On the Road It's been less than a week since I griped on this blog. On Jan. 1, I vowed to stop my obsessive daily posts. But today, I need to rant. The day actually started well. We left our cabin, in a car jammed with 2 months worth of stuff. So excited to see our kids out west! I spotted a sweet church in Mason. We stopped in London, TX so I could mail a letter to my dad. All felt good. Window Watching After lots of logistical planning, we were on our way. The scenery was drab but my thoughts were nice. Our grand baby is due next month...we'll be seeing CA kids soon... then OR fam... 2021 is going to be better! I stared out the windows and let the signs amuse me. I chuckled at the sassy message, to drivers in Texas. I rolled my eyes at numerous Trump signs, proudly displayed near ranch entrances. Then, I grinned as we passed the exit for Warnock Road. Warnock! Hours earlier we had learned, the election runoff results in Georgia. Reverand Raphael Warnock, became the first black senator in Georgia. Counting Votes at the Capitol By noon, we were out near Ozona, Texas with spotty cell service. I was able to pull up NPR's live coverage of congress, counting the Electoral College votes. I had no idea what was just about to unfold, at the Capitol. Pence, then Biden... I squinted at my phone and watched Pence preside over this extra stressful process... due to numerous objections. The vice president looked anxious. (Trump has not been pleased, since his VP essentially denied his demand to help overturn the results of the 2020 election.) The comments below the video were flying, along with emojis. My eyes grew weary after a while. But I ended up being glued to that cell phone for hours, when I learned about the horrifying happenings at the Capitol. After hours of texting, I returned to NPR Live and saw President-elect Biden addressing the nation. "...our democracy is under unprecedented assault unlike anything we've seen in modern times," Calm Before the Storm Earlier in the morning, it had felt so peaceful driving along in the middle of Nowhere-Texas. I'd been texting with friends about the surprising election results in Georgia. We joked about the tedious coverage of the vote count. Suddenly, Shari texted, "The Capitol is on lockdown! Protesters are breaking down police barricades... scaling walls, tear gas..." I scrambled to find news on my phone. Were these pro-Trump protesters? They were in the building? The news was happening so fast, I couldn't get updated info on my phone. But, all our friends and family are at home, during these pandemic days... near TVs. So we got nonstop text reports. The Rally Before the Storm I barely took note earlier, when I heard that Trump was expecting to have one more rally in D.C. this morning. No surprise that he would make one last attempt, before Congress gathered at the Capitol. But when I heard what he told thousands of supporters, it suddenly made sense what happened later. "We will never concede... We will stop the steal...You will never take back our country with weakness..." He made it clear he was furious with Pence, He encouraged the crowd to walk with him to the Capitol to overturn Biden's victory. Trump of course did not march. He returned to the White House and watched his supporters storm the Capitol on TV. Shocking Photos Don and I finally reached our hotel in New Mexico and turned on the TV. It was close to the 6 pm in D.C. Crowds still filled the streets, despite a 6 pm curfew. Eventually the live coverage paused, to share images and footage of what had unfolded, hours earlier. How could this be our country? Angry crowds... many in MAGA hats, carrying confederate flags and Trump flags... scaling walls and breaking windows.. spraying tear gas... ransacking.. looting... occupying offices. Congress and staff rushing to safety... hiding under furniture... putting on gas masks... Chaos! Hotel TV We ate dinner in our room and tried to absorb what had happened on this day, that had started well. I felt anxious just watching the news in a quiet hotel room. How did it feel to be inside the building, when the mob's voices and shouts were heard? Confusion and panic. How may thought they might actually be killed? Was it like a plane going down, with people texting families? I can't imagine the horror. Yet, after hours of enduring the terrorizing invasion, Congress returned to their jobs, to finish counting votes. Words of Comfort? I'm ready to go to bed and try to sleep. It's hardly fair that I will sleep safely, while lawmakers work through the night, in a space filled with broken glass and violent memories. It's even less fair, that the president has been safely tucked into the White House for hours... tweeting his helpful words.
But no more tweeting for Trump, now. Evidently he's been cut off.
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Not-So-Happy List
Cancer, Covid & Coronary... I started this complaining list/blog, in May 2016. I posted 200 gripes about my breast CANCER and then I was done. On March 13, 2020, I started venting all over again, when another disease (starting with a C) interfered with my life. This time it was the invasion of COVID and it affected every person. I ranted for a year, until I got my COVID vaccine in March 2021. CORONARY Artery Disease was the reason I restarted this blog on September 26, 2021. This time it was my hubby Don, who was dealing with a worry that started with the letter "C". Coronavirus and Cancer, Coronary Artery Disease! All are evil, but none can totally get me down... if I vent! I usually end up feeling a little more positive at the end of each post! Navigating This Mess! The most recent post is at the top, from coronary posts in 2022, back to cancer posts in 2016. To find past posts, look below the "Archives" section, to find "Categories". Archives
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