It has been awhile since I wrote anything of consequence, or for that matter anything of trivial nonsense. I have been working on a geocaching art project in my spare time instead of writing. I have also been listening to a lot of music to pass the grey days of winter. I don’t have a specific subject, just a bunch of random thoughts, conclusions, and other debris that clutters the grey matter… Here goes…

Epstein files: I’ve seen a lot of stuff regarding this filth. I’m not sure where the real, fake, and deep fake words are really located. The actual media has done very little on the subject while bloggers, podcasters, and others have published some stuff on social media. My two cents (based on my reading,) $47 should be locked up and throw the key away forever. That includes the whole of his illegalities as president too. The attorney general should be charged with accessory to cover up crimes, and lose her law license. The FBI director who looks like a deer in headlights should also be charged with accessory. Speaker of the House??? Accessory… Chief of Staff??? Accessory… Everyone else who appears in the files linked to a crime??? Put them on trial. Period. Exclamation Point. I can’t believe this sleazy bunch of miscreants has the support of religious zealots. I can’t believe any of them were electable (appointed) in the first place. Their qualifications are laughable. You and I are more qualified. We can read. I can add nothing more to this subject without creating an ulcer. The whole matter sickens me. Please arrest this putrid, malodorous, flagitious, and louche politicians running our country. Billionaires are not immune to the law.

Drum and Bugle Corps: Something more palatable and creative than politics. I have followed this activity for most of my adult life. I’m old enough to remember symmetrical drill, G-bugles, and no props on the field. I watched the activity evolve to what it is today. The six to eight week competition season gets shorter and shorter. The flamboyance of choreography and costumes have made some corps identity feel ambiguous. The music increasingly becomes less important than the visual program performed competently by students aged 12-21. The Drum Corps International activity feels more like the Bands of America professional circuit. At the least a larger portrayal of Winter Guard International.

Do I fault the organizations for evolving? No. I think I aged out. My love of tradition dates me. I now understand why the 1970’s corps fans complained about the move to B-flat horns in the 2000’s. They also complained about the props, sets, and costume changes by the guard. The music in their eyes was taking second place. I am now in their place. I last went to a show in 2014. This was the year the Blue Devils won the championship with a show entitled Felliniesque. I enjoyed the production, but I could feel the shoes outgrowing me. I last purchased the finals audio recordings in 2016. Periodically I see videos. I don’t recognize the Bluecoats or Boston Crusaders. I miss the Cadets. The Midwest trio of Cavaliers, Phantom Regiment, and Madison Scouts have retained a couple of traditions, but the Scouts went coed in order to save the corps. This leaves the Cavaliers as the sole all-male corps from the old scout tradition. I’m not offended… I’m just old.

This activity is a young person’s game. A game I stopped worrying about the score somewhere around 2007. I just wanted to watch the artistry of performing… Who cares who wins? The kids need our love and support… I still can’t believe the My Spanish Heart production by the Blue Devils is 31 years old. That show blew my mind. I still support Drum and Bugle Corps. I will always be an ally, but from afar, rather than up front on the 50 yard line.

Dog Healthcare: About 8 weeks ago our Bull Mastiff sliced his left achilles tendon in two. He cut it on my wife’s elevated garden enclosure. It was made of sheet metal and was topped with some ornamental iron. Mack found a way to squeeze in to eat the remaining peppers that had escaped the fall frost. He loves peppers. Jalapeño, Green, Yellow, or Red Peppers are his favorite. Tomatoes and Cucumbers follow close behind. He will even eat Apples. He has a broad appetite. Anyway, healthcare isn’t just expensive for humans. It is expensive for pets too. Surgery to reattach an achilles tendon ran over $4,000. We will spend nearly $6,000 once the healing process is complete. Mack is currently in a leg cast to prevent the joint from moving, so the tendon can heal. There is a screw placed through the knee joint to also immobilize the joint. He hobbles around now in a boot to go outside. Compound this with emergency abdominal surgery last spring for our Neapolitan Mastiff (Bubbles) to remove a blockage we have spent more on our dogs than on our own healthcare. Bubbles ate a ball of string or twine. We think the neighbor boy threw it over our fence, as we do not have anything like that around our home. Both dogs will be fine. Bubbles has fully recovered from her ordeal and Mack will make a full recovery. Mastiffs are expensive. We love them, and this is one of the hazards of having big furry children that love to eat anything that looks like food. Needless to say the garden is torn down and receiving a redesign.

Pet insurance? I’m not sure it is worth the cost as dogs of mastiff size only have a life expectancy of 8-10 years. My only complaint is the markup on everything. The antibiotic for the dog was $50 more expensive than the same antibiotic for humans. Why is everything so profit driven??? Our poor puppies… At least they have become better snugglers after their ordeals. Hopefully Ziva our English Mastiff avoids any problems… We had to have a cyst removed from her skull when she was little. That was bad enough… $1500… Dog Healthcare… expensive… companionship priceless… think of them as children without a tax deduction… We love them more than most humans…

Holiday Season: This was the first year I cognitively decided to not celebrate the holiday of Christmas. I let my wife celebrate and my kids. I chose not to engage primarily for humanist reasons. I hate capitalism as much as I hate the greed that compounds the holiday. By not engaging in anything holiday related I felt less stress than usual. I didn’t miss anything as it was just another grey winter day. Winter Solstice had greater meaning to me than Christmas. I know all days are going to gain length for the next six months as the planet tilts on its axis as we orbit our star. Celebrating the scientific had more impact than the religious cultural belief propagated by the Roman Empire in the 4th century or so. I joke regularly about being a born again atheist, but the shedding of cultural traditions wrapped around religion has been a healthy decision. The cognitive dissonance of this cultural practice is gone. Science really is a nice way to approach everyday. I look at sunrises and sunsets differently as I do everyday activities. I highly recommend it. Of course if you believe and wish to celebrate the holiday, please enjoy it. My journey and your journeys are simply different. Being different should be mandatory cultural practice… Or at least the acceptance of the difference should be mandatory…

Until next time… …so it goes…