ELECTION AFTERMATH

I have purposely avoided commenting on the numerous doom & gloom Facebook posts these past few days. Amazingly enough, the world has not ended & the sun has risen each day since Donald Trump was declared our President Elect. Social media has been filled with threats to move from the United States. Countless people are protesting & rioting in the streets. Many fear that the country as we know it is coming to an end. Pessimism & hate are rampant.

When I began this blog I decided on just a few rules one of which was no politics! It has been my experience in the past & present that no amount of arguing has EVER changed anyone else's mind regarding their political views. That has been especially evident during this nasty, vindictive campaign & the resulting election.

I am not a Republican. I am not a Democrat. I don't vote for a candidate because of their party affiliation. I align with Democratic views on some issues & Republicans on others. I vote for the person because of their convictions & their qualifications. Many years ago I changed my voter registration to "Decline to State" as my protest of the blatant partisanship that I believe is far more insidious to the well being of our government than any one candidate ever will be.

That being said I was completely shocked & utterly stunned that Donald Trump beat Hillary Clinton in this presidential race. I was deeply disappointed & a little unnerved that I am so totally out of touch with "Middle America". Apparently it doesn't matter to half of the voters that Donald Trump is a bully, gropes women, is obnoxious on so many levels & has made unfounded accusations toward many citizens including Hillary Clinton. They still went to the polls & elected him president. Unbelievable!

Although technically they didn't elect him since Clinton received more of the popular votes than Trump, but he received more electoral votes. The electoral college has the opportunity to correct that on December 19th when they actually cast their votes. These supposed safeguards were put into place by our founding fathers to combat just such a situation as we have currently.

In fact, Alexander Hamilton is quoted as saying, "The electors would make sure the office of President will never fall to the lot of any man who is not in an eminent degree endowed with the requisite qualifications.” If there was ever a time that a man without requisite qualifications was elected this is it. For the record I signed the petition (along with 3-1/2 million other Americans) asking the electors to fix the error.

But the facts are that Donald Trump is our President Elect barring any long shot change by the electors. I will choose to follow the gracious lead of our current President Barrack Obama & our first woman candidate, Hillary Clinton. Both of them asked each of us to "give Donald Trump a chance to lead our great country". I will NOT resort to hate mongering & accusations. I will give him a chance - but with a wary eye on his every move.

I still believe that we live in the greatest country in the world & thank God everyday that I was born here. Our system of government is set up so that no one person can do things on their own. Donald Trump cannot just decide to singlehandedly abolish Obama care or throw Hillary in jail or build a wall along our Mexican border or deport every Muslim.

It saddens me that so many of my Facebook "friends" are spouting such hateful vitriol. This is a time to come together as citizens of this great nation. I certainly don't like Donald Trump but I don't want him to fail because that means this country I love will fail as well. If those of us who voted for Hillary Clinton resort to the abominable behavior that President Obama was subjected to by mean-spirited detractors after his election 8 years ago that makes us just as repulsive & hateful as them. I will choose to take the high road & give the man a chance.

Lou & I don't let the terrorists stop us from traveling & I certainly don't intend to let an obnoxious celebrity businessman who managed to get himself elected president stop me from loving & supporting this amazing country of ours. We will survive & ultimately thrive once again. Worst case, we'll vote him out of office in 4 years & move on. One thing that heartens me tremendously is that the young people of our country have it right. The 18-25 year old voters overwhelmingly voted for Hillary Clinton! 

ODDS, ENDS & UPDATES

HOORAY! CUBS WIN!!!!

Did any of you watch that World Series Game 7 last night? That was one for the ages - a dramatic, emotional, roller coaster ride of a baseball game!  All I can say is, "Wow! And Double Wow!"

What more could a baseball fan ask for? The Cubs hadn't won in 108 years, the Indians hadn't won in 68 years. The game was tied & went into the tenth inning. A Cleveland starting pitcher came in as a reliever for three innings after pitching two days before. A Chicago reliever threw ninety pitches over three consecutive games - unheard of in the baseball world. Players stepped up time & time again until finally the Cubs were victorious.

I love my Giants & we've had quite a ride for the past six years with three World Series titles (which I certainly hope isn't over yet!) but if we had to lose this year, at least we lost to the World Champions!  Congratulations to the Chicago Cubs' organization, players & fans - you all earned every bit of it!  And to the Cleveland Indians - you put up a hell of a fight, hold your heads high! Your time will come.

PAUL'S BOOTS REVISITED

A couple months ago I posted the story of Paul's Boots - my best friend, M'Lynn's, tribute to her Australian husband. To refresh your memories, Paul passed away a year ago July while planning to hike the Appalachian Trail. Although both he & M'Lynn knew he would never make the 2000+ mile trek, she had the idea of finding some hikers to carry his boots along the trail.

Her idea snowballed into REI getting involved & filming a documentary about Paul's Boots on the trail. The 37 minute film is currently on Netflix & the You Tube video has over 165,000 views as of tonight! Go to www.youtube.com & search for "Paul's Boots" to watch it. It is truly remarkable but make sure you have a box of tissues handy. M'Lynn & I email every few days with the latest count of viewers....just amazing how this has played out.

REI flew M'Lynn & Paul's brother, Arthur, to Maine for the conclusion of the months long journey of Paul's Boots. Arthur carried his boots the final five miles up steep terrain while cramping up & struggling but he refused to give up. It was Arthur's first time overseas & his first time in the U.S.

I had the pleasure of meeting Arthur when I drove up to Reno to visit M'Lynn at her family reunion. REI graciously agreed to fly them home to Australia from Reno so M'Lynn could spend a few days visiting with her family who she had not seen in person in 18 years. If you haven't watched the documentary, I promise you that it will be 37 minutes well spent. The stories of the hikers are inspiring & moving. REI did a magnificent job of producing this film & M'Lynn did an incredible job of bringing to fruition her loving gesture for Paul.

CATCHING UP WITH OLD FRIENDS

Finally, I just want to say a few words about one of the good things about growing older. At the age of 66, I can say that I have had friendships that date back 45 years. Having a history with people who have been in your life for decades is a warm, comforting feeling.

This past weekend Lou & I drove up to Virginia City, Nevada, (about 2-1/2 hours) to reconnect with an "old jumper friend", Dave, who I had not seen in around 25 years. My ex-husband was a skydiver & we literally spent every weekend at the drop zone for many years when I was in my early 20s. There were so many people who I felt a close kinship with - M'Lynn was initially a skydiving friend.

Anyway, Dave is having some health issues (getting old sucks in that respect) & we have been saying via email that we should get together sometime. I finally said, "Sometime is now." Dave & his wife, Breck, opened a Kettle Corn shop in downtown Virginia City & moved there a few years ago. We had a great visit & reminisced about the good old days.

It was a very special day - AND their Caramel Corn is to die for!  Dave even made me some of their special Chocolate Caramel Corn.  If you are ever in Virginia City stop by & check it out. They give free samples!