I am beginning to understand why people move to cabins at the tops of mountains and don’t talk to people. We are living in very strange and angry times and I really wish people would just hit the pause button or take a freaking breath sometimes.

I saw pictures (media coverage) this weekend of people who went to Washington DC. They went to party with Trump on the White House lawn for 4th of July. Now no one can dispute going to Washington DC on the Fourth of July is a very American patriotic thing, the thing that disturbed me is all the coverage I saw of this event no one really was wearing masks. No one was social distancing. And it looked more like a political rally than a celebration of the nation’s birthday. That in and of itself was very distasteful to me. Right or wrong, to me it was very much a Marie Antoinette let them eat cake pre-French revolution kind of a thing.

But now I can’t help but wonder who in those crowds will get COVID-19 or bring it home and give it to somebody else? Because I don’t think they’re going to self quarantine do you?

I had another friend tell me again yet today about how uncomfortable their neighbors make them because all they’ve done essentially is party since coronavirus broke out. And I’m not trying to be a wet blanket, everyone likes to get together with their friends and family. But we don’t live in normal times and there are things we have to pay attention to. The proof is in the pudding as it were because there are spikes occurring all over the country of this pandemic virus.

I mean how embarrassing is it that European countries do not want to let an American in across their borders right now because of the virus and because of how our country is treating the Coronavirus?

Then there is the incredible tension because of well, racism in this country. We’ve had protests, incredibly violent protests at times from coast to coast. We are long overdue in truly addressing this heinous issue.

No one can have a conversation about anything and every conversation is combative and too many of them take place online and not face-to-face. Again, because of the times we live in having newly emerged from stay at home orders. We are truly living in the era of nasty keyboard idiots.

And another new thing that keeps happening. For every community where you say “Hate Has No Home Here“, “ Black Lives Matter“, or other similar signs there are also signs once again supporting local police departments. The impetus of course is to remind people that not everyone in law-enforcement is a bad person. And that’s true. I think, however, all of these different kinds of signs are stirring up people positively and negatively and I have to wonder can we take our protest signs down for a while across-the-board in general? And learn to co-exist peacefully?

And then there is the economy. There are a lot of people out of work. There are a lot of small businesses who are suffering greatly and will never open their doors again in some cases. There are people who also have gotten their salaries cut. I think with everything that has been going on since 2020 started is just creating so much tension that no one knows how to process it.

We need a do-over on 2020.

Global pandemic, unstable economy, and racism. They say bad things come in threes let’s hope this country is done now for a while, right?

Here’s a novel idea: maybe we should all just stop fighting one and other for five minutes and try to shut our mouths and open our ears and listen to what other people are saying. Maybe we should be open to hearing the points of view of others. Maybe we should all try to be better people. Maybe we should pay it forward with something positive however we can.

Part of the problem today again is no one can have a conversation any longer. No one can have a civil discussion about anything. You never know when you open your mouth if you’re going to say the right thing or the wrong thing, so I find myself for me being unusually quiet. Until now.

The impetus for this post, is all the stupid stuff I see going on in community Facebook groups. We’re all supposed to be neighbors, yet all I see is people who want to tear other people down or just starting fights. I would like to think that therapy is cheaper and perhaps anger management as well.

We live in an angry, hateful world right now. And we have to do our part to make it better to enact positive change. But change comes with trying to be tolerant of other people, walking away from stupid online arguments. I think life is hard enough right now at times, so hard, we need to just pause.

Once again, as I’ve said before, I think a lot of the fuel to the fire of negativity in this country comes from Washington DC. They only have one goal: benefiting themselves.

Our forefathers fought and bled and died and suffered so that all of us could be free. What would they think of us today? Would they be shaking their heads in disgust?

I don’t have the answers. I wish someone had the answers. But it’s too damn hot and I think people have to start to take a breath so we can come together as a nation.

Peace people. We need peace. We need love.