Morning Update: 06/14/24

Morning came earlier, and more painful, than I expected. No, it wasn’t the storms that moved through just after midnight; I weathered those without much issue. Jack-Jack, our dear mane coon mix, was balancing himself on my one-inch-wide headboard and decided to play with the one photo that was standing on a shelf. All the other photos are secured to the wall, but not this one. Jack decides that is a good enough reason to knock it off the shelf, onto my head, breaking the glass and giving me one hell of a headache to start the day. Fortunately, the glass broke into large pieces and stayed in the frame. I wasn’t cut by anything. And I didn’t curse as loud and vehemently as I wanted. I’ve taken the appropriate pain medication, but I have a feeling I’m still heading for bed once I finish this.

We stayed in most of yesterday. I think the high here got up to 91 yesterday. It will be close to the same every day for a while. I think Monday’s forecasted high is 96. I’m not sure what that means for any kind of Father’s Day activity.

I feel sorry for the guys who pick up our trash this week. As the kids have been re-arranging everything, they’ve been filling bags with trash that should have gone out days/weeks/years ago. Our trash bin is piled high. But as I took the last two bags out this morning, I looked down the street and saw that ours isn’t the only bin piled high. Our trash guys work hard any day, but they really have their work cut out for them this week.

The card and related material for my new Medicaid replacement insurance came in yesterday’s mail. The policy takes effect July 1, which can’t come too soon. The good news is that not only will it cover transportation to the doctor, but to the pharmacy, curbside grocery pickup, and the social security office. I may try the curbside grocery pickup. Maybe if I do that the ice cream won’t be melted by the time I get it in the freezer. The big question, though, is whether it will cover assisted living costs. I won’t have full access to the information until the first of the month. We’ll cross our fingers and hope for the best.

Apparently, the Pentagon has been playing dirty. Again. Reuters is reporting this morning that “At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. military launched a secret campaign to counter what it perceived as China’s growing influence in the Philippines, a nation hit especially hard by the deadly virus. It aimed to sow doubt about the safety and efficacy of vaccines that China was supplying.” As if there wasn’t enough misinformation and questions about the whole pandemic, does anyone need the Pentagon jumping and making intentionally false statements? This is not the type of activity that we need from our military. Of course, considering who was president at the time, I can’t say I’m surprised. Perhaps it makes sense that the Pentagon would follow the example of its Commander-In-Chief and lie about… everything.

Abortion rights supporters are understandably happy about the unanimous decision by the Supreme Court to maintain the availability of Mifepristone, a widely-used abortion pill. Be aware, however, that the ruling doesn’t actually change anything, and anti-abortion zealots are determined to get it off the market through any means possible. As this decision was being handed down, Republicans in Congress blocked an attempt by Democrats to push a bill that would have guaranteed a woman’s access to IVF, the latest enemy of anti-choice nut jobs. The issue isn’t going away, is most likely to get most nasty in state-level elections, and is critical to guaranteeing a woman’s autonomy over her body. I am hoping that more angry women step up to the plate and strongly defeat Republicans (mostly old white men) on this issue.

There is a video circulating that appears to show the orange felon attempting to kiss a young lady who is obviously turning him down. I’ve seen the video, though, and I’m not sure it’s legit, which is why I’m not sharing it with you. I worry about this form of possible misinformation. Does it sound like something the former president would do? Yep. We all know he’s a predator. We knew that back in 2016 and yet he was elected anyway. What bothers me is the number of people for whom that isn’t a problem. Both presidential candidates tend to give off creeper vibes around women and how either of them is on the ticket astonishes me. Are ya’ll really okay with that? Are you okay with your wives and daughters being treated so crudely?

My head is really hurting now. Thanks, Jack. I can tell this is going to be a wonderful day.