Well, you all know the answer – a much-needed, new President! When I turned on the TV in the morning, they were waiting for the orange one to board Marine 1 for his departure. I would have been happy not to have seen him at all but it didn’t take long. When I could coax Rosie to walk, I used my ear pods to keep listening to the coverage. We’re minding our business when we see Bill and Festus (doggie) walking toward us as Greg passes on his bike. Greg yells, “Today’s the big day!” and I return, “Yes! Today’s the big day!” Bill yells, “Bullshit!” And we’re off! Our conversation went something like this….
Him: I’m not watching
the Inauguration because it would make me puke.
Me: I am listening to it now to be sure trump leaves.
Him: I like trump and would fight for him (which I immediately
pictured him among the insurgents who invaded the Capitol).
Me: I think he is morally bankrupt. I would not want him in my
house and if I had children, I would not want him near them.
Him: But he’s done a lot of good things.
Me: Such as?
Him: The economy.
Me: Yeah, look at the economy!
Him: But you know why – the China virus!
Me: You mean Covid-19?
Him: No, the China virus. It came from China.
Me: It doesn’t matter where it came from, it’s everywhere now
and he has done nothing about it. When is the last time you heard those words
(Covid 19) come out of his mouth?
Him: But he got the vaccine!
Me: You mean the vaccine no one can get?
Him: It’s not his fault, It’s up to the states.
Me: Yeah, 50 different states doing 50 different things. A
situation like this is when the Federal government needs to take charge and
coordinate the approach.
Him: No, it’s up to the states!
Me: Pass on the responsibility to someone
else. Blame others. He’s a master of that.
Him: Well, just wait until gas is $2+ a gallon and your taxes go up.
Me: Well, you know I don't mind paying taxes to help people in need, improve schools, update infrastructure.
Him: We’ll just have to agree to
disagree.
Me: We will.
My knees were literally shaking but I was determined to not let him get away with that crap unchallenged. It will be interesting to see how he responds to me the next time we run into each other. He and his wife always seemed to like me and would often stop the car for a quick chat when Rosie and I are out. I’m sure I’ll be labeled a “Radical Liberal” around the neighborhood, but I really could not care less. They have all known me as a nice lady and if this colors their behavior, then so be it.
So, that was how my birthday started off! I would have been happy to stay glued to the TV and savor every moment of the Inauguration, but my sweet friends had other ideas. Lynn and Tom invited Rosie and me over for coffee in the morning, which started my birthday off perfectly. They are such good neighbors and friends, and sometimes Rosie invites herself over and they are always very gracious. It was nice of them to think of me on my birthday and I enjoyed seeing the swearing-in with them.
I came home and plugged in until having to take Rosie out for a walk before going out again. I was home just long enough to get a phone message from Jan, a call from Cheryl and Rabbi Covitz, whom I would with at the synagogue long ago. After all these years, he still calls me on my birthday which is very sweet and means a lot. In the course of the day, I received lots of messages by email, text, and FB, as well as some real cards. It was great to hear from everyone. It really did make my day and it’s so nice we can be in touch instantly. Thank you all for your thoughtful messages, even the one who referred to me as an old broad!! LOL
Other Democratic neighbors, Debby and Dave stopped over one day on their walk and invited me over for a celebratory glass of wine on my birthday. That, too, was very sweet and totally unexpected. I joined their social bubble which included their neighbors across the street, who are RATs – Republicans Against Trump. They were totally delightful. Debby and Dave had champagne and we made our first toast to the new President and then discussed the events of the day. It was very nice.
From there I went to Reyna’s where her girls made vegetarian pizza for me. Reyna wanted to do her fabulous Chili Rellenos again for my buds, but I was concerned about bringing so many people from various groups together. Little did I know that she had invited her cousin and family, which made me a little uneasy, Covid-wise. The pizzas were delicious and we even ended the day with a cake, which I hadn’t expected. They were very sweet. Needless to say, this is the most social I have been in a year. Once home, I then watched the Inaugural concert and, for some reason, I was not the least bit sleepy. I stayed up until almost midnight!! I think it was a combination of relief and excitement. It is so good to have competent, decent people at the helm, and I wish President Biden all the best. I do not envy his job but I think he has proven that he is the man for the moment.
Speaking of Reyna, she has gone through a very difficult time over the last few months. Mr. Welzant, who lives with her and whom she looks after, has been in and out of the hospital over the last few months and he passed away on Monday (1/18). She has been very up and down, and I think part of it is that Alex (her son) is at Johns Hopkins and not here to help talk her through things. She really seemed to rely on him for so much. I have tried to be as supportive as I can and hope I have been a help to her.
I know that when one is given lemons, you make lemonade, but what do you do when you are given turnips? Even growing up in the South, I don't ever remember eating turnips! It must be that my mother didn't like them and never served them. In any case, I wanted to give them a fair chance so I began searching for recipes. I wound up making turnip and leek gratin with a blue cheese sauce. It really was nice but I'm not sure I would go to that effort again for turnips. I have one left and am going to make turnip and sweet potato fries. That's more my speed and I thought the flavors would be good together.
There is some unsettling news to share. While I was out galavanting around on my birthday, my Resista Sista, a partner in crime, and dear friend Tippy was going from one doctor to another - literally. She had been having a sharp pain in her back. Her physical therapist wasn’t sure it was muscular and recommended she have a pulmonary exam, which she did. It turns out that she has a blood clot in each lung!! She went directly to a specialist and is on medication. She is scheduled for more tests to make sure there are no clots elsewhere. I am keeping her in my thoughts and sending healing vibes her way and I hope you will do the same. In any case, we did not touch bases on Wednesday and I didn’t find out until yesterday. (1/21). I felt terrible not to be there for her, but our friend David took care of her (Kieran was out of town). In her ever-optimistic outlook, she wanted me to tell you that she is now a member of the Clot Club! I'm going to have to find that girl some healthier clubs!! We plan to get together tomorrow and I'll learn more.
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