ABSILVER's World

  I typically avoid publishing my birthday.  Thanksgiving birthdays are easy to ignore, and especially at an older age, I am fine with ignored birthdays.  I usually spend most of the days ahead of my birthday, asking people not to mention it on Facebook or anywhere else.  However, turning 60 feels like a moment to share.  In fact,  turning 60 feels odd. There is no way I can consider myself middle-aged anymore.  I can't imagine living to 120 or wanting to, to be honest.  I feel good, walk about 25 miles weekly, and feel strong.  Just a reality that life is progressing, and my life is changing.  I think people who say age is just a number are delusional and or are young. I have some thoughts and ideas to share about lessons learned in the brief 60 years I have been on this planet.  If you are happy and content in your life, then accept all the good and bad in your life up to this moment.  Without those experiences, you would not...

  Have you listened to or watched Kamala Harris's concession speech?  It was truly amazing. It is easy, trust me, to want to flee this country for somewhere that may be more friendly.   There may be somewhere where the cost of living is low enough to be able to retire earlier.   You may feel fed up with what this election says about the United States and its population. Or, maybe you are like me, a Gay Jewish Male thinking about whether there are safer havens in the USA to be in over the next few challenging years. You may be like me, with family, parents, and extended family here, making the idea of moving far away quite challenging. I am not here to judge any choices, but I also want to hark back to the core of Harris's speech, which is that this is a long fight, and she still believes in the goodness of the USA and its constitution. That said, why was this such a surprise? The press kept talking about the similar percentage of eligible voters who vote, b...

I don’t know where to start, I cry: I cry for America.    More the home of fear and selfishness than the home of the free and brave.  I cry for women.    I cry for women who will live in fear of their own health and control of their own lives.   I cry for men: I also cry for the majority of men who do not trust women with their own bodies or their country.  I cry for Justice. A man who has been convicted of crimes against women and fraud and indicted on threats to our country was elected as a better choice.  I cry for gay people. Who have valiantly fought for rights and freedom, and I am sad that they are in jeopardy.  I cry for the world.    For a good part of my life the USA ushered in a time of what I believed was moral leadership, maybe that was an illusion after all.  I cry for Jews. 79% of Jews in this country voted for Harris. Now, we are probably on the revenge list.    I cry for noble civil servants who ...

So, I am breathless.  This election comes down to one day when many Americans eagerly vote.  I cast my vote last Friday. This morning is a rainy day in Longview, TX.  There are a number of Trump signs along my street, as expected.  There are also more than a few Harris Walz signs on the street and in the neighborhood. I try to convince myself that there are fewer Trump signs and maybe East Texas will surprise me.   Do my neighbors understand that, as nice as they are waving hello while I walk DaisyBelle, as they stop to discuss the weather, or wave as they go by in their car, that being pro-Trump makes me wonder?   When Frank helped organize a day to clean up near the creek, many of our neighbors showed up to help.  Yet, they put up Trump signs, and it makes me wonder how they really feel about the gay family down the block, with a sweet dog and pretty cat. When I was a kid, out and about, people were cordial and kind to one another, as in mo...

( Content is all mine, images are courtesy of Dall-E and my own prompts) Ye sterday, November 1st, I voted for Kamala Harris for President of the United States of America. I realize for many, as for me, the next few days waiting for the results of an election that could not even be created in Hollywood, that these days will be stressful. I decided to write a blog that has nothing to do with the election to take my mind off of Tuesday while writing and potentially help others that may take time to read this blog as well. Travel: Slight travel hack taxis vs Uber at the airport.  I have discovered that it is often cheaper to take a taxi from the airport than an Uber.  Take my arrival in Savannah last week.  Uber demand pricing had the price at $76 + tip from the airport to the lovely Fairfield Inn Midtown.  A taxi was half that.  To make this more interesting, the taxis were all lined up while people were waiting on an Uber or Lyft to arrive.  This is not uniq...