Surreal in Everyday Ramblings

From our walk on the other side of town on Saturday.

Today we start the requirement to wear masks or face coverings indoors in all public spaces here statewide. I feel for all those frontline folks that have to deal with selfish people that think it is their right to spread disease because wearing something over their face is a little uncomfortable and they are exceptional.

On account of my ankle (which is fine) and the weather I had not walked over by the track in at least a week and yesterday it was hopping. The parking lot is open, as is the field. People are working over at Under Armor. No one was wearing a mask. Until I got up by the expensive retirement community, I didn’t see anyone wearing a mask or social distancing in any way.

You would never know that our caseloads and hospitalizations from the virus are higher than they have ever been and all of our summer enrichment programs for kids and public pools are closed because… pandemic. And lack of funding.

You know, umm, catastrophic financial circumstances out there. So much suffering and hunger and uncertainty. People feeling like they don’t have options. And a lot of pent up rage.

The traffic is back at 90% of what it was before, which is intense here.

Kes had her teeth cleaned yesterday for the first time in months, Charity had hers cleaned last week. I don’t even have an appointment on the schedule. That is something I need to look into. I have become a connoisseur of floss in the interim.

It is surreal.

Meanwhile back at the ranch Diego slowly slowly is feeling better here in week three of the elimination diet. He is not throwing up food or hairballs anymore and that is great. I am spacing out the anti-nausea drug for when he really seems to need it and so he is throwing up a little fluid now and then, but my hope is to make that happen less and less.

As this goes on though it may turn me into a full-on vegetarian because their interest in what little meat or fish, I eat, is in my face intrusive. :)

I have a complicated set of feelings and thoughts about trans women.

Honestly, this is mostly based on my experience with one particular individual who transitioned later in her life and had all the privileges of a white male for all that time and the stunning confidence that comes with that. (Also, from a snarky ungenerous place in me… she writes bad poetry but gets an enormous amount of attention for and about it because people are fascinated by her.)

So last week listening to a black trans woman that works for the ACLU bring up said white privilege and the fact that it is being discussed in the trans community made me so happy.

And then last night I discovered the work of Shea Diamond. OMG…

She to me literally embodies so much of what everybody out there in the streets is yelling about. Strength and grit, survival and suffering, joy and intense silliness suffusing a powerful joy in standing tall and expressing exactly who you are at great personal risk.

Her song I Am Her is so good and shows off her amazing voice, but I want to say to all those men out there that refuse to wear masks and protect others from getting sick because it infringes on their precious rights.. listen to I Am America

and go home, stay home and take a moment to think about other people’s rights for a hot minute.

Happy 1st of July.

Last updated July 01, 2020