Thoughts.

This is me as I write this.

I’m sitting my in home based work office playing around my iPad Pro that is simultaneously charging. Since resurrecting the original Smart Keyboard Folio purchased for my 2018 iPad Pro back in the day, I’ve been inspired to do more writing and make more content instead of thumbing through social media sites and going down doomscrolling rabbit holes.

Last week I tried my hand at a few social media sites I hadn’t been on in a while, and while Bluesky seems interesting, it doesn’t really compel me that much, outside of the Bodega Cats account I’ve been following. I really like Bodega Cats.

I’m still not interested in resurrecting my presence on Twitter (or whatever it’s called these days) so while I still have my dead account on there I’m not doing much with it.

The bulk of my social media experience has been through either Mastodon or Facebook, with the two serving very different purposes for me: Facebook to keep the family up to date and Mastodon to interact with folks that share common interests with me. For some reason I feel less inhibited on Mastodon than on other places. I know inhibition is a strange thing in the world of anonymous screaming and screeching, but since I tend to attach my real name to my posts I try to keep it reasonable.

With all the driving we’ve done this past weekend I’ve had a good amount of time to think and assess of where I am in life, where my mind is at, and how I’m feeling about the world. During our ride to Phoenix yesterday I mentioned to my husband that I was not thrilled with the idea of voting for Joe Biden again but that unless something much better comes along I’ll vote for him. I’m really, really ready for the older generation to move aside and Gen Xers and upcoming millennials to start taking the reins in government. It doesn’t mean it’ll make things better but hopefully it means we can swing the pendulum controlling this country in a different direction.

As I get older I find that I lose focus faster, especially at work, and that’s something I need to get railed in. Everything is going fine at work and I’m doing great at my career. My team is performing very well and together we produce great results for the company, but I’m never satisfied with my performance. I always feel like I’m one notch away from where I should be, and that’s mostly because of my brain chemistry and just seeing the world different than most. Everyone can see in the box. If I can find the box it’s usually in another room and I feel like I’m peering in while looking the other direction and hanging upside down from a lamp or something.

I’m still excited about my aviation adventures and flying with my husband from place to place but it is becoming very, very expensive. Even as an accomplished private pilot with a few ratings attached to my certificate, I find it very expensive to fly an airplane for fun; fuel costs are high and insurance costs are ridiculously high. I don’t know how much longer the piggy bank will last for this adventure.

Speaking of money, I am sitting here in my office where it is quite warm because our main air conditioning unit bit the dust last week. That scenario is all under control and folks will be here to start the installation of the new system tomorrow. I’m happy we’ll be able to get things cool again by the end of the week, where Mother Nature is showing more record temperatures in the forecast. I know how very blessed I am to have a solid job and a husband that has made smart financial decisions for us over the years. I don’t know how many folks do it with the prices of gas being outrageous and the prices of groceries being ridiculous and all that. In the past I have contributed to a couple of folks on Patreon that were putting out interesting video content but I’m not going to be able to do that much longer. This makes me feel bad. The folks I support are putting out content different than the dribble found on TikTok or influencer stuff, and I want to continue to support them, but the budget just isn’t there anymore.

Chevron station in Phoenix, Arizona.

I don’t enjoy this economy. I don’t blame Biden for it. I blame everyone in government for where we are today. I blame the two party system and the idea that voting has become some WWE exercise and the cults of politics and religion.

I am really, really, really tired of stupid people and having to tolerate their willful ignorance.

To end this random post on a positive note, here’s a photo of an old MasterCharge sign. It hearkens back to a time when folks didn’t need to rely on credit cards to eat and companies weren’t doing everything and anything possible to garner all money and personal data possible from the consumer.

A big MasterCharge sign at NuTowne Tavern in Phoenix.

I’m smiling. I hope you are as well.