A good Saturday morning to all. And for me, my coffee is almost ready. The audio piece above I put there to alert any walkers, joggers, bicyclists, and traffic passing by the corner of Chaos & Mayhem to ease up since I am working on these Ramblings. Not so sure it’ll help though.

“This COVID mess is a great reminder that there’s nothing more permanent than ‘temporary’ government intervention.” ~ Rogan O’Handley

Day 170 of the 14-day lockdown to “flatten the curve”.

I’m beginning to place some reality on a fear that as Governors run out of dialogue about “doing anything to save lives” regarding COVID, it will quickly translate into propagating ongoing lockdown measures through the flu season, even if COVID ceases to be a threat.

Cringe – Really, I was expecting some serious ‘cringe’, and was prepared to just watch a slight bit and maybe (at most) a flick back and forth as I started watching the Republican Convention this week. This thing was so well put together that the biggest problem was that there were NO ‘pit’ stop pauses!

Very few Politicians ‘blathering’ (which I loved), but each evening filled with ‘real’ people. Each giving and highlighting their personal story, some brought a smile others brought a tear or two. People like Herschel Walker (NFL great), Clarence Henderson (1960 Greensboro, Woolworth Sit-Ins participant), the widow of Captain Dorn (the retired black Police Chief murdered while aiding a friend), Alice Johnson (who was given a full Pardon during the convention), Mr. & Mrs. Mueller (parents of Kayla an aid worker abused and murdered by ISIS), and on it went.
Each evening filled with policy specifics, optimism for the future of our country, and assurance that EVERY American deserves opportunity.

Having seen most every Democrat and Republican convention decade after decade; this one was amazing.

The singer is superstar Tenor Christopher Macchio who afterwards said;

“what the 1st family did for me tonight is something I’ll never forget. They stood in regal nobility as I performed with tremendous love and pride in my heart for a nation grateful for their commitment to saving our culture and way of life.”

Losing it – A couple of days ago I walked somewhere around 6-miles going through the O’Bryonville neighborhood – where Marcia had her flower shop 30 some-odd years ago. By the time I had reached that area, in the heat and humidity, I was kept busy wiping sweat off my brow.

That’s when I spotted this truck – snagged a picture – and was amazed. I thought; “only in America would one find a mobile ‘Shrub’ vendor”. When I came home and cooled off a bit I said what I had thought earlier and showed Marcia the picture I’d taken. “You idiot, they’re selling ‘SCRUBS’, not shrubs,” was the snap-back response. Whoops!

Checkup – Mid week I had my medical checkup. Based on some of the tests results already in from my blood-letting, all is fine (actually excellent). The remaining test results to come anytime.

The highlight of the event’s experience is the Phlebotomist, that woman is amazing!

Kenosha, WI – Another character with a lengthy rap sheet got shot when not complying with a Police order. Another opportunity to loot, burn, and hurt citizens going about their daily business. Then have this spread across to other cities by cadres of paid thugs and anarchists.

The reality is that a police officer is 18.5 times more likely to be killed by a black male than an unarmed black male is to be killed by a police officer.

There is an average of 27 deadly-weapons attacks on officers per day in the U.S.

Having interacted with police in our town for a period of years, these are good men and women, professionally doing a job that can turn life threatening in a mere second. A dangerous job most of us can barely fathom.

Tile gluing – Yesterday one of the marble tiles in our building’s entry way came loose. No problem. Clean the thing up, get some tile adhesive, and re-set the thing. Last evening after dinner I headed for the Home Depot and got what I needed. Question; when on earth did the descriptive verbiage on packaging become akin to having to read a chapter book?

Fini – Today it’s a Happy Birthdays to our Vaioleti. She’s now part of that ‘pre-teen’ world – more mature, less child-like, and a bit more introspective. Rain this morning and sunshine this afternoon, that’s when we’ll gather at her house for a bit of a celebration. Brother George will get his turn later this coming week.

Today, in 2005 Hurricane Katrina (a Category 5 storm) hammered the Gulf Coast. The reporting of that storm was similar to that of Laura which hit a couple of days ago. More devastation, more cleanup, more rebuilding; and so it goes; Mother Nature is still in charge.

Michael Jackson would have been 62 today. Which reminds me. This week I saw a photo of President Lincoln taken shortly before he was shot (colorized by Marina Amaral). Strange, in my mind’s eye he’s always seemed this old ancient historical person. This time, he appears as a vigorous middle-aged man with some serious ‘weight’ on his shoulders.

Make it great week, keep the peace, stay safe, and be healthy! All Lives Matter.

Dirk