No Good News at This End

You might want to stop reading right now.

Our furnace died two days ago and my hip went out last night, but that’s not even the worst of it. We lost a dear nephew to cancer on 9/11 and a darling cousin to pneumonia and sepsis last week. Our nephew died way too young—he was 55—and my cousin died at 75—much older than expected. Doctors told her parents she wouldn’t live past 13. I wasn’t ready to say goodbye to either of them.

Ruth Bader Ginsberg died on Friday. The Notorious RBG. Our shero. She tried so hard to stave off death until Donald Trump was gone but she didn’t make it, and the Republicans are thrilled that they can go back on their promise to never, ever, ever replace a SCOTUS judge during a presidential year.

They’re champing at the bit and already have a highly inappropriate candidate waiting in the wings. Odds are it’s going to be a youngish woman whose religious affiliation is the source for Margaret Atwood’s novel, The Handmaid’s Tale. (Seriously.)

My hip hurts and I’m grouchy today. Only yesterday I was giving my husband a pep talk about how lucky we are to still be healthier than a lot of people our ages, and we need to quit griping. I’m trying to remember exactly what I said. It seemed so right at the time.

Did I mention that our furnace quit? The day after the roofers finished up all three buildings—to the tune of what a nice used car would cost—the furnace decided to it was done, too. It’s an ancient behemoth, better suited to heating a small factory than a small cottage, and it was old when we bought the place some 26 years ago, but couldn’t it have waited at least another year? Just one more?? I had no idea what new furnaces cost, but, now that I know, I’m adding it to my list of grievances.

I’ve written three essays in the last two weeks and they’re full of optimism, much of it phony rah rah stuff, but dutiful and necessary. (They’re out there making the rounds. If they don’t get published, I’m really going to be pissed.)

I’ve decided to become America’s cheerleader. Somebody has to do it, and why not someone who’s been around for so long she remembers when the entire country came together during World War II? Some 75 years ago we came together as a nation to protect our military and save the world, and it’s been downhill ever since. What the hell? Really? After all that, this is how we’re going to end up?

The number of COVID-19 deaths has risen above 200,000. Meanwhile, Donald Trump said last night at his Ohio Hate Rally, COVID affects “virtually nobody ”. This is what he said. Verbatim.

At a campaign rally at the Toledo Express Airport in Ohio on Monday, Trump said: "Now we know it. It [the coronavirus] affects elderly people, elderly people with heart problems and other problems. If they have other problems. That's what it really affects. That's it.

"You know, In some states, thousands of people—nobody young. Below the age of 18, like, nobody. They have a strong immune system, who knows? You look...Take your hat off to the young, because they have a hell of an immune system. But it affects virtually nobody. It's an amazing thing."

I despise Donald Trump. No surprise. And if you think you should ask me why, think again. I’m not here to regurgitate the obvious.

…..

So I’m off to do some more cheerleading. Just don’t get in my way.

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See you next time!