Much ado about nothing

Literally … nothing.

OK, perhaps that’s a bit of an over (or under) statement. But after a month and a half here in Penticton we’ve settled into a pretty easy life of eating, drinking, hot tubbing, and generally serving the needs of the cute kitty.

The warm weather we were spoiled with has finally turned to winter, with some snow, and colder temperatures. We’ve had about 10 cm of snow, and temperatures are running five to 10 degrees colder than normal (highs of -7, lows of -17). Maxi is kinda wimpy about it all. He keeps asking to go out, but as soon as he gets a whiff of cold air on his nose, he turns tail (usually while complaining … I think he blames us for the cold).

We did manage to get out curling one night, which was great. We lost, but we had a good time, and the game wasn’t a disaster. We remembered how to play, we both made a few shots, and neither of us fell down. I know … pretty low benchmark, but hey, it has been over a decade since we curled in Marathon. I’m impressed I could even crouch, slide, and deliver a rock without falling over or breaking something.

Ann, of course, looked as graceful as ever on the ice. Me? Took me a week to stop walking funny from the muscle strain (laugh it up Donna 😉 ).

So, other than a dinner with neighbours Mike & Carol (and dog Missy), the most exciting thing that has happened is Ann’s birthday. Yup, she’s one year older and a whole lot wiser (hmmmm). Ann picked a local Greek/Italian restaurant, where we had an amazing meal of various Greco fair: lamb, spanakopita, moussaka, calamari and octopus, with a desert of baclava. Ann picked this lovely local wine to wash it all down. Yum, yum.

I guess the one thing that has happened to us is the same thing that has happened to everyone: We are now in the world of Trump. We watched the results come in, like much of the world. And like much of the world, have progressed through the seven stages of grief over the results.

After the election, and for a few weeks following, I had hope that this wasn’t the disaster it first seemed. Trump seemed to be an empty tangerine-coloured vessel which could actually do good things. After all, he laid out few actual policies. And some of the loudest things he did say (“Lock Her Up!” “Build the Wall!” “Repeal Obamacare”), he immediately seemed to back away from. As long as his ego was fed, it seemed he might not care about all the other crazy stuff he said.

Sadly, this seems not to be the case. His choice of VP, and now his cabinet appointments, paint a picture of retrograde motion for most things that matter to everyone. His views on immigration, international relations, terrorism, and climate change now threaten us all. And heaven help us if his delicate ego gets bruised in an international tangle with China.

In the coming years Ann and I may head to the Caribbean (if we ever get out of the Great Lakes 😉 ). The most common route is to hop down the east coast through the USA. The more uncommon route is to head out to Bermuda, and then sail south from there. The Bermuda route involves many weeks of open Atlantic sailing.

Normally a big ocean crossing would be considered more difficult and chancy. But given the new United States of Trump, I’m no longer sure which one is more dangerous.