|
8/21/2021 9/17/2021 9/21/2021 10/12/2021 10/30/2021 10/31/2021 11/13/2021 11/14/2021 12/24/2021 12/31/2021 1/2/2022 -- next page |
| beginning latest entry |
That was several days ago, driving around on the island. The following day was hazy, and about as hot-and-humid as it gets out here. It felt like July.
The day after that was grey, cool, April-like. Time is jerking me around.
And the end of this summer is definitely... jerky. I mentioned above the semi-contradictory feelings I have about resuming NYC life, but that's just a small part of what's been happening. COVID is in full bloom again, thanks soooo much to the IDIOT anti-mask/anti-vaccine bozos. I got my third vaccine dose yesterday. This time they recognized that I'm in an "at-risk" group, yay! But it wasn't even the delta variant-fueled story of COVID that has done the primary jerking. Here's a digest of what I wrote to several good friends a few weeks ago:
Columbus Indiana, where I grew up, is a relatively affluent community, but their hospital is just a disaster area. My sister and I have had problems with them through the years. Anyhow, my dad had to go in for some minor surgery, and we thought "ok, I guess they can handle it". While in the hospital(!), my dad contracted COVID-19. Jeez. So far he's doing well. We're in a bit of a battle to keep the hospital from sending him home, though, before he isn't infectious because my mom is very much 'at risk' (she has some on-going respiratory problems). brad PS: The Columbus Hospital doesn't require vaccines of their doctors or staff. I can't blame this on them, though -- because they are a county hospital, they are a 'governmental unit'. In their grand and infinite wisdom, the Indiana Legislature has prohibited 'governmental units' from enacting vaccine requirements. Stupid, stupid, stupid, stupid, stupid, stupid, stupid, IGNORANT people.
There's a lot more I can say, and eventually I probably will, but right now I can't talk much about this whole thing without resorting to profanity. Brenda and John were out here visiting last weekend, and we took a trip up to the northern -- much more politically conservative -- part of Whidbey. Right in the middle of Oak Harbor they were holding an anti-mask rally. Fortunately I didn't jump out of the car to express my feelings about these ABSOLUTE AND UTTER MORONS, or I probably would have wound up in jail. I simply cannot understand these people. What's wrong with them?!?
So much more has been happening, and not all bad. We had a marvelous visit with nephew Stefan and niece-in-law Alison. Shai and Naomi have been an on-going joy. And (as I mentioned above) Brenda and John managed to get here for a wonderful and much-needed visit, despite a severe flight delay (they were short-staffed for a flight crew!). I seem to be somewhat prepared for the coming school term, if in fact we have a coming school term! I go back to NYC in two weeks.
I'll start to get writing here again, because somehow I think I should. We've started classes, full-on contact (with masks and vaccines), at Columbia, so I'm back in New York. There are a LOT of people in the world. I'm a bit freaked-out.
I went to Indiana at the end of August after Brenda had left to help get Dad home and situated; all is returning to "normal" now.
Tomorrow we fly to Helsinki, finally to see Daniel again!!!!
This past weekend I went down to Roosevelt to see the Ellentucks and friends, Also terrific.
I miss Jill and the family so much!
Classes are going well. I wish I were more enthused about them.
Why am I not enthused? That's a question I will probably answer here some day. Next week I'm going in to negotiate (yeah...) my retirement with Columbia. A lot of my "weirdness" in some of the posts here have to do with it. We'll see how things go.
I just sat and watched, sipping on a cup of coffee. I had the windows slightly open so I could hear the stereo of the thunder. Now the sun is out again.
Life here, now, is an odd existence. We're back to teaching on-line using zoom; not because of COVID but because of a graduate-student union strike. I venture out for walks and to get groceries, and that's about it. I've been making virtual worlds for my classes all day long.
The book is indeed engaging. The author of the book (I'm only 25% through it) attended a very Fundamentalist college, but began questioning her faith in what was given to her as strong dogma. She was a thinking person!
She describes, however, her sense of despair when contemplating a totally materialist world. I never had that despair. To be honest, I'm not sure I ever really bought in to the whole resurrection/eternal life/whatever story. I had other ideas. Fundamentally(!) I felt that there was much about time, space and existence that we simply did not or could not understand. Instead of a despondent fall-from-grace when I rejected a fundamentilst narrative, I found that inhabiting a world freed of bizarre, medieval restrictions was liberating. It all seemed an absurd joke, and I found that, well, humorous. The future was open, the future was free. Now constrained by personal history it's not quite as untrammeled a freedom as it once seemed, but it's still there. You just have to imagine it.
I'd like to say more; more about the depression I visit, the pandemic, the sense of futlity, but instead I'd rather try to recover the positive feelings outlined often here in this blog (which I have woefully been neglecting). It also seems so petty, feeling 'depressed' now after reading back through earlier life-adventures. Things have gotten to me, and I need to work to regain a good sense again. That I promise I will try to do. Post-pandemic, post-Columbia, post-"playing the game", post-whatever. I have to believe there is still a chance to improve the world.
So for now: MERRY CHRISTMAS! HAPPY NEW YEAR! GOOD SOLISTICE!
and
HAPPY 35TH BIRTHDAY LIAN!!!!!!!
Happy Holidays!
