There was a televised election event last night. No one could possibly say this was a debate let alone a presidential debate. But Trump's minions were still delighted. "Trump campaign communications director Tim Murtaugh put it this way: 'They're only doing this because their guy got pummeled last night. President Trump was the dominant force and now Joe Biden is trying to work the refs'."

 

The percentage of people who disagree with Murtaugh is probably higher than his IQ. The Proud Boys were happy because they got a shout out from Trump although today he is denying that he even knows who or what they are. I know that I cannot even approximate the mindset of a Trump voter, a fact that actually gives me pause because part of me still wants to believe that Americans can learn, albeit grudgingly, to put up with their neighbors' political views. But the vitriol and venom of Trump voters never allows for discussion, never allows for interaction. Trump is their hero because he does what all of them want to do. That is what is frightening.

 Besides the pretty obvious fact that my husband and I pay more taxes each quarter than Trump has paid in 16 years, the glaringly clear takeaway is that if Trump isn't paying taxes, someone else is. Of course since Trump's total tax payment to the US Treasury for two years was only $1500 it isn't even that hard to pay more taxes than Trump. The average American pays more than $12K per year and even many people on Social Security pay more than Trump. While there have been several people who blame the lax tax laws, especially those around "development", a fair amount of what was reported in the NYT isn't legal, with the previously undisclosed consulting fees paid to Ivanka as a case in point. That doesn't make Trump a smart businessman and it certainly doesn't make Trump a successful businessman. If you make excuses for Trump's behavior, you should probably examine your own ethics and morals.

 

If Trump is innocent of wrong-doing, he can reveal his taxes. I don't recommend holding your breath while you wait for them though.

200,000 Americans are dead from Covid19.  Many more will die in the next three weeks because of misguided information from the White House.  Would you let that man babysit your children?

 

 John Cornyn, the senior senator from Texas, says that Republicans have plenty of time to confirm a new Supreme Court Justice because they have the entire lame duck session (assuming there is one) from 11/4 until mid-January. We have seen multiple state houses use that tactic to rush through state laws before the governorship changes hands so I have no doubt that he is accurate in his statement. That doesn't mean that we have to put up with that nonsense. If you care about the will of the people, you should care about preventing this travesty of governance. If you live in Texas, you can certainly make your feelings known to Cornyn directly, since senators tend not to even read complaints from those who are not constituents.

But all of us have the power of our voices. All of us can contact our state's congressional members, either Senate or Congress or both. It would be best to do this right now rather than waiting so that these men (and the Senate is primarily men) know that they do not know what's best, they aren't autonomous but are subject to voters, that a rushed confirmation will forever tarnish not just the justice so confirmed but the entire faith and respect that anyone still has for the government.

 RIP Ruth Bader Ginsburg. If Trump and McConnell try to install a new justice, hell will break loose. Do not let them get away with any shenanigans.

 It is getting close to our one year anniversary living in this new/old house but we are still working to get everything together to furnish and decorate. Clearly the pandemic put a pause on some stuff but my own frugality has an impact on many decisions. 

 

My husband and I are already old as I have written many times before. We have been married more than fifty years and we have bought and sold many houses during that time while simultaneously amassing rooms full of furniture. We upsized and downsized multiple times depending on the house and the job. We had downsized drastically when we bought our last house in Salt Lake City thinking that it would be our last house to decorate. Our sons took beds, couches, rugs, art, etc. with our blessing. We went from a house that had 11 bedrooms to one that really only had three and one of those was on the first floor not what we thought of as the bedroom floor.

When we moved to Pennsylvania we thought that house was going to be our toes up/body bag house so its small size and the limited space didn't really matter. Then someone poisoned my dog and both my husband and I didn't want to live there any more. So we found our current space which looks much bigger than it is but it is certainly bigger than our body bag house.

Because of all of the serial downsizing, I ended up not having enough furniture for the new/old house but I did still have two couches and several occasional chairs. Once two couches and two chairs were reupholstered, most of the living room was good to go. But we are old folks without any relatives or friends in the area so furnishing the extra bedroom got put to the back burner. We have our bed and we worked very hard to get it here and in the room. We had to utilize the enormous loft door that was originally used for lifting hay bales into the hay mow but we also had to cut into an overhang to get the headboard down to the bedroom. Luckily I honed my plastering skills on a house about three houses back so filling in those holes was relatively easy.

Still there was one bedroom that didn't have furniture. Our previous house had three bedrooms with one of those serving us as the cats' bedroom and our library so it had bookcases and cat beds but not people beds. Given that I am old and given that I am seriously frugal, I didn't want to spend a great deal of money putting furniture in a room that neither my husband nor I would have much reason to go into but neither did I want it to be simply empty. My husband agreed that it just looked empty even though it had some furniture in it.

 

I found some early 19th century twin beds on Chairish.We installed them in this extra bedroom and now I will have a new project once I finish quilting the strange Baltimore Album that I have been working on. About ten years ago I made a Dresden Plate quilt that is twin bed size and now I will make a second, though not identical, Dresden Plate quilt for the second bed. (Edit: It turns out I made the Dresden Plate 7 years ago and there is a photo on July 26, 2013 on this blog. You can search using the date or just by entering Dresden Plate.) The beds are mahogany with carved posts so the quilts will suit the age of the beds and the room.

 

As an addendum--people who don't trust science should not be giving advice to the rest of us who live in the 21st century. Wear a mask, wash your hands, keep a social distance protocol, and vote blue.

 This is the very first quilt top I have ever made for which I had no firm idea when I started. I am not saying that I have never made changes in a project, but that even visualizing this was difficult because the color choices were unusual. Add to that the idea that I didn't pick the blocks or the layout prior to beginning and you get the idea. Then even after beginning this I had misgivings that nearly sank the project, and then my husband accidentally threw away one small piece of thirty year old fabric that I was using for accents. Even though I am definitely not a quitter, you can imagine that I am relieved that this has come so far and that I even like it.

 

I have made quilts I did not like before. Usually these were commissioned pieces whose design and color were the choice of the person paying the price. I find it difficult to work on a project I don't like but sometimes when one is paid to do the job, one puts up with the inconvenience. But this project ended up being very weird yet strangely compelling as well so I am perfectly happy to call it "My Funny Valentine." This is just the top, no quilting, no layering, no batting as yet. The sashing is one of the more unusual choices. The four bird, heart, and rose corner blocks are the only blocks that have much color besides black and pink although some of the black fabrics are very small flower prints and the lyre block has the rust colored lyre and yellow tulips.

 

 

 "The newly renovated White House Rose Garden is under repair less than three weeks after its official unveiling. The garden is experiencing "issues with water drainage" and "some minor complications with updated construction," a source with knowledge of the garden troubles. New sod is also being laid down."

 

That's the latest news from the White House. Now they really need to drain the swamp. Thanks for the laugh, Melania.

 "Trump insists that he, not Biden, is the leader best positioned to keep Americans safe." From a news report after Trump's visit to Kenosha, Wisconsin.

The nation has lost nearly 200,000 people to Covid19 and been engulfed in protests exacerbated by both federal troops and rightwing Trump supporters since March. 27 million people are unemployed with very little relief in sight though Ivanka blithely tells people to choose another path. There is no real end for any of this activity, if anything it seems to be getting more intense. Trump is in charge so is clearly not in any position or frame of mind to keep Americans safe. If anything he is exacerbating all of the current flashpoints on purpose in some bizarre throwback to the late 50s and early 60s to frame Joe Biden as the incendiary spark. This is Trump's America right now. If you don't like what you see, choosing four more years of Trump is obviously a dangerous action.

 

We are not safer with Trump; we are not healthier with Trump; unless you are a 1 percenter you aren't better off economically with Trump. Protect your families, protect your community, get to know your neighbors, do not listen to anyone who is orange.