Inflation Woes

 

Short Term Pain For Long Term Thinkers

How often do you find yourself saying, 

“Ughh, these prices. I’ll need a raise at some point, show me the bargains"?

At Walmart the other day, yes I shop there you snobs, I grabbed the small cart for a midweek shopping run. The midweek buy is just for essentials, mostly Sudafed and whiskey. I haven’t had to take the calculator with me in a long time and that’s just fine. It’s a good practice when you’re trying to be frugal and get the most for your buck. I thought my Aldi days ended after college, yes I shopped there you snobs. 

At a certain point I became a little more finicky about my groceries and swore off that discount juggernaut. I might be taking a closer look at it again if prices keep going up like they are.

I get used to buying, roughly, the same items and spending the same amount without even trying. There are some days when I need the extras, laundry soap and paper towels, that add a higher percentage to the bill. Mostly I’ve got my grocery bill locked in. The problem is inflation. We all know instinctively what it is and what it feels like. It’s a tax you weren’t counting on, or a pay cut right off the top of your salary. You might not think about it until you’re in line at Walmart and your cashier announces the total. Your first reaction might be “How many pizza rolls did I get anyway?” Or “I thought I left the institutional size bacon pack in the freezer”.

Inflation is the surprise you didn’t see coming. Maybe you should have, but it’s hidden. Prices rise when the money supply increases. In our recent history the most common way of creating inflation is through bond buying. The Fed purchases bonds from large banks and the cash it uses to buy the bonds goes into the economy via the banks. The purpose is to get the banks to use that cash to issue loans to other businesses. When companies get loans they go out and build, buy and hire. The extra cash in the market is supposed to get the economy going.

They can also purchase toxic loans, that's what happened in 2008. The Fed set up a fund and capped it at $700 billion, to be used to purchase troubled assets. Those crappy packaged loans that caused all the trouble to begin with.

But that’s in the textbooks already. It’s Wikipedia stuff about TARP (troubled asset relief program) and website summaries about how bond buying works. In truth it’s never that clean, especially when politics are involved. No president wants to have a stock market crash on their watch. Bankers don’t want lines and panics outside their offices. Investors, from the big funds to the small financial planners are loathe to lose value. Business owners of all sizes can’t afford to shut down operations for even a few days. Money goes out to lenders, and it comes in from customers all day. When capital stops flowing it’s a loss for everyone.

JFK famously said that a rising tide lifts all boats. That’s certainly true for a time. But the tide eventually goes out.

We’re in low tide economic season right now. The inflation is the result of overspending by the federal government. As long as business is good, the increasing tax receipts takes care of the debt. But without accountability there is no brake on spending. Most of our budgets are on autopilot anyway. Don’t fall for those debt limit charades Congress pulls every year. It’s theater. There isn’t a real debt limit anyway. As long as everyone gets paid (in a manner of speaking) majorities aren’t likely to actually vote down a budget. Keeping the debt limit in place sends a signal to the rubes (yes, me too) that they’re still negotiating responsibly. You know, cause two Trillion dollars of spending is reigning it in.

We might be in for another housing type crisis like the one in 2008. I say “housing-type” because of the fraud inherent in the packaged loans. They were valued high but worth nothing. Where are the overpriced bargains? What out there is priced like a high rise condo in South Beach, but is actually a condemned apartment building in Baltimore? Economic downturns are for people on the sidelines looking for good deals. It’s when the savers finally get their shot at some value buys. Collapsing prices, and yes recessions, are good for scrappers that stay out of debt. No one wants a 1920s era depression that wipes out the economy for a decade, but an honest recession exposes the underlying weakness. That’s how it’s supposed to work.

The government will never allow the biggest banks to fail. They’re tied in with the Fed like bells on a string. It’s not a market economy in the truest sense anymore. With no risk there is no reward. Lenders can take huge ‘risks’ because failure isn’t really failure when the government backstops your efforts. This only changes if the whole system collapses. That’s some serious Mad Max type carnage that no one wants. Or maybe I’m wrong. There may be a way to save this thing without the cage fights and desert gangs. It will probably take going back to Aldi for a bit. We’ll all have to learn how to save again. We’ll have to break out the calculators and argue with the cashier over a $1.50 coupon on Honey Bunches of Oats. But I can’t imagine the US economy becomes a place for everyone again without some short term pain.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Moods and Sunshine: Summer and Winter

 

A Superficial Happiness: Whether Moods?

The sun is finally out. Today started a little drizzly. It stopped almost as quick as it started and the clouds made it feel muggy. I went for a short walk this morning like I always do on Sunday. The air was thick with moisture but the sun never came up and burned up the excess standing water. The more I live in Oklahoma the more I like the summer heat. The hot weeks in summer aren’t pleasant, but I prefer the heat to the early onset winter. Of course I’m not a roofer and I don’t landscape, I’m sympathetic to those who can’t wait for cooler days. But for me, lightweight clothing and flip flops are critical to my inner happiness. Is that superficial?

Light Not Heat

 I just finished grilling some burgers and brats for the week. The older I get, the more I grill for the week instead of just the current meal. Of course it means I’ll be eating burgers till probably Saturday however. The air was still gloomy and moist, the grill heat and the humidity made for an uncomfortable wait. Now that I’m seated and writing the sun makes an appearance. I always feel mentally sound when the sun is out. I don’t think I could live in a part of the world where the sky was overcast on a regular basis. I took a vacation to Ireland with my brother and his roommate a few years ago.

We spent a week traveling through the countryside and staying in cities. It’s a lush, beautiful country with a chilly temperature (even in August) that brings rain and clouds frequently. As lovely as it is, I’m a summer guy. I wouldn’t want to live there. I genuinely enjoy the heat and the sunshine. As I’ve told many people though, summer is about sunshine more than heat. The darkness is depressing. It’s August now and the morning sun is already coming up later and later. I’m more aware of it because I jog in my neighborhood twice per week. Of course I can run in the dark, but I rather like to see the sun come up over the horizon. There is a perfect spot near the fairgrounds where I can see it peak slightly above the eastern tree line. If I time it just right, I’ll catch the first rays.  

Sunny Side

When did this fascination with the sun begin? I can’t place it exactly but it can’t be that unusual either. I don’t even like days in the summer when it’s overcast and threatening rain. If it must rain then do it after midnight, and if the thunderclaps wake me there’ll be hell to pay. Sorry for being so finicky but it’s how I’m wired. Most personality traits can be traced back to childhood, I assume spending time outdoors late into the evening has something to do with it. Summers meant chasing lightning bugs in July, watching fireworks after a full day of swimming at the lake. My brother and our cousin used to ride our bikes between our houses before we had jobs. We all went through a rollerblade phase too. My affinity for sunny days might relate to that break in the middle of year when school is far from the imagination.

 It makes sense for most people to associate warm weather with sun and cold weather with gloomy skies. After all warm weather means summer and cold means winter. Maybe it’s just too much for some people to break that recognizable pattern in their minds.

Weather and Moods

After some quick google searching about the phenomena of mood shifts due to weather, I don’t believe I get depressed to any large degree. But the difference in my attitude from summer to winter is noticeable. But it’s more about the lack of sunlight then the temperature. I don’t sleep late or mope around the house unable to do regular chores, it’s more of a longing for warmth and light. It just feels worse on those long weeks of clouds and gloom. 

Maybe my future is in Phoenix or Winslow or Las Vegas. All of the sunniest cities in the US are in the Southeast. Most of the cloudiest ones are in the Northwest, Anchorage, Seattle and Tacoma. There are quite a few in the Ohio River Valley region too, Pittsburg and Cleveland. Buffalo gets a dishonorable mention for the Northeast region. The rest of the country falls in the middle. Oklahoma probably gets more sun than clouds but the article didn’t say. 

Conclusion

Is all this weather and sunshine business a real issue? Are moods really affected that much by the weather? Some research suggests it’s not. But those studies are based on genuine, clinical depression and not the kind of low level sadness I’m referring to. I’m not someone who’s outdoors all that much, but even sitting here typing on my computer is more enjoyable on a sunny day. If that’s superficial then so be it.

Thankfully the sun is up now…and I’m happy again.

Isaiah 45: When Values Flip

 

Warning from Isaiah or "Your Cheatin' Heart"

The difference between a teacher and a hall monitor is not just one of authority. A teacher explains a new concept while a hall monitor enforces an existing rule. Knowledge defines the difference. In one situation the student is ignorant. In the other, he’s just acting like it.

Much of the rebellion from Judah, in Isaiah’s time, demands the hall monitor approach.

“I have not spoken in secret, from somewhere in a land of darkness; I have not said to Jacob’s descendants, seek me in vain. I, the Lord, speak the truth; I declare what is right.” (Isaiah 45:19).

This is right in the middle of a return-to-me message from the prophet Isaiah. The Lord draws distinctions between His authority, and the worthlessness of the pagan gods they’ve run off with.

Material Worship

Idol worship was common among the people of all over the Middle East. Idols are still, in most cases, carved from wood or other natural material like gold and silver. The golden calf worship that Aaron (Mosses' brother) fashioned at Mount Sinai was the impetus for an ordered system of rules. The worship of materials is a basic law that goes back to the 10 Commandments. It’s an offensive practice to God, because it’s literally placing greater importance on an object than the One who created it.

The children of Israel knew this by the time Isaiah began writing. They didn’t need a new lesson about the nature of God or the created earth. Their value system had flipped and reminders were needed.

I’ve been watching the Ken Burns film Country Music on PBS. It came out a few years ago but I never caught the whole series. The fact that I’ve never listened to Country is beside the point. It’s part of American history I don’t know well. Besides, a lot of the music that’s linked with Country isn’t exactly from that genre. I don’t think of Willie Nelson as Country but he is heavily featured in the series.

Hank Williams is certainly Country. His unmistakably twangy pitch and soulful lyrics drip with regret. You don’t have to know the genre to know who he was. I was surprised that he only lived to 29 years old and had an impressive 55 number one single hits on the Country charts.

For all his success, can you imagine worshiping the creative genius of Hank Williams? No one would do this consciously, make a shrine to the man or his records. Any greatness that stems from human effort, is a reflection of God’s original creative work. We get it turned around sometimes. Our values get flipped.

Isaiah continues “Ignorant are those who carry about idols of wood, who pray to gods that cannot save.” (verse 20)

Pagan Worship

From the scripture in Isaiah, God draws a distinction between Himself and the worship of created things and ancient myths. In Isaiah’s time, the only truth about the ordered universe, for most people, was found in nature. This was not a broadly literate time in history. Most organized societies had classes of literate people, a lot of them mystics. The Hebrews at least, made sure their Jewish populations understood the law of Moses and the Torah. Even though they didn’t teach reading and writing to the masses, they were expected to know their traditions.

They intermarried with those around them who worshipped idols. The quickest way to make them forget Jehovah was to intermarry and lose their covenant. But God still revealed Himself to pagans. This is what Paul writes about in Romans 1, a natural law. “…For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.” (Romans 1:20)

The Lord is saying, through Isaiah, that he doesn’t operate the same as idols. He doesn’t hide from them in some dark land or ignore their prayers. He is a relationship God and makes Himself obvious and available. You can’t miss Him because He exists everywhere, and all life speaks to His design. The beauty and order and consistency in nature is all the evidence you need. Stop pretending that the block of wood you carved represents a higher power. You know it doesn’t.

Conclusion

This isn’t a teacher explaining the metric system, it’s not a demonstration on cooking with wine. It’s a game warden pointing to the ‘No Fishing’ sign as you quickly cut your line and tuck the pole under your seat. It’s an admonishment, not a new lesson. The difference is this, you knew better. This is God’s version of “Your Cheatin’ Heart”. Whether you learned it from the rabbi or discovered it from observing the seasons, in your being it’s the truth and you can’t escape it. Even when your values flip, you can’t plead ignorance.

But we serve a God that makes a way. For all of His admonishing (and exasperation at times) He calls us back to relationship. He forgives and restores. He reminds us of our covenant when we lose our way. He did it for Judah; He does it for us.  

 

 

 

Back to Training: Back to Saturdays

 Improvements Come Slow and Steady: Running for Fitness

I’ve started another cycle of training for a marathon in the fall. I’ll probably sign up for the Route 66 marathon in Tulsa. At least that way I won’t have to travel like I did in April. I’m of two minds on running. With a marathon in the near future, I force myself to commit more to running during the week. I’ve gotten used to the rigors of training. Without the schedule I could commit more to weights and regular gym cardio. Running takes over at a certain point. Once we start to hit the 14 and 16 mile distances on Saturday, it begins to feel different. Your body learns how to suffer more efficiently. 

Running Takes Over

But if I stop doing marathons I could still run, but with an easier schedule during the week. I used to do that every Sunday, before I went back to the running group. It’s tempting because I’d like to spend more time lifting weights again. I still do a little weight training during the week but it’s mostly in service to running. Legs are a must. That takes at least one whole day. The next day it’s a halfhearted work-load for biceps and chest. Mostly I’m too tired to lift anything heavy. I’d have to start eating a lot of protein at breakfast and putting on pounds again. You can’t lift without energy, especially once you pass 40 years old, and I don’t eat as much when I run.

 I was never a true body builder anyway, but I did put a lot of effort into work outs. I wasn’t particularly healthy though. My eating habits were awful and I weighed at least 20 pounds more than I should have. Not that I’ve had a dramatic turnaround but I’m generally in better health. I guess I don’t want to go back.

The Distance Puzzle

I’d like to figure out this enigma that is the marathon. The last one was terrible. I was sick and exhausted way too early in the race and I’m not quite sure why. That’s not different from a Saturday morning run in the spring. On any given day, it might seem like you’re carrying sandbags, or the heat is unbearable after just a few miles and water isn’t cooling you down. I had to pack it in one morning, last year, after a short 3 mile run. My breathing was labored and I couldn’t find my rhythm. You can’t predict when the suck will happen but it typically does at least once per session.

A lot of what’s pushing me is how disastrous the last marathon turned out. I hit the wall at 13 miles and had to jog/walk the rest of the way. I won’t say it’s humiliating but it also doesn’t sit right with me. It might be smarter to just train with the group and skip the events. That would be cheaper at least. Part of me likes telling people that I run marathons. It’s really the mildly impressed look that does it for me. It’s vanity really. I need approval from friends and strangers. Whatever the time, whatever the pace, in the end it’s all about respect.

I’m exaggerating a little.

Consistency Over Wins

 Mostly I like improving and climbing things that used to be obstacles. When I first started jogging I couldn’t go much beyond 6 miles. I was always in decent shape and even ran short distances for exercise. The Army makes runners out of helpless kids, even the chunky ones who swore they’d never be able to run the length of a football field. A woman in my Tulsa group told me she couldn’t run a mile when she first started. This was after she turned 40. She broke down into tears after her first 5K. The sheer pride she felt in completing a race set her on a trajectory towards life-long running. Now she runs a handful of marathons every year. I can’t keep up with her.

 We all start at different levels. I usually take the slow and steady climb to better, while others quickly improve and surpass me. But I stick with it when so many have stopped. I’m slow and careful but I always get there. The goal this year is to be stronger than the last time and improve the time. I’m reluctant to set time goals until I have a few more events under my belt.

 

Creativity Needs Guidelines: The Formulas of Life

 

The Predictive Formulas We Love: TV, Art, Books

If predictability is boring why do the same formulas keep working? 

I’m thinking mostly here about books and TV shows, but other areas of entertainment fit too. I’m a sucker for the tough loner who ambles into town and violently takes out the corrupt sheriff. It’s a common hero archetype that pops up in everything from Cowboy movies to novels. It’s the predictability of the genre we like, even if every story is a little different. Jack Reacher has a different personality than Mitch Rapp. Clint Eastwood is cool where John Wayne is imposing. Creativity exists in the personas, the stories and the fictional worlds. 

The Sit Com Formula

TV is the same. In Seinfeld, Jerry will allow some quirk to keep him from dating a beautiful woman. George will lose a relationship or some benefit because he’s lazy or selfish. Elaine will become irritated with her boyfriend but forget about it when she needs him for a favor. Kramer will have a connection to something or someone that doesn’t pan out. We need some level of predictability. Change must be infrequent. It’s novelty and it only works when we understand the attributes of a persona really well.

I can’t say every sit com works like this, but they do follow a recognizable formula. This might seem lazy but it’s necessary to establish a baseline for the show. In this way we understand the characters and their motivation. Creativity depends on a baseline too. An artist needs some rules in place to begin or they won’t be able to focus. If I tell you to paint a picture of the old west in the Frederick Remington style your mind can start the sorting process. If I say paint in the Remington style and include at least one horse, you can further sort. Even better, I tell you to paint a cowboy taming a bronco while young ranch hands watch. It turns out the more detail the better. 

The Painting Formula

If I told you to paint anything, you’d spend time trying to think of where to begin. But in a painting class, you need rules and an idea for what you’re aiming at. Frederick Remington’s classic prairies and big sky scenes give the artist a framework. The teacher can’t critique a good version from a bad one without some idea of what an original looks like. Students will have slightly different takes on it no doubt. This is the sweet spot for creativity. When the rules are understood, the artists transfer their ideas onto canvas. The variety of similar, but different, paintings is where personal styles comes from. 

Unique styles set painters apart. Remington’s works are characterized by movement, cowboys riding fast across vast spaces, Indians chasing buffalo. David Yorke paints portraits, mostly, of cowboys, Indians and old West characters. You can see detail and emotion in his subject’s expressions. Remington is interested in types, Yorke in people. Both are Western style and easily recognizable. But even in that genre there is a difference.

The Transgressive Formula

But what of a painter who, in following the instruction to create a Remington, paints a creepy clown handing balloons to 4 year old's at a birthday party? He claims it’s his version of a Remington, but follows none of the rules of the western style. He didn’t include a cowboy, a bronco or ranch hands enjoying the show. The colors are stark and bright instead of hazy and soft. There is no relation to the cowboy life or open country. There is no hint of manliness or the wild, untamed West. But he insists it’s his version and you’ll have to accept it. It’s what he feels is right, and if you don’t see it that way you’ll be denying his truth. Besides, who are you to tell him (an accomplished painter) what a Remington is supposed to look like? 

Without definition there is no meaning. We’re losing creativity in large parts of life, because we’re afraid to define. When you define, you discriminate. By saying yes to one version you’ve said no to others. But without rules and boundaries we couldn’t learn to differentiate. A Remington painting has certain characteristics and not others, but there is room within the boundaries to reinvent. 

Reinvention means putting a twist on an existing medium. Whether painting, music or TV, reinvention means acknowledging the rules but adding something else to it. This is different than expecting everyone to accept your new version. It’s different than changing rules because of who you are. You don’t get to call a creepy clown with balloons a Remington style painting because you went to a better art school. Or, because you used to be a clown and know how misunderstood they are. 

In this era of openness we’ve lost the ability to tell people that their ‘truth’ is objectively wrong. Rules exist in all aspects of life, so we all know where to begin. In order to create beauty, we need a familiar construct. 

Conclusion

In any medium, creativity flows from a common point and spills out in every direction like a river delta. But we live in an age when people are afraid to define the most basic things. Matt Walsh’s “What is a Woman?” documentary showed this sad truth. We’re losing out on creativity as a society. It’s been arrested. The creepy clown painters are running the show and calling their work beautiful. But their effort isn’t about beauty or creativity. They don’t believe in it. They want to be heard, recognized, considered. They want control, to call the shots. Don’t’ give it to them. Truth wins out in the end. Beauty is eternal. Creativity is man’s effort to be fruitful and multiply. It’s a predictable story we can all enjoy. 

“Then God saw all He had made, and indeed it was very good” (Genesis 1:31)

The Fourth Turning: A Review

 

The Fourth Turning: "Relax, It's All Happened Before"

I finally read The Fourth Turning: What the Cycles of History Tell Us About America’s Next Rendezvous with Destiny. It's one of those books that I keep hearing about but had never cracked open until recently. Written by William Strauss and Neil Howe, it examines history from a seasonal perspective. In other words, trends present today can be observed across history in the generational breakdowns. Most Westerners tend to think of history as a long march toward enlightenment and away from ignorance. This is the progressive, I might say evolutionary, view of life on earth. We’re all striving for better along a timeline and teetering toward utopia. Even if your Humanities class didn’t specify utopia, it heavily implied it.

Cyclical History

Strauss and Howe take the cyclical view and expound on it through a phase called the “saeculum”. A saeculum is roughly the length of a human life, 80 to 100 years. Each saeculum is made up of 4 “Turnings” or distinct seasons that alter the course of life in culture, economy, spirituality and civics. Turnings represent moods of the generations that live through them. For instance, the GI generation came of age during World War II and the Depression. They fought in the war and returned to build families. Most were midlife adults during the First Turning (1946-1964) known as a high period in American life. Their civic mindedness and collective resourcefulness in the previous Fourth Turning (1929-1946) crisis, ushered in the high (abundance) phase for the next generation.

 The authors give a comprehensive overview of the Western World’s generations going back to the Middle Ages. But it’s tough to get any real traction with such a large topic. The first few chapters outline European history and repeat events that changed the course of history. It’s essentially an overview of big events in history, neatly aligned with the authors’ notion of the saeculum. America is heavily featured because their expertise is with its history and specifically the generations.

Generational History

I’ve never put much thought into generational attitudes or experiences as being seen in the culture the generation created. Probably because they overlap so much, I imagine it’s an impossible task. But Strauss and Howe don’t make wild claims. They stick to the generalizations about the ages, Boomers are concerned with making a big splash and changing the world. Gen Xers are cynical and self reliant. Nothing is wrong with generalizing, but it’s also where the book is weak. If it can be said to be weak. Writing in generational terms requires zooming out so much that making anything more than observational points is nearly impossible.

But it’s very convincing on the big history stuff. There is a chicken and egg quandary at the heart of it. Does a nation’s history create generational characteristics, or do generational characteristics create a nation’s history? I think both Strauss and Howe would answer “Yes”. Since a saeculum is roughly the length of a human life, anyone who lives a long time (80-100 years) will live through some part of each cycle. You might experience a high in childhood, an awakening in early adulthood, an unraveling in middle age and a crisis in elderhood. This is exactly the pattern the Boomers have gone through. They’ve both been influenced by the culture of their parents and influenced culture for their children and grandchildren.

Predictable History

 We’re in a crisis phase right now. The last one was from 1929 to 1946. In that phase, the stock market crashed leading to a Great Depression and World War II. Spain had a civil war. Europe saw the rise of Hitler and Mussolini. Japan invaded China, which also had a civil war. Then the emperor’s fleet attacked Pearl Harbor.

How many times have you felt like the world was going to rip apart at the seams? The hatred and vile behavior that’s out in the open today is stunning. Ask yourself if you felt that way 20 years ago. How about 30 years ago? Most of us sense that America is in a precarious state that we couldn’t have imagined as kids. Corruption and decadence in institutions is at all time high and people don’t trust business, government or church anymore. This is a textbook description of a crisis (Forth Turning) phase in the saeculum. American attitudes are consistently pessimistic on the future. Were attitudes like this in the twenties?

Here is the most interesting part of the book, it was written in the late nineties during an unraveling phase (Third Turning). Our crisis period is predicted to end sometime in the next couple of years. If they knew about 911 would Strauss and Howe have started the Forth Turning in 2001 instead of 2005? Would president Trump have been elected during any other phase? Likely not since the crisis phase is when old structures are upturned and replaced. The last Fourth Turning phase was 1929 to 1945. Both the Great Depression and World War II exemplify the kind of ‘removal of an old order’ Fourth Turnings are known for. The Civil War was during another, equally calamitous time.  

Conclusion

War doesn’t have to define a crisis phase, but anyone who can’t see that Americans (and the rest of the world) are in a tenuous position isn’t paying attention. I found the zoom out imaging on historical affairs a breath of fresh air. In cyclical visions of time, the individual should see parallels between the past and the present. If you subscribe to the idea seasonal history like the authors, it means a high is on the way. That’s certainly good news. Like a forest fire burning up the lose tinder on the ground, the Fourth Turning clears out the dead husks and allows new growth to take root. It’s destructive and painful, but necessary for the next season.

In at least a few places in the book they thought to include the famous time passage from Ecclesiastes 3:1 “For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven.” It neatly encapsulates their thesis. And it’s from the most relevant book in history, so you know it’s important.

Checking in the Cleanup

 

Storm and Stress: Tulsa's Cleanup Renewal

The cleanup around here is still a long way from being done.

Who needs grass?

The piles of debris still litter the front half of everyone’s yard. I have broken limbs in two spots, it was easier to drag the back half to the street side, and the front half to the avenue side. I’m not trying to make extra work for the guys who are responsible for hauling it all away. But it didn’t seem to make a difference at the time. Literally every house on my block has something from the storm that happened over 3 weeks ago. I expected the cleanup to be slow but I didn’t anticipate it taking this long. That was naïve. Driving around the city should have clued me in on the devastation, and subsequent delay in hauling away the detritus.

I had all the fallen brush piled up in the front the morning after the storm. The last bit was hung up in my neighbor’s tree. Both of our trees lost limbs on the same side after a massive crack in her, much larger tree. My pear, caught much of her (Chestnut I guess?) and held it up like a hammock supporting a family of sumo wrestlers. Pear trees are notoriously weak and mine poor, abused lightweight is starting to groan under the strain.

My neighbor must have paid someone to cut the branches and drop them in the yard. That’s considerable cheaper than having them haul off the limbs and take down the dead trunk occupying the yard. But now we both have a lot more cleanup on our hands. I’ll save mine for Saturday. I just didn’t feel like it tonight. I’m tired.

Who needs cable?

To top it off, I still don’t have cable. I subscribe for the internet. I don’t have a TV package anymore. I learned years ago how wasteful it was for me. Rarely did I sit down and watch a show, or even record one. Those DVRs provided for by the cable company became ruinously expensive. And for what? You can catch most shows, if that’s your thing, on Hulu in the same season. I watched the whole first season of Animal Control (Hulu) this year. Last year I caught the Ryan Reynold’s soccer team show (name escapes me now). Ryan and Rob McElhenney purchased a bottom of the rung soccer team from Wales and loaded it up with talent. It’s a great idea for a business, not to mention a show. But catching prime time television shows while they air… that’s so 90’s.

The cable tech was supposed to be here today. I set it up for 1:00 to 3:00. But knowing that I couldn’t leave work for a full 2 to 3 hours I made a point to tell him to call first. That doesn’t seem unreasonable to me. You know when you’ll be in the area, say 10 or 20 minutes away, give a courtesy call. It didn’t matter that I put in on the ticket. It didn’t matter that I’m only 15 minutes away and can leave work at get back home quickly. He didn’t call. I called Cox to find out why my carefully laid plans produced fuck all. They were apologetic but told me the tech showed up and called. “Bullshit” I told them (I didn’t say bullshit). He never called me. He might have shown up when I wasn’t here but the time he reported was all wrong. His notes say 2:55. I got back home from work to check at 2:50. So he’s a liar all the way around.

Who needs peace of mind?

I had to settle myself down before calling. I didn’t want to unload on some poor phone jockey, who is just regurgitating information off a screen. It helps that they were nice. I don’t know why it does, but it does. Complete sympathy without pretense or excuse making is such a soothing sound when you’re pissed off. I’ll remember it the next time a customer calls the store in an anxious mood. My attitude from the start of this devastation has been, understanding and patience with the electric company and the cable company and the guys cleaning up. Sometimes is stacks up though and you explode for a minute. The truth is I can live without the internet for a little while. I’m watching network TV on an antenna and it’s not that bad. I miss Netflix of course but I’ve been over at my mom’s a few times to get online and upload an article or two.

I’m lucky to have a place to go. Hopefully in another two weeks the debris crew will have made a pass through my neighborhood. For now, I’ll just learn to be content. The power is on. I have food and drink. My car works perfectly. There was no damage to my home in a storm that ruined so many of them. I’m grateful for it all. I guess I’ll just watch the local news and Rosanne reruns until the internet comes back online. I can handle that.