won by 10 points! And the 2 Florida elections for replacement House reps was much closer than anticipated, although the GOP won. ~ Today is Hands Off day - 50 states, 50 demonstrations, 1 day. I had planned to go but now I'm thinking I just want to stay home and quilt and take a day off from the dissonance. Let the younger folks take up the fight. I'll call it self care. ~ Oh, and all those tarriffs? Included were several islands with no population so no exports. I think the list was generated by AI. Reportedly the formula used to calculate the amounts wasn't decided upon until 3 hours before the splashy presentation in the Rose Garden. Way to give the interns enough time to catch any errors! And way to make you like like the buffoon you are! ~ And the hits keep coming in Trump's retribution against Gov. Mills, who stood up to him. The government is witholding funding from U Maine and the public schools until the Gov. apologizes. To her credit, Gov. Janet has stated she will not apologize. Expect a huge court case about this. And Maine has joined just about every lawsuit against the Feds for their reckless actions.

Surprise!

~ Greeted yesterday morning by 5-6" for fressh sanow. This after a decidedly Spring feel to the air last week. But it's Maine, as I so often remind myself. It will all be gone later this week with temps north of freezing each day. ~ Who could not have predicted the clown show that happened when the people charged with securing our country and keeping us safe decided to discuss and formulate their plans to attack the Houthis in Yemen using a commercial messsageing app (SIgnal)? No one would be the wiser save for the fact that national security adviser Michael Waltz invited Jeffrey Goldberg, the editor of the Atlantic to join the chat. (Oooopsie!) To his credit (proving he is much more a patriot than anyone else on the chat) he just remained silent and and no one - ABSOLUTELY NO ONE! - asked who he was and why he was there. After reading the minute details of the attack planned for 2 hours hence, he sat chilly and then checked for confirmation that what he had read about was taking place, which it was. He then left the chat group and contacted some of the other participants off app and asked some very pointed questions. The only reply came from an official at the White House who spun it and never addressed the fact that 1) the group was using an unapproved method of communication and 2) that a member of the press had been added to the group chat. Just the usual nonsense about how successful the operation was. The President denied any knowledge of the mistake and the national Defense Secretary, Hegseth, vehemently denied that any plans were texted to anyone. (A bald faced lie!!!) Goldberg had the foresight to screen shot some of the texts and they do not lie. Once again proof we are living in a kakistocracy. I'd love to be in the Senate hearing with FBI Director Kash Patel, CIA Director John Ratcliffe and Tulsi Gabbard, the DNI. This hearing was previsouly scheduled for another purpose but I'm certain this fiasco will be brought up. Waiting for reports.* ~ Quilting continues apace. Lots of progress now that I'm healthy again. And some bad news/good news on the show front. Bad news is that the KVAA show at Snow Pond is a no go this year. KVAA is reorganizing. And the proposed first weekend in December show Linda had created for SSMC did not get approved. Good news: They are looking at a one day summer show on Route One in the Wiscasset area. And Linda will try to put together a 2 day show for the first weekend in December (not SSMC) at the Wiscasset Community Center. And I have been accepted for the Fall Fiesta Show at Stevens Square. And likely will get into Scarborough. (Counting on getting into Brunswick and the Topsham shows as I have done them before.) * ~ And the reports are a mess of stonewalling and deflecting to Hegseth, who was not part of the hearing. These people think they can just lie and deflect their way out of everything. Of course, that strategy comes from the top, the stonewaller and deflector in chief.

WTAF?????

It's taken me a few days to cool down enough to write about what transpired in the Oval Office last Friday, when the duly elected leader of a democratic country was attacked and demeaned in front of the entire world in a set up ambush by the President and Vice-President of the United States. The run up to this included the orange man labelling Zelenskyy a dictator. He and his underling then acted all pissy, saying the Ukrainians had not thanked them enough. (And just what had Trump ever done for them? Nada, except pressure then to start an unfounded investigation into Biden and his son so that Trump would win the 2020 election. All that did was lead to Trump's first impeachment!) Things got very heated, sides separated to cool down and then Trump ordered the Ukrainians to leave, without so much as lunch. Needless to say, there were no agreeemnts on minerals or anything else signed that day. And now I understand why - - - it was all a set up. Thanks to my go-to person for all things Trump (and now Musk), Seth Abramson, I have finally come to understand that Musk is the back channel to Putin that Trump wanted in 2016 but couldn't find a way to establish it. Or, rather, he's the back channel that Putin wanted. He and Musk have a regular conversation it seems, supposedly about Musk doing business in Russia, but it has become obvious to anyone paying attention that Russia sent Musk a large sum of money which he donated to Trump's campaign last year, helping him defeat the Democrats. (I suspect some money found its way to some of the Congressional races as well.) And Musk, in his role as "special advisor to the President" and head of DOGE, is creating just the chaos that Putin wants to see in this country. Citizens are fearing for their jobs, seniors and veterans are fearing they will lose health care and Social Security payments, we all are just waiting for the next shoe to drop. At midnight today, Trump's tarriffs on goods from Canada and Mexico and China went into effect. Who knows what I will see in the grocery store tomorrow? We knew it was going to be more stressful than his first term but this is truly terrifying. The encouraging signs are there...lots of protests everywhere, on all the issues. Vance even got basically run out of Vermont over the weekend, which serves him right. His big mouth and the stupid words coming out of it were what derailed Friday's meeting. I loved Zelinskyy's line" "You’re raising the volume of your voice but not the logic in your argument.” The man is no one's fool. He speaks 3 languages, he thinks fast on his feet and speaks with humility and grace. But the oafs like Trump and Vance only see weak man, because he does not shout and use their faulty logic.

Still Coughing....

This is the flu from Hell - Hangs on with the cough. Not as bad as last week but still here. Sigh. Things in DC on the other hand, are getting worse. No one seems to be able to define Musk's role in all the chaos and he's all over X dissing everyone like a 13 year old. Hard to tell who is in charge - I suspect someone behind the scenes, not the glory hogs we hear from on a daily basis. Trump wasted more millions of our tax dollars to make an appearance at the Daytona 500 this weekend, including several laps around the track in the Beast with his escorts. I'm hereby warning Churchill Downs, the Maryland JOckey Club and NYRA that he should not be invited to any of the Triple Crown races. What a catastrophe that would be. And so far, I have yet to see anything approaching competence in any of the confirmed cabinet heads. Hegseth has pissed off anyone he's spoken about, Rubio is just parroting whatever he's been fed, JD Vance has really pissed off our European allies...it just keeps on going. We are already the pariah of the world. And planes keep falling out of the sky - really miss Mayor Pete. I hope I live long enough to see him right the ship.

Sick, Sick, Sick...

We have been suffering a bout of the flu in the house this week. Headaches, stuffy noses, coughs, body aches, chills and fevers. D. suffered one day of nausea, I've had several days of no appetite and a couple of days of diarrhea but seem to have turned the corner. Energy level has been up and down - up enough today to clear the front walk this morning then spent the rest of the day recovering. Sleep has been had in 2 hour increments the past few nights and I'm feeling it. I just want a good night's sleep!!!! Misery loves company and we have it - Linda Turner and Lee Sykes are also in camp with us. It snows every couple of days, enough to have the plow guy come and do a crappy job and then we have to go out and finish up. I still need to do the deck before Sunday's storm arrives. And the Pfaff is ready to be picked up in Portland, so maybe Wednesday next week. I have a hair appointment (rescheduled for this past Weds.) on Tuesday. It's been a week of deliveries - Staples (notebook and shredder lube sheets), Broan (range hood filters), Chewey (cat food), and batting. All done now. I just need to layer and pin the items I've created so I can hit the ground quilting on Wednesday afternoon. Still waiting on the show applications for SSMC so can write those checks. And still waiting on Christa to get back to me. Hurry up and wait. The forewarned chaos is happening in DC - Elon and his band of pranksters are creating choas everywhere they show up. They appear to be all male, all in thier 20s and all angry at someone (parents? girlfriends? authority?) as reports are that they yell at established workers when their demands are ignored or not taken seriously. And there are reports that one posted some racist things on X so he resigned yesterday but today was rehired after JD Vance went to bat for him. Confirmations are ramming through because of the majority held by the GOP. The Senate Dems held a 24 hour talkathon the other night, listing all the ways the nominee for Budget Chair was not qualified. He passed, of course. None of Trump's nominees have tanked so far, save for Matt Gaetz who did not make it to the prelim stage. There have been a daily fusillade of EOs, most illegal, on everything from axing foreign aid to nixing the use of paper drinking straws. Also a flurry of lawsuits to counteract the EOs.

The Day After...

~ The outrage I feel the day after the spectacle that was the innauguration hasn't been felt since the election in November. The day-long cermonies/parade/rallies were such an affront to the people of this country who cannot afford food or rent or medical care. And yet his supporters who were lucky enough to be admitted were there, cheering on every stroke of his Sharpie while he undid much of the good that the Biden administration crafted over the past 4 years. He undid protections for everyone save the white Christian males who bow down to him. He undid protections for the environment. He undid protections for civil cervants who have served the government for years. And right there with him were the broligarchs who had payed for the privilige to have a seat on the dais, pushing more worthy people aside. He pardoned/commuted virtually all of the January 6th rioters, including the leaders and organizers.(Party of law and order? Umm, NO!) And his co-president, Musk, had the nerve - the unrepentant nerve! - to give not one but two Nazi salautes at the afternoon rally. (Blame it on the Ketamine???) It was like a Roman orgy of disgrace and contempt for the people who voted for him and a big middle finger for those of us who didn't. My only solace is that Judy is no longer with us to experience this. She would be so deprssed. ~ So I will again cut down on my national news consumption to avoid any mentions and outrage. I will read non-political books, I will sew and quilt and plan out my schedue of shows for the final year of my business. I will bake and garden and take care of myself and my house and David and Divot. It will be as if DC does not exist for me. (Until it comes for me and then look out!) It is time to worry about me and not the country as a whole.

January???

~ It does not look at all like January here in Maine. The pre-Christmas snow was mostly washed away in a rainstorm last week and the rest has been slowly evaporating in the cold dry air. Oh, it's cold but no snow beyond the occasional snow flake early in the morning. The mountains have gotten more and most have been cranking the snowmaking but I suspect holiday numbers were down as the brown backyard thing took over. ~ Off to Portland today to get the new Pfaff to Tyler for maintenance. I set up the old one yesterday and actually started on the first project for 2025. My informal resolution is to do more sewing throughout the year in an attempt to have plenty of inventory for every show. Things got a bit thin in the runner department last Fall. And it should be easy to include at least one holiday runner in each batch. I also have committed to making a baseball quilt for Brenda's nephew Freddie. I should have more time as I will no longer have the UMC Facebook duties. SSMC has generously offered free dues for this year in exchange for the monetary gift UMC is providing. I look forward to participating in more of their shows, if I can get in. And they are exploring more shows to accomodate the increase in membership. Hopefully one of those shows will be in the Augusta area. ~ Peaceful transfer of power yesterday in snowy DC, unlike 4 years ago. I try to keep it all in perspective but the very real possibility that Trump and his minions may never face accountability gnaws at my psyche every day. It seems as if everyone has decided he is the emperor and cannot be touched. Judge Marchan in NY has stayed the course and will sentence him for the 34 convictions but has already said there will be no jail time. Trump and his co-conspirators have requested that special counsel Jack Smith's report on the Jan. 6th activities not be made public. I can see that happening as people just don't want to find themselves in the line of fire. And all his bluster about wanting to buy Greenland now has Don Jr. on his way there today to negotiate a deal. In the perfect meme inducing act, an soldier rented a Cybertruck and blew it up in front of a Trump hotel in Las Vegas on New Year's Day. And, the final (for this week) slap in the face - Trump has in effect erased all negative connotations for Jan. 6th with much help from all his supporters.