Oh well.

Two shadows seem to have been lifted this week. Donald Trump has left Washington and gone back to Florida, and Jo Biden and Kamala Harris do not send me into a state of discomfort, fear, trembling, the way Trump did. I have actually always been afraid of the glitzy inauguration of American presidents. I think my fear of Potuses probably goes back to the time of the Cuba crisis, when I was sixteen….All that. The only president who didn`t scare me was Baraq Obama, and currently the new leaders do seem remarkably sensible, honest and reliable. I am only left with one tiny reservation and I don`t know whether any other soft-left people share it. That is- that with all his disgusting manners, bluster and dishonesty, Trump didn`t get America into any new wars…

The other shadow is that Jeff and I are both getting Covid-vaccinated this weekend. Fact is,I have been recovering (slowly,) from what must have been a third episode of ME – it started in October 2018. This year of doing very little has at times seemed genuinely restful. Lots of access to interesting zoom talks, and reconnecting with several very old friends. Regular not-too-long walks, and time to reflect and write more stories. We have increased our contribution to food banks, obviously.

So, without the shadows of Trump and Covid – is life returning to normal, or something a bit like it? We are getting older, no question. Two weeks ago Jeff had a fall and smashed his two front teeth out. Just getting over the shock. Mashed potatoes from now until he gets new front teeth. No guarantees that even without Trump and and Covid threatening our peace of mind…we will achieve either perfect health, or peace of mind! Oh well.