Ba-Da-Da-Dum! The Addams Family Comes to WACT!

Here they are!  The amazing, uber-talented cast of The Addams Family!  Each and everyone suited to their individual role, this is one of the best cast shows I've ever had the privilege of being associated with.

The brilliant Jaela Rogers as Morticia, dancing with the Ancestors.  A real triple threat, with the excellent dancing, incredible singing, and spot-on acting.  She was one of the many dead-ringers we had portraying members of The Addams Family.  Not only did WACT find super talented people to perform these parts, they LOOKED the parts as well!

A family portrait!  They are deliciously morbid, are they not?  Jaela Rogers as Morticia,  Benjamin Strait as Pugsley (who blew up the stage - literally!), Brock Gilliard as a spot-on Gomez Addams, and Allyssa Barber as little Wednesday Addams, now all grown-up and falling in love, but still a fierce, crossbow carrying, dark and gothic Addams - and one who can sing, dance and act up a storm!

It's that Beineke couple!  From the very first read through, I knew that Ethan Mitchell as Mal Beineke had something special.  His portrayal was unique, refreshing and would totally captivate an audience. Nikki Spivey as Alice Beineke was perfection, and had one of the most rousing and applauded musical numbers of the show.

The magnificently talented Sarah Braswell played Grandma, seen here describing her potions to Pugsley, played by my son, Benjamin Strait.  Grandma's performance was vibrant and energetic, top-notch comedy gold that got some of the biggest laughs of the show.

This is me, Uncle Fester, singing my big number, The Moon & Me.  I had a blast singing this song, my favorite part of doing this show (next to acting with Benjamin), with several ancestors accompanying me with their beautiful dance moves.  Kudos to the band for the difficult job of keeping up with my random rhythm changes.  And no, that's not a bald cap.  That is au natural baldness.  What I do for theater!

Look!  We even have a Cousin Itt!

The hardest working ancestors in show business!  This super-talented bunch put in extra practices, polished their movements to perfection, and took a great show and turned into an extraordinary show!  Bravissimo!

They're creepy and they're kooky, mysterious and spooky
They're altogether ooky, the Addams family!
Their house is a museum, when people come to see-em
They really are a scre-um, the Addams family!

Ba-da-da-dum!

You will WANT to see this show!

Want to see dancing?

This show has as much dancing as I've ever seen in a community theatre production! Everyone from the leads to the hardest working ancestors in show business, dance in one breathtaking number after another. Well, all except for Uncle "Left Shark" Fester - but nobody can doubt his gleeful enthusiasm.

Want to hear singing?

The Addams Family is filled with beautiful, catchy tunes, sung by many fine singers - the music is amazingly evenly distributed throughout the cast. Uncle "No Metronome" Fester - even he can hit the high notes!

Want to experience first-rate acting?

The Addams Family is stocked to the brim with unusual and interesting characters, all played with aplomb by one of WACT's finest casts ever assembled! Like your gloom served with a huge dose of joy? Then you need to come out to see this great show!

Want to see Tom Strait bald? Well -maybe want is not the right word. Maybe more like...curious. Well, come to the show to find out, because I guarantee you, I, as Uncle Fester, will be BALD! I will also dance (more or less), sing (while the band tries to figure out what different drum I'm really following), fall in love with the moon, and take off with a rocket pack on my back!

And Benjamin Strait, my son, is Pugsley! He is tremendous, has a sensational solo number, and is having the most fun I've ever seen him have in a community production!

In fact, we're all having so much fun, I expect you to join us!

Come one!

Come all!

Be a part of the creepiest, most interesting family on Earth....

The Addams Family!

Mixed Monday Musings

It's good that so many volunteers are helping to adopt out the remaining pets at the Okefenokee Humane Society shelter.  Special kudos need to go to Charlotte de la Vergne in her tireless efforts to post pictures and information about the beautiful animals that are there.  As I write this, there are only about a dozen or so animals left, as they strive to complete their efforts by March 5th.

Because that's the bad news.  The shelter is closing March 5th.  I can't go into details at this time, but my heart and sympathies go out to the Okefenokee Humane Society and what they have gone through. Alison is on the Board, and I know that the last few weeks have been very hard on her.  I hope, for the sake of the animals in this area, that these issues are ultimately resolved in a way that minimizes the harm they are exposed to.


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It's good that I am in a musical with my son.  He is doing a bang-up job, and I'm very proud of him.  I think this will be a musical (The Addams Family) that everyone will enjoy.

It's bad that I can't dance as well as I hoped.  I will continue to improve as much as I can, but I'm afraid, by the time of performances, I will still be known as Uncle "Left Shark" Fester.

It's even worse to me, though, that I am having trouble with my songs.  I can sing fine.  I'm just having trouble matching what I'm doing with what the orchestra is doing.  Some of it can be fixed by Thursday.  I don't know how much of it, and it's worrisome to me that I have practiced these songs so much, and I'm still off in the timing.  I am so proud of my song The Moon and Me.  It is so enjoyable to sing.  But it shook me to the core in Saturday's practice that that was one of the songs I was having trouble matching with the orchestra.

It's good that I was provided a Youtube audio of my songs to learn by.  I have used them HUNDREDS of times.  I could not have learned my songs as well as I have without them.  I don't sight read well, so this was perfect for me.  Unfortunately, the audios in parts are not the same rhythm or timing as the music the orchestra is playing. I am trying my best to bridge that gap, but I am very frustrated that I have this problem with something that I originally had a lot of confidence in.

It's good to be in a production with Benjamin.  I hope to be in another one with him if he so chooses.  I'm very afraid my performance in this one will prevent from ever being cast in a musical again.  But I'm not giving up.  I'm going to work my hardest to get better every day.

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It's good to see so many young people speaking out on the gun control issue.  This may be what finally turns this around, and we get some measures passed that actually have majority popularity, but are stuck in the mud because of the great wave of NRA dollars that wash over our cowardly politicians.  It is also heartening to see President Bone Spur's popularity start declining again, in part because of his support for the NRA and opposition to common sense gun reform.


It's bad that he's President at all.  Yes, I know Vice President Pence may actually be worse in some ways.  But overall, there is nobody worse than Trump, nobody more dangerous.  And despite the efforts to check him, the damage that is done becomes more irreversible every day.

Just a reminder - in a rare political message, the American Humane Society recommended not to vote for Trump, as he represented a danger to animals.

Those Who Teach

Almighty God, the fountain of all wisdom: Enlighten by your Holy Spirit those who teach and those who learn, that, rejoicing in the knowledge of your truth, they may worship you and serve you from generation to generation; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, forever and ever. Amen.

- The Book of Common Prayer                                

Those who teach and those who learn.

What they do is a blessing and a gift.   Teaching through love, kindness, and understanding, is so much more effective than teaching through fear, hate, and intimidation.  And most of our teachers understand that.  Knowledge and truth are spread quicker and surer when there is empathy and caring. 

Teaching the Gospel message rings truer when done through the filter of loving one's neighbor.  The same is true of any subject.

Being able to teach in an atmosphere of love is vital. Teaching in an armed camp makes that very difficult.  Teachers should not have to be armed with weaponry, they should be armed with knowledge and wisdom.  They should be provided with basic school supplies, not bullets.

Worship and service to Christ can live and grow and light up the generations.  Teach by example.  Teach by love.  Becoming the hands and feet of Christ inspires it in others. 

Bless the teachers among us.  Whether it is Sunday School or biology, math or preschool, social studies or the language arts, athletics or band, science or choir - they all sing to the human spirit, increase our knowledge of the world, our caring for each other, our love of learning and our love of the Lord.

As the Saturday Night Live comedy skit shows, the solution to the clanging of cowbell dominating a song is not more cowbell.  That just makes it harder to hear the song you want to hear.

So it is with guns.  The solution to guns is never more guns.  That will lead to more noise and threats, more fear and jumpiness, more gun violence.  Our schools and churches and concerts are not going to be made safer by turning them into police state style armed camps.  The solution lies in banning military-style weaponry.  Country after country shows the same statistic - the fewer guns, the greater the reduction in the amount of gun violence.  The more guns, the greater the number of gun-related deaths.

Teach our children well.  Those who teach and those who learn should be able to do us in an atmosphere of love and peace.  Not with a holstered gun, or a rifle strapped to their backs.

Bless teachers and students everywhere, young and old alike. 

               

I think It's Fair

I think it's fair to judge a society by how it treats children, the elderly, the disadvantaged, the disabled, and yes, how it treats animals in its care.

In these regards, we are failing.  Our children face being gunned down by shooters with raid fire weaponry, while adults, led by an NRA that serves gun manufacturers above all else, are more concerned with interpreting that the well-regulated militia of the Second Amendment entitles any individual, no matter how dangerous or deranged, to carry any weaponry they want, no matter how lethal.  Valuing guns over children.  Does that sound fair to you?

We are failing our elderly population.  We value tax cuts for the super-rich so much, that the Republicans have proposed cuts to Social Security and Medicaid in order to rebalance the budget.  The rich and wealthy corporations need tax cuts more than the elderly need food and shelter. Does that sound fair to you?

We are failing our disadvantaged.  We construct laws and eliminate regulations in a way designed not to assist them, but to punish them and humiliate them.  Mandatory drug tests, boxed processed food, public vilification even among the so-called "Christian" right.  Does that sound fair to you?

We are failing our disabled.  We are reversing laws and regulations that protect them and proposing to strip back Medicaid and Medicare.  We have a President who has a history of openly mocking the disabled. Does that sound fair to you?

We are failing the animals.  We bring pets into our lives, but are willing to provide the support infrastructure needed to support them when irresponsible owners abandon, when strays roam the streets,  where they are abused and hurt by cruel owners.  Some areas are moving towards state of the art facilities, no-kill shelters, local spay and neuter programs, fostering and adopting.  And some areas are not moving toward humane progress.  And some areas are actually moving backwards. Does that sound fair to you?

This is just a brief outline of the ways we are failing the most vulnerable among us.  A book could be written about each topic here.  And they have if you wish to seek them out.

Our young people are coming out strong to try to turn things around on gun control.  They're not perfect.  no one is.  but God bless them for trying, 

God bless them for giving us hope in a gray and dreary world.  Maybe we don't have to fail forever.

Stuck in the Mire

Mire, per the online Dictionary:  a stretch of swampy, boggy ground (noun).  Cause to become stuck in mud (verb). 

Mire, per me:  stuck where it is hard to move forward to where I want to go.

The goal:  earn the money shortfall I have with other retirement incomes by doing things other than accounting.

I an succeeding at many things in life, but I am failing in this.  I have always been a failure at earning money at those things I do the best and enjoy the most.

I'm probably not alone in that regard, but I'm tired of using that as an excuse.

I thought maybe before tax season started I would've figured some of this out.  But I did not.  So I'm spending more time working than I expected.  I have a limited amount I can earn for the year while collecting Social Security, and the consolation is that tax season will use up how much I can make more quickly.  But that is also a disadvantage, in that it gives me less room to see if I can make money doing other things.

The major thing that I have done outside of work is theatre.  Since I "semi-retired" in August, I have been involved with four productions (The Odd Couple, The Model Apartment, Love Letters, and The Addams Family).  This is great, and I have enjoyed them, but they don't earn a dime.  It shows I'm a creative talent, but it does nothing to bridge the gap away from accounting.

When I am home, it has often coincided with family, and I have done things with them instead.  I also have read and watched television.  I know I should be more disciplined, but it's been good to have a little more time to do those things.

My schedule has been chaotic.  Some days I go to work early, some days late.  And it seems like whether the work day is six hours or ten hours, it seems to eat up just about the same amount of the day.  I don't know why that's true, but it is.

What would I like to do?  I would like to write more fiction, mostly selling via the Internet (self-published), although if I could accidentally get an agent or real publisher, that would be okay.  I wouldn't mind being extra in the movies/TV that are being done in Georgia (as long as I could contain costs so that I actually made instead of lost money). 

Most significantly, I would like to take advantage of my best skill, reading aloud in an engaging and expressive way, and become a voice for audiobooks.  The biggest flaw here is it would require a recording studio, and although Benjamin has some of that setup, I don't know how "professional" it is.  When I read about becoming a voice talent, it's all the technical stuff that throws me off.  Could I be a vocal talent for audiobooks?  Oh yeah, most definitely!  Do I have the ability to build a technically proficient recording studio?  Oh, most definitely NOT.

I would also like to become more involved in charitable work, for both the church and the Heritage Center.  My chaotic schedule also makes that difficult.  And, to be honest, my first priority is to bridge away from accounting.

So I may need to dampen down on some other things.  I may need to back off my theatre commitment for a while.  I may need to give up more personal downtime.  I may need to do what I can to create a more routine schedule.

Right now, however, I need to get through tax season and The Addams Family.  It's always manana, though.  There are always other commitments I need to get through. 

Currently, I am mired.  I'll keep thinking about tomorrow, though.  Who knows?  Maybe I'll find a break in the bog.

Break Down the Walls That Separate Us

O God, you make us in your own image and redeemed us through Jesus your Son: Look with compassion on the whole human family; take away the arrogance and hatred which infect our hearts; break down the wall that separate us; unite us in bonds of love, and work through the struggle and confusion to accomplish your purposes on earth; that, in your good time, all nations and races may serve you in harmony around your heavenly throne; through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.


The above is from The Book of Common Prayer.  It is perhaps the oldest and best of our devotionals, first written in the 16th century, serving as a guide for the Anglican faith.  It has gone through a number of revisions over the years, mostly to keep the language accessible.

This was the reading for today in the 2018 Lenten Meditations Booklet put together by Episcopal Relief and Development, an organization that strives to help people across the globe, who face poverty, natural disasters, disease, and malnutrition.

One of the great things about the Christian faith are the many missions that are pursued throughout the world.  Especially blessed are those that reach out to be the hands and feet of Christ, assisting others through direct aid and comfort, as opposed to those who bludgeon by mouth, with threats and fear.

One of the disappointing things about the Christian faith is how much of it is centered around a particular culture or nation.  There or no Christian nations.  There cannot be.  It is impossible.  Nations and cultures are artificial barriers that have nothing to do with the love of Christ, and the worship of God, the father and mother almighty.

Christianity should not be building walls to separate us. It should be tearing them down.

Good thing to keep in mind.
  

Enough! Saturday Political Soap Box 177

Enough!

We've put up with it for far too long.  We've argued over silly and stupid stuff over and over again. 

No, we don't want to take away all the guns.  For better or worse, we live in a society sympathetic to gun culture.  Although it must be said, I have seen statistics that over half the guns in this country are owned by 3% of our citizens (as reported by a study done by researchers at Harvard and Northwestern University).

No, our plague of mass shootings may not be solely from the easy availability of increasingly deadly firearms.  I'm sure we can do better in mental health, and I'm sure there are cultural factors (e.g., many of the shooters are white men who seem to have trouble fitting in, particularly in their relationships with women).  But international studies clearly demonstrate - the more guns in a society, the more mass shootings.  We're number with a (forgive me) bullet.  Number two is Yemen, and they have almost as high a percentage of gun ownership as we do.  So for those who advocate that the solution to gun violence is yet more guns - you have descended into an insane, senseless spiral that will only increase the number of gun deaths.  Go ahead.  Arm everyone in a bar with AR-15s and see what happens.

Not everyone is insane on this issue.  Many reasonable gun owners understand the necessity for improved background checks, closing gun show loopholes, keeping guns out of the hands of the mentally unstable and the violent and the domestic abusers, and in limiting assault rifles and raid fire capacity.  Spoiler alert -  if you go to war with the US Government, even with these weapons, you're going to LOSE.  They can beat anything you've got or fantasize about getting.

So why don't some of these common-sense reforms happen, especially ones supported by a majority of Republican voters and responsible gun owners?  Because of the NRA and the massive amounts of money they provide for their chosen candidates. Senator Marco Rubio of Florida only offers thoughts and prayers, and won't vote for popular measures.  Why?  Well, he has over 3,000.000 reasons not too.  That's the amount of money he got from the NRA.

As long as politicians can get huge sums of money from the NRA, and not have to pay a political price at the polls, what do they care what their constituents think?  I am encouraged by the teenagers of Florida speaking out so forcefully on this issue.  Once again, our young people often give me the best hope for our future,  But it's not gonna mean diddly-squat to someone like Rubio until it costs him at the polls.

This won't change until the majority of the voters in this country, both Republicans and Democrats, pledge to never vote for an NRA funded candidate again.


You want this to stop?

Gun owners - abandon the NRA and create an alternative group focused on gun safety and responsible gun ownership, with support of modest gun control legislation.  You know - like the NRA was sixty years ago.

Young people - keep protesting.  Do not stop.  Make every legislator in the country pay attention.

Voters - make not receiving NRA contributions a minimum standard for who you vote for.  And make sure to apply this standard to federal, state and local officials.  They're not going to change until they understand continued allegiance to the NRA agenda will cost them their jobs.

Enough!

Ads That Make My Brain Short Cicuit

Last month, we switched to a new service for our television channels, going from satellite to a streaming service.  It only costs about 40% of what we were paying for satellite, and we receive many of the same channels, and all the ones we most frequently watch.  There is one small flaw to it, in that it is harder to skip through commercials.  I am seeing a lot of ads that I would have fast forwarded through under the old system.

Besides some of them being very repetitive (some services use the same ads in virtually every break), and the usual mess with so many of them being for drugs where over half the commercials are warnings for all the horrible side effects you risk, there are some early standouts that have me riled up, and my brain short circuiting. 

Number One is the girl who smarily asks "What's a Computer?" in an ad for a high powered laptop/tablet hybrid from Apple.  Really?  You don't know what a computer is?  And do you have to be so blithely arrogant about it?

It makes you want to reach through the screen and give this child, who has been wandering alone throughout the city, a big what-for! But then I remember, this isn't her fault.  She's just an actress giving a line in a way that the directors and producers probably chose out of dozens of takes.    This is what the creators of the ads wanted.  This is what executives of Apple approved and greenlit.

It's amazing how many people in line to stop this thing, looked at it and said, "Yeah!  That's what we want!"

Number Two (good description) are the ads that Jon Hamm is doing for H & R Block.  First, when I sit down to relax and watch something, the last thing I want to do is be reminded that it's TAX SEASON. But beyond that, is the idea that this supposedly first-rank A-List celebrity is out shilling for early refund loans.  No!  No! A thousand times no!  Early refund loans are just a scam for the company doing them for you.  You lose a chunk of it just to get it early, and if the refund doesn't come through in the way you think it would (late or not the amount hoped for), you're the one on the line for the difference.  You've gone from lending the government your money tax free (which is what happens when you deliberately arrange your taxes in a way to generate large refunds) to paying usurious interest rates for getting an advance on your interest free loan to the government.  Jeesh, Jon Hamm, have some dignity!

Listening is the new reading

Sorry.  I couldn't find a meme for this one.  Audible has a new ad suggesting that the most successful people in our society read a lot.  True.  Maybe.  But I don't read to be "successful".  I read because I LOVE TO READ!

It proposes that in our busy world, the way to read is to listen to audio books.  It directly equates reading with listening.  Ergo, listening is the new reading.

NO!  NO!  A thousand times NO!  I have nothing against audio books.  I hope to do some audio books soon, of mine and other's works.  Reading aloud is, all modesty aside, the thing I do best (well, at least of those things I can talk about here).  And I understand their popularity.  I used to listen to some audio books when I had to cross Atlanta in order to get from home to work.

But, it is not the same thing as reading!  No, it is not.  Listening and reading a book are different things.  One is auditory. The other is looking at words in print, and translating them into grand stories, enveloping your mind and being into other worlds. 

Can a listener get absorbed into other worlds?  It's possible, but ask yourself why so many want  audio books?  It's so they can multi-task while doing it.  Walking, exercising, hosuehold chores, drving, rote computer work.  Get too absorbed and you might wind up in a ditch or smashed on the highway.  Not so with reading books.  You submerse yourself into the world you are reading about. 

So go ahead, Audible.  Promote yourself.  I'll sure appreciate as I get started in narrating audio books.  Just don't equate listening to reading.  It's not the same thing.  It's just not.

A Lovely Love Letters Valentines

Grace Episcopal Church had a lovely Valentine's Dinner Theatre this last Saturday.  The Parish Hall was decorated beautifully for it, and there was delicious dinner of steak and potato, salad and dessert, beverages including wine.  Everything was cooked beautifully.  Everyone involved deserves kudos for helping make a truly romantic evening.

Food and drink was only the beginning!  Julianna Lacefield and I presented the play Love Letters by A. R. Gurney.  On the surface, this doesn't seem like an interesting show - two people reading aloud letters they wrote to each other, but it is actually quite fascinating, vibrant, romantic, sentimental, and touching, as it spans their relationship, covering over fifty years.

Julie is one of the area's finest actresses, and it is always a great pleasure to perform with her.  I love reading aloud, and not to be conceited, but both of us read aloud very well.  I wish I could make money reading aloud. Like audio books and such.  I just have to get organized. 

But wait!  There's more!  If you missed it, or want to see it again, it will be presented at KDs this Saturday (2/17), with the consummate thespians, Barbara Griffin and Lamar Deal.  Please make your reservations right away, while there is space available!  

PLEASE call 285.3300 and let us know you are coming or we won't save you a seat.

Experience romance the old fashioned way with LOVE LETTERS. A unique and imaginative two person play that explores the many forms of love shared by childhood friends who remain pen pals for over 50 years, sharing every aspect of their lives with one another despite living in separate worlds. 

DINNER INCLUDES:
Mixed Greens House Salad served with Buttermilk Ranch or Balsamic Vinaigrette on the side
Parmesan Crusted Chicken topped with alfredo sauce served over linguine with green beans
Or Bourbon Glazed Pork Chop with mashed potatoes and green beans
Crunchy Dinner Rolls with butter
Warm Peach Cobbler with ice cream
Served with Iced Tea or Water
Beer and Wine Cash Bar Available

TICKETS are $30/person and can be reserved by calling KD's Cafe at 912-285-3300 . Reservations required.

The Promise of Watching More Winter Olympics

I like the Winter Olympics better than the Summer Olympics.  Why?  I'm more of a winter person than a summer person, for one thing.  There are fewer sports to keep track of, and most of the ones they have I enjoy seeing.  Yeah, even curling.

Four years ago, I was having trouble watching much of the Winter Olympics.  It comes during tax season, and I was probably also trying to do other things (theatre, Writer's Guild, church, etc.)  I was disappointed, but I told myself that in fours years, in 2018, I would be retired and would have more time to watch.

No such luck.  Right now, my semi-retirement is more semi than retired.  It's another tax season, they need my help, and I'm going to help out as much as I can.  I also am participating in rehearsals for The Addams Family, where I will performing as Uncle Fester, and Benjamin will be Pugsley.  And tonight, I have another play that I will be performing with Julianna Lacefield, Love Letters, at Grace
Episcopal for their Valentine's Dinner.  Wednesday, Lent starts up with Ash Wednesday.

So my dream of eating bonbons and watching every event that I can will have to wait until 2022.  But I'll catch what I can, when I can.

It was very satisfying to see that the the Korean team came out unified for the opening ceremonies.  I don't think it would take long for Korea to unite again, if all the little dictators and politicians got out of the way.

Speaking of making problems greater rather than better, what Vice President Pence did was unconscionable.  Not standing for other country's anthems or participation, particularly the Koreans, makes us look petty, xenophobic and stupid.  I'm tired of the Trump administration embarrassing and endangering us.  When is enough going to be enough?

I'm sorry.  For those who are hostile to any mention of politics, that was probably too much for you.  I don't know what to see.  We live in dangerous times, and silence is tantamount to complicity.  And I will not be complicit.

Anyways, I'll finish this and check out what's available.  Hopefully, some curling.  Maybe some of the Mogul-ly stuff, or that massive NASCAR style speed race being planned!

Enjoy it, y'all!  Watch what you can!

My Theater Mantra

My Theater Mantra:

I can act with the best of them

I can sing with the rest of them

I can dance if everyone closes their eyes and pretends

But now, I find myself in a position where I must defy that mantra.  I am in a musical where I must dance, at least well enough to blend in with others and not be a distraction.

I am used to engulfing myself in self-deprecating humor so I don't feel so bad about my inadequacies. Sort of a preemptive strike, as it were. Make fun of myself before others can.  It's a trait I learned to distract bullies when I was in school,

But I can't do that this time.  When I self-deprecate about my dancing abilities, it just makes it look I don't care, and that I  am not taking it seriously.

And I do take it seriously.  I'm doing everything I can to come up to par.  I'm studying video recordings.  I'm trying to learn how to count out steps, something I've never done before, not even in singing.  

So I'm trying my heart out.  I still may fall short.  I still may wind up being Uncle "Left Shark" Fester.

But it won't be for lack of struggling to be better.

That I promise.

Super Bowl Monday Musings

Can't wait for the Super Bowl!  Woohoo!

Wait....what's that you say?  It's not next weekend?  They played it last night?

D'oh!

Who won?

Oh.  That team.  Well, congratulations, I guess.  Although the overdogging Patriots frustrate me, and I don't  feel too bad that the underdog Eagles beat them, I really didn't have a dog in that hunt.

Speaking of which, even though I didn't watch the game, I still had a dream about football last night.  I dreamed I was a starter for the Detroit Lions.  And so was my dog Pixie.  We were helping them win the Super Bowl.  I know.  That was a very unrealistic dream.  Not the part of me and my dog playing pro football, but of the Lions being in the Super Bowl.  What crazy stuff.

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For the umpteenth time, I think I have my semi-retirement schedule re-solidified. Working primarily on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays.  At least that's the theory.  My schedule has been going through more reboots than DC Comics.

I really hope to get a more consistent schedule so I can build more planned writing sessions.  But we'll see. 

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The continued stubbornness of the Trumpeteers to face the reality of the damage their "hero" is doing continues to frustrate me.  What is it going to take to wake them up?  It's hard to get into their heads and figure out what is going on, because they think so much more differently than I do.

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What am I watching?  Godless on Netflix.  This is a great 7-part western, that has both a classic and a modern feel to it.  I've seen the first six and hope to conclude it tonight.

What am I reading?  Sleeping Beauties by Stephen and Owen King.  Only about 100 pages in, but so far it seems like classic King, similar to 'Salem's Lot and The Stand.  Nice to see father and son doing something together.

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Speaking of father and son doing stuff together, Benjamin and I are preparing to perform in The Addams Family the first two weekends in March.  Things are coming along pretty good, except for my utter lack of dancing skills.  I am determined, however, to give it everything I can to achieve a level that is at least not glaringly horrible and distracting. Wish me luck!


Until next time,

T. M. Strait

Does It Matter Anymore? Saturday Political Soap Box 176

I don't know what to do anymore.

Like the little boy who cried out that the Emperor has no clothes, I've begun to realize that nothing will dissuade the Trumpeters.  Even with the recent disgrace of him calling vast swaths of the Earth s...holes, his popularity has actually risen slightly.

How do you do it?  How do you deal with people who hear him say that and still support him?  Not only support him, but maybe have drifted off the reservation, and then hear him say that, and go "Yeah, now that's the guy I like!  I'm coming back to the fold!"  Do you really hate so much that him saying that is an attraction rather than a repulsion?

The damage he is doing to the global environment doesn't matter.  The trade leaving the country (Mexico has moved agricultural trade with the USA to Argentina), including the decline of foreign tourism in the US, doesn't matter.  The rise of White Nationalism and racist violence doesn't matter. The removal of regulations that protect lives doesn't matter.  The defunding of things like the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the only agency designed to take your side in banking and financial services, doesn't matter.  The degrading of our institutions, including the slow dismantling of the Diplomatic Corp and the vicious denigration of our federal law enforcement officials, including the FBI and CIA, doesn't matter.  The fact that our courts are being flooded with new appointees that will side with the corporations and the wealthy over the working man doesn't matter.  The fact that nothing has been done to check Russian influence on our elections, or that Trump is on the verge of purging Mueller's investigation, doesn't matter.

I could go on and on and, but why?  It doesn't matter anymore.  Even as he does the very opposite of what he said he would do, and instead of making America great again, he is ensuring that we will decline in power, in pride, in the protection and growth of democracy, in everything we hold dear.  He is increasing our isolation, as the rest of the world learns to operate without us.  He is virtually guaranteeing that China will be the next great super-power.

WHY?  WHY?

Why do they cling to him?

Is it the wall?  Do you really need a physical representation of bigotry, hatred, and isolation?  I mean, you know it's not going to accomplish anything other than flushing billions and billions of dollars?  Heard of planes?  Boats?  Tunnels?  Ladders?

Do you get a thrill when people who have contributed to this country for decades, some having served in the military, with family and roots here, are suddenly told to leave?  Do those heartbreaking deportations turn you on?

Is it the economy?  The recovery started in the Obama years continues, and you want to give Trump credit?  Well, we will see.  He sold out completely to Wall Street at the beginning of his term, and that may have temporarily helped (of course, the Stock Market dropped off sharply this last week, but we're not going to pay attention to that).  But he's a con man.  We'll see how he can sustain it.  We won't really know how he's doing until his first budget has kicked in (due in October but still pending), and the tax bill won't have any real effect until next year (spoiler alert: it's going to create huge deficits, and dramatically increase the total debt).

Is it that important to you to impose Christian Sharia Law on everyone?  Do you really think you can end abortion through storm and thunder and anger and criminalizing women and doctors, instead of through sunshine (birth control, proper sex education, support for the mother and child DURING the pregnancy and AFTER the pregnancy)?  Is your hatred of the LGBTQ community so great that you would return to the days of the closet and banishment?  Is it that important to you that the intolerant get to be intolerant?

Do you actually get a charge from Trump's bullying tweets?  You really think that war with North Korea is going to be a good thing?  And you think somehow it's going to be prolonged?  Hundreds of thousands, if not millions, will die on the first day. 

If I call out Trump for his hatred, his narcissism, his bullying, his racsim, his sexism, his con-artistry flim-flammism, his incompetence as a businessman, his lack of focus or ability to learn anything new, you get huffy and defensive and think I an saying you're the same.  Are you?  For those I know personally who still support him, if I felt you were completely that way, I would just dismiss you and be done with it.

But you're not.  Many Trumpeteers I personally know have many elements of decency and are kind and good people.  They're not monsters.  But something happens to them when they enter political considerations.  Some transformation occurs in them that I don't understand.  Influences by Fox News?  Their Christian Right Pastors?  Being convinced since Reagan that "liberal" is a dirty word, responsible for most of society's ills, a convenient scapegoat?  Is it hatred of the other, with otherwise reasonable people seeing others as outside of their own tribe, and therefore less human?


I don't know anymore.  I don't know what to do.  I'm beginning to lose faith that we're going to get out of this.

Tell me where I'm wrong.  For my anti-Trump friends, give me hope.  What can turn this around?  Even if we take back Congress in 2018, how do we mitigate the damage that's already been done?

For my Trumpeteer friends, what could this foul man possibly do that would make you turn away from him?  Please, let me know.  What will finally wake you up?

Does it matter anymore? 

Or is too late?

Forever Our Cultural Divide

It's the oldest divide in human history.  No, it's not race or religion, although they have resulted in many bloody conflicts over the years.  No, the oldest, most persistent divide in human history has been the split between rural and urban.  Ever since the advent of agriculture enabled some to raise the crops and others to congregate in cities, the resentment between the two groups has dominated human culture.

I had a friend tell me she and her daughter went to the movies last weekend, and I asked what they saw.  The movie she mentioned was one I had not heard of.  That surprised me because I'm usually a pretty attuned person as to what movies were coming out.  It was Forever My Girl, a movie about a country music star who, after touring and adopting big city ways, returns to his small town home.  There he rediscovers love and the homespun charms of rural life.  And no, this movie has not been a big box office hit.  But it's played well in our rural area, running for the second week, and even though the critics rate it only about 20%, the audience that did see it rated it at 90%.

For all the Hollywood glitz, the superiority of rural life over city life is a common theme in our entertainment.  Even in our science fiction and fantasy movies, it is about rural forces fighting back against a corrupt central force.  Whether it is the outlying, less settled planets of Star Wars rebelling against the large centralized Empire, or Katniss organizing the rural districts to challenge the authoritarian Capitol in The Hunger Games, many of our entertainments represent the struggle between urban and rural.  And yes, there are also themes of the urban dweller suddenly lost in a backward and violent rural hell (think of Deliverance and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, as two extreme examples of this).

It is much more than just our entertainment choices.  It has dominated our politics, virtually since the formation of our union.  The Jeffersonian Democrat and Federalist divide was primarily one of agrarian farmers versus urban merchants. The Civil War pitted the agrarian South against an industrialized North.  The turn of the 20th century saw the increasingly centralized banking and concentrated wealth of the country lead to a great divide of monetary policy, with the frequent Presidential contender from rural  Nebraska, William Jennings Bryan, demanding the urban forces not to crucify the rural backbone of America "upon a cross of gold."  And on and on it has gone throughout our country's history.

At present, this divide screams in our voting patterns.  In many states, congressional districts have been gerrymandered to protect rural interests. Even cities in the reddest states vote blue.  Statewide races often depend on what area maximizes the most turnout.  That is why some states have declared war on voter registration, to help ensure that their block of voters keeps the edge.

The irony is that neither rural nor urban is superior.  They both have their virtues and their flaws.  Although I have lived in small towns most of my life, I still enjoy visiting cities like Atlanta, New York City, Portland and others, for the many amenities that they offer.  Would I like to live there?  I don't know.  I have grown used to the "big fish in a small pond" feel of a more rural life.  The urbanest environment I lived in, the University of Michigan, I kind of got swallowed up and lost.

Both areas suffer from the scourge of drugs and violence.  Urban areas deal with crack and gangs.  Rural areas are ravaged by the opioid crisis and gun violence (mass shootings, domestic shootings, gun accidents, suicides,  blight all sections of the country).  Both areas often suffer from lack of decent employment paying a living wage.

And yet, we have been set on edge against other.  Part of this is our own doing, but part of it is what our politicians and media have done to us.  We need to reweave ourselves, understand that both rural and urban are vital to what really makes this country great.

Fighting the history of this division seems a bit overwhelming.  But the pace of life, and the tremendous problems before us, makes it necessary that we find a way to come together.  It may not be easy, but I have faith that we can join forces and tackle what we need to.

If we want to survive, we may not have any other choice.