Moose out front shoulda told you

Closing time
Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end

~~ "Closing Time" by Semisonic

Well, shit is getting real. 

Both Ohio and Illinois are closing down restaurants and bars for a couple of weeks, and the Mayor of Hoboken, NJ has instituted a curfew in addition to closing things down.

Closer to home, although Indiana has not taken that step or the step of closing all schools, South Bend has closed schools for a couple of weeks.  

Unfortunately, there are still some people who are not getting it. From a microbiologist's viewpoint, this is dangerously short-sighted. Although these steps might seem draconian and an over-reaction, I can assure you that we need to break the transmission chain. 

I understand that this will impact millions of people. I understand that people who are barely making ends meet are going to be hurting. However, the alternative is worse. I don't think people are truly understanding just how bad this could get. If our healthcare system is overwhelmed, people will not get needed treatment and people will die. 

This is where the federal government absolutely must pass a relief bill. We need to protect those workers whose lives will be upended by this. 

As I am writing this, the White House is having a press briefing. I am absolutely livid. This so-called "president" came out and his main concern is not with the people who are ill or dying, but his delight at the Fed lowering the interest rate. 

I just can't even anymore. What is wrong with him? He is an utter psychopath. He has no empathy. 

This was going to be a longer entry but I need to do some self-care right now because I need to bring my blood pressure down. 

I pulled the plug

At midnight, I went over to the previous incarnation of Nutwood Junction...you know, the one at AOL Journals. My last entry there was a repeat of a post in September that included the Semisonic song "Closing Time." I watched the video again (it is such a great song), then I went to Edit Journal and pulled the plug. It's probably silly, but I wanted to be the one to do it, rather than let AOL just shut the whole thing down.

It was surprisingly hard to do. I suspect many of my AOL friends felt the same way. It made me feel rather blue.

However, there is much yet to be written! There are paths yet to travel, ideas yet to explore, and friends yet to meet. Our community is relatively intact, and we can continue to enjoy each other's writings and friendship while possibly finding a few others at our new home who are simpatico.

If I had a glass of champagne in hand, I would raise it and say:

Love to one, friendship to many, and good will to all.

Have logic and proportion fallen sloppy dead?

Mission: Migration

Status: Accomplished!

Whew, what a relief to get that done. I had some problems with Ken's, but turns out his password was case sensitive. Once I fixed that little problem, all went well. I had one hitch, where it created his new blog, but there were no entries there. That could have been my fault, though, for "refreshing" before everything was complete. Anyhoo, it's done! If I hadn't been able to do it, I don't suppose I would have curled up and died, but it would have been a shame to lose all of it. Even just seeing the names of some of my entries made me go, "Hey, I remember that!" I had titled one "He hit it an' quit it," and that was for when James Brown died. It made me sad.

It also made me sad to make what will probably be my last entry over at my AOL Journal. It was merely a repeat of the entry I wrote about the song "Closing Time," and it seemed very fitting. I'll admit that I got kind of choked up when I put it up there, and listened to the song again. I'll leave it up for a while, but I'll probably delete the journal myself. Hey, I think I'll delete it at the stroke of midnight, when October 30th turns to the 31st. Halloween! Yes, I think that's what I'll do. Maybe it's a little silly to get so verklempt over a journal, but I think you all understand. Just the fun I had with it, practicing my writing, but more importantly, all the wonderful friends I made there...I'm just so happy that most are making the move! I love you guys! I am NOT going to burst into tears, so just cut it out!! Ha ha! Just remember, "Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end."

I even managed to get a few things done today. WOW, I am so proud of myself! (It really has been pathetic.) Finished some laundry, took care of the garbage, and got a pot of chili going. I've had a hankering for chili for a while now, so this should taste good. I've been in the mood for all kinds of soup lately. I've got a recipe that combines tortilla soup with red beans and rice, and I think that sounds delicious. I've also got a package of black beans, so I'll try some black bean soup one of these days, then there's vegetable soup, and maybe some potato soup, and some beef stew...aaaaagh! Yum, it's just that time of year!

The latest feel-good news from the campaign trail comes from a McCain-Palin rally at Lehigh University in Pennsylvania. McCain was talking about Obama's tax plan, and someone in the crowd yelled "Off with his head!"

Are you freakin' kidding me? What is this? France in 1789? Maybe a better analogy would be Alice in Wonderland and we've followed the White Rabbit down the hole and through the Looking Glass. I'm going to start looking for a hookah-smoking caterpillar in the audience at these rallies! There is no excuse for this, and with every day that goes by that McCain allows these violent and hate-filled outbursts to continue, his silence is complicit endorsement of violence against a fellow human being. Palin seems to whip the crowds into an even more violent frenzy. How can we condone this kind of behavior? I may be passionate about politics, but there is NO EXCUSE for allowing such attitudes to continue, and anyone who truly cares about their fellow human beings and about our society in general would stand up and say, "Stop this. It isn't right, and this is unacceptable behavior." I cannot begin to tell you how disgusted I am with the sight of fellow Americans shouting such murderous invective, and I'm even more disgusted that no one is putting a stop to it.

See you on the other side of the Looking Glass.

White Rabbit

Jefferson Airplane

One pill makes you larger
And one pill makes you small
And the ones that mother gives you
Don't do anything at all
Go ask Alice
When she's ten feet tall

And if you go chasing rabbits
And you know you're going to fall
Tell 'em a hookah-smoking caterpillar
Has given you the call
Call Alice
When she was just small

When men on the chessboard
Get up and tell you where to go
And you've just had some kind of mushroom
And your mind is moving low
Go ask Alice
I think she'll know

When logic and proportion
Have fallen sloppy dead
And the White Knight is talking backwards
And the Red Queen's "off with her head!"
Remember what the dormouse said:
"Feed your head
Feed your head
Feed your head"