Less Than Before...

 

The holiday season is near.  It's Indigenous Peoples Day, aka Submuloc or Columbus day.  There will be no mail today.  Halloween is nearing & then the holiday season will be in full swing, except it won't.   It hasn't been for a few years & that isn't just me be weird about holidays.  They have diminished a lot.  I've seen no decorations, heard no mention of local events & the halloween stuff a the store has been relegated to a humble section, full of uninspired decorations, cheap costumes & repurposed candies. 

The other holidays fare no better.  Those same few aisles hold the other special day's wares as well.  The Christmas section is slightly larger, but only because there's bigger items to sell.  I think only heard 1 holiday song at the store last year.  There was no music, no decor, no bell-ringers, just nothing.

Our holiday plans are looking even more scant than the previous years.  I don't know what, if anything, we'll do for them.   There were so few lights twinkling last year, I wonder if there'll be any this year.

Last year, this time, so how I still had a little umph of hope left in me.  I thought things might get better.  I thought it was possible there might be a way to be somewhere better.  There were some possibilities.  I'm angry at myself for letting that be the case.  Now, once again I've had to accept that I let myself believe in a figment as substantial as a puff of smoke.  That's gone now, at best things might maintain as they are, but I doubt that.  They say, "Come what may."  I wish whatever was coming would just get here & turn off the house lights.  It should've been closing time a  long ways back.

Yay, look at me ushering in the holidays.  Take care.

Cya...

Cooling Off & Ndjuda...

 

Next week things could start getting cooler.  Some mornings could get chilly.  I'm just hoping we don't crash into frigid weather like we did the heat this Summer.  

The only articles I found were focused on funding cuts again.  That orange ass & his people are determined to make HIV a plague again.  I hope they all get it & it's resistant.  For the hell they've caused, let it come back their way.

I wanted to try something, Ndjuda.  It's a spreadable salami.  I thought it sounded interesting & my roomie likes salami, actually better than I do.   1st issue, it's made with 30+% calabrian peppers.  They're considerably warmer than a jalapeno.  My roomie isn't the biggest on hot foods.  2nd issue, Italian salami is fairly different than American.  It's fermented & has what they called a lactic funk or sourness.   I could handle he heat, but the sour was beyond me.  I was smelling that stuff hours after it had been put away.  It was very pungent.   We haven't figured out what we're going to do with it yet.  Oh well, another food experiment gone awry.  I should've done better research.

That's it for this morning.  Take care.

Cya...

Failures In The Fight...

 

There has been significant advancements in the fight against HIV, yet it's still failing.  It's easy to place the blame on whatever; the corporations, patients, governments, charities, etc...  But, this is a shared load.  

The fight against HIV is 45+ years old.  Test & meds became available in the 1980s & have improved ever since.  We've known how to prevent the spread of the virus.  We've known what groups were most apt to be infected.  We've understood stigma, lack of awareness, misinformation, & needing accessibility.  Still, the fight  lags.

Self test became available in 1996 with mail-in & as rapid, in-home test by 2012.  PrEP was offered in 2012 & has improved.  Single pill regimens have been around since 2006 & long acting meds began in 2021.  Yet HIV is still spreading.

Communities create shame & stigma.  Governments pass laws against Gays & those living with HIV.  Other governments use the meds or the withholding of them as a means of pressure & control.   

THe fight against HIV could've been nearing an end.  We've had the tools for decades.  But, social & administrative actions have limited & even threatened this fight.  We're no longer winning.  We're losing ground.  IMO, a single orange asshat is mainly responsible.  This man needs to die soon.

The battle against HIV was winnable.  Can it be now?  As things stand, I don't think so.  Maybe that's exactly what they wanted.

Cya...

Still A Bit Off...

 

I'm still getting over the attempt to handle some yard stuff yesterday.  We'll need someone else to handle some of it.  I just can't get to it.   It was not among my best decisions to try that.  Still, a little of it got done.  My reward was exhaustion, ache, blown sinuses, itchy eyes & a screwed up stomach from all the allergens. 

My computer glitched again yesterday.  It's going to have to be replaced soon.  I just wish PCs hadn't gotten so expensive.  The price is ridiculous.   These systems cost as much as my last 2 combined.

That's about it for this morning. Take care.

Cya...

My Mistake...

 

It's the time of year when seasonal prep comes into play.  There's some bushes in the yard that need trimmed.   It's still muggy & warm, so I had no plans on trying anything big.  I took the small clippers out with me to have a look.  I let myself think I could do a bit.  That was the mistake.  I did a little & it caught up with me almost instantly.  I was drenched, breathing hard, coughing, eyes blurring & my hands were starting to shake.  

I didn't do hardly anything.  Not near as much as I would've in the past, but that's gone.  I tossed what little I did cut into the pile, gathered myself & the clippers & went inside.  Of course there were damned ants.  Half an hour later & I'm still rattled, hands shaking & my breathing is rough.  I wrecked my sinuses for the day.   The only thing I did accomplish was figuring out I needed to call someone to do the job.  Besides me wiping out quickly, there are things I just can't reach & they're near wires.

That's done.  We'll look for someone to handle it.  I need a shower.   Maybe I'll feel better by noon.  That's all.  Take care.

Cya...

A Normal Morning...

 

Not much going on here this morning.  I overslept.  After 2 mornings of crap for power pole replacement, I'm not surprised.  All we have today is handling trash & some errands.  That should be it.  

That's all for this morning.  Take care.

Cya...

Another Short Electric Post...

 

I don't have a lot of time left this morning to do much of a post.  The electric company replacing our power pole decided to make it a 2-day job.  They seemed surprised there were rocks in the ground.  That's all this place is; red dirt & rock.  A hole that should've taken them 30 - 40 minutes, took several hours & then they decided to come back to finish up this morning.   They brought things to dig & bore, but nothing to break rock.

It should all be done soon.  I had to put off things for this & I'm still running late.  More tomorrow. take care.

Cya...