Bye Bye, Baby

 

Read the New York Times article here.

"Some people aren't loyal to you. They are loyal to their need of you.

 Once their needs change, so does their loyalty."

~Unknown

Donald Trump is loyal to no one. He always has put himself on a golden throne, as he is a king in his own mind. While folks have sat back and laughed and smirked at the at the way Trump has treated people over the years, both the loyal and disloyal alike, they never imagine that one day Trump will chew them up, and spit them out, despite of their being a long history of just that. In the last few days, Trump has thrown two Department of Justice figures under the bus, Todd Blanche and Jeannie Pirro. Both are about to see their careers ruined, and the very real possibility of at least one of them will being disbarred. Everything Trump touches dies, and right now the careers of anyone in his orbit and in particularly the ones who tell the truth or refuse to do his bidding will be the next to go.

Are numbers, letters now?

Fuck it!

So, who gets fired first?

Who will quit first?

I predict Pirro will be gone by the end of the week, but there will be quite the mean tweeting between now and then. I'll get back to you.

New York City Bar Association

Opposition to Todd Blanche Nomination To U.S. Attorney General

Okay, Here Goes... Part 2: Unbearably Stupid And Incredibly Dangerous

 

"There doesn't have to be a process, as I understand it... if you're the president of the United States, you can declassify just by saying, 'It's declassified." Even thinking about it, because you're sending it to Mar-a-Lago or to wherever you're sending it. And there doesn't have to be. You're the president, you make that decision. So when you send it, it's declassified. We--- I declassified everything."

 

 

 

~Donald John Trump 

September, 2022

 

 

 

On June 13th, Donald John Trump was finally arrested for taking classified documents from the White House, when he left office and storing them at two his various homes. For what reason? Hell if I know! I don't know. Maybe to brag? Maybe to impress women? Maybe to sell to a hostile foreign nation for money? Any of those things could be true! He has never had a consistent explanation since this story erupted in the press last year. But what I do know is that he was asked, nicely, and given a lot more leeway than other folks in the same position have been given, to return them to the National Archives. He chose not to, despite telling the powers that be, including his lawyer, that he had returned everything. Big surprise, he lied. Let me repeat... HE LIED! So now he is under arrest again, under among other statutes,the Espionage act, because he just can't bring himself to NOT BE STUPID! Since his arrest, he has continually changed his story in the press, which is fine, because it's not going to help his case, at all, and frankly I don't wish him any good luck at all! He is incredibly dangerous, and he needs to go to prison. It seems like there is some kind of light at the end of the tunnel, but the true glee I thought I would feel, is instead, just plan relief. 

Its going to be a long hot summer.

 

 I just wish Treat could be here to watch it all play out. He genuinely cared about this country and I think he wanted to see the Trump years out, wherever it took us. Carl Reiner did too, and I still miss his wisdom daily. I will think of those two men as go along, and of course, as each verdict is read. Carl, Treat, you are in my heart, today and every day.

 

 

Mid-Century... Vacation Motor Lodge

 "You were born to do so much more than to pay bills and die."

~Unknown

If photography has taught me anything, it's that there is life beyond the moments of despair that tend to creep into our lives. I can get lost for a little while. I love that a single moment in time, can live in so many different existences around me. In that moment, I can be in my own world photographing a gorgeous Anna's hummingbird, while a few hundred miles away someone could be checking into the Vacation Motor Lodge, in Reno Nevada. Photography is allowing me to step out of this overwhelming pain I am in right now. I need that. I need to see what might be happening today, or even a few days from now, while I am depressed, so I can see beyond it. Time is an issue, as is money to do so. There is yard photography, but I hurt my foot, so there's that. Things are tough right now, but when I can, I can lose myself in a simpler time. I just wish I could do it more often.

 

There will be leaves soon.

 

Right?

 

 

 

 ~Me

Stockton, Ca

September 6th, 2021

 

 

 

 

June Has An Equinox Too

 "Always hold onto material things with open hands."

~G. Swiss

(Silence)

So that 👆 happened. It was beyond time to trade in our two cars and downsize to one vehicle, at least for a little while. Truth is, since Alan's car stopped running, I haven't had a car anyway. It just made sense to turn the keys over to him during the Trump years. Most days I wasn't in the mood to drive, or really didn't belong behind the wheel. Not because of drugs or alcohol or anything, it was just that I was depressed and unreasonably scared that an ICBM was about to run up the ass of the United States. It was a surreal time. Hard on my physical health, seriously hard on my psychological health. Driving anywhere was not good.

Anyway, both cars were depreciating. Not good. In fact, one in the driveway. Really NOT GOOD. It was time. Just one thing. Actually selling the car that saw me through so much, like the HELLISH move to the Central Valley. Her name was Blair, and she had a personality, not unlike mine, so it was really hard to say goodbye. I was selling me car, and handing over my way out, just as I was now feeling like enjoying life again. It was unfair. That's life in a nut shell... right? It was like Trump was getting one last lick in. 

I learned a long ago, it's just stuff. Everything in life, that isn't breathing, is just stuff. Alan is a living, breathing hunk of man. Hendrix, Dylan and Joey are living breathing love bugs. Blair was a car. A car I loved. So, I was in a rage for a day or so, and then I finally landed back on earth, and as I contacted SiriusXM to confirm our free 3-months of awesome musical wonderfulness, I named the big monster in the driveway, Elvis, after the best cat ever. I think he would have agreed that it was for the best to make friends with the new ride, because being enemies with an inanimate object would be stupid. Elvis the cat was very practical about things.

So, Elvis the car, is a 2014 Chevy Equinox. No, that's not lost on me. I love autumn, and my new ride is named Equinox. But to tell you the truth I was so angry while buying it, I didn't realize until I drove it off the lot, that I had just bought a car named after my favorite moment of any year... the equinox, the time when all things become equal. The moment of universal harmony. But when I calmed down, and thought about all the good staring me in the face, I decided that since we were now living together, we might as well be friends. We will see where we go from here, at the posted speed limit, of course.

 

 

~Me

 

 

 

Next...

"Love sometimes comes like a dream... and leaves like a nightmare."

~Unknown

Wow I am tired. I suppose you might know by now that our plans have changed... drastically. We aren't moving into the place we picked out... planned for... bought curtains and appliances for. Nope. Not going to happen!

THAT DREAM WAS KILLED!

And when we realized that the dream was dead, we grieved.

It's been a rough few months. but as of Monday we begin putting the pieces back together.

We will find an apartment, hopefully in the Bay Area

And we will move on.

Life Goes On!

And time goes by so slowly, unless you are in a crappy hotel in the Central Valley!

In that case time pretty much stops.

Honestly... I HATE IT HERE!

Don't worry, the negativity will pass.

Mood: Quiet/Pissed Off/ Sad/ Disappointed/Homesick

You Get The Dwog, I will Get The Kwoffee, And We We'll Watch The Ducks

"I am a duck. I'm cool and calm on the surface, but underneath it all is a nonstop struggle to succeed. My feet are like orange spatulas."

~Jarod Kintz, How To Construct A Coffin With Six Karate Chops.

Ducks. I like ducks. I had several as pets when I was a little girl. Last year, I was a rubber duck for Halloween. I am not sure what costume I will be wearing this year, but I am leaning toward a sexy wolf costume. I am also considering going as Teresa Giudice. I get a big black 80's style wig, a tight fitting leopard dress, which I already own by the way, and a ball and chain, and I am good to go! LOL. But that would be tacky of me I think. She is in a lot of trouble, and kicking someone when they are down isn't very nice! It would be an interesting, timely costume, but more than anything

 it would be unkind. 

 Besides it would probably piss off Victoria Gotti,

 and who wants to do that?

Hmmm...

Quack!

Thoughts?

Mood: Undecided

~Me :)

Thanks A Lot Old Friend!

"A garden isn't meant to be useful. It's for joy."

~Rumer Godden, Power Of Simple Living, By Ellyn Sanna

Sigh...

My rose garden is a never ending source of pure joy for me. There are definite signs that all the trees, shrubs and flowers are about to curl up and sleep for winter. While there is still a little over a month to go, I can ignore the coming chill, but alas, they cannot! But all the roses are strong, and the garden smells like cinnamon, from the heavy sprinkling of the spice to ward off pests, I did over the summer, and the color of the roses against the overcast autumn sky is nothing short of magical... at least to me!

I needed a bit of gardening joy this week! You see, the former owner of the property, that my little rented cottage sits on, sent me a computer virus. Sheesh! How can a businesswoman be so absurd? Not only did she inflict the likes of Donny and Nina on the property, then refuse to intervene when they began to act abusively toward us, but she apparently knows nothing about suspicious email attachments!

Thanks a lot old friend!

I was kind of lucky in that I only lost my photos from the last 14 months, with the exceptions of the posted photos which I save to a cloud. And the computer itself had to be booted back to the factory reset, which means I will be spending the next few days reinstalling programs, but at least I won't have to purchase a new computer! I wouldn't want the expense, or have to deal with Windows 8! Don't get me wrong, I have made my peace with it as far as my laptop goes, but I am much happier with Windows 7 over here on the desktop!

All's Well That Ends Well.

But Seriously... Catie, If You Are Reading This...The Anti-Virus Email Scan Is Your Friend!

Mood: Mildly Irritated, But Happy With The Late Blooming Pink Promise Roses!

~Me :)

Cruel Summer

"One day can change your life. One day can ruin your life. All life is is three or four big days that change everything."

~Beverly Donofrio

Maybe you are into pop culture, perhaps not. But you would have to have been living under a rock to have not heard about the indictment and arrest of Joe and Teresa Giudice, of the Real Housewives Of New Jersey. The indictment was handed down on Monday, and on Tuesday the reality star couple faced a judge and heard the 39 counts, mostly for fraud, that's been leveled against them.I am not sure why my jaw dropped when I heard the news, there has been a lot of sketchy behavior from the two, but I have to admit, to this extent, and that they could each be sentenced to up to 50 years in prison if convicted of their crimes, well... yes... it's shocking... I find it shocking for so many reasons. Not the least of which is that they four daughters, the oldest turned 13 earlier this year!

You may have read a post I wrote, almost a year ago, about how the cast of the Real Housewives Of New Jersey visited Half Moon Bay, and Napa on a working vacation and spent time outside in the natural beauty of the California coastline, but somehow failed to see anything of around them. Not the gentle, blue Pacific Ocean, not the crisp morning air, not the amazing sunsets, not the sight of grapes of every color,  maturing on the vine at the rolling vineyards throughout Napa and the surrounding towns  in Napa County. Instead they continued with what keeps that particular chapter of the Real Housewives franchise going... friendship betrayal, ignorance, gossip, lying, and a host of other devastating behaviors that feeds the ratings, while damning the future of not just the "adults" but the children who are clearly caught in the middle.

To make the latest situation all the more difficult for the Giudices, Teresa in particular, it was disclosed that Joe is not even a U.S. citizen, which means that if he is convicted, and serves time, he will almost certainly be deported back to Italy upon his release... oh but wait... I am not talking about convicted of these 39 counts of fraud... I am talking about the fraud case he was indicted on in a different New Jersey county a couple years ago. His trial for fraudulently obtaining a driver's license in his brother's name, begins in late October of this year. If convicted, he could serve 10 years for that particular case of fraud alone.

It's a mess, but is it a tragedy? Yes. It most certainly is! It's tragic when one day life is going along fine, maybe not perfect, but okay, and a decision is made that changes the course of one's life so profoundly that it can't be fixed. I think about what their wedding day must have been like. They woke up that day, two single people, and finished the day as a married couple, with the whole future ahead of them. Marriage vows include the good times and the bad, rich and lean, and every couple, on their wedding day, believes in forever. Don't they? And every couple looks at each other on that day as if they are the only people in the room. Don't they?

So, if that's true, how could this have happened? When did the day come that brought with it the idea to put it all at risk? When the first daughter was born, didn't both Joe and Teresa look at her and see forever? How about when the second, third or fourth came along? Why did material things become more important than their daughters financial and emotional future? That is the tragedy! It's tragic that those girls may lose their parents to prison. No mom to pick out their own wedding gowns with one day. No dad to be there to walk them down the aisle. No grandparents for their children. None of the special moments, moments and rights of passages spent with the people who gave them life.

"We pass through this world but once. Few tragedies can be more extensive than the stunting of life, few injustices deeper than the denial of an opportunity to strive or even to hope, by a limit imposed from without, but falsely identified as lying within."

~Stephen Jay Gould, The Mismeasure Of Man

Call me a schmuck, but I can't help but feel devastated for these people, and the problems they have created for themselves. I find their continued denial of guilt, not just tragic, but indeed infuriating. If they could just face REALITY, perhaps they could find the peace they yearn for. But, unfortunately, it might already be too late, but who knows? I don't want to just throw away the key, but I do wish I could understand what set all this fraud in motion, not to mention asking why she has actively worked at destroying her relationship with her brother Joe, who is probably the one family member she was closest to in the whole world.

Reality TV can be blamed for a lot of things. To some extent I believe it was the pressures of Reality TV that contributed to the suicide of Russell Armstrong, husband of Taylor Armstrong, of the Real Housewives Of Beverly Hills. But like the Giudices, the Armstrong's troubles began years before they became a part of the show, in fact, the show only highlighted their clawing their way up the social latter and their incessant need to keep up with the mansion dwellers next to them. Taylor, in the opening for last season quips... "I have worked too hard for this zip code to go home now." She can say that after the suicide of Russell?

Tragic?

Yes.

Now, here are a few of my own photos of the California Coastline, and a few from Napa, to show you what the cast of The Real Housewives Of New Jersey missed on their trek up the coast.

Half Moon Bay...



Point Montara, California



Ocean Beach, San Francisco California



Glen Ellen California



I am not sure why, but July was a month of tragedies. From Anthony Weiner, an otherwise talented political figure, who worked diligently for his constituents, but couldn't control his personal life, to the crash of Asiana Flight 214, to the death of Glee actor, Cory Monteith and the revelations of his personal demons. And then there was verdict in the trial of George Zimmerman. There are different schools of thoughts about the jury in that case, and the conclusion they came to, but in my own mind the law has acted as a fool, and Florida needs to reconsider the "Stand Your Ground Law" and the conditions for finding someone guilty under that law.

So, sigh, it's been a rather cruel summer, and we are only half way through. I don't remember this much bad news happening in a single month before, but I am sure there is one if you look hard enough. It's all so sad. And most of it so unnecessary. And that's the worst part. :(

 

 "Actions are the first tragedy in life, words are the second. Words are perhaps the worst. Words are merciless... ."

~Oscar Wilde

Mood: Sad

~Me