President* Trump, I picked the first little handful of raspberries from our bushes this morning. Some went into my yogurt bowl and some were a surprise for Laura. It was a nice antidote to what was a pretty rough night filled with bad dreams, restlessness, and a trip outside with Old Lizzie. Then, on my … Continue reading This time
Aggression
Serial displacements
President* Trump, So Old Lizzie seems to be feeling some better. She was able to come upstairs to go to bed last night under her own steam and in between crashed out naps, she’s been super hungry today, which we are taking to be a good sign. It’s hard, though, seeing her so creaky and … Continue reading Serial displacements
The Hubris Syndrome on steroids
President* Trump, Sometimes I get some pretty interesting things popping up in my “Pocket” – that online service no one asks for that suggests articles based on one’s reading history. The one that’s been sitting open in my browser for a couple of days is an Atlantic piece by Jerry Useem entitled “Power Causes Brain … Continue reading The Hubris Syndrome on steroids
The imperative Monopoly monologue
President* Trump, I drafted almost an entire usual-length letter to you this morning, but I’m not going to send it. Maybe it’ll make it out of the gate tomorrow, but today it’s far more important to send you a link to Kimberly Latrice Jones’s brilliant, devastating monologue “How Can We Win?”, which was posted on … Continue reading The imperative Monopoly monologue
Shows of force ~ now and then, then and now
President* Trump, Everything that I’ve seen written about the illegal assault on peaceful protestors last Monday to clear Lafayette Square focuses on your desire to strut over to St. John’s to have your picture taken holding up a bible. Every single one of the dozens of articles I’ve read, whether they are directly about the … Continue reading Shows of force ~ now and then, then and now
Defunding the police is a good start
President* Trump, I wish Laura or I had thought of the “President*” salutation eons ago – it is so much more appropriate than the “Dear” one, which always made me wince when I typed it. Better late than never, though – eh? So today we added another sign to our front windows today, jiggering things … Continue reading Defunding the police is a good start
The president* we needed at this time
President* Trump, Laura suggested switching out the scare quotes and swapping in an * to indicate the illegitimacy of your presidency since this is likely how you’ll be listed in the history books. It may take a bit, but the writing is on the wall that you were aided and abetted by Putin and his … Continue reading The president* we needed at this time
Raising up the gnat
“President” Trump, I want to come back to Sister Dang Nghiem and what I’ve learned from her so far. I finished her dharma talk on how to grieve last night and over and over I was astounded by her incredible equanimity and restraint. You see, throughout the entire hour and 23 minutes of her lesson, … Continue reading Raising up the gnat
Overwhelmed and (sort of) nattering on
“President” Trump, Well, by the time I got your letter sent last night, our “end systemic racism now” sign had come completely unstuck from the window. Turns out that the fancy little “leave no trace” poster stick-ems don’t stay stuck to glass. This setback happened late enough last night that we decided to wait to … Continue reading Overwhelmed and (sort of) nattering on
May we accept that real change is scary and hard
Dear President Trump, The overriding emotions for me today have been shame and fear, which may explain why I’ve been so irritable and sour. I don’t know about you, but often when I’ve got strong primary feelings on board, niggly secondary ones pile on and poke at me, trying to grab my attention. Well, I … Continue reading May we accept that real change is scary and hard