More election thoughts

As more people I consider to be logical , reasonable, thoughtful people tell me they are voting against Hillary" because they can't stand her"  I have been thinking about elections.

I am afraid of a world where a person like Donald J. Trump is the representative of this GREAT country.   America is ALREADY GREAT.  He is taping into your base  fears and prejudices, lying and having you believe Barrack Obama is the Antichrist and he has cloven hooves where his feet should be ( thank goodness for the National Enquirer and People magazine for all those beach photos!)

Trump is a liar and a con man.  He is playing out the biggest con of all.  My ONLY hope is that the Republican Party will see this latest crime-that of BREAKING THE TRADE EMBARGO  with Cuba during the BUSH administration ( so he can't even claim it was an anti Obama move) will qualify him for indictment NOT the Presidency.  Seriously, I am afraid of a world where the wealthiest pay NO taxes and rub it in the faces of us poor stupid schlubs who actually believe it's our moral duty to pay our fair share.  Does anyone believe in their heart of hearts that the recipients of large tax breaks will actually SHARE the wealth with the worker bees who help them earn it?  If you do, I have a nice Bridge in Brooklyn you might want to purchase.  Gee, following his logic, maybe we should eliminate ALL income tax, because as you KNOW, the rich will pay their share automatically and everything will be fine.  The shrinking middle class is barely hanging on.  Expect YOUR taxes to get larger and soon you too will be on the poverty line.

There's a line from a song "They sell us the President the same way they sell us our cloths and our cars"  This is NOT, despite the way Trump is running his campaign, a Beauty Pageant. His "hard hits" on Hillary include insults to her looks and her health.   The fact is, she IS smarter than he ever was in the world of diplomacy.  Trump thinks- and he said this in the debate- that we just should have TAKEN the oil from the Middle East , then there would have been no ISIS.  Uh... Want to really piss someone off?  STEAL from them.  Of course I don't believe Trump knows the difference between making an honest deal with someone and ripping them off.  Whatever works to get it in his pocket.  People with young sons and daughters should be afraid that this man will get us into a global war.  I know I am afraid and it's no way to live.

Bernie Sanders is right in continually saying this is not time for a protest vote.  We MUST defeat the Orange Menace, for the sake of all we believe.  Take a look at what both parties are proposing, see what aligns with your core belief and vote.

Trump scares me.

Bad week

It was a week of deaths in my circle and I am still thinking about it.

Last week, my friends lost not one but TWO members of their musical family.  Ernie Cruz Jr drowned and two days later his brother succumbed tho the illness that had him in hospice.  I cannot imagine the paint hat family is going through.  My friends are devastated.  How do you help someone who has lost two people in such a short time?

On Friday morning, I checked in with the family of a childhood friend of my sister's, Greg Bell, who had become a nominal Facebook friend.  He had had a stroke and his nephew said that the surgery was a success and they were just waiting for him to open his eyes.  I came home before going to my meditation group to find he had unexpectedly passed away.  It hit me hard, not because we were ever great friends, I was the "little sister' and barely tolerated by my sister's very cool friends; but the last time I saw him he gave me that megawatt smile and a big hug, as if he were truly glad to see me.  I believe he was.  NO artifice about him.  He was a talented musician and the tributes that are pouring in make me think about a few things:

• Tell someone NOW how you feel.  Don't wait until they are gone to post a heartfelt letter they will never read.
• Do something nice for someone, just because you can.  A smile and a thoughtful word go a long way
• Time is precious and as the song that popped into my head after I heard the news says "From Moment to Moment your life can change."  It's a cliche. but cliches are cliches because they are often true, that nothing is guaranteed us, except possibly this moment in time.  Make the most of those moments

At my Angel Circle, which is what my meditation group focuses on, a few people told me that Greg was there.  They did not know him, but I am sure he stopped in so that I could tell a few of his friends he wanted them to know he had made it to the other side.  He's ok and says you shouldn't worry.  I read a quote from him , talking to a friend about looking forward to that adventure, as if he knew what was coming his way.  I took comfort in it.  I firmly believe in angels, and if you don't. more's the pity. I believe we are made up of energy and our energy goes on to a different level when we leave the shell we call our bodies.  Call it heaven, call it the next realm,  whatever.  We go somewhere when we 'die" in this world and I find comfort in knowing that this friend is at peace.

Taco Tuesdays

Well, it was Taco Tuesday in my office again today.  And once again, they asked everyone but me if I wanted in.  I am getting used to it.  The tacos smell really good, everyone makes these smacking and yummy noises as they scarf down the food at their desks.   I'm getting used to it, but I can't say I have gotten to the point where it doesn't bother me.  I suppose I should just speak up about it, but I really don't want to.  It's kind of like hearing about a party and inviting yourself.  Everyone is embarrassed and you realize you are a grudging guest, not a welcome one.  My office mates aren't really mean, just thoughtless.  I came rather late to the office I work in and friendships and hierarchy was well established.  Sometimes, I honestly think they forget I work there.  I have three years left and I have worked in worse places and in worse conditions,  My job is pretty busy and I am on the phone all the time, so there isn't time to brood on this, but it got me thinking about of all things... Junior High.

You hear all the time about how mean girls can get and sometimes I think about Eileen Sexton.  Eileen was shy, with braces and a stutter and with a last name like Sexton.. well.. you figure it out.  There were a few girls who kind of picked on her, just teasing her to the point of being upsetting.  They never stuffed her in a locker or "pantsed"  her on the gymfield, but I know it must have hurt.  To this day, when I think about her, I am ashamed.  I don't remember joining the taunts, but I did something worse.  I did not speak up for her.  I wish I had and when I think of her, I hope she went on to great success- she had a marvelous singing voice, something not many people knew about.  I hope she grew up to have the most marvelous fantastic adventures ever.   Eileen, if you are out there, I hope you can forgive what happened.  Know that because of you, I often went up against the "mean girls"  there were some that I encountered who were far meaner than just teasing someone about their name.  I broke "friendships" because of it.  I came to see that I did not want to be around people who picked on those whom they considered not as "cool" as themselves.  It helped me to find good friends and to know who was just an acquaintance.

So, next Tuesday, around 10:30 when they begin talking about tacos, I am going to excuse myself; take my break.  Put on my big girl panties.   I really don't need tacos from the cart, when I can go to YUCA'S whenever I want!

Music is playing inside my head

There's a song by Carole King that starts "Music is playing inside my head, over and over again, my friends there is no end to the music"  Fine for her,she was WRITING it. Me?  I'm just earwormed.    Some of the songs are really annoying and there has to be a way to get rid of the song in your head without replacing it with another, equally annoying song.

I recently found a CD I had tucked away in my collection, by my friend and amazing musician, Cindy Alexander,  The CD dates back to the time of my divorce.  There is a song  "Warrior" which used to buoy me up and I would sing along with her ( "I'm the warrior, I'm the king I am my own hero") It made me feel better and somewhat powerful.  At the same time, my kids ( Kate and Frances, my "borrowed child") dedicated Christina Aguilar's "Fighter" to me.  This got me thinking - probably again- about songs that inspire us and give us the strength we need at the time we need it.  Songs that currently do that for me are ( in no particular order):

The Peanuts song (real title Linus and Lucy)  I play that in my office when I am frustrated by someone or some event.  By the time it gets to the break, I am feeling happier.

Solsbury Hill by Peter Gabriel.  Almost 30 years ago, I was working at a job where I was miserable; not just unhappy, but to the point where I had to YELL at myself in the shower every morning that I needed to go to work.  I was needing a change and was unsure how to go about it. I saw an opening at the Library and was wondering if I should go for it.  On the ride home one day, I heard this song, about making a difficult decision and listening to the voices inside you to find your way home.  Well.. the rest is history- my history anyway and I credit this song with empowering me.

Two songs by Corrinne May "the Answer" and "Everything in His time"  She is a Christian musician,  I don't really go for religious music, per se, but her voice is so lovely and her songs are like a prayer.  Sometimes, I just need a prayer to lift me up in my day.

What songs are YOUR go-to?

I have really stopped listening to the radio.  Seriously, how many times a day do I really need to hear "Stairway to Heaven'?  I am bored with the Classic Rock stations that play the same ten songs- ALL the classic rock stations play the same ten songs.  I have fled to my CD collection and the library's books on cd for my drive-time.   I just got a copy of Gerry Beckley's new solo work Carousel and will try to listen to it this week and write a review.  Its been a while since I heard and reviewed a new piece.