It’s Day 252 of The First Ohio Shutdown, Day 12 of The Cuckoo Curfew and Day 188 of I Was Raised Better Than That.
Deb and I are doing well. This marks one month since my former employer hastened the inevitable and freed me to get on with my American Life, and we celebrated simply by being glad about that.
Right on cue, it snowed today — well, to tell the truth, for much of the day it was mostly rain, making this the kind of day that defines “miserable.” It’s cold, it’s inescapably damp and it’s gray. Ernie is sporting a light coating of white this evening, maybe for the first time in his 16 years.
There’s more snow in the forecast, tonight and through tomorrow. High winds, too.
And it’s “Cyber Monday.” Deb and I actually participated in the virtual rush, too — not to excess and not on impulse, merely taking advantage of well-researched and carefully chosen deals destined for the bus in the driveway.
Exciting? How about a new sewer hose (aka “Stinky Slinky”), replacement filters for the HVAC and fresh-water supply, a pressure regulator, spare keys for a basement compartment, a screwdriver and a few 12V USB adapters?
I also made a few calls to see if we can get Ernie’s fridge and one recalcitrant furnace fixed here before we have to drive back up to Medina County next Thursday. Our only chance may be a mobile service tech here locally, but since the bus sits outdoors, that — as well as the trip north — all depends on the weather.
The political climate seems to have settled down some. Not that it should, really — between a smelly election and the daily strutting by a presumptive incoming administration, I’m finding it hard to just sit and watch.
What’s most disturbing, at least to me, is that the results of the presidential election and down-ballot contests seem to be completely divorced from each other. Democrats were pretty damned cocky about picking up House seats, for example, but Republicans ended up winning every single toss-up race (27 of ’em) and gained at least 11 seats (possibly 12).
It makes neither political nor mathematical sense. As Jesse Watters pointed out on The Five today, a presumptive win like Daffy McHairsniffer’s should’ve come with coattails.
But there were no coattails — it was, in fact, quite the opposite. And yet so few Americans, never mind the press, are the least bit curious about that.
Since going live with Ubi Libertas last month, I’ve continued to tweak the blog here and there. It’s definitely under construction and probably always will be. Forgive me for being the kind of guy who can’t leave well enough alone.
Over the last few days I’ve added a couple of items to the main menu — a search function, something I find useful on sites I visit, and a separate menu item for subscribing to Ubi Libertas e-mails, which will eliminate that slug from the end of every post. Also, my social-media links — Facebook and Parler — now appear in the header.
Ok so that’s inside-baseball stuff. Just thought I’d mention it.
You may have noticed that my posts tend to be a sort of topical goulash. I know that annoys people who’d prefer that I’d either stick to politics and culture, or devote my attention entirely to kinder, gentler, more personal matters — love, camping, food or whatever.
Yeah, that’s not gonna happen.
I suppose if I were an assignment writer, Ubi Libertas would have a narrower focus. Maybe someday it will. But for now, this is what you get.
Goulash.
I’m grateful for your kind attention.
Take care of yourselves, Patriots. Stay free.
#WiseUp #LibertyOrDeath