Spontaneous Musings

What a beautiful day today has been. There's been dancing in the streets.
I did go out briefly and celebrate at the corner of Church and Ocean Parkway with a bunch of folks. They banged noise-makers, cheered, and waved at the passing cars - who honked and cheered in response.

And currently as I write this - folks are partying in Prospect Park. It's in the 70s, so warm enough to hang in the park, social distance, on a blanket, with masks. (I saw it on the news - I didn't go, I went to the far more peaceful and safer Greenwood Cemetery instead. Mainly because...well..hello, pandemic? Also I'd be doing it by myself and I'm not a huge fan of crowds.)

The Election from Hell is OVER! Finally!


At 11 Am this morning...while I was watching Helstrum on Hulu, my mother called.

Mother: MSNBC just called it! Biden is the winner!
ME: Ehh..I don't trust MSNBC.
Mother: So did CNN.
Me: Eh...still (I grab my lap-top to see if the AP (Associate Press) and NY Times did yet. I trust them. They are more careful and investigative in their reporting. Seeing nothing.)
Mother: Hmmm Fox News hasn't reported it yet.

[She hangs up on me. I go back to watching Helstrum. Fifteen minutes later.]

Mother: Fox just called it. So too did ABC News.
Me: Uhm okay, let me check -
Kensington FB Page: What's going on in Courteylou - why are people dancing in the streets? What happened?
Poster: They are dancing in Ocean Parkway too.
Poster: Biden Won!

I flip to AP page, while mother chatters in the background.

Me: AP just announced it.
Mother: See?
Me: YAY!

I go out and clap alongside Ocean Parkway for about twenty minutes and take a video and photos. I posted the video to FB, but the link won't take over here.

Mother also called my brother and told him, he didn't know yet either. And sisinlaw posted on Instagram that she took a nap after she found out. Her first good sleep in four years. She's exhausted.



On FB - people are celebrating. On Twitter - they are celebrating. On DW - they are celebrating. One of my British friends on FB stated she learned when the boats on the Thames started playing the American National Anthem.
And...apparently church bells rang across Europe. People on Twitter were posting - "You might want to reconsider how you are living your life when the entire globe dances in the street when you lose your job." Or my favorite - "You know you are doing something wrong, when people around the world celebrate your loss of a job as if someone had destroyed the death star."

Oh happy day! And it was beautiful outside. Truly beautiful. One could almost forget we had a pandemic.



For those who are curious, the next steps are listed HERE.

And





It's good news. There's no way Trump can win. I was right - he will be gone by January. I got my third miracle. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

There are such things as Miracles

I had asked for four miracles in the middle of Greenwood Cemetery in September. I looked up at the trees and prayed. All four were out of my control. I could do a few things - sure, but I had to put my faith in others. And that's really hard to do.

1. My father would be released from the hospital and rehab, get better, improve and be with my mother again. Also that I could speak to him. But mainly that he get better. I felt this was impossible in September. He wasn't released from the rehab until the end of October. And he had been to and from the hospital three times.

Now, he's released. He's home. He's better. And on the mend. He's even walking about - doesn't need a wheel-chair any longer.

2. That the 10% reduction for working remotely from home not be implemented by crazy workplace.

This seemed impossible in September and the beginning of October. I couldn't seem to do anything to stop it - for myself or my co-workers. I pleaded with the union. I sent emails to the Department of Labor in New York and the US Department of Labor. I even called the US Department of Labor. I sent an email to the Governor's office in NY.

When that failed, I got reasonable accommodation under the ADA. And even that failed - so I resigned myself to my fate. I gave up.

And, miracle of miracles...Crazy Org quietly decided not to implement it after all.

3. That Biden/Harris Win, and the Thing in the White House be gone by the end of the year, January at the latest.

I voted. I donated funds. I wrote. I begged. I talked to people. I argued with folks on social media.

And finally, just waited.

And, miracle of miracles...Biden won. Oh god. Biden Won.

There's only one more miracle that I want - it's a cure or at least a vaccine for COVID-19. I'd like it before Christmas, but that may be asking a bit much...



Walking around a Cemetery

People report taking hikes in various state parks. Visiting all the corners of New York State. Taking road trips. Learning new hobbies.

I spent 2020 walking and photographing a cemetery. Taking a moment to appreciate each tree, each leaf, each flower, each statue, each pound, each lake, and all the squirrles, badgers, hawks, birds, etc that live among the grave stones.

Today, it was peaceful. Not quite as many people as usual - possibly because they were all celebrating elsewhere. I could walk for about an hour with little to no social interaction. And the little there was - was at a distance of at least ten feet or more. I would put on my mask whenever I got within ten-twenty feet of another human.

I sat for a bit, breathed in the fresh air, and soaked in the sunshine.

Clear blue skies. Not a cloud marring them. Warm. Sunny. At 4:30 pm, as the sun began to slowly dip below the horizon, it was still in the 70s. Short sleeves, no jacket required.

A joyous day to be alive.