Declare it!

The President is apparently ready to declare a 'national emergency' to enable him to take money from other places to fund his boarder wall.

Declare it, I say!

Not only will it be tied up in court for the rest of his first and only term, it will let future Democratic presidents to use it as an opening to declare a national emergency regarding

*immigration reform

*environmental crises

*gun violence

*health care

*taxing the rich

and all other things that are much more a national emergency than a silly, ineffective, unneeded boarder wall.

Today is the first anniversary of the Parkland School shooting.

In the year since then almost 1200--100 a month, more than 3 a day--young people and children have died from gun violence.

That's a real 'national emergency', that's something that needs extraordinary action to correct.

Guns, health care, the Dreamers, the environment---we have 'national emergencies' a plenty. But our President of the United Base is only interested in a wall.

Build bridges, not walls.

That's my advice.

Take it or not.

Something is seriously out of whack

I realized today that when I flush one of our three toilets (three toilets for two people, not right) which I do more times than I'm comfortable telling you, I send more clean water into the sewer than many, many people around the world have to live on each day.

We even have toilets that flush less for #1 than #2, but even that seems unfair.

I waste more water waiting for the faucet or shower to get hot than millions and millions around the world have.

Something is wrong here.

In Cheshire, CT, water is no problem. I've driven by the several lakes that are part of our water supply many times. Lots of water, lots and lots of water.

How can this be fixed?

I have no idea.

But I know this--I have more water than I need or deserve.

And millions of people don't.

Out of whack, I'd say.

Bless George Conway

George Conway is a conservative and a  major critic of the current president (HWWNBN-ed) and is, by the way, married to Kelly Ann Conway, one of the president's top advisors.

(Love to be a fly on the wall at dinner in the Conway household!!!)

Anyway, George has given the president a nick-name (something the president loves to do--make up nick-names) that is all time classic.

He called him, "The President of the United Base".

Wow! Nailed it, George.

This whole wall nonsense (nobody is against adequate 'border security'--but a wall is simply not 'adequate' to provide that security) is to the base support the president has. That support, somewhere in the low 30's of the total population, have gotten nothing from this president. But a small part of his base is folks like the Koch brothers, who have gotten millions from this president's attitude toward not taxing the rich and doing away with regulations.

"The Wall" is all the president has left to bring together his 'base'.

(By the way, at his rally in El Paso, he said 67,000 wanted in but only 10,000 could be in the auditorium. Later he said 35,000 were at the rally. Police estimated the crowd at 6,700--not even filling the seats and that Beto O'Roark's rally brought more people.

Just fact checking, ok?

Sugar Ice

It snowed today and was very cold. I went to Waterbury Hospital to get my Zolair shots, which keep me healthy.

But I slipped and slid several times on the road. Especially up hill.

Then, this afternoon late, sugar ice began to fall.

That's my limit of describing it. Ice lie sugar.

I swept the deck three times and Bern did too.

Ice like sugar.

Easily swept away, but remarkable.

We'll see what tomorrow brings.

Profession

(I wrote this poem for Mimi and Tim on their marriage. I don't think I ever gave it to them. I just write things about people for myself, I suppose. But I'd share it here.)

PROFESSION

Not just an occupation,

though that is the usual definition.

Oh, no, more than that, much more.

“Profession” as a verb, not a noun,

is wondrous indeed.

To avow, to declare, to promise--

“profession” leads into all sorts

of nonsense and wonderment and joy.

To actually 'say so' about

what your lives will be and consist of

and contain.

To 'profess' opens up the possibility

of a future you speak into being.

A future that wouldn't have happened

otherwise, until you spoke it.

Few people in the world

make such a 'profession'--

speak a future and a life

into being like that.

And today you two do.

Astonishing, memorable, inspiring,

full of being and hope and wonderment.

Like that.

Thank you for going to the edge

of what you can know and see

and then stepping off.

And I know, as you step off into what

is not known, not knowable,

you will be caught by loving arms

or learn how to fly.

my girls

I have lots of photos of my four granddaughters but can't for the life of me figure out how to put them on my blog.

Wish I could. They are lovely, smart, funny, darling.

Bern and I did some good things in our long life together--but nothing better than having two wondrous children and four remarkable granddaughters.

Emma and Morgan are 12--becoming young women. Tegan is 9 and trailing behind her two sisters.

Eleanor is 2 1/2 and far beyond that in many ways.

I wish they all lived next door but the Bradley girls are in Baltimore and Eleanor McCarthy lives in Brooklyn.

I don't miss grandsons and never will.

These girls are the loves of my life.

I want to live long enough to see what becomes of them.

My girls....

double standard re: race

I think Lt. Governor Fairfax of Virginia should resign. I really do. Credible reports of sexual exploitation should be enough to end a career.

What I don't understand is how, only a few months ago, another man, with equally credible reports, was appointed to the Supreme Court.

Could it be that Fairfax is Black and Kavenaugh is White?

Could that possibly be?

I'll leave it to you to figure out.....

Something about it smells.