Curfewed

Rumor has it that the curfew will be reinstated this weekend. Have not yet heard the phone go off to confirm but we shall wait and see. Since we still don’t have a lot of other entertainment options due to COVID, I guess the fear is that we’ll have more trouble this weekend.

I’m going to start limiting my discussion on these heavy events. I don’t have a problem with peaceful protests although at some point, standing around with signs and shouting slogans stops being meaningful. I’m totally convinced that the majority of this country is against police brutality and would love to see a more inclusive and tolerant society. The disagreements are going to be around what those mean and how we get there. If protests never develop action plans, then they become useless. It is like everyone there is just waiting for someone to wave a magic wand and “presto” the universe is fixed.

And, because I’m totally cynical about politics, I really dislike when people say “go vote” and expect that to be a catalyst for change. We’ve had unrest and police issues under both political parties. This is also why you need a concrete plan. It will be easy for a political to stand up and say something like “I’ll fight racism” but that statement in and of itself is meaningless unless you know what exactly the plan is. Then you can decide if it fits with your values and then you can also decide if they’ve done their job.

The conspiracy theorist in me says that there are a heck of a lot of politicians who want the issue and not the solution because the issue is what you can use to get people to keep you in power. (Told you I’m cynical)

So the powers that be have decided that our State Fair is to be cancelled. Even though things are supposed to be almost fully opened by July. Guess there are issues with vendors – at least that is the story that was provided. Again, the conspiracy theorist in me wonders if something else is going on. I’ll wait and see if other states do the same.

No fried cheese this year. I’m old enough to remember 2016 when people all over were complaining that it was the worst year ever. I think 2020 just said “hold my beer”. And we haven’t even reached the halfway point yet. I’d ask what is coming next but that would be like tempting fate. I mean there’s a super volcano in Yellowstone that seems to be acting up.

I do know that a lot of stores have sort of reopened. My wife still doesn’t want to go anywhere near them. I think I’m going to start just to get some feeling of “normalcy” back.

So I’ll end with something random. We ordered a bunch of candles from our favorite store. Of the ten, one arrived broken. I mean they did what they could do but the packing was not the best. Anyway, I called the line to let them know and I’m on hold for quite some time with the recorded voice thanking me for my patience.

At some point, a different recorded voice comes on to say that because of a recent sale, they are experiencing higher wait times than normal. But that if this call was related to a medical emergency, please press 1. Umm, a medical emergency for a candle store? I mean if I burned my hand lighting one, I don’t think I’d call them for help.

I know they sell soaps and lotions and other things so maybe that’s in case someone drinks something they shouldn’t. Again, I don’t think I’d be calling the health experts at a candle store for advice. Who knows? Maybe they have doctors on staff to deal with such things. Can you imagine? “I went through medical school and know I just answer questions about whether our soaps are poison”.

Alright, I’m done here. Please stay safe and be smart and try to just be nicer to people.