Cooking the NYTimes and Other Assorted Retirement Activities

I regulate my morning by what time the exercise class I'm attending that day begins.  To my great fortune, it's a quick trip from my bed to the Community Center where classes are held.  And because I am always loathe to roll out of bed, I have it timed down to the last possible minute as to when I need to put it in gear.   There is, however, an enormous difference between the clock showing five after the hour and ten after.  At five after, I am well assured all morning toilette activities can be completed in time for me to be on time for class.  At five after, I've learned, I can even add in a quick pit stop for Benny outdoors, if necessary, along with luring him back into our bedroom where his kennel and other doggie accoutrements are located.  "Good dog," I say, bribing him with a treat as I close the door behind me. At ten after, I'm really rolling the dice.  There is a surge of adrenalin as I rush through the prep and more than once I have lef...

Of late, I have had more feelings of despair regarding the state of our Union than not.   When President Biden was elected, I held onto a shard of hope that our long national nightmare was over.  This has not been the case.  Given how diligently some segments of our Union have clung to The Big Lie, turning their eyes and actions toward state legislatures where multiple laws have been passed to make it more difficult for other segments of our Union to vote, I find myself agonizing over the state of our Union.  What happened to the belief that America was a country where everyone MEANT everyone?  Where is that belief buried?  Can it be unearthed, withering shoots tended to, replanted, fertilized, nurtured to where it once was?  I think I have been so incredibly naive to believe it ever was like that.  All along an undercurrent flowed beneath my feet that selectively picked off segments of society in a most fastidious, nefarious manner.  Ah, Wh...