Happy 250th America!

I know we're struggling with the holiday, but be of good cheer!  At least we're still vertical.

I don't have to work, but I am teaching my first Sip-n-Paint here at the park for guests.  When Rhonda broached the idea to me last year my immediate reply was, No, are you kidding even though I didn't know what that was.  I answer the same with new foods.

But over the winter I had time to chill, and to Rhonda's astonishment a couple months ago I said I'd do it.  What the hell, can't hurt when it comes to experience.

Only I don't like painting on canvases.  Because of my vision (lazy eye) my depth perception is pretty much non-existent, so I've found it easier to paint when I'm holding something in my hand or leaning against it.

OYSTER SHELLS!  What a nice memento of a trip to the Oregon Coast, and fortunately we've got loads of them, thanks to another Workamper who occasionally heads for Newport to where the restaurants toss their empties.  We bartered shortly after I arrived, and she made this beautiful painting of Ruff Life, I must take a photo now.

My American Flag experiment was to (1) experience painting on a shell and (2) paint something simple enough for an hour, hour and a half class.  Sure, it's fitting for the day, but not everyone wants to display a flag on a shelf.  But an ocean sunset?  Piece of cake for the novice...class begins at 2.

Happy Fourth Everyone!

At This Age, No One Expects Anything Out Of Me Anyway

I'm working on a painting to enter into this month's Member Show at the local art center; not this, of course.  I've been grappeling with the fact that my hands just can't paint the way they used to, quite frustrating; so I've been doing loads of rationalizing with Amy, inside my head.

"No one expects anything out of you anyway, at this point in time."

I know, but I don't want to stop being an artist completely.  The theme of the show is Pathways, and since none of my gourds are suitable, I decided to paint something similar to the back of my teardrop, now sold.

"Same, but different."  That's ok, I suppose.

"Consider the mirror."

In Puerto Rico, I'd occasionally find an abandoned decorating magazine, and in 2002 I ripped this picture out.  Isn't it a beauty?

I've carefully kept it in a plastic sleeve, knowing that one day I'd create my own using the shells I'd collected over twelve years.  But I thought I had more, I discovered when I retrieved my things last year from storage.

That's when I remembered all the crafty things I did with kids at the Saturday Market, c. 2012, using my own 'stash' to inspire creativity.  I don't look at that as a wasted effort, but what about my own dream?  Was it lost, too?

So as happens, last month Rosemary and I headed to Goodwill to look for craft items for summer projects here at the park, and where I found a tall glass vase full of old shells and rocks and things for less than two bucks.  I wandered over to the frame section, you never know when you'll find a Picasso amongst the Dogs Playing Cards.

Thanks for Blowing Up My Dream, Mr. President

These pictures are taped to my RV kitchen cabinet.  The bottom scene, "My Kind of View," I painted (and sold) during a 2023 challenge at the Newport Visual Arts Center.  I included BC in the left corner.

The top picture I snagged when some online ad popped into my screen.  It's not very large, but it would be a palace to me:  solid walls; neither floating on the water or balanced on 6 tires; living on a piece of property which won't be ripped out from underneath me.  Maybe a yard for a dog.

But that continues to be a Pipe Dream, thanks to Donald J. Trump, who owns how many properties?  Why?  Because today he's suddenly decided NOT TO SIGN the bi-partisan housing bill:

"House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., both celebrated the passage of the housing package, which cleared both chambers with overwhelming bipartisan support, an unusual feat in the sharply divided Congress

"The measure aims to increase housing supply, make homes more affordable and cap the amount of single family homes private equity can purchase."  Of interest to me: expanding manufactured housing by unlocking more financing for factory-built homes and eliminates an outdated rule that required manufactured homes to be built on a steel chassis, cutting construction costs significantly.  Continuing,

"The two congressional Republican leaders announced that Trump would sign the bill in Statuary Hall on Wednesday at noon ET.

"But Trump downplayed the bill in a Truth Social post Wednesday morning, then followed up canceling its signing altogether, saying he won’t sign it until Congress approves the controversial election bill known as the SAVE America Act."

I love the way people who own or have owned houses can so easily say, "It's no big deal; It a headache; It's Always Something," as Gilda Radner would say.

But I'd like to find out for myself and at 70 I'm running out of time. The boat doesn't count (read about King Tut) so I'd be a First-Time-Homeowner, doesn't that help?  I always hope that something changes in the Rules so that maybe, just maybe, I can have one, too.  Live without the fear of being thrown off or out of someone else's property.  A little place like the picture below.  It's not too much to ask.  I don't mean simply GIVE it to me, but allow my piddly Social Security to afford a mortgage on something comparable to this.

Our President and many of you think it's more important to make sure people don't vote illegally; which, contrary to Conspiracy Theories, is NOT allowed in Certain Blue States.  Sure, some people are, for some reason, wanting to vote so badly that they'll cheat.  I happen to believe it's more likely that those people thought or assumed they could vote.

Is that the kind of crime you'd think of if you were determined to break the law?  "Think I'll try to vote."  Trump's truth on this is the same as the Reflecting Pool problem and drinking bleach to fight COVID (before that became a lie/conspiracy, too.)

So thanks to the Jerk and those who support him.

The Pool Wasn't Primed

You don't need to be a pool expert (or the President) to come up with the reason the Reflecting Pool is peeling:  improperly primed, I'd bet my life on it.  Any artist worth their salt knows you've got to prepare a surface prior to painting.  This, from a handout I penned for students in 2004:

PRIMERS

"Priming is the key to most paint finishes.  It creates a bond between the surface you want to paint and the paint finish you are applying.  Primers are specially formulated to create smooth surfaces for the base coat, sealing new drywall, new plaster, concrete, raw wood and any repairs, allowing the paint to spread smoothly without soaking in.  There are many different types of primers for different surfaces.

"Primers should never be used exclusively as a base coat.  I know, we all want to cut corners just a little bit, but don’t be tempted; however, if you want to apply a dark base coat, your primer can be tinted to half the formula of the paint color.  This will reduce the number of coats required to achieve the desired depth of color."

They drained the pool and started slapping on the American Blue.  It's peeling NOT because someone took a box cutter and sliced a long slit but because they did a quick, half-ass job.  If you believe that terrorists are at fault, then I've got the proverbial bridge to sell you - the Gordie Howe might go cheap.

But more alarming is how quickly Trump got the authorities to arrest and charge people for touching the water and supposedly tearing the bottom off.

BULLSHIT!  The outfit who did the job was given it outright, no bids; did you see that shady character who owns the company - the guy Donald knew, then didn't know..  I worked in the budget office for the Navy in the 70's, and every job performed REQUIRED 5 bids minimum (min 3?) before a contract was awarded.

Don't believe Trump's excuse, what a ludicrous lie; but more importantly, don't let them get away with arresting US for insulting the President.  I've written about that loads, and the possibility that my blog might disappear because I've not been kind to our Incompetent-in-Charge.  From a story I wrote in May 2025:

"Once they've filled their concentration camps with illegals and sufficiently deterred others from crossing the border, their blood will be up and they'll start in on citizens.  If habeas corpus is eliminated, it'll be next to impossible to protect anyone encountering law enforcement, whether illegal aliens or legal citizens with prior records.  Who's to determine who is a threat?"

It will get to the point when people are no longer able to keep their heads in the sand.  The man's a lunatic.

Dad Called Me George

"My father was in a dream last night," I excitedly told manager Rhonda.  Dad was across the proverbial crowded room, smiling in my direction, wearing a suit and tie as if heading to work.  "Dad," I cried, and by the time I reached him I was no longer 5'2" but hugging him about his knees.

"You never talk about your father," Rhonda commented and it's true; but not for any reason other than it's been so long ago.  Dad died in 1986 at age 62 from cancer; despite the fact that he quit smoking in his 20's.

Another businessman who worked in the same building was convinced the reason was asbestos in the old brick six-story in midtown Manhattan; across from Port Authority. 

I'm better at writing stories when I include photos as I type, so here goes:

1915

Bron Urban (Urbanowicz) was born in 1925; one of six children of Polish immigrants Chester and Rose who arrived in NYC in the early 1910s.  They were fleeing Russian and Cossack oppression and settled in Greenpoint, Brooklyn.  Grandma and Grandpa worked hard and saved their money, as many immigrants do; and in the 1930s they bought their house on Eckford Street, 3 stories and a loft, for around $6,000, where they lived until the late 1960s. Today that neighborhood's full of million-dollar apartments inhabited by the rich and famous; but back then it was a low-income neighborhood made up of Eastern Europeans.  

Screw the Flamingos, and More Ulcer-Inducing News

So many things happen' at once, it's hard to choose which current event makes me want to vomit the most:

1.  The Conspirators, including but not limited to:  VP Vance, Suzie Wiles, Caroline Levitt, Kash Patel and, of course, Todd Blanche, the President's personal lawyer dressed up as Attorney General for the people.  Meeting in the Situation Room to figure out how to protect Trump from Epstein-from-the-grave.

2.  Ivanka and Jared being boycotted in Albania - I love this story, have you heard?  They want to build a splashy resort on Albania's ONE island which used to belong to the people but has been acquired by the Kushners (or their proxies).  Did I mention it's also a nature preserve?  F__K the FLAMINGOS, the Kushners cry; AND the sea turtles AND the pelicans.  Nice people.

3.  The FBI raiding the offices and homes of a voter registration group in Ohio.  Wouldn't that frighten you, opening the door?  That's what they want. Regardless of whether you think elections are rigged or not, the point is the FBI will start raiding more private homes, offices and organizations with unlawful intent; not to mention hovering at our election stations.

4.  Oregon has mail-in balloting, which is currently at risk from the Feds.  Oregon, along with about 20 other states, are refusing to hand over sensitive voter information; you may recall I wrote about the 'volunteer' couple who came into our private RV park trying to obtain personal information about residents and guests.  That's you, in case you're an RVer.

The threat is that if they don't supply the info, then the Post Office won't deliver ballots.  They don't know or care how convoluted it would be to change things this late in the game.  Hell, they don't care about anything except remaining in power.

The FAIR Elections Act has been reintroduced by Senators Jeff Merkeley (OR) and Alex Padilla (CA); which attempts to curtail AI interference with the November elections, I can't believe we're dealing with this shit:

"To combat threats of AI misuse in U.S. elections, the FAIR Elections Act features several provisions. This includes banning the distribution of false AI-generated election content with the intent of preventing another person of their right to vote. This content can include spreading false information about the time, place or manner of a federal election or eligibility to vote in an election."

I hate the idea of having to vote in person, but if it turns out to be the only guarantee my ballot will make it to the counters, I'll head for Newport on eletion day.

5.  While the lawsuits are going around the courts, Trump's installed 38-yr old buffoon Bill Pulte as temporary Director of National Intelligence.  Pulte's also the current head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency; from where he's already supplied sensitive personal information to the Justice Department to go after political enemies of the President.  

Never mind that, following bi-partisan outrage to Pulte's nomination, Trump changed his choice to Jay Clayton who, like Pulte, has NO intelligence experience.   It's too late: Pulte will have plenty of time to access all kinds of information before Congress gets around to approving Clayton, if they do.  THAT should alarm people from every state; unless you weren't concerned about what those DOGE kiddie-employees were doing in our institutions last year.  And finally, speaking of DOGE:

6.  Our first trillionaire - Elon Musk, no surprise.  But what did surprise me was how he managed to have his IPO included in market indexes prior to the usual length of time:

"Traditionally, newly public companies were forced to wait months to years before becoming eligible for major index inclusion to prove their profitability and trading volume. However, several mechanisms brought SpaceX into indexes almost immediately." In a nutshell, they changed the rules.

"Elon Musk's record-breaking SpaceX initial public offering (IPO) caused major stock market indexes (like Nasdaq and FTSE Russell) to relax their rules, forcing index funds to automatically buy shares for everyday investors and 401(k) retirement accounts within days of trading."

AI continues, "...the initial impact on your index portfolio is quite small."  That should make people feel better; but it's the 'forcing index funds to automatically buy shares' which sounds alarming.

I do appreciate bumper stickers which proclaim (sic), "I bought mine B4 DOGE" for I consider that an adequate disclaimer.  The vehicles without seem to be a declaration of sorts, but I can't point a finger for I still subscribe to Amazon Prime.  Still, if I could afford an electric car I'd look for a different manufacturer.

But how many people who might not otherwise share Musk's vision for our country will now, through their stock portfolio, unwittingly support his causes just the same?  Can you vote as a Democrat while supporting someone who most definitively places his thumb on the Republican scale?  When the Uber-Elite switch back to supporting Democrats, the same could be said in reverse.  Ahhh, it's not so easy now to spot the enemy...

It seems we're now two types of people:  those who support Elon Musk and those who don't.  People are certainly entitled to be entitled; but don't you doubt for a second that Musk is picturing his own progeny sitting in the Oval Office one day (hasn't the kid already been there?); just as I anticipated, among other things in 2024's The Emperor Has No Clothes, that the next Republican presidential candidate will still have the last name of Trump.

I may be in the minority on these issues; and if I was still working in Manhattan, watching my Paine-Webber account, I'd possibly read (these) words and discount (the author) with a tad of disdain (for not appreciating the importance of wealth over virtue.)

Is that you right now?  You know, it IS possible to move your money, just speak to your financial adviser.  I, for one, will be inspecting currency and not accepting any with Trump's signature, in case it turns out to be worthless like so many other items in the White House Etsy Store.  It may take some effort, but so does doing anything worthwhile.