Day 212

This is Day 212 of the Ohio Shutdown and Day 148 of Riot Season (Scrimmages Only).

We’re doing ok. It was a pretty ordinary Wednesday — another workday for me, another day of Deb chasing paperwork and tying up loose ends.

Yesterday I painted a brief picture of how awkward it’ll be to explain our sheepish behavior to the next generation, a generation that didn’t live through The Great Decree Blizzard of 2020. And it occurred to me, as it often does, that I miss the America of my youth, the days before we lost our minds and our country.

Family farms. The sweet fragrance of silage. Riding in the bed of a pickup truck, or a stake-bed truck, untethered. Slaking my thirst straight from a garden hose or an ancient pump.

I’m glad I grew up when Blazing Saddles was funny, Dean Martin was drunk and Bruce Jenner was a man.

I miss the forearm shiver.

I’m better because I came of age before smart phones, air bags, rear-window defoggers, the three-point line, LED bulbs, bottled water and stores selling Christmas decorations before trick-or-treat was over.

Pink erasers and fat pencils. School paste that smelled of wintergreen (and the kid who ate it).

Ohio State football ticket? Six bucks. Program? Fifty cents. Lineup? A quarter. Hot dog? Four bits.

Clouds of cigar smoke wafting through the stands.

Carburetors. Points. Cars with two keys, one square and one round.

I remember when nobody was confused about which bathroom to use.

Boy Scouts — and I mean Boy Scouts.

There was a time when Ronald Reagan was governor of California and, unlike today, The Golden State had much to be proud of. And in our hearts, we knew Barry Goldwater was right.

Achievement. Awards that meant something.

Gun racks in the rear windows of pickup trucks. With guns in them. In the school parking lot.

We didn’t worry about the flu. Or ticks, much.

“Rub a little dirt on it and get back in the game.”

Standing for the national anthem — and singing it ourselves.

We knew what “hero” means. We admired cops. We revered veterans.

Patriotism.

I miss decency. I miss honor. I miss respect.

I could go on. And in my mind and memory, I will.

Take care of yourselves. Stay free.

#WiseUp #LibertyOrDeath #Merica