Life in the Lockdown. From March 18, 2020:
The alarm still goes off and I immediately resist picking up my cell phone. Instead I cuddle with my wife, the dog, the cat. But soon the phone is in my hand and I’m checking for messages: my older daughter, my parents, my sister, the embassies, my wife’s office, anyone. Then it’s the Seattle Times, NYT (including the mini-crossword), La Repubblica (Google translates it automatically), Facebook, Sudoku. Pretty soon I’ve swapped the phone for the laptop. CNN, NBC, BBC, FOX (yes, even), thelocal.it, ESPN. Shit, it’s 10:30 already! Breakfast with what’s left of Colbert, Oliver, Che. Dishes, laundry, kitty litter, vacuum for pet fur, sweep courtyards and sidewalk. My younger daughter is in school in her room. My wife is working from wherever her back doesn’t hurt. On laptop again, hopefully in the sun on the roof; reading, editing, writing. Guitar? Devise plan for limited sojourns into the neighborhood – dog walking, grocery store every third day, running. Finally I take a shower. Who’s making dinner? Netflix and Amazon Prime projected against the living room wall. Amaro! There is no rhythm to the day. It just sort of slides by. A life sequestered.
Shit, it’s 10:30…
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A Day at the Beach. From October 13, 2020:
Yesterday, my wife and I were walking along a beach somewhere between Rome and Naples. It had stormed all morning but the sky was just turning bright blue. There were only a few other people as far as we could see. It’s October and the air isn’t as warm as it once was. Up ahead there is a man in the water, the only person swimming. As we approach he is coming ashore in the waves. He’s a bit older than me and wearing a white bathing suit, though later my wife swears they are tighty whities. I don’t pick up on that detail because I’m struck by the size of the package (pardon my French). As he gets closer he sticks both hands into his shorts and our minds race. Do we run now? But quickly he pulls out a fish. It must be 30 cm long. Then another, and another. Our eyes meet, but it’s hard to decipher the look on his face. He’s obviously proud of himself. He has five fish in his hands and is saying something to me that I don’t understand. I give him the thumbs up and we keep walking. Did that just happen?
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The Deplorables Project. From October 14, 2020:
The Aging Frat Boy: “I’ll tell you exactly why I like him, he says what’s on his mind. He doesn’t suffer the politically correct. If an idea comes into his head, he says it. That is so refreshing in this day of “say nothing, do nothing” politicians. He’s drained the swamp! Trump 2020.”
The Nostalgist: “I remember when things were so much simpler, when good was good and bad was bad. Now it seems that everything is nuanced and hard to understand at first blush. I liked it better before. We used to be great. I still want to be great. Trump 2020.”
What’s left of the GOP: “Of course he’s an ass, everyone knew that from the start. But no one, not even Reagan, has been able to deregulate government, cut taxes, and allow me freedom of business the way he has. Have you seen the stock market? I’m making more money now than ever. And look at the courts, now they’ll strike down abortion, gay marriage, and socialism! Gotta’ take the bad with the good I guess. The mainstream media is the real problem. Trump 2020.”
The Conspiracist: “They put up a 5G tower in my neighborhood and I started to telepathically receive messages from Q about libtard pedophiles, chem trails, and how I’m smarter than everyone else, including PhDs who’ve studied one topic obsessively for decades. I left school when I was 17 (they taught me nothing anyway) and tried any addiction that came through town. There’s no problem with my brain chemistry. If you did the research that I’ve done, then you’d know it too. It’s all a hoax, Sheeple! Trump 2020!!”
The Racist: “I never liked Obama. Antifa is everywhere. Save our guns! Trump 2020.”
Ken Kesey (from The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test, by Tom Wolfe, 1968): “You’re either on the bus or off the bus.” To paraphrase Mr. Kesey: A vote for Donald is a vote for fun!
