It's been a long, long time!

After some eight years, I'm back. A lot has happened since I was last here:

We’ve lived through the disaster of the Trump presidency, the Covid 19 pandemic and the 2020 election. A week after Biden was officially declared the winner, my mother had a stroke. She lingered until the evening of July 17, 2021. Since she’s been gone Dad, Sis and I have been desolate. One goes on, of course, but everything seems pretty blank. In the immortal words of Paul Simon:

I have my books and my poetry to protect me
I am shielded in my armor

In other words, I read a great deal not, I suppose, that that’s really anything new. Also I’ve been spending a lot of time watching videos concerning Trump, his legal travails and mental health issues cum cognitive decline. That at least has the advantage of keeping my mind off my own troubles.

My first link of the new era for _The Arty Blog_ concerns humans helping their fello creatures:

Over 100 Dolphins Saved from Historic Mass Stranding in Cape Cod

Trying to Get the Feeling Again

Since we missed A Charlie Brown Christmas when it was broadcast this year, Sis and I watched it last evening, rather late, on DVD while drinking cocoa. Now, that's more like it!

Today we went to have our hair done. The shop had a small Christmas tree and just enough decorations to be festive but not enough to be garish. That, too, helped put me in the holiday spirit.

No snow today, as had been forecast earlier in the week, but there was rain and what might have been sleet. Not too jolly, but definitely wintery. The current forecast doesn't call for snow flurries till Thursday. But, there's still plenty of time for serious snow, a la "I'm dreaming of a white Christmas..

Fill It

Yesterday I went to the dentist to have two fillings; or, rather, one new filling and repair to an old one. This involved making both sides of my mouth numb. The upper left was pretty much a breeze - the lower right, not so much.

The dentist explained that the upper jaw is more porous, allowing the medicine to penetrate more easily to the tooth. The numbness also wears off faster. By contrast, the lower jaw is denser, so it takes longer for the numbing agent to take effect, as well as longer to wear off.

I think of the numbing agent as Novocain, but I could have sworn the dentist said tequila.

Two Thoughts
Tequila might have worked faster as well as being a lot more fun than a needle!
No doubt when Sampson slew one thousand men with the jawbone of an ass, he used the lower jaw.

Profound thoughts from the dentist chair. :P

Trying to Get the Feeling

- Photo by Listener

On breaking out the Christmas records this weekend, the first one I played was In the Swing of Christmas by Barry Manilow. Not only a lovely Christmas album, it's a fine Jazz album as well.

Even with seasonal music, I'm not really in the mood yet. Here's hoping I get a little ho, ho ho into my style in the coming days!