Morning Update: 09/10/24
All I want to do right now is curl back up in bed and go to sleep. The problem is pain from both the chemo and arthritis. It kept me down yesterday and this morning isn’t feeling any better. I know a lot of people were excited to hear that Princess Kate had completed her chemo and will resume some of her royal duties. While that’s great news for her, there are still millions of people, probably people you know, who are just being diagnosed and beginning the arduous treatment of using one poison to fight another. The number of new diagnoses I’ve seen this fall is rather frightening. Patti Scialfa, Springsteen’s wife and bandmate, revealed her cancer diagnosis recently. While the survival rate for many cancers has improved tremendously over the past 20 years, the treatment isn’t any less painful.
Cancer isn’t the only killer, either. James Earl Jones, one of the greatest bass voices ever, the voice for Darth Vader and Mufasa among others, died yesterday from complications of Type 2 Diabetes. Yes, I have that one, too. If the cancer doesn’t kill me, the diabetes almost certainly will. There’s no escape. And while I might want to live every moment to its fullest, the reality is that I spend most of my days in bed, trying not to cry, being thankful for the company of pets who refuse to leave me alone.
Nothing about this getting old shit is being fun. There are no grandkids to bounce on my knee and spoil. I can’t be as involved with G and Tipper’s school as I would like. My income is too limited to go traveling, and even if it wasn’t, my body couldn’t handle it. I often wonder if I’m serving any purpose at all. I can’t take pictures. My creativity is at an all-time low. Just writing these updates every morning is a chore. The kids get in from school in the afternoon and I try to be awake and present for them, but it isn’t easy. There’s a 44-pound bag of dog food in the kitchen that needs to be dumped into the storage container. I can’t lift it by myself. What good am I to anyone?
Yes, it could be worse. Hurricane Francis is going to mess up everything between Houston and New Orleans. No one is sure yet how strong it might be when it makes landfall, but even a Category 1 storm has proven to be enough to knock out power and cause tremendous flooding.
An Israeli strike on a Gaza humanitarian zone tent camp killed at least 40 people. No matter what Palestinians do to try and stay alive, Israel’s leaders seem determined to kill every last one of them. The UN chief calls the death and destruction in Gaza the worst he’s seen. “Secretary-General António Guterres said in an interview with The Associated Press that it’s “unrealistic” to think the U.N. could play a role in Gaza’s future, either by administering the territory or providing a peacekeeping force, because Israel is unlikely to accept a U.N. role.” Israel, for its part, seems willing to negotiate short-term cease-fires, such as the one that allowed the administration of the polio vaccine, but leaders there are not interested in ending the war.
South African farmers are accused of killing 2 women and feeding them to pigs. You have to wonder how any human can be so cruel.
The Death toll from the Vietnam storm rises to 87 with 70 people missing. A typhoon blasted the country, leaving it in worse disarray than that stupid war.
A Swiss city councilor apologized for firing a gun at a Mary and Jesus poster. How the hell does anyone wrap their head around that?
If there’s any “good” news, it’s that both Google and Apple were unable to get away from the EU’s tough laws. Google will have to pay 2.4 billion Euros. Apple gets to fork over 13 billion to Ireland. If the US had any guts, the two companies, among others, would be paying out the nose here as well.
If you fly, you’ll want to know that Battery-powered devices are overheating more often on planes and raising alarm. The biggest culprit: vapes. Anything with a lithium battery can potentially overheat. If that device happens to be in checked baggage, which is illegal but still happens, the resulting fire may not be caught until it’s too large for immediate suppression.
SpaceX finally launched that billionaire and his crew into space. I’ll still be surprised if their spacewalk goes off without a hitch.
And yeah, that debate is tonight. I’m not watching. The only outcome that’s going to please me is if VP Harris literally devours the Orange Felon right there in front of everyone. I’m good with catching the highlight reel in the morning.
No, I’m not in a good mood this morning. There’s no reason for me to be in a good mood. I’m sick and tired of all the pain and I want a box of fresh apple fritters. And Frank has figured out how to close all my open windows. He’s done it twice this morning, so far. The temptation to say, “Fuck everything,” is really strong.
I’ll stick with my coffee, for now. I’m not making any promises about later, though.
Morning Update: 10/02/24
Slowly, we’re recovering from the power outage. I am amazed by the outpouring of generous help that we’ve received. Hopefully, we’ll have everything restocked by the time the kids go on Fall Break next week and devour everything in sight. Life will remain a bit hectic as we try to get caught up on laundry and other chores. The weather looks decent for the remainder of the week, so perhaps we’ll get the lawn cleaned up and have a chance to make sure we’ve not missed any damage.
Tipper is mad at me this morning because I won’t let her go to a friend’s house after school. Why am I being so mean? She didn’t finish the dishes last night. She was warned multiple times of the consequences. She only made excuses. And, in her 14-year-old mind, it’s all my fault. I’m laughing inside as I type this because what she left are probably the easiest dishes to wash: plastic Rubbermaid containers. None of them were stained with tomato sauce, so it wouldn’t have taken more than five minutes to finish up. But no, I’m a horrible person for asking her to do so much.
We’re trying to finalize arrangements for G to spend his fall break in Florida with a friend. The biggest sticking point at the moment is no one is sure how much damage the area about an hour North of Tampa received. I think we’ll get that figured out, though, and then we get to deal with the anxiety that comes with letting our 15-year-old (almost 16, he would say) go that far from home without us. He’s responsible. The family he’s going with is cool. Still, if Kat and I suddenly disappear next week, you’ll know we got a message and are on our way to pick him up.
Information about the devastation from Hurricane Helene continues to pour in. The death toll stands at 166 this morning and it’s only going to go higher. In the small town of Erwin, TN, 11 workers at a plastics factory were swept away by surprise flood waters. Only five have been found. I’m sure there are going to be more such stories as rescuers make their way into the remote areas of Tennessee and North Carolina. Sadly, first responders who were attempting to help the victims are among the dead. There’s no amount of aid that can fix this. No one can bring back the lives lost, the families whose entire existence was swept away. This was one of those events that reshapes a region. The people and the places may rebuild in time, but nothing will be the same.
Last night’s vice-presidential debate was too polite for aggressive Americans, apparently. Personally, I was in bed and asleep. I think that was a better use of my time. If you’re interested, here are 13 different reviews of the debate. Or, you can jump straight to the required fact-checking. You know politicians lie. You need to know which ones are completely false. The list is always much too long.
Israel, Iran, Jordan, and Gaza are all being controlled by war hawks who have absolutely no concern for the number of innocent lives they are taking. Palestinian medical officials say Israeli strikes have killed at least 51 people in southern Gaza overnight, including women and children. India warns its citizens not to travel to Iran, and quite honestly, I think one would be an idiot to be caught in any of the affected countries at this point. Of course, Yemen’s Houthi rebels are looking to gain from continuing conflict in the Middle East because there are far too many people in the world who look to take advantage of others’ suffering. Every last bit of this war is unnecessary and the “leaders” all have blood on their hands.
Suffering is everywhere, though. A Typhoon bringing heavy rain is slowly heading toward Taiwan, where 4,000 have evacuated. In Japan, a WWII-era bomb exploded near an airport runway, canceling 87 flights. And making matters worse for everyone, Fentanyl makers are exploiting holes in US trade law in an effort to kill as many Americans as possible.
There have always been bad people in the world, but the glut of information we now possess gives us the ability to be more aware. There’s a very interesting article in this morning’s NYTimes about the “billionaire preachers” who control Texas. For me, the phrase “billionaire preachers” is a rage-inducing oxymoron. If preachers are billionaires, then they’re obviously not taking care of people in the manner scripture demands. This isn’t new for Texas, though. Religious leaders have been taking control of the political scene in that state since 1972. That’s one of the reasons I could never live there and one of the reasons I don’t want anything to do with Christianity.
After looking through all the news this morning, the one thing that stands out is the need to hold government leaders in every country to a higher moral standard. Not a religious standard, mind you, but one that puts human rights at the top of everyone’s focus. Governments should help, not hurt. Governments should enhance life, not delete it. Governments should make lives better, not try to make a profit off of pain. You and I must make this standard a priority when we vote, and object like hell when our government steps out of bounds.
I started early with the coffee this morning. I’m in no mood to put up with political bullshit.
Share this:
Like this: