Day 9 - Bullies in These Foolish Things

Guess I missed a day yesterday. Whoopsie. At least writing an entry a day isn’t part of my challenge. Maybe it should be??

Anyway. I’m nesting while working. It’s cold here and we are supposed to be getting some bleak weather today and overnight. I haven’t gotten in my car to drive anywhere since Sunday. Wild, huh? I have only seen a few of my neighbors in person this whole week. I’ve had a few Zoom meetings, but other than that, I haven’t seen or heard from anyone except for my parents. And right now I don’t mind it because all I want to do is drink warm lattes and curl up in blankets.

Jimmy Carter’s funeral is on TV in the background. Do you remember when he was in office?

I do. I was 10 years old in 1977 when he was elected. Awwww, what a fragile time. During his time in office, my family moved from a super progressive area/state to an area that was in stark contrast in the Southeastern part of the country. Gah. What a culture shock! I had no idea what racism was until I moved there. I had no idea about a lot of things, and wow…were my eyes opened. I was also kinda nerdy, and I was bullied by some mean girls. It’s amazing how these feelings stand out in your mind, isn’t it? I don’t even remember the girls’ faces or names because they were like 2 grades ahead of me and I didn’t even know who they were - they just decided to be mean to me every day for months on end. Literally NO idea why except for maybe I was dorky-looking and seemed to be an easy target. They’d harass me as I got on the bus to head for home every single day. I couldn’t avoid them because they’d stand in front of my bus and WAIT for me! And there was even a guy involved - who I remember quite well because he was hot and popular. Years and years later, he tried to friend me on Facebook. What a fucking dick. I actually left that request unanswered. It sits in my friend requests after 15+ years!

Well, that was a tangent! I honestly don’t remember a whole lot about Jimmy Carter’s presidency. I vaguely remember the gas shortages and the hostage crisis, but that’s about it. I DO remember the humanitarian things he was doing after he left the White House - amazing things he accomplished, but I don’t remember the fact that he had one of the lowest approval ratings of a president in history by the time he left.

And speaking of approval ratings (and bullies) - I’m super curious to see how we do with the annexing of Canada and Greenland and…The Gulf of America??!!

But honestly, we have bigger worries right now while Los Angeles burns to the ground. I am sending all of my love and big, hopeful, heartfelt wishes for anyone affected by the fires. So much devastation. So many landmarks! So many HOMES! Including Head Cat and our offices. My work is based in LA. So, we are all in a bit of distress, but for the most part I can’t even imagine…

These are strange times.

xox,
GS