being a fan: a hazardous occupation

I love watching soccer; watched every soccer match I could in the Olympics. But, especially in Europe, I won’t attend the games in person because the fans get so crazy that people have been beaten and trampled after a game. Now it looks like American baseball is joining the ranks. This morning (9/8/13) it was announced that a Dodgers fan was killed during a fight with Giants fans in Los Angeles. All the time the Dodgers were in booming bumptious Brooklyn, nothing like this ever happened, even in the Subway Series. Maybe the Dodgers should come home.

Viral Implosion – chapter five

the Titanic looms

So far all events have occurred on a case-by-case basis, nurtured by the serendipity of power in the right places. Mike Freedman had been watching with increasing enthusiasm as they unfolded. As Chairman of the Board for IBN, he had a comfortable viewpoint. But can things continue unguided? Mike suspected not; too many options could play out.

The only way to ensure that things continue in the right direction is to consolidate the controlling factions. Mike made a list of all the powerful people who could keep things going in the right direction – generals, CEOs, PAC leaders, media moguls, right-wing senators. It was a long list, so he then thinned it out by those people who could lead the others in a particular cadre. That came to twenty-three individuals. These would constitute the central force to guide the world behind the curtains. Although he named the group The Magi, it was not to be a meeting-and-votes type of organization; instead, they would all be aware of their mutual ambitions and influences while sharing information, suggestions, and actions. All planning would be the results of casual conversations between two to five people at a time, with others pulled in when needed. Mike saw it as more choreography than control.

With the current situation, there were a lot of people looking for relief from welfare, federal programs and charity. The rolls had to be thinned through attrition.

Health insurance cannot be mandatory; its cost had to be increased, so lower classes would not afford it. Hospitals, ambulance services and doctors were given the right to refuse care to anyone who is uninsured. Prescription drug prices were also increased, keeping them available only to the wealthy. Manufacturers of over-the-counter medications were subsidized to limit production and allowed to raise cost according to the supply and demand curve. This was a little trick they learned from OPEC. The small emergency services satellites rapidly went out of business with no financing other than the insurance companies and no major equipment on site. Low-income women could not get prenatal care and had to give birth in their homes, as in olden days. And as in olden days, the frequency of still births, infants dying before their first birthday and mothers dying in childbirth increased proportionately. Children born outside of the hospital had to be registered within a week of birth to get a birth certificate and a social security number. This way they could still be tracked. Anyone found without a social security number, child, youth or adult, was automatically deported to Mexico.

FEMA was shut down. When natural disasters such as hurricanes, wildfires, tornadoes or tsunamis occurred, there was no federal bailout. The victims had to cope by themselves with the circumstances. Courts refused to hear any lawsuits against insurance companies, claiming full dockets for “real crimes”. Other assistance services such as Red Cross no longer received any federal funds; they had to rely on contributions alone to keep helping out, and corporations were no longer adding to those coffers. As small businesses started starving, donations were one of the first things removed from their budgets.

The food stamp and HEAT programs were closed down. All mortgages were reassessed by the banks. If a family’s financial circumstances had reversed, the house was foreclosed. These acts encouraged more and more families to merge into one household. It was no longer unusual to find two sets of bunk beds in every bedroom. People with no family to turn to formed cooperatives to share expenses. If a person in a cooperative lost his or her job, s/he was summarily kicked out. In family situations, the old, infirm, pregnant and jobless were kept at home and paid their way by doing chores around the house while the others worked.

Supplemental Security Income cases were reassessed then cancelled under one determination or another. Then SSI was disbanded. Social Security Disability cases were also reassessed, but usually there was no change in one’s status. However, SSD new cases were virtually impossible to attain; the cost of proof was in the applicant’s hands despite the escalating medical costs, and lawyers refused to take on the cases as they became more and more difficult to win. Since anyone on SSD automatically went onto Social Security regular rolls at the age of 65, the number of SSD enrollees was systematically dropping each year.

Social Security itself was still sacrosanct; abolishing that would be hard to hide. But the annual cost of living raise was easily cancelled in economic hard times, and the insurance premium was increased every year. So rather than a fixed income this became a shrinking income.

People already on pensions learned that the pension fund would no longer cover any medical benefits.

Abandoned houses and apartment buildings became collection centers for the homeless and the sick.

Public transportation was another issue that had to be addressed. As unemployment soared, and gas prices grew even faster, automobile travel would curtail itself. But the corporations still had to get their workers in to the jobs. It was decided to sell public transportation to local corporations.

Bus routes were redesigned to take commuters to and from work, since their living situations were consolidating. You needed a company ID card to board, but you still had to pay to get to and from work. On weekends these buses were available to anyone wanting to get to shopping areas, again for a fee.

Subways were maintained in the larger cities, but the cost of a ride was ten dollars. If there were more than one corporation in the area, one took over buses and another took over subways.

Trains covered vast areas and so it was more difficult to assign them to a single company. Instead the country was broken up into zones. Companies were set up with the sole purpose of managing trains in a single zone. Passenger and product trains were combined, so a commute could take much longer than in the past.

Taxi medallions were rescinded. Instead, private taxis were arranged by each company to transport its executives to meetings, airports, and branches.

Air travel had already become dangerous and expensive. But it was still necessary for global companies to continue business. Jumbo airliners were grounded, in favor of smaller airliners owned and managed by each company. The National Guard was utilized to handle security, as it was in bus, subway and train terminals. The FAA became another federal albatross which was closed down along with the DOT and TSA.

Water travel adjusted in much the same way. Ships which could transport goods, whether down river, across large lakes and bays, or oceanic, were commissioned by corporations. Pleasure cruises were dangerous and expensive; the travel industry faltered as federal regulations closed the grip on them.

The general market was rife with unemployed and low-income families, so fast-food chains were the major eateries. Posh restaurants were still the favorite meeting places for executives. Family restaurants, however, could not find customers, and they slowly started to close their doors. Family entertainment tended to public beaches and small theme parks where the cost was minimal.

Professional sports tickets were beyond the average citizen’s wallet, so stadiums often were only half full. Professional teams had to depend more on advertising revenue from television and Internet broadcasters. This was insufficient for most pro teams, so salaries started to shrink, and contracts were killed to keep teams alive.

China demanded that the United States keep paying back its loans, but Congress would have none of that. Instead, all American corporations pulled out of China, despite the lower costs for labor. The same stance was held with India. The United Kingdom followed suit. As a result, Asian countries were left to build their own industries. Instead of a trade deficit on either side there was no trade at all. The European Community solidified under mutual need to function like a single country. Each country or coalition strove for autonomy. The hardest hit was Africa, where most countries never got a good foothold to begin with. The strongest was South Africa, which had moved into the twentieth century already. The rest of Africa had to revert to ancient ways of life, which led to ancient warlords and tribal contests.

Corporations started looking at their expanses of sites to find a better approach. With labor in other countries no longer available, they needed to reassess their holdings. Certainly there were plenty of people available who were looking for work. But the corporations were averse to maintaining high living costs. Plants along the populous east and west coasts were closed cautiously and slowly. During the change in living styles there was a lot to watch and evaluate before making corporate changes. Sites in the Midwest were chosen; housing and basic shopping were supplied to the workers imported for construction. When construction was complete, these workers were ousted and the housing and shops offered to the people who would be employees of the plant.

All of this had to be carefully spun through the media to prevent riots and revolution. People were told that jobs were coming home, but these jobs would be shuttled to the neediest areas of the country. “Spin doctors” had become the highest paid journalists in the media community.

 

Viral Implosion – chapter four

Suffolk County, Long Island

Billy Silver woke up five minutes before his alarm was set to go off. Popping the alarm button in, he smiled. One day he’ll need to check if the alarm actually works. Not one for taking things for granted, he thought back on his situation.

The sun is shining, peeking through the leaves of the oak trees someone ambitiously planted so many years ago. After fifteen years working for Mr. Valenza’s grocery store, Billy Is now the manager, making a pretty decent living. With three years in the position under his belt, Billy has learned to trust his own decisions and plan for the future needs of the store.

Monica has been with the Red Cross for ten years. She is now the coordinator for the whole East Coast, and she loves the work.  Even though she is expecting their third child – finally a girl! – she intends to work pretty near her due date. She does plan on taking off six weeks after the baby is born, but fortunately her maternity leave is paid, so there will be no break in income.

The two boys are in school full time, and Monica’s job allows her to keep “mommy hours”; they of course still have all the baby furniture and accoutrements for the awaited Marylou. The Red Cross offices have a great day care right there that’s a very reasonable cost, since it’s subsidized by the agency.

Billy even started a college fund savings account. Not sure if there will be much in it by the time his eldest, Will, comes of age; or that the kid will be interested in going to college. But just in case, it’s there. And if not, it’s savings. Will’s younger brother JayJay shows no outstanding academic strengths, but it’s awfully early to tell. Hopefully Marylou will meet some nice husband material at school.

That’s one of the reasons they purchased a house in this neighborhood – nice people, good schools, decent values. And the mortgage is already one-third paid off.

Add the silly dog and loony cat, two late-model cars and a bike for each kid, who could ask for more? “God’s in his heaven and all is right with the world.”

After his shower, Billy went to the kitchen and made a cup of instant coffee. As with her other pregnancies, Monica was a little slower to start her day and preferred tea in the morning. That’s okay; there’s fresh brewed coffee at work and of course those warm bagels. Mrs. Valenza still gets up before dawn and bakes every day of the week.

Coffee in hand, Billy went to roust the boys while Monica was in the shower. There’s a lot of comfort in routine, he noted, and the whole family seemed to fall into the pattern easily.

**********

One afternoon Billy got a call at work from his mother. Dad had passed away about five years earlier from cancer – the doctors blamed it on cigarettes. But Dad had left Mom with a decent pension, good medical coverage, and a paid-off house. She too had fit into that “comfort zone”. But this call was alarming. The issuers of the pension sent her a notification that they were cutting back on her medical coverage. Being in her sixties, this was of course her major expense. She was now going to be responsible for a co-pay for every doctor’s visit, every prescription, and even a premium every month. They would cover just about all the same things, but she had reached the age of sixty-five and now had to depend on Medicare for part of her coverage, and that meant further reductions of her social security check to pay for that insurance. It was all very confusing to her and she wanted Billy to go over her options with her. His mother had definitely switched into panic mode over this.

Billy took an afternoon off and worked on the options for his mother. This meant a lot of time on the phone with insurance companies spewing out incomprehensible options like advantage versus supplemental, and parts B and C of Medicare. All this on the speakerphone so his mother could get equally confused. They finally took what seemed like the best path, more from exhaustion than conviction, and tried to then figure out how much money his mother would need to put aside for medical bills each month.

Needless to say, they hadn’t actually anticipated all the expenses that had hitherto been transparent. Mom had to cut back on all the doctor-demanded trips for tests and specialists both because of the co-pays involved and the gas needed to drive there. No longer could she afford to obediently do everything the doctor wanted. She learned to ask the price of a test before agreeing to go to it. She gave up on preventative tests – mammogram, Pap smear, colonoscopy, blood tests. She would just have to hope that they wouldn’t have found anything anyway. She would let her prescriptions run out,  then wait a month before refilling them. She took advantage of every drug store special – antibiotics for four dollars, free flu shots, over-the-counter pills if they were cheaper than prescriptions. She even ordered some prescriptions from Canada over the Internet, hoping that the quality was just as good. Although she was in relatively good health, she found herself spending more time managing that health than any other occupation.

Two weeks before Marylou was slated to enter this world, Monica went on her maternity leave. A week later they broke the news to her that they no longer pay salaries during a maternity leave; she could apply for short-term disability. So now they were not only facing $9,000 for the birth, but a loss of over $400 a week in income. So much for the college fund.

**********

About a year later, Mr. Valenza called Billy into his office. The grocery store he had established forty years ago was facing hard times. Local farmers and ranchers could no longer sell directly to the store, due to new regulations, and the cost of stocking the shelves had risen sharply. Mr. Valenza had raised his prices as far as the market could bear, but the profit margin was still shrinking. It was time to cut back on some overhead. He had cut the staff by 20% already; Mrs. Valenza was baking on regular store-open hours to cut back on heat and electricity bills; they discontinued home delivery service for the old and infirm. Now Billy had to accept a cutback of some sort. Mr. Valenza was going to purchase a cheaper medical package for him, his wife and Billy. And Billy would have to take a cut in pay. Billy was salary-exempt, so he would still need to work six days a week; his assistant manager had been laid off two months earlier.

A year after Billy’s cutback, The Red Cross announced that they were closing the doors of most of their offices. Federal funds had dried up and contributions had shrunk to a trickle. Monica was out of a job. She got six months of unemployment pay, one-third her salary, but by the time that was gone, she had still not found a new job. As with so many others, she was no longer on the unemployment rolls, so the general populace thought that unemployment had reached a plateau. As many people went off the rolls, an equal number had gone on.

Billy Silver found out that his alarm really does work, and he turned it off each morning with a scowl on his face. His family had gone from middle class to lower class and were rapidly approaching the label of poor. His mother got a job as a cashier in a Job Lots store. Because of her arthritis she could only work part-time at minimum wage.

Mrs. Silver also had to sell her home to pay mounting medical bills. She moved in with Billy, sharing the third bedroom with Marylou. Billy and Monica grew up in the post-World-War-II era of nuclear families, so they were unused to having more than two generations under one roof. Fortunately they all got along pretty well. The boys were approaching puberty, and with it all the angst, as well as the expenses, of adolescence were looming quickly. When Marylou reached school age, kindergarten was a full day, and Monica could accept a job without worrying about child care. Since she had only part-time work, Mrs. Silver could watch the kids after school and Monica could work regular hours. She got a job as a desk manager at a nearby hotel.

Things seemed to be stabilizing as they all adjusted to their new life style. It helped that the neighbors all seemed to be going through the same things, so it wasn’t as embarrassing as it could be. Yet in the newspaper, television news and radio broadcasts, they got the impression that this was a localized problem, not shared by the rest of the country. Billy no longer could rest on his laurels, and he braced for the possibility of more changes, perhaps moving to another state entirely.

 

an old woman before her time

 

She can wake up at any hour between seven AM and noon, and never knows which it will be unless she has the rare appointment. If that appointment is before one in the afternoon, she sets her alarm clock for seven AM, just to remind herself. They’re just appointments with doctors and clinics, so it’s economically wise not to miss them. She rarely goes to bed before eleven, and often, even if she does, she tosses and turns until two or three. Naps in the afternoon, born from boredom, can last twenty minutes to three hours. Some weeks she sleeps all the time; other weeks she can’t sleep a wink.

A person alone gets old faster than a person with family, friends or things to do. She gets up and tries to establish routines to keep going. Each day she dresses, puts on makeup and jewelry and makes her bed, as if someone might come over and actually see her. Each Friday she marks another week survived, but for what reason she doesn’t know. Perhaps simply fear of the pain of suicide.

Without money, none of the events offered for lonely people are affordable. Heck, food is not affordable, nor gas to go anywhere. There is nothing to do but sit at home and wait for another day to pass.

Without family or friends, the free things she could enjoy are empty. They should be shared. Walking to the mailbox is simply a practice to see what the outside world is like.

Who cares? Not even she.

Viral Implosion – chapter three

tightening noose

It’s fair to say that America was heading for a financial crisis, one that was affecting the rest of the world as well. The bulk of the federal budget was coming from corporations and wealthy individuals, but the majority of outgoing funds was going out to defense, subsidies for farmers and small business, and assistance for minorities and the labor force.

Funds had to be rebalanced to ride out the unnamed recession while setting up new priorities in a reshaping of the new American economy. Far too much money was going out that did not produce a return.

The trade deficit was easily rectified – high tariffs on anything coming into the country and no taxation or tariffs on anything shipped out. Cheap labor was not an incentive any more – after repealing labor protection, jobs were paying a lot less, with fewer benefits, and desperate people were taking the jobs as fast as they were offered. At the same time, goods which were over produced or failing quality control could be sold to other countries to continue the flow of profit. Of course, this put some countries in dire states, as they depended on their cheap labor to fill their coffers. Countries such as red China and India had to find a new way to bring in money.

The noose started to tighten domestically. The first victims were those agencies under the federal aegis that offered non-commercial services. Following the Peter Principle, top level management was fired across the board. People in far lesser positions were promoted to fill the top slots, at less than half the pay.

The affected agencies included FEMA, NIH, The Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion, the Food and Nutrition Service, 4-H, Rural Housing Service, Rural Utilities Service, Administration on Aging, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, FDA, Indian Health Services, Public Health Service, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services … and many more. These agencies were given a cut budget, with the order to thin their ranks by 30% while maintaining all services. Press release: the federal government is cleaning out dead wood in its infrastructure, but not denying any benefits to the public.

Any agency which was dedicated to research or cultural arts was closed down completely and its employees summarily dismissed. This was considered a layoff, but unemployment funds were not increased, so each ex-employee’s share was a lower percentile than normal.

Looting, theft and outright begging increased logarithmically. In poor countries, and those whose income was dependent on the largesse of richer countries, the people got rebellious; civil wars expanded quickly into wars with neighboring countries.

Defense had to be fortified. With jobs getting more and more scarce, the military became an attractive alternative again, with its PXs and housing. The National Guard was pulled back within the US borders to protect corporations, transportation and politicians from rioters, looters and assassins. The other armed forces pulled out of big-brother missions, since it was getting impossible to control other countries under such stress. Instead, they patrolled all US borders and shores, while giving assistance to those other countries that appeared capable of riding out the economic pressures.

Retired military personnel got first preference for jobs. While this appeared in the press as patriotic support for our veterans, the actuality was far more pragmatic. Low-end salaries still look good after military pay for over two decades, and they continued their rights to shop at PXs, especially with a veteran pension on the side. These personnel have an habitual tendency to obey suggestions from their higher-ups and people who have given them benefits of one sort or another. And their knowledge base is limited to what the military wanted them to know, so corporations were not threatened by innovative ideas.

This knowledge is handy when veterans are hired into defense jobs. But they are also valuable to non-defense industries because they are easily guided.

Within the military, budgets shifted. Infantry and ground troops were scaled back, to concentrate funds toward high-tech WMDs. No need to try maintaining distance between us and troublemakers, both foreign and domestic. No need to put on a friendly face. We will either support you or wipe you out; choose your side. A whole new face on the western world.

The movers and shakers at this point were those of size, power and wealth – the AMA, NRA, insurance companies, media conglomerates, technology conglomerates, banks, the ABA and global manufacturing.

With the help of the media, people kept electing Republicans to the Senate and House. This was also true of state legislations. Governors could wreak havoc, so they were handled by the far right controls. The only real power the President of the United States had was in Supreme Court nominations. Fortunately, the aging Court was ripe for replacement and congress would only accept young right-wing justices. Anything else the President may want to achieve could easily be shot down or blessed according to right wing initiatives. So it wasn’t really important to control the Presidential vote. The electoral college was still in effect, and the press did the campaigning.

To give the appearance of choice, a third political party was created – the People’s Party. It offered a more moderate position, but in reality this party was financed and managed by the exact same forces as the Republican party.

The Democratic party was still in the fray, but financial backing was hard to come by and the press only released the more conservative views of Democratic candidates. Every once in a while a very wealthy man who cared only about being able to say “I am the President” would throw his hat into the Democratic ring, saying whatever desperate voters wanted to hear. Once in office, though, this mogul would be interested in only one thing – being a figurehead for four to eight years, then stepping onto the cushion he’d spent almost a decade preparing.

In effect, voters were finding it hard to tell the differences between the three parties.

Agriculture started centralizing. Congress repealed all subsidies for organic farms. Dairy farmers were warned that the large companies buying their milk would not allow sales on the side of raw milk or any other produce. Eventually these farmers had to accept whatever price was offered. Their children had no interest in continuing the subsistence level of life, so the small farms ended up purchased and run by the large.

The chemical industry needed a little bolstering, since medicine for the proletariat was becoming too pricey. So antibiotics for animals and chemical fertilizers became tax-free and unregulated.

Ranchers and farmers benefited from that change. The cutbacks on USDA loans, grants and training countered the benefits. Regular farmers succumbed to the lure of chemical farming – nor more rotation of fields. Many started dabbling in hydroponics, to increase yield, often using fields that used to lie fallow (no more subsidies for that) for this soil-free method which defied the vagaries of weather.

Crops were abundant, and the government bought whatever the farmers couldn’t sell at the inflated prices. The press did not let people know that there was so much available, therefore the scales of supply and demand were not tipped. The “Fed” would pay even higher prices for variety, so that farmers would not limit production to a single product. All the surplus food got stored in silos and deep freezers in an area of Kansas simply referred to as Number Fifty Two.

There was a new approach to the health of the populace. Laws forcing the purchase of auto, home and medical insurance were strictly enforced by the National Guard, even as insurance prices grew. The adage “Death is the poor man’s doctor” was becoming a reality. The average person could no longer afford the medicine, doctor visits and hospitalizations. Laws requiring vaccinations were repealed. Still, the wealthy people continued them.

General practitioners started to join into groups. To see your doctor, or one of his associates, you needed to pay an annual retainer to the group. Appointments with your chosen doctor had to be booked three months in advance. In emergency situations you saw whichever doctor in that group was available.

The mission of the FDA altered. They were still the only means to get a drug released in the United States. But follow-up policing was too expensive. Pharmaceuticals which could not be sold domestically could be sold outside the country at cut rate prices that still produced a hefty profit. Other countries, under similar economic stress, had no resources to regulate quality assurance.

Transportation had shifted along with everything else. Rather than continue the high cost of the TSA, airlines became nationalized. Travel by air was now only with federal approval and safety was managed by the National Guard. The air became the venue for military and corporate movement.

With the borders closed, cruises and personal transport by sea ceased. The gap was quickly filled by the transport of goods. Perishables were kept domestic, in a move for self-sufficiency. But all other overproduction was for sale.

With gasoline at $15.00 a gallon, bicycles became the method to visit friends and family as well as for shopping.

People still need clothing, furniture, guns, ammunitions and technology. Manufacturing became the principle employer of the middle and lower classes. “Made in the USA” became a rally flag. Plants dotted the American map like a rash of prickly heat. Each plant offered housing and a mini-city for those lucky enough to work there. The assembly line methodology made it easy to learn one’s little corner of the industry. At the same time, few knew the whole assembly of a product so there was little danger of an employee going out on his or her own to compete. Laws regulating safety of clothing and toys remained in place.

Gun regulation, on the other hand, went through a complete revamp. No longer could states indulge their separate fancies. All guns came under the control of the ARF. Automatic weapons were summarily outlawed for any non-military use. All other regulations were dropped; no more registration and no more waiting periods for purchase. Gun collectors would often file a list of serial numbers with the local police, since they were vulnerable to theft.

The popularity of technology really paid off. From e-mail and phone sends, corporations were developing immense databases of consumer likes and interests. This gave them the ability to target their ads for each person uniquely. The advertisements came in the form of US mail, e-mail, and even suggestions via Facebook posts. If a person purchased something from ABC Store, s/he was immediately hit from three sides with further ABC Store sales. Marketing approached consumers in a reverse approach – deliver the pain; if you don’t want the pain, then ask us to stop. Sadly, requests to stop the junk mail were often ignored and never policed.

The excitement about wireless functions overtook caution. Corporations were capturing a great deal more information than just shopping habits. Sophisticated data mining determined rash spenders, gamblers, hidden funds, people with prurient interests, cheaters … with this information one knows who can be manipulated and how.

How to win the mystery writers award

source: Microsoft clip art

How can an author win the mystery writers award? – Eliminate the competition – literally. Then document the acts, changing the names and any incriminating details, and publish it!

 

A good weekend

I like to separate the weekends from weekdays for a variety of reasons, even though I am “retired”. As a consultant, I often worked weekends, and when I didn’t I had to run all the errands my workaholic life delayed. So setting up a couple of ‘days of rest’ is a nice break for me. Online vendors for shopping are open, so I can do a little shopping, especially for Christmas or birthdays, without coping with crowded stores. But I can’t contact any businesses or services by phone, so I am relieved from a lot of busy work.

Saturdays, I like to put Music Choice Olden Goldies on the plasma in the living room. While I am doing whatever, my mind wanders back to the good times, from elementary school through college. I not only reminisce, I think out problems, and often find topics I want to write about, both fiction and non-fiction. I leave Saturdays for minor errands around the house – water the plants, switch winter/summer clothes and home décor, laundry. Then special projects like cleaning and rearranging the china closet. I sometimes call friends in the hope that they are home (a crap shoot) and write to people like my grandchildren. I grew up with old-fashioned hand-written letters, and still cherish them.

Around noon I call my mother. At the age of 89, her dementia has gotten so bad that I doubt she even knows who she is talking to. But she enjoys the one-to-one attention, and I feel as if I’m doing what little I can for her. I challenge her mind – name three colors, what’s the weather like, which should I do, A or B? In this situation she doesn’t feel as if she’s being backed against a wall, so she becomes a little proactive and tries to respond. It may not be connected to reality, but even confabulation keeps her mind working. And I get to remind her that she is loved and missed. While it is an upsetting experience for me, at least I feel like I’m doing something to fend off the dementia dragon. When she is bored (most of the time, since she has no short-term memory), I give her ideas of things to do, and she often remembers long enough to try to do these things.

The rest of the day is open to do whatever my inclination leads me to. Sometimes computer games, sometimes writing. I’m a terrible night owl and usually stay up until 1 or 2 AM, so sleeping in or an afternoon nap is okay.

If the weather is warm, I go to my patio, bookended with my flower gardens, watch the birds at the feeders, and read a book or do crossword puzzles.

wishing for a hammock

Sundays, I like to put Music Choice light classical on the plasma in the living room. If it’s rainy or there is snow outside, I flip on the fireplace. The peaceful view through the lace curtains, and the precious objects I keep in there offer eye candy and peace. A good place to meditate. Again, if the weather is warm, I spend the time outside, possibly gardening, but at least enjoying the patio.

If it’s football season, the plasma switches to the games at one PM and stays on them till they’re all over. If I have it, eggs with bacon or sausage and rye toast for breakfast, and fresh-ground coffee. I often dress in a lounging robe, since I rarely go out on Sundays. I never make appointments on Mondays because I don’t even look at my calendar until Monday morning.

Nighttime is met with a full dinner if available. Although I was once a gourmet cook, I can’t be bothered fussing over food for myself during the week. If football is on, I forego the dinner and munch on canapés all afternoon and evening; this is what my husband and I used to do on Sundays once I learned he preferred that to a big Sunday dinner in mid-afternoon, even if it was scheduled for half-time.

my “fireplace”

Sunday is Me day. Manicure, pedicure, shampoo, and so on, ending in a soak in a bubble bath before bed. If I have a needlework project going, I work on it while watching television or sunning on the patio. I often treat myself to a glass of wine or a cocktail in the afternoon.

What would I like to add to my weekends? Visiting friends and family, or fulfilling my bucket list (Patriots game, parasailing, zip lining). This area is rife with culture – lilac festival, jazz festival, museums and so on. If I can find someone to go with, I like to do that.

I have never been known for having a routine, and weekends are no exception, so nothing stated here is carved in stone (except, maybe, the pro football). The freedom to ask “What do I feel like doing?” – and do it – is the beauty of my weekends.

Viral Implosion – chapter two

Centre County, PA

Rika put the paper down on the crisp lace tablecloth she’d inherited. As every morning, she had read it stem to stern, but today’s news left a poor taste in her mouth even after reading the comics; she was in no mood to cocoon with the crossword puzzle. She and Jon were lucky. They had a lot of old-world training in their bones, retired early and created a farm just big enough to support the two of them, with room for growth in case any of their three children wanted to take it over or join them. Maybe it was just the residual hippie in them. Everything was paid for, so the pension and social security were for frills. Rika was a general practitioner and Jon was a general contractor; they were able to maintain their lives and those of their family rather independently, especially since their desires were few.

One of those desires was a fresh-ground and brewed cup of coffee, which they shared each morning on the back porch most of the year. Jon was in his usual polo shirt and chinos, looking fit as ever, since he had the opportunity to continue building things around the farm.

“Jon, did you notice that the head of FEMA was fired, supposedly for mismanagement of funds?”

“Yes, but I know him. He’s an honest man with a heart of gold and a strong sense of purpose. He had to have been set up. Probably ruffled some political feathers. The atmosphere on the Hill is very egocentric, and they hate to part with money for ‘causes’. I didn’t see where a replacement was named, did you?”

“No. In a side bar they mentioned wanting to wait, to find a ‘suitable’ replacement, whatever that means.”

Rika sipped on her second cup of coffee and just listened to the sounds around her. There was a cricket under the porch who was desperately trying to find a mate. Apparently he was unsuccessful, as he’s been chirping for weeks. The cow and horse were grazing. Jon had milked the cow before coffee, since he liked to relax at breakfast without having Bossie complain.

They always seemed to come up with the silliest names for their animals. “Who could have a cow that wasn’t named Bossie?” he asked. It was such a good idea to fence in ten acres and let the animals roam. The chickens squawked regularly but seemed to like roaming around especially near the people. Still, each day was like Easter Sunday as Rika went hunting for eggs. The chickens didn’t seem to feel compelled to lay the eggs in the chicken coop. There were six of them, each laying an egg a day. They were named Eeny, Meeny, Miney, Moe, Larry and Curly. Two eggs for Rika, two for Jon, and two for cooking and baking each day.

While they were certainly aware of subsistence farming, neither wanted to pursue it. So Rika continued her practice with a small number of patients, and Jon couldn’t quit making furniture even though they had already filled the house, so he sold the extras regularly, including requests from visitors to the house and referrals from happy customers.

The couple was, in the vernacular, “comfortable” – wanting for nothing and not wanting a lot. They both had a circle of friends that they got together with about once a month, three children and five grandchildren. They were habitual savers, which has come in handy since the costs of meat and heat have risen.

Tonight was one of the get-togethers with their friends, to be held at Rika’s house. Children over eighteen were also welcomed, but not young ones, because sometimes the conversations got pretty raucous. No topic was off limits, including sex, religion and politics. They were an intelligent bunch, all of whom taught their children to think on their own.

Rika was planning on making some new canapés, a variation on the cucumber sandwich. But just in case, she would also make some of the standards. Her culinary pursuits didn’t always pan out, but it was fun dabbling.

Jon scuffled off to the barn right after breakfast to varnish a desk chair he’d been making for his childhood friend, Ben.

Ben Mason was a civil lawyer. He got accolades in law school, but wanted to avoid criminal work, so he specialized in “anti-corporate” law. Perhaps because of his hippie background, he liked protecting Joe Citizen against the big guns. After he passed the bar, he proposed to Willie (Wilhelmina), an interior decorator he met at a book club. Ben found it easier to explain law to Willie than to understand the profusion and nuances of hues in Willie’s world, but he did try to stay involved with her pursuits. His lanky six-foot-three frame fit nicely with Willie’s statuesque five-foot-ten. Willie loved beautiful things. Sometimes her friends had to temper her desire to own the entire art world. They would admonish her to leave some beauty for the rest of us. To Ben’s eyes, she was part of the art collection, with huge green eyes and rich black hair. Her tall frame hid any evidence of the four children she’d borne.

 

 

The first to arrive that evening was Beth. Widowed ten years ago, she didn’t mind living alone. She was a computer consultant and now only took contract work, so she could travel a bit and get to know all parts of the country. Because of the long absences, she has elected not to have pets that would get neglected. To make up for that, she set out food for the deer and wild turkeys in the surrounding woods. There was nothing remarkable about Beth, with her mousy brown hair and ordinary eyes, and with a 5’4” height she remained virtually invisible to the world. Her work also gave her the opportunity to see what is happening in a wide variety of industries; she seemed to absorb everything around her like a learning sponge.

Beth brought a fresh vegetable plate with dips, all from the garden. She had also made a full gallon of her sangria, which was different each time she made it, depending on what fruits were in season and which wine she’d brewed the week before. Her Volvo served her well with all the traveling. She always arrived early, since this was really her only circle of friends, and she looked forward to their get-togethers to think about something other than work. Besides, it wasn’t fair to the host or hostess of the night to have to set up all alone. When Beth hosted, she was always a little behind the eight ball if she was on a contract, and usually just as discombobulated when she wasn’t late, so she knew how it felt.

There wasn’t really any of that rivalry that pervaded the home entertaining of the fifties. These were all old friends who knew the relationships were of far more value than the environs. Rika’s home was very comfortable and roomy, and the chill Pennsylvania evenings were often celebrated with a roaring fire in the living room reflecting off all the bric-a-brac and conversation pieces dotting the room. Everywhere one glances there is a thought-provoking conversation starter, from the Maori wedding necklace to the original Ginny doll.

Beth and Rika were already discussing the curious FEMA situation when Mike and Daisy arrived sporting one of Daisy’s famous cookie platters. Daisy never settled for sugar cookies. Each get together saw five new variations for appraisal. This night her friends could sample spiezel, tiny cherry tarts, spice-cake cookies, chocolate logs and peanut-brittle. Daisy was a real estate broker, appraiser and manager, so she could put aside just about any afternoon to indulge her love of baking. Sometimes she would bring a special pie or cake instead of cookies. She blames her stout build on this love of baking, but probably Mother Nature had more to do with it than anything else, between her German bloodline and six children. Her graying hair complemented her crystal-gray eyes, and she had a blush of health in her skin. It was through Daisy’s real estate connections that Mike came into her life. Mike was an airline pilot who demanded a good deal of her patience and understanding to find him a perfect refuge which they eventually decided to share. Daisy was managing the farm that Rika and Jon came to love. While helping them secure their own hideaway, she found herself often in conversations with them that ran into lunch or dinner. A strong friendship developed which resulted in Mike and Daisy becoming part of “the group”.

Sangria was poured for the five of them as Jon lit up the fire. Mike observed that the situation at FEMA was symptomatic of a lot of benefit organizations, both federal and private. The National Endowment for the Arts had been totally folded; the tight economic times forced the government to redirect these funds into more commercially-viable pursuits. Daisy saw rising mortgage rates threatening real estate; the state tried to ameliorate the crunch by repealing the usury law, so banks could escalate their rates. A lot of Daisy’s clients were coming up with smaller and smaller down payments, hoping they could still manage the monthly mortgage payments. This was alright while inflation was soaring, but with the current situation, people were finding it harder and harder to hold on to their properties. Rental companies and landlords saw that there were going to be many who could no longer afford to buy homes or stay in the ones they owned. This made for a lovely seller’s market, and rental rates went sky high.

Beth observed, “In a way, consulting has been a boom. A lot of companies are forcing their employees to accept pay cuts. Those that won’t are laid off – then re-hired as consultants. The laws protecting consultants from being full-time workers without benefits have been repealed. The companies see this as a financial cream puff. They ‘hire’ the workers back at the same pay rate, but don’t offer medical, pension or life insurance benefits, which saves them a bundle. The consultants don’t get paid sick time or holiday pay. Meanwhile the stockholders don’t see an employee overhead, and anyone can have his or her contract voided without cause. To top it off these workers have to come up with these benefits’ costs out of the same paycheck.”

Rika nodded. “I see this in my practice as well. The insurance companies are increasing co-payments and premiums. My patients are avoiding medical help as they try to scrape up the premiums. Even for myself and Jon, the hospitals are rescinding professional courtesies – we are paying the same as our patients now. People who avoid regular care are ending up hospitalized with serious illnesses. But Medicare and Medicaid are lowering their limits even more, so that almost no one is eligible for financial aid. I’ve had two patients declare bankruptcy strictly because of amassed medical bills.”

At this point Naomi and Zach let themselves in. Since Naomi is an agriculturist, and Zach an expert at animal husbandry, they had spent a lot of time with Rika and Jon while they tried to determine the extent of the “personal farm” to be developed and managed. The new arrivals were both professors at a nearby university and Jon had sought them out for advice. Visits to the farm to check on progress and offer further advice developed into companionship. Both Naomi and Zach reflected their Jewish blood in their appearance, and were advocates of saving the planet, but they held on to their religion more as a philosophy than a ritual practice. Hearing the conversation already in progress, Naomi piped in.

“This is hitting the food industry as well. I like to shop at little specialty markets and butchers, and two of them have already closed. Mom and Pop cannot compete with SuperFoods any more. Corporations have taken over the sources – dairies, cattle ranches, fruit orchards and vegetable farms. Regulations are making it harder and harder for an individual to offer food to the markets and so they are selling out to the big companies. The big companies find it “unfeasible” to continue offering special cuts and produce, so they discontinue them. These nice little places where I used to get specialties and local produce cannot afford to buy and resell.”

Willie sauntered in around seven. Ben had gone directly to the barn to check out the progress on his desk chair. The varnish was still a little tacky, so he resigned himself to sitting in his old beat-up one for another couple of days.

Ben then joined Jon at the barbeque grill to offer unsolicited advice on the proper timing for turning kabobs. Once the kabobs had reached a condition acceptable to both men, they brought them inside.

“Today has been one of the best of this spring,” Jon announced in an effort to banish the look of consternation off the faces of the others. “What type of music shall we listen to tonight?”

The sampling of mood versus jazz, rock and the bossa nova began. They settled on soft rock, to lift the spirits and stir up reminiscences.

Listening to “So Happy Together”, Willie observed that “their generation” (the ages of the group spanned from late 40s to early 60s) was so lucky. They’d gotten the discipline and self-sufficiency training from their depression-era parents, the Happy Days of the 50s, full of innocence and simple goals, and the liberating, eye-opening and empowering 60s, full of hope, love and the belief that they could make a difference.

The ecological changes they tried to institute in the 60s hit a hard road, but by the late 1990s, even green became keen.

With such a good base, life just kept swimming along. They adjusted to the loss of friends in the war, but the Middle East still causes concern for children and grandchildren.

They started a game of remember …

Jon: handlebar mustaches and long sideburns

Willie: dress codes in school

Beth: pinafores

Ben: bell bottoms

Jon: bell bottom hip huggers!!

Rika: yeah, back when we had waists

Daisy: free love and women’s liberation

They all had a grand time testing out the new recipes and sharing memories of crazy old times. Everyone relaxed into speculation of what would be on the bucket list for the future. As the night drew to a close, many of them had things they wanted to look into, to turn the bucket list into real possibilities.

 

 

 

 

 

The dog lover in me

I love dogs. I really do. Decades of having those furry little beasts run up to me when I get home; rolling on the living room floor together on a Saturday afternoon; getting slobbery kisses; teaching them to fall down ‘dead’ when I point a finger and say “Bang!”; watching them bounce when it’s time for the Sunday afternoon canned food… so many warm memories. They are loyal and loving, more a family member than many relatives we avoid.

And it’s because I love dogs that I care for them religiously – good food; keep their shots up to date; register them; groom and bathe them. And above all I keep them on a leash whenever they cross the threshold of my house.

The leash keeps my dog from getting into fights with other dogs, chasing the occasional cat, and getting lost in bad weather. Above all, it protects my dog from Mel.

Mel is a friend of mine who is normally very nice. But he has a thing about loose dogs that dig in his garden, mess on his lawn, and steal hamburgers off his grill. Mel has a sort of progressive list of actions he’ll take. I’ve known him to do a couple of them, but never could prove that a dog’s disappearance was due to some of the more extreme acts on Mel’s list. He talks about these things after a few beers, and it’s hard to tell if it’s wishful thinking, drunken confession or simply his dark sense of humor.

If Mel recognizes the dog, he’ll usually call the owner; after all, it could have been an accidental escape. If it keeps recurring, he will call the pound and have the dog collected. He keeps a BB gun handy and aims for an animal’s flank, so that they go limping home. He has calculated how long a medium-sized dog can survive in the trunk of a car. Mel and his wife have nice warm fur coats in the winter – but I’m not sure of the source of the pelts. I will also not attend his “mystery meat” barbeques — you never know…

Mel has daydreamed about tying a dog to a passing semi. He has even suggested that the little yappers make excellent greyhound racing ‘rabbits’. According to him, large dogs make very popular den rugs. Incidences of poisoned animals have been suggested to trace back to Mel. He has mentioned as well that kidnapped dogs sell well on the black market, especially the pure breeds.

The ideas that pop out of Mel’s mouth during a Friday night poker game give me the willies.

And this is why I keep my dogs on leashes whenever they go out! I love them and want them to live long, happy and healthy lives.

Paddington