Christmas 2020

This year has been a tumultuous year, to say the least. Between dealing with a pandemic and on-again, off-again regulations and the political divide of our country, it has been a year filled with anxiety and tension. I'm not expecting much from Christmas this year--similar to last year after my medical issues. For me it will be a season of isolation and reflection on Christmases past.

Looking at the Christmas decorations and the beautiful lights, I  think about family members who have passed away--Mom and Dad, Suzie David, and my wonderful sister-in-law Paula. I will always be grateful for their guidance, their compassion, their sense of decency, and their humor. Their examples have guided me during my life. Because of their example, I live every year thinking about how I can help others and doing the right thing. I know I have them to thank for all that I have.

My family is a lasting Christmas gift from God that makes me grateful for them, as well as my friends who are like family, and being able to live a life that is filled with love and understanding.

Happy Mother's Day--2020

Another Mother's Day without Mom. I guess I could look at it that way. The thing is, when I think about it, Mom is still with all of us. She's here in the way my sister smiles. She's here by the caring people that she and Dad have created. She's here in the legacy of unconditional love that she surrounded our family with for most of our lives.

Though Mom is not physically with us, she will always be spiritually with us. I remember that every time I pick up a rosary to pray, every time I enter a church to worship, and every time I go to a family gathering and marvel at the amazing diversity of people and personalities that she and Dad have fostered and nurtured.

Are we perfect? Not by a long shot. Are we a reflection of the wonderful and amazing woman that gave us life, yeah, we are. She will always be a blessing and an influence in my life. Happy Mother's Day, Mom. I love you!

Republican, Democrat, Independent--or Just Someone Who Uses Common Sense?

Okay, here's the deal. There are people who are steadfast Republicans, Democrats, and Independents. I consider myself an Independent and not as it pertains to people who run under that party name.

I consider myself Independent, as in "independent thinker." Also known as someone who tries to use common sense and facts to decide on for whom to vote.

How did I come up with this radical idea? My Dad. Dad would get annoyed at Mom for basing her vote on one issue or the political party. Dad would point out that the character of the person running for office was more important than what his/her party stood for. I thought that this was pure genius and made my voting choice easy.


Because of that, and because of all the misinformation that was put out before the election of 2016, I used my journalism and library science research skills to fact check things when they popped up on social media.

I sorted out the lies and the innuendos that each candidate threw at each other--one threw much more than the other, based on my research--which kept me pretty busy sorting through the facts, lies, and half truths.


After researching, Trump had so many more negatives in his column than Clinton. She had negatives in her column, too, but  Trump made her look like a Girl Scout in comparison.

In my naivete, I thought that common sense would win out and the best person for the country would be Clinton. Well, that didn't turn out to be the case.

Instead, one of the least qualified of people (and, in my opinion, one of the poorest excuses for a human being) was elected president of the United States. I'm still surprised and shocked that someone as self-serving and privileged would've been elected by people who have little or nothing because of people like him--that is, most corporate billionaires that have always thought only about themselves and their own interests.

After Reagan started "trickle down" economics that have crippled the country and made it easier for the 1% to continue to rake in millions of dollars at the expense of middle- and lower-income people, Trump is pushing to continue the economic rape of the middle and lower class with his tax cuts and his destruction of the Affordable Care Act. He's doing this by his bait and switch tactics of saying one thing and doing another. His tax break only benefited the 1%, in spite of him saying that the opposite is true. Yet his followers believe every lie that comes out of his mouth. I don't get it.

He sent the National Guard to the U.S./Mexico border to keep the "caravans" of Mexicans from swarming into the U.S. Seems that those caravans evaporated not too long after he got his base stirred up with fake images of people storming our border. Anyone with any common sense would realize this is just another scare tactic on Trump's part to further the joke that is the Trump wall. The funding for this wall will cost billions of dollars, money that could be spent on social, veterans, and homeless programs, and food for kids and adults who are starving in this country. Maybe even using that money to pay back the Social Security system that our politicians and a few of our past presidents, both Republican and Democrat (beginning with Reagan) have stolen from the fund and are now considering stealing even more, all affecting middle- and low-income Americans.

Going back to my Dad and his philosophy about politics, I believe Trump is probably one of the most morally bankrupt person in the United States. Seriously. Early in the pre-election of 2016, I started researching Trump. One of the things I found was a recording of Trump being interviewed on the radio by Howard Stern. Stern asked all kinds of disgusting details about his girlfriend, Melania, who he was shacked up with while cheating on his second wife, Marla Maples. Melania wandered into the room where Trump was talking to Stern and Trump and Stern proceeded to talk about her like she was some common tramp. From her tone of voice when she eventually excused herself from the disgusting discussion, you could tell she was getting very uncomfortable with the conversation. Trump and Stern continued to talk about her "attributes" in the most vulgar terms with Stern asking Trump if he could have sex with her (Stern used more sexually vulgar terms) and of course Trump encouraged Stern.

Next I found different stories (they were numerous) about Trump and his dirty business dealings. He screwed over so many people with whom he had contracts. When he was confronted by various vendors and contractors who had trusted that he would pay for the services they had performed, he would suddenly tell them that he wasn't going to pay or would pay pennies on the dollar of what he had agreed to. When they challenged him, he told them that he would keep them wrapped up in litigation so long that they would be bankrupt by the time he was finished with them. They all thought that a millionaire like Trump would be good for his debts. They were wrong. He was, and is still, one of the shadiest conmen of our time. He had a reputation in New York as being a conman and shady businessman.

Then there are his sexual escapades. We all heard about his philosophy of life. Going after women, married or not, like an aggressive sexual predator. Trump currently has over 20 assault allegations against him, the most recent being E. Jean Carroll. My Dad and Mom would never have voted for someone with that kind of reputation (Mom went totally Republican after the Bill Clinton scandal, can you imagine what she'd think about Trump?). Then there's his track record with wives. Cheated on the first, second, and third (Melania) Mrs. Trumps. His personal attorney who cleaned up his various legal messes paid off porn star Stormy Daniels while Melania was pregnant with their son. He also was alleged to have had sex with a Playboy Playmate. His lawyer admitted to paying off both to keep the affairs from being aired before the election.

There are so many more reasons for not voting for Trump. His childish behavior, bullying, lying, constant golf outings, using taxpayer money for his rallies, his secret meetings with dictators, his policy of putting children in cages, and his lack of knowledge of the Constitution and how to represent ALL people and not just his followers. Seeing him mock a person with disabilities before the election, I thought that who, in their right mind, could vote for such a despicable human being. Apparently several million people. 

It saddens me that he still has such a strong following. He represents the basest elements of a human being. He's greedy, selfish, childish, and ignorant (if you've listened to most of his speeches, they are a convoluted mess of incomplete sentences, inaccurate statements, and literally double talk). The fact that he tweets every feeling and emotion, no matter how childish and self-serving, has to be an indication to any thinking person, that Trump is not good for our country.

Since Trump was elected President, the country has become more and more divided in their views of what is right and wrong. I am not a fan of President Trump. I knew about his immoral character, his shady dealings, and his lack of a moral code before he was elected. Frankly, I was shocked that he had gotten elected. He embodied the worst of what a human being can be. Yet, he did get elected.

I stand by the above statements. If anyone needs facts to substantiate what I've written, I will do that. The thing is, will you be willing to read it with an open mind, or continue to blindly follow someone over a cliff who is bent on destroying our country as we know it? And that's not an exaggeration.