Occupation of Independence

I was almost laughing at myself as I did it: as I drove the utility vehicle by a campsite of (south Asian) Indians, I waved at small Indian children, and they waved back. It was impossible not to feel delighted with the little munchkins.  I actually remember my grandparents acting like that around my siblings and me 60 years ago. But I never act like that around mainstream-white-middle-class kids, and haven't for decades. In fact I completely ignore them. I dislike them. Why the double standard? Physical cuteness? -- nah. Do they first perceive behavior from me that then starts them into cute behavior? Or do they start it? What a strange thing it is for a human to be delighted with just about any dog and to feel indifference or even disdain toward little members of his own species. I doubt my reaction is all that different from most Americans. It is possible that the inability to be delighted with "our own" children is one of the best proofs that we are circling the drain

Two perfect days in one week. You won't believe this but I actually sat in a chair outdoors.  Rare for me, but some people do a lot of it. The air was a little cool and the sun was a little warm. So it was possible to adjust the angles to be perfect. But what about what really matters: the wind. It was dead calm. What a rare experience it is in the Southwest not to feel under relentless assault from the sun and wind and blowing dust. Perfect moments are really perfect when they are combined with just the right music. A good suggestion for this moment is Schubert's Rosamunde D. 797, No.3 (Andantino). My goodness, they love to label things with confusing jargon. It is on an album, "Schubert, The Essentials." In order to deprive Bezos of a little business, my music comes from ClassicalArchives.com  .    

Many people have probably watched videos of the tsunami that hit Japan a half dozen years ago. Some people describe the shoreline pulling out to sea just before the tsunami hits. Sometimes they talk about an eerie silence. I guess that is easy to explain: as the shoreline pulls away from you, the usual sound of waves on the shore is further away from you. _____________________________________  Today I was trying not to surrender to Fear and Dread about the upcoming holiday since there should be one more day of normalcy, it seemed. It was late morning and yet the wind was not howling. The morning outflow of campers was already over. The campground had an eerie silence to it. I turned the engine off so I could just soak it in. It was a precious moment and deserved to be honored. Then suddenly, without any warning, cars started driving into the campground. Their driving wasn't blatantly aggressive, but somehow it seemed menacing. Oh no, here it comes! I thought it would hold off until

  The Texans are readying their rigs for the start of the camping season in Coloraduh. It has been a while since we had a caption contest, so... Credit goes to Ed, the great quotemeister of the internet!

  It has made the virus-lockdown easier for me to focus on the good things that came out of it. For instance, I have always been in favor of 6 feet of distance between people. Being greedy about it, I would prefer 6 become 10. I like seeing those plexiglass sneeze-guards go up to protect people who work in retail settings and get sneezed on 100 times per day, during a typical flu and cold season. Let's hope the plexiglass stays up. It is disappointing that half the parking spaces at stores haven't been painted off. Wouldn't it be nice to open your car doors and not worry about smacking somebody else or getting smacked by them? Many people eat "out" less than in the past, and save a small fortune by that discipline. And if you do eat out, the diners next to you aren't bumping into your chair every time they shift a little bit. If I were a Democrat I would be worried about the nonchalance of people in ultra-blue Colorado about mask-fear-compliance. (Granted, the