An interesting Q&A exercise

The question isn't answered if an answer isn't questioned
An answer has a meaning when new meaning has a truth

~~ "A Question Isn't Answered" by Temples

With the recent passing of James Lipton, a meme has been circulating on Facebook of the questions he would routinely ask his guests. I found them intriguing enough that I thought I would answer them here. 

A short response isn't enough to explain the answers. These are intriguing questions to me because they hint at something deeper. Why did you answer the way you did? Exploring that is as much fun as thinking of what the answer is. 

Sometimes I am a little too introspective for my own good. I can easily get lost in my own head. Most of the time, it's a pretty fun place to be. I have really interesting dreams and my mind takes me to some unexpected places sometimes. I don't mind it at 4 in the afternoon, but it usually happens at 4 in the morning, which means that I have some sleepless nights. Maybe if I write about this tonight, my brain will be satisfied and I can get a good night's sleep! So, let's go! 

1. What is your favorite word? 

Penultimate. I used to think this meant 'even more ultimate,' but I learned from Dick Cavett, of all people, what it meant. It means 'second to last.' I don't know why I love it. It's a little obscure, but not archaic or anything. I love to use it as often as possible, as in "It's the penultimate episode of this season of 'The Walking Dead' and I am so excited!"

A close second is one I learned recently: petrichor, which is the smell of rain falling on dry ground, like after a drought. What a wonderful word, one whose meaning can evoke the exact smell in your brain! 

2. What is your least favorite word?

I honestly can't think of one. I know the usual answer here is 'moist,' but I quite like that word, mostly because I know the way it pushes people's buttons! It's also fun to say in a whispery voice. Try it. 

There are many concepts of words that I hate, words like 'lynching' and 'Nazis.'  But that's hating the actual thing, not the word. I just can't think of a word that makes me cringe when I hear it. But hey man, I worked as a Microbiologist, so I routinely dealt with words like 'sputum' and 'pus' and 'exudate.' If anyone can come up with an actual word that grosses me out, I'll buy you a beer. 

3. What turns you on creatively, spiritually or emotionally? 

First, I would like to see a comma between 'spiritually' and 'or,' but that's another topic entirely. I'll take each separately because while connected, they can all be very different for me. 

a) Creatively: Seeing evocative photos or paintings. Or abandoned buildings, especially hospitals. Things that make me wonder what the story is behind it. Those are the things that make me want to write a story, to try to imagine what happened there. Edward Hopper's paintings especially do that to me, and I once wrote a story about a picture I took of a light shining on a corner of a metal building. Abandoned hospitals make me wonder about patients who were there. This muse doesn't hit me on the head very often, but when it does, I love to free my mind and see where it takes me. Knowing me, it's usually fairly dark!

b) Spiritually: Well, I'm an atheist, so religious stuff doesn't move me this way. However, I find that nature is what makes me feel 'spiritual,' whatever that truly means. Sitting outside in the summer, feeling a warm breeze on my face, hearing the birds in the trees, a butterfly landing on my arm and watching its proboscis touch my skin. Why does it do that? Is it getting moisture off my arm? I don't know, but it delights me and makes me feel joy and awe. And it tickles. The world is an amazing place and I guess that is where I find my inspiration for spiritual matters. 

c) Emotionally: How much time do you have? Seriously, so many things make me feel emotion. The older I get, the more emotional I get. Even the simplest, silliest things can just slaughter me. A commercial. A song. A phrase in a piece of writing. The way Sheeba meows at me and looks up at me and wants me to pet his head. Of course, I can also feel anger and sadness, but more often, I feel joy. All three of these things are connected, too. Integrating them brings me happiness and makes for a contented life. 

4. What turns you off? 

Another two-parter for me. You might notice a common thread between the two.

a) Bullies: I have absolutely zero patience for anyone who bullies someone else. If you pick on someone, there is something wrong with you and you need to see a shrink, you insecure, petty jerk. 

b) Willful ignorance: There is no excuse for this. If you don't know about something, educate yourself. Don't say crap like, "I don't know about that and I don't need to know." Just regular old ignorance is understandable. We're all ignorant of certain things and it's okay to say "I don't know," but it should usually be followed by "but I'm going to find out the answer." That is how we learn. 

Now ask yourself who I might have in mind when I'm thinking of a willfully ignorant bully. Be best, people. 

5. What is your favorite curse word?

Well, fuck, this is an easy one! I didn't even have to think about this one. It's just so all-encompassing, you know? You can express approval or disgust. You can tell someone to go away or you can express desire for them. It gives everything a little extra oomph. It is truly the most versatile curse word and you can even make up your own variations on it. A personal favorite I've begun using lately is 'fucko.' I'm sure I didn't originate it, but it signifies the worst disapproval you can give. But you can even change the meaning by the tone of your voice. If you call someone a fucking lunatic when they're coming at you with a meat cleaver, you're expressing genuine horror at their action and their state of mind. But if your friend or whoever makes an outrageous joke or does something wild but fun, you can say, "You fucking lunatic!" with a laugh, and it's a whole different meaning. Isn't that fucking fun?

I'll admit that I have a mouth like a sailor and it's gotten worse the past three years (see Question #4) but I can behave myself when I need to. I don't talk that way around certain people, including kids, but if you're my friend, you get the full fucking vocabulary! Case in point: I just saw a bug on the ceiling and thought, "Fuck, is that what I think it is?" I walked closer and saw that it was a stink bug. I said, "Oh, fucking hell. Fuck me!" I hate those things.

This is getting long enough, so I'll finish the rest of the questions another time. In the meantime, put this in your earholes! 

Mayor Pete's Wild Ride

Sun turnin' 'round with graceful motion
We're setting off with soft explosion
Bound for a star with fiery oceans
It's so very lonely, you're a hundred light years from home

~~ "2000 Light Years From Home" by The Rolling Stones

Pete's Rules of the Road

Not quite a year ago, I waited in line on a cold, rainy April day. A bunch of us were waiting together and despite the weather, the mood was happy and excited. An occasional person came by to pass out stickers and buttons. When the doors finally opened and we got into the venue, it wasn't much warmer, but at least we were out of the wind and rain. 

We were in a large space in one of the old Studebaker buildings. Part of the building had been renovated but not this area. Rusty beams traversed the high ceiling and water ran down some of the walls. As the song says, "We're packed pretty tight in here tonight," so it wasn't freezing cold. But it was damp and chilly and we had a while to wait. 

A large American flag was draped on one of the side walls. A stage and podium surrounded by risers stood and waited for occupants. The backdrop of the stage was a large banner stating "Pete 2020." We were there to see our two-term Mayor make a big announcement and it was no big secret what it was: our Mayor Pete was running for President. We waited through a few speakers and then it was time to hear from Pete. 

Even though we knew what was coming, when he said the words it made me cry: 

"My name is Pete Buttigieg. They call me Mayor Pete. I'm a proud son of South Bend. And I am running for President of the United States." 

In the subsequent months, I watched as people got to know the person I'd come to love and respect as my Mayor. His intelligence, his eloquence, his empathy, his pragmatism, his ability to throw shade when it needed to be thrown. Town halls, debates, media appearances every time you turned around (thanks to Lis Smith, his brilliant Communications Director), a whirlwind of events as he tried to talk to as many people as possible. In that entire time, I never saw him get rattled or flustered or lose control. As a Navy intelligence officer, I think it can definitely be said that he has an even keel. 

We saw him win—by the narrowest of margins, but a win nonetheless—Iowa and place a close second in New Hampshire. Then came Nevada and South Carolina, states where he didn't do as well. 

Last night, Mayor Pete's Wild Ride came to an end right where it started, here in South Bend. He and his campaign looked at the math and concluded that it just didn't add up to stay in. So right before Super Tuesday, he ended his campaign. If I had to speculate, I would guess that it was a combination of three things. 

1. He saw the fractured field and for the good of the party, he dropped out in order for his supporters to coalesce around one of the other moderate candidates. 

2. There were some dealings made between either another campaign or the DNC. 

3. His campaign was running out of money. Pete and Chasten are middle-class Midwesterners and far from millionaires, let alone billionaires. No self-funding there. 

So we are at the end of this run. However, this is actually the start of a new chapter for our Mayor Pete. As one website put it, "This is what a rising star looks like." I don't know what is in store for him in the future, but I know that he and Chasten had better put on their shades because I do know that it's a bright one. As the song above says, "Bound for a star with fiery oceans." 

While I'm sad, and I was practically in mourning last night, I know this isn't the end for Pete. He's got a lot left to do for this country and I know he will serve his country well. He will answer the call when it is made. 

Please allow me a moment of reflection. The graphic up at the top is Pete's "Rules of the Road." That's what his campaign workers and supporters signed up for. Pete's current campaign might be over, but those Rules are going to stay with me. We simply must remember the main goal for this 2020 election: make this current "president" a one-termer. Do not get lost in the weeds. It is possible to stay passionate without trashing other candidates. I struggle with that at times, but I try my best not to say it publicly! We can do this. We need to do this. Think of American livers everywhere. Please save our livers! 

I hope I get to see Pete downtown once in a while this summer. I hope I get to thank him. I'm a proud daughter of South Bend, and Pete...you made us all proud. 

Let us now praise strong women

You come on with a "come on"
You don't fight fair
That's OK, see if I care
Knock me down, it's all in vain
I'll get right back on my feet again

~~ "Hit Me With Your Best Shot" by Pat Benatar

Walking into the club like....

On Friday, November 15, 2019, former Ukraine Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch testified before Congress in an open hearing. She was the third person to testify, and while all three State Department officials were impressive, Ms. Yovanovitch struck a special chord in me. 

I thought all three witnesses so far—George Kent, Bill Taylor, and Ms. Yovanovitch—were shining examples of exemplary government service. We hear about the petty bureaucrats, the sycophants, the do-nothings in Congress, the stonewalling in the Senate, the absurdities of the current administration, ad nauseam. It's enough to turn a person off of politics forever. We rarely get to see the hard-working professionals who do their jobs day-in and day-out with competence and integrity. It was a breath of fresh air to see three such knowledgeable, conscientious adults in service to our government, usually working behind the scenes in relative anonymity, provide an example of service. Their goals are not to advance their own positions; their goal is to advance the policies of the United States.

But something about Ms. Yovanovitch was special. Based on the response to my posts on social media, I'm not the only one who felt this way. I'll be the first to admit that I can be quite emotional at times, so I wasn't entirely surprised when the hearing ended and I started crying. The audience at the hearing burst into applause and cheers and gave her a standing ovation. That was what really got to me. In case you missed it, you should watch. 

The utterly ridiculous Gym Jordan (thanks to Esquire magazine for the name) of Ohio tried shouting about some point of order after Chairman Schiff had already gaveled the hearing closed. And then you hear the applause and shouts and see people standing as Ms. Yovanovitch leaves the room. It was something to see. 

But why did it make me cry? I cry at some really silly things sometimes, but there was something about this that got me right in the feels. In addition to being emotional, I am also self-reflective. If I behave a certain way and I'm not sure why I like to try to figure it out. Not that I think it will stop me from behaving that way in the future, but I do like to know the reasons behind why I behave the way I do! 

So I took a day to think about it. 

In addition to what I wrote above about how refreshing it is to see people in the government who are decent, knowledgeable, coherent, and conscientious, what got me about Ms. Yovanovitch is that she was subjected to the same bullshit women have been subjected to for centuries. She was removed from her job merely because she was standing in the way of the so-called president and his minions with their nefarious schemes. By all accounts, she was great at her job, highly respected in the diplomatic corps, and a very hard worker who was sometimes in very dangerous areas. Her good reputation was savaged by others in the furtherance of their shady plot. She did nothing but work for her country for decades and for that she was rewarded with this utterly shoddy and shameless treatment. 

Not to mention the fact that during the hearing, the so-called president went all meangirl on her and sent some nasty tweets her way during the hearing, saying things that were patently untrue and unfair. He did his best to intimidate and bully her. He took his best shot. And you know what? 

She was having none of his bullshit. 

She continued to testify (I can only hope I would have such fortitude), she did not get hysterical or angry (I'm looking at you, Brett Kavanaugh), she just calmly and coolly continued to answer every question that was given her to the best of her ability. She handled herself with strength and grace, and she impressed the hell out of me. 

She was not cowed. She did not bow before his bullying tactics. She was going to have her time before Congress and she was not going to be silenced. 

So when people in the audience stood and cheered for her (it's hard to tell, but it looks like it was mostly women), and I cheered and cried myself, we were doing so for every time people have tried to bully us or make us feel inferior. For every time some dude has mansplained to us. (Hey, did I ever tell you about that idiot ex of mine who tried to show me how to make hospital corners on a bed? Or how to load sheets into the washing machine? This was when I was in my 30s and I'd gone through college, been married for five years, and then lived on my own for ten years. No? Another day, perhaps.) For every time we've been harassed, belittled, objectified, and groped. Ms. Yovanovitch wasn't standing up to a jerk of an ex-boyfriend or ex-husband. She was standing up to the jerk currently occupying the White House of the United States of America. 

And to that, I say, "Fuck yeah!" 

It was vindicating, it was verifying, it was empowering, and there was a certain measure of complete, evil, satisfied glee. 

I don't know what is going to happen in the 2020 election, but I know that the majority of women in America have had it with putting up with this asshole who reminds us of every pig we've ever met in our lives. It seems that there is a segment of the female population who is somewhat masochistic and will never give him up. Kind of like the abusive husband who they stay with because when she tells him that that Mexican guy in the corner is looking at her weird, her husband goes over and beats him up. Yeah, kind of like that. 

But the rest of us are ready to kick that asshole to the curb and say, "I can do better than you. I'm worth more than the shitty treatment you give me. I'm finding myself someone who treats me the way I deserve to be treated. I am DONE with you." Then we can top it all off with a nice kick in the nuts. 

THAT is what I felt after Ms. Yovanovitch's testimony. And I don't think I'm the only one. 

Let's talk about Pete, baby

Baby, can you dig your man?
He's a righteous man

~~ Larry Underwood in The Stand

There's a lot going on in our little corner of the universe, and I'll talk about that eventually. But right now, I want to talk (again) about Mayor Pete Buttigieg. 

I've written about him before (here and here), but it's been a while. The last time I wrote about him was when he had formed an exploratory committee about running for president. My goodness, things have certainly changed since then! 

I have always felt that as soon as people started hearing him speak and hearing what he had to say, they would like him. That is exactly what has happened. He has a calming presence that is so needed to counter the current occupant of the White House, and I think that is resonating with people. It is no surprise to me that the people in Iowa are really starting to dig our man. I have always considered myself a "pragmatic progressive," or you could also go with "progressive pragmatist." It's a midwestern thing. We see the ideal goals but we know that people are resistant to seismic changes, and sometimes the best way to get shit done is to nudge people along rather than push them off the cliff. 

We saw it with the Affordable Care Act. Would a public option have been ideal? Yes. But we couldn't get it done. Ten years later, the ACA is still the law, and premiums are starting to go down. Most importantly, people have finally come to the realization that healthcare is a right, not a privilege. And want to keep the ACA, despite the continued efforts of the Republicans to gut the law or negate it entirely. Good luck with that! A public option (Medicare For All Who Want It) is exactly what Pete is proposing and it seems to be a reasonable way to get us to Medicare For All. 

Anyway, I am a product of my midwestern upbringing, and so is Mayor Pete. That's why he appealed to me from the beginning, and I believe that is why he is appealing to so many across the country. It's not just the pragmatic part, either. There is a positivity to him that is also needed to counteract against the extreme negativity of the current resident. I feel it in my bones that people need that and need to feel a sense of optimism and inclusion rather than being scared to death of the entire world, including anyone who is a little different from them. 

And how refreshing is it to hear someone who can put together a logical, intelligent sentence? I never realized how much I craved lucidity until I had to hear Individual-1 speak. Good grief, is it too much to ask to have the leader of the free world NOT sound like a moron? We need to raise that bar again.

So here we are, about 100 days out from the Iowa caucus. I was pretty thrilled several months ago when Pete polled at 11% in an Iowa poll. Now it is looking very possible that he could actually—dare I say it?—WIN IOWA. This is astounding, exciting, and almost overwhelming. I am just so thrilled that others are hearing his message and are feeling the same inspiration that it has been my pleasure to feel for the past eight years. 

I don't know what will happen. But I am definitely feeling a sense of hope and change that I haven't felt for a while. Like for about 11 years. 

Once Upon a Time There Was A Movie

Young girls are coming to the canyon
And in the morning I can see them walking
I can no longer keep my blinds drawn
And I can't keep myself from talking

~~ "Twelve Thirty (Young Girls Are Coming to the Canyon)" by The Mamas and The Papas


Well, I've posted about it enough on social media and I saw it for the sixth time today, so I guess I should probably write about it. 

I'm talking about Quentin Tarantino's ninth (and supposedly penultimate) movie, "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood." How much do I love this movie? Let me count the ways. I'm going to start off with non-spoilers, but I'm going to end with a big fat spoiler...of course, I will warn you first! Trust me on this one...you'll want to see it without knowing the spoiler, so if you haven't seen it and plan to, stop reading at that point, okay? 

If you've been living under a rock, the movie takes place in Hollywood in 1969 and tells the story of actor Rick Dalton (Leonardo DiCaprio) and his stunt double, Cliff Booth (Brad Pitt). Rick is getting a little long in the tooth and feels like he might not have much of a future in Hollywood. Since Cliff's career is kind of dependent on Rick's, they're both wondering what the future has in store for them. A lot of stuff is happening in 1969, and some of it is happening at Spahn Movie Ranch. So here are a few of the things I love about this movie and why one friend said that I might be addicted to it. (Guilty as charged!)

1. The cars. There are classic Mustangs everywhere in this movie and they look and sound amazing. There are also tons of Beetles, a beauty of a sky-blue T-bird, Cliff's Karmann Ghia (I wanted one of those when I was a teenager), and Rick's bitchin' Cadillac Coupe de Ville. 

2. The music. Lawd have mercy, the MUSIC. Tarantino always puts a great soundtrack to his movies and he might have outdone himself with this one. Everything from Paul Revere and the Raiders to Deep Purple. Two of my personal favorites are unfortunately not on the soundtrack release: the song included in this entry, as well as "Out of Time" by The Rolling Stones. 

Tarantino combines the cars and the music with some fun sequences of various characters driving on the LA highways. I've seen some criticism of that, saying that it's boring and doesn't add anything to the movie, but I don't feel that way at all. Cars, music, LA highways in 1969? That was a happenin' scene, man! I think it gives great flavor to that whole experience. I love it. 

Even the radio ads add to the experience. Tarantino said that it reflects his childhood when there were only a few radio stations and you didn't change the channel looking for something else. The big station where I grew up was WLS out of Chicago and it was the same for me. I get it. 

3. The scenery/clothes. Tarantino transformed a couple of blocks of Sunset Boulevard to look the way it did in 1969 and it's nothing less than amazing. The neon, the signs, the storefronts. I love all the groovy clothes, from Roman Polanski's blue velvet suit to the anonymous dancer at the Playboy Mansion and her silver minidress and go-go boots. Far out! 

4. The story within a story. The movie, at heart, is about Rick and Cliff. We get to see Rick in some amazing scenes while shooting the pilot for "Lancer," and we get to see Cliff in a super cool fight with Bruce Lee on the set of "The Green Hornet." Tarantino has also gotten some flak for his portrayal of Bruce Lee, including from Lee's daughter. I can't comment on that other than that I've read that Lee really WAS a little arrogant, and Tarantino has said that Cliff Booth is a fictional character, so he can make him do whatever he wants. It's a movie, folks, not a documentary. 

5. The friendship between Rick and Cliff. As it says in the movie, Cliff is a little more than a brother to Rick, and a little less than a wife. They've been together for a long time and their easy camaraderie and support for each other is really fun to see. It helps a lot that it's Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt. They're pretty amazing together. 

Now we're going to get into the big spoiler. 

**SUPER BIG MEGA SPOILER AHEAD**

YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED

DO NOT READ FURTHER IF YOU PLAN ON SEEING THIS MOVIE

DANGER, WILL ROBINSON!

The plotline that got a lot of press was that the Manson Family murders were part of the movie. Now, if you go to see this movie expecting that it's all about that, you're going to have a bad time. As I wrote above, at its heart, the movie is about Rick and Cliff. However, Cliff encounters one of the Manson girls on the streets of LA and ends up taking her back to Spahn Movie Ranch, where he shot some episodes of Rick's network show, "Bounty Law." He encounters people from the Manson Family like Gypsy (horribly played by Lena Dunham...sorry to all you Lena Dunham fans, but criminy, I could act better than that), Clem, Squeaky, and Tex Watson.

In one of those odd turns of events, Rick's house is on Cielo Drive, right next to the house Sharon Tate and Roman Polanski live in. The movie builds suspense beautifully, counting down the hours to when the Tate murders happened. We get to see Sharon and her friends enjoying their lives, Sharon is seeing her career taking off, and she is pregnant and happy. You feel a sense of dread as the clock ticks down because you know what is going to happen. These people are going to die horribly and it's going to happen soon.

But, but, but...Tarantino turns it all upside down. Instead of going to the Tate/Polanski house, Tex, Patricia Krenwinkel, and Susan Atkins go to Rick's house. There they encounter a tripping Cliff Booth who absolutely fucks their shit up with the help of his trusty dog Brandy, and when a damaged and screaming Susan Atkins falls into the pool, Rick breaks out his flamethrower from one of his movies and torches her. It's a stunning ten or so minutes of alternative history.

So why did that affect me so much? Why am I obsessed (if I'm going to be totally honest) with this movie?

I was only seven years old when these murders happened, so I remember nothing about them. I didn't learn about them until several years later when I read the book Helter Skelter. Since then, I've read quite a bit about it all. It seems to me that in conjunction with other things like the assassinations of MLK, Jr and Bobby Kennedy, the Manson murders were effectively the end of the '60s. No more peace, no more Summer of Love...just death and destruction. Altamont. Kent State. The deaths of Hendrix, Morrison, Joplin. They all followed in short order. It was a very dark time in our history.

For a few moments at the end of this movie, Tarantino makes that all go away. Sharon Tate theoretically goes on to have her baby and hopefully, she remains happy with Polanski for a long while. She goes on to have a lucrative career. Jay Sebring and the others in the house all live. They become friends with Rick Dalton. The horrible events of that night are wiped away by Tarantino's movie, thanks to Rick and Cliff (and Brandy!).

As someone who has been fascinated by the Manson Family and the murders for a long time, I found the final scene cathartic. I'm about the same age as Tarantino, so like him, those murders have been part of my psyche since I was a young adult. Until Manson's recent death, he had a real grip on the American psyche, in my opinion. I think Tarantino was exorcising his own demons with this ending, and while I'm not sure others feel the same way, he exorcised mine. Cliff and Rick don't just kill Tex Watson, Patricia Krenwinkel, and Susan Atkins. They make fun of them and take away the power and mystique they have had all these years.

Tarantino gave us a fairy tale that could only happen in...Hollywood. 

You Got a Little You Could Use Much More

I'm no schoolboy but I know what I like

~~ "Brown Sugar" by The Rolling Stones

I'll never understand what motivates people to trash another person's entertainment passions. 

I think you all know that I'm a total fangirl and my fandom is vast and varied. Music, TV shows, movies, books, actors, even journalists (and one particular former FBI Director). While I don't mind dissenting opinions when it comes to things having to do with the news (because that's how things work), it pisses me off royally when people dismiss others' entertainment opinions as nonsense. 

Well, who appointed you the Grand Poobah of what others should or shouldn't like?

Before I go any further with this and before you think I am pretending to be blameless in this regard, let me say that I have done this in the past. Usually it was just teasing a friend about something they liked and I thought I was being funny. Other times it probably had a tinge of superiority to it. As I've gotten older and thought about it some more, I've learned that it really was more the latter than the former. Basically, I've learned that it's a dick move. 

Who knows the reason for why someone loves something? It might be the most insipid song you can imagine, but maybe a person fell in love to that song. Or maybe they lost their one true love when that song was playing. Maybe it was a movie that made them think about their own experience or maybe it was a book that made them question their dearly held thoughts. Maybe it's a band that they have loved for years and has meant a lot to them in ways both fun and profound. 

You know what I say when I see someone post something and I think, "Wow, why do they like that? That's crap." Nothing. That's right, I just put on my travelin' shoes and mosey right along. Again, I haven't always been that way, and I'm sorry for that. I apologize to every friend whose feelings I ever hurt by making a snide remark because I thought it would be funny to tease them. It's not funny and it's not cool and it was a dick move for me to do that.

I'm sure there are plenty of things that I love that others find absurd. I don't care. The heart knows what it wants. You know what else I don't care about? Your opinion about why you think it's absurd. If that's what you think, get together with your friends and talk about how and why it's absurd, but don't do it to me. I have zero patience for it and I have ways of avenging myself. You might not even realize it, but it will happen. I can be as passive-aggressive as the best of them. 

Just in case any of my friends think this is about them, no worries. This happened with a stranger who commented on a post I made in a group and it's what really made me think about why it's so rude and how condescending it can be. You're never too old to think about how your actions affect people and to try to do better. So I plan on trying to do better from here on out. 

I'll probably still make fun of Nickelback, though. Just not anyone who loves them! (But seriously, what are you thinking??)

Dirty, filthy, disgusting

Congress impeach, we're in trouble deep
Congress impeach, we've been losin' sleep
But we've made up our mind, the "president's" crazy
I said the "president's" crazy

~~ to the tune of "Papa Don't Preach" by Madonna

Pop quiz! 

What is the I word? 

A) Idiot
B) Ignoramus
C) Imbecile
D) All of the above

Of course, the correct answer is D) All of the above, but today I'm thinking of another word, and I guess I kind of gave it away right off the bat, didn't I? 

That's right, it's that dirty, filthy, disgusting word, at least according to Individual-1: impeachment. The one he seems to think that the "courts wouldn't allow," which leads us back to the pop quiz answer. D) All of the above. Pssst. Hey, you big dummy. The courts have nothing to do with impeachment. That's in Congress's wheelhouse. Which I suspect you'll be finding out soon. 

Like so many others, I've been very conflicted about impeachment. We're not going to get 67 votes in the Senate, right? Right. At least the way things are at the moment. I wish I had it in me to hope that there are enough decent Republicans in the Senate that would stand up for the rule of law, but Mitch McConnell kind of beat that out of me at a very...slow...and...steady...pace.

It would also be really bad for the country, right? Right. It is never a pleasant road to go down and it should be avoided if at all possible. 

The majority in the country do not favor impeachment, right? Right. It's best to have public opinion behind you if you decide to undertake something so divisive and upsetting to our country. 

More on all that in a moment. I've been right there with Speaker Pelosi the majority of the time. I feel that she's right in trying to conduct some investigations and get more information. I understand her reluctance to go down that road and I, too, wonder what the political fallout will be. 

That all changed for me this week with Robert Mueller's brief statement to the country. The gist of it was that because they could not indict a sitting president, they could not make a definitive statement as to whether or not he committed a crime by obstructing justice. This is because of Department of Justice guidelines. (Not laws, mind you. Guidelines.) He alluded to other avenues to pursue such matters. 

Hey! Congress! He was talking to you! 

I read a couple of good opinion pieces about it, one from Dan Pfeiffer at Crooked Media, and one from Jennifer Rubin at the Washington Post. Pfeiffer lays out a plan as to how to approach this. Rubin writes that the American public hasn't read the Mueller Report, so Congress needs to spoonfeed it to us. She's not wrong. Hell, look what a political junkie I am, and I still haven't taken the time to read it yet! 

The main point in both pieces is that there must be public testimony. This is crucial. Just like in the Watergate hearings, there need to be open hearings before Congress in which we hear from many of the people involved. That includes Mr. Mueller, although I know he doesn't want to do that. Sorry, sir, but your country is calling on you once again. You need to appear before Congress. 

Remember James Comey's testimony in June of 2017? People all over the country watched. Bars opened early and had watch parties. I didn't move my butt from our couch for the entire testimony! That is exactly what Congress needs to do with multiple players from the Mueller investigation. We need a televised spectacle that gets everything out there and gets people talking. 

Listen. The majority of us know that Individual-1 obstructed justice. His diehard supporters will never turn on him. We know that, too. But there is a whole bunch of people who are so-so on the guy, and we need to reach them. We need to put the evidence before them and make sure they hear it. That can only happen with impeachment proceedings, when Congress will have its full powers as an oversight body. 

Will Individual-1 be removed from office? Doubtful. Which brings me back to my initial three points. This will probably not succeed in the Senate. However, every Republican who stands with this so-called president will be on record as voting to save his hide. We need to remember that, and we need to turn out en masse in 2020. We need to VOTE! 

Yes, impeachment would be bad for the country. But I have to ask...isn't this presidency proving to be pretty fucking bad already?? Honestly, how much worse could impeachment be? 

And no, as of now, the majority do not favor impeachment. But once everyone starts hearing public testimony, it sure might. In fact, I think it probably will. We've become almost inured to the daily corruption and dishonesty. It's overwhelming. But if Congress starts forcing people to talk, we'll get to hear a live, public accounting of what has gone on. That is powerful, pals. Even Individual-1 knows the power of TV, and he's D) All of the above. 

It's time. Impeachment hearings need to start now. Get on the bus, Madame Speaker!