Wondering Which Way ...

...the wind is blowing. (Why does everything seem to be a metaphor these days?)The temperature is warming again leading to fairly indolent days. John spent the relatively cool morning hours planting the new flower bed. I caught this picture through the living room window before I left for my Pilates class, which was anything but indolent, but was enough to make me so by the time I got home. It was the standing on one leg doing biceps curls with weights that did me in....

Before I go on, I want to thank everybody who took the time to read my journal yesterday and comment on my 13 year anniversary on Blipfoto. (John's comment...'has it only been 13 years?') I probably would have chosen something a little more momentous than a carrot to mark the day, but , full confession, I forgot. Blipfoto has become such an integral part of my life and of each day that I don't really keep track much anymore. I don't think it would have happened if it weren't for the fact that there really is something excellent about every journal here. I wrote a few days ago about old letters and the importance of keeping them. I have always believed that everybody has a story, and the fact that this is such a safe and supportive place for us to tell them is what makes it so special.

I have been thinking about what it takes to tell a story and the more I think about it the more I think that there are no rules. To tell a really authentic story requires writing what's on our minds and what's in our hearts. Blipfoto gives everybody a chance to tell their story in their own way. It is an honor to be able to touch and be touched by so many lives here. 

Many thanks to all those behind the scenes who give their time to keep the lights on and things running smoothly, and to all those who made it possible for this site to keep running without resorting to ads. I think that is what allows it to be the special place it is. 

Just one note: the Big Ugly Bill has not been finally passed yet. It passed in the Senate yesterday with Vance casting the tie breaking vote. Now it goes back to the House of Representatives for another vote. Trump and other Republicans are applying extreme pressure on holdouts, several of whom are claiming that it doesn't make enough cuts. Nobody seems to be talking about the $170.7 Billion allocated for immigration detention centers and ICE agents. Last budget was $16B. This is a whopping amount of money which seems designed to turn our country into a police state. 

Biden wanted me in here, that son of a bitch
--Trump standing in front of a new detention center in the Florida Everglades

This is nonsense but it reveals Trump's conviction that he is always a victim. His determination to destroy the rule of law that threatened to hold him accountable for his actions, and his own drive to imprison and destroy his political opponents.
--Heather Cox Richardson, Letters from an American