Misc

I’m not Barbara Walters, but this is 2020

Five years ago, automobiles flew along interstates in the sky, we had hover boards and automatic dogwalkers, and a number of amazing things that people fifty years earlier thought impossible. But here we are, grounded in 2020. Only airplanes and helicopters hover and fly. That’s what happens when a society moves backward instead of forward. So much was gained and later lost in the ongoing political-social tug-a-war. The struggle is real.

The Roaring Twenties are on us once again. This being an election year and considering how polarized our nation has become, I reckon there’s going to be a lot of roaring.

I’m going to try blogging every day, about random things. Whatever happens to be on my mind when I’m ready to blog. I’m also going to try getting work into short stories and novels every day. The novel I’m writing now is currently at 55,119 words and 270 pages, and I’m not halfway through it yet. My daily planner allows me to get work into a novel and a short story each day, though it’s not always writing, sometimes it’s editing.

Today sucked. Been sick for two days and I feel like crap. I hope it’s over by the time I wake in the morning. I don’t want to be sick while I try to make the first day of 2020 happen as planned.

Misc

This Old Tractor

I started driving big tractors probably when I was fourteen. We went through a few of them. At one time, we had one from the 1940’s that ran very well for it’s age. I guess I had a particular interest in operating tractors, because I was often the one doing it. I pulled the plow, the brush hog and trailers with fencing supplies or junk we were cleaning up and so on, and sometimes I drove them around the field for fun.

This international tractor here was my favorite. It had belonged to my dad’s uncle. We bought it, I think, when I was in my late-teens. We also bought other farm equipment. At the time, we wanted to plant hay and corn, and increase our livestock. That plan fell through, but the tractor was still useful.

These big tractors are not like cars. Their controls are different. They have a lot of power. Once my dad hired a construction crew to bury an old concrete porch. The crew was using a huge dump truck to pull the porch into the hole next to it, but they got the truck stuck and couldn’t get it out. So, my dad got the tractor and pulled the dump truck out like it was a feather.

I was disappointed when my dad decided to sell this tractor, but he had bought a new tractor. Although the new tractor wasn’t as big or powerful as this one, it suited all of his needs.

Misc

$$$

Every time I hear about how professional athletes are paid millions of dollars while school teachers are paid next to nothing, I’m thinking, “We better tell the heads of professional sports that they need to pay teachers more.”

The same for military and first responders.

Misc

Thanksgiving Tomorrow

The history of Thanksgiving isn’t really what they taught us in school, but I like what Thanksgiving is supposed to be. It’s pretty much just a harvest feast, which people have around the world. Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday, it makes me feel warm and fuzzy inside, and football thrown in the mix is a bonus.

Even so, I wish the schools hadn’t lied to us about the history of Thanksgiving.

Misc

Ex

I notice a lot of people thrashing their exes. I hear about how their exes are assholes, whores, jerks, sluts and so on. The list of things they call their exes is endless. I don’t know how much of it is true.

I had a wonderful woman once. I lost her because I was stupid. There were so many things that I did wrong during our relationship because I didn’t know any better. To this day I regret that I hadn’t been smarter

I don’t want to hear that bullshit about how there’s other fish in the sea, nor do I want any advice about what I should do or how I should feel. I had come to realize that people who preach that shit don’t know what they’re talking about.