Talk Radio: The Town Square

The other day I listened to a talk radio network I have enjoyed for six years.  A pattern has emerged on this network that includes ultra right guests.  For some time, I have thought about how to handle some of the mistruths and propaganda offered.  I watch the room and few have the gumption to stand up.

Their latest rant was on the wonders of Trump.  Now I surely don't think you have to address every idiot remark he makes but you sure don't have to listen to him.  I don't.  Won't.  Some actually believe he is the messiah.  That his visit here is timely.  That Trump was called in to shake us up.  That he will lead us to the promised land.  That is precisely what the right wing guest told us.  He thinks the messiah is one and the same man who separates families illegally coming into the United States.  A man who puts children in cages as young as toddlers.  A messiah you say? Really?

A woman chasing, thrice married man, who defaults on business deals, won't pay his contractors, can't keep staff, and puffs out his chest every opportunity he gets is hardly a messiah.  But what really bothers me now is the self-censorship imposed by these media-type outlets. It is a one way conversation and they will delete comments that are not in agreement with these guest or the host.

It can be argued that talk radio and chat rooms are essentially the public square.  A town square.  I remember a Supreme Court decision years ago that ruled in favor of the Town Square.  That people have the right to gather, speak their truth and can' t be censored.

Let me divurge a bit.  These same moderators or producers that censor the listeners do it unevenly.  They allow porn photos of women, or men because they are friends with these listeners.  Its the buddy buddy system.  They won't hesitate to delete your comment, ban you or call you out.  But these radio talk shows allow their hosts to objectify women with photos of them designed to attract your gaze.

Frankly, I am well nigh tired of this crap.  Speaking out doesn't mean you disrespect the guest or the host.  It does mean you call them out.  You address this crap and if you are smart, you leave.  But first you address this injustice.  You call out these lies and mistruths.  Ultimately, perhaps  the best way to handle this is to boycott their shows.  To every thing there is a season.

Ultimately, we teach people how to treat us.  Active or passive.

But Can I?

Can I summons the muse?

The vessel is empty.  Has been for some time.  Once in a while, you outgrow a place.  Your place in the place.  You long for different adventures.  To challenge yourself.  To go where no man has gone before.  Well, that is a tad dramatic, but you get where I am going.

Randy comes again today.  His fourth time hauling things away.  Hauling memories, joys, and lots of work in the yard.  I won't miss the latter.  Truth is, I want to do other things now.  It is time to jump back into the pot.  Mix things up. Stand up for another cause.

I admire those who stand up.  Some share their experiences on Fb.  Many share themself.  Selfies, I am, I am.  Those bore me.  But I love the nature photos and there are some amazing photographers and naturalists on Fb.

My thoughts drift back in time.  I think of all the people I have had the pleasure to learn from.  Helene in my late twenties showed me how to stand up in front of a large group.  Take my case to the people.  She saw things in me I didn't.  Or just maybe, she needed another warm body to carry the torch. I was glad to do so.

My english professor taught me to get at the crux of things.  To dig and take the reader and myself to another level.  I miss his mentoring.

But my grands continually teach me humility.  Patience.  That they are here for the first time as am I.  You are, too.  Have we already forgotten everything is at once new even if we don't feel it?

Humanity continues its struggle.  Egos get in the way, propel us, block us.  But a good friend, someone who checks up on you.  Wow, that is beyond priceless.  Like my friend.  She called the other day to see how I was handling 'the move.'  She wanted to know what she could do.  Reminded me that while she is tearful at my departure, she beams with delight knowing I am where I am supposed to be.  She is, too.

I think I am already begin to summon the muse.

Line In The Sand

Yesterday I wrote about Sarah Huckabee Sanders.  This morning I deleted her.

I have a line, drawn in the sand. It's a moral code and I won't break it.  It says that I will be kind to everyone.  I will also be firm about what is acceptable. Sure, there are lots of folks who would serve her, but I won't be one of them.  I wouldn't serve Hitler or anyone in his posse.  I want more than that.

Think of it as a kind of punishment.  It's a virtual form of being placed in stocks in the town square.  No one will throw tomatoes on you or hurt you even.  You will stand there with your cohorts as a reminder of everything we do not aspire to be.

But none of this is new. We've had a Joseph McCarthy, lying presidents, marital cheaters, lots of corruption in politics before.   We've had belief systems that continually shock me.  I do like to think we are moving forward.  At the same time, I do see the organized religious cult a big part of this behavior.  Yes, a cult.  Think about it.

You follow the herd, tithe as you must for organized religion wants money before it will bless your soul.  No, not me.  I've see what these behaviors do in the guise of religion.

It is a new world.  New ideas.  Open hearts.  Those are the people I will spend my time with.  I haven't followed the crowd yet, and at soon to be seventy, I do not plan to.  I will be kind to you.  And firm.

I expect more from humanity and so should you.

How Did I Know?

When I began this blog, something about water resonated with me.  It wasn't just because I was moving to New Hampshire.  It is because I find water healing. I knew at some point, I would move back. I have always vacationed in New England and I love the culture there!  Family is everything and I longed to be closer.

                                                          Hampton Beach, New Hampshire

The two years I had the New Hampshire apartment were fun, but it wasn't my own home.  Even though I was near one of my children, I longed to come back to the mountains, to my things, to my familiarity.

For many years now, the southern Appalachian mountains of western North Carolina have held me in their fold.  Somehow, I found the courage to leave an empty twenty-eight year marriage and relocated here.  My children had graduated from college, each one going toward their own adventure.  It was time I went toward mine.  And, I came here -  to the Great Smoky Mountains.  It has been a dream come true.  My gratitude for the opportunity to experience this adventure overwhelms me.  So does moving on to the next adventure.  While excited, I am terribly sad to leave.  Words can't describe what this beautiful area means to me.  It will always be in my heart.


If you know me well, you know I have always been drawn to nature, especially the mountains.  I grew up in Baltimore and spent a lot of my life around water.  Whether it was rivers, ponds or the Atlantic, water was in my being.

Maybe it was a natural expression for me to be to continually called to the mountains, to the sea.  I've been in the Smokies seventeen years.  I hope I have that much time by the sea.  But whatever it is, I am coming back to family.  It has been a long time since I have lived near my children.

We've all grown so much in these seventeen years since I have lived in the south.  Evn though, I have made countless trips to see my children, living close and having my own home near them is a dream come true.  And now my child has relocated to Maine.

                                                               Portland, Maine

In the weeks and months to come, I will share some of my photos of the new house.  It's a wonderful place.  Great room, open concept, modern.  Very New England and I love that.

I don't expect to be able to do the Utah trip I have dreamed about for years just now.  Perhaps next year I can work it out.  It is a culmination of a summer spent in a small Mormon town in Ephraim. and the life that ensued afterward.  I was there at seventeen and have longed to go back. The town has changed immensely as have I.

While you can't go home again, you can revisit a place of your youth.  You take your own good, loving thoughts and re-experience the area and yourself.

Can I really be turning seventy this fall?

Seventy

Seventy.  That's a lot of years!  It's only been lately that I feel my history is a long one.  Laughing as I say that because I've always felt young.  Vibrant.

I told my children and close friends that this year would be something special.  That I was going to take a trip.  It would be a year of big change but I didn't know what that would entail.  Exactly.

Where here it is!  I am moving to coastal Maine!

Now if you follow my rants, you will know that I am a lifelong activist.  Justice in all its forms is top of the list.  I don't want anything hurt or abused.  We are all in this world together and must find a way to cooperate better.

How curious is it that I am moving from a less progressive area back to what is familiar.  But I have never lived in a city before.  I have lived just on the outskirts.  Now I am a ten minute way from just about everything I need.  And, a Starbucks.  I prefer a little coffee shop but hey, I am grateful to be able to sustain my vanilla latte habit. Plus,  I've always lived near ideas, progressive towns.  It seems fitting that I go back.  My little coastal town is all of that.  Very open, very progressive.  They take recycling seriously.  The environment, too.

I will miss my little southern Appalachian town immensely!  I did the first time I moved to New England.  But this time is different.  I will have my own little house on a street surrounded by preservation land.  Just a fifteen minute trip to the ocean and voila.  Twenty some minutes to family and all the downtown charm and wharf I can handle.

Do you understand that I absolutely love my new house?  It is my dream house.  Cathedral ceilings, arched doorway, open concept in the living, dining and kitchen areas. Lots of closet space.  Well designed and lit. I even have a covered front porch, just perfect in size.

Now to sell my little southern Appalachian house to someone who will love it as much as I!

Another Adventure Awaits!

How do I put into words all the emotions that are running through me? A lifetime of memories.

Seventeen years ago, I moved south to live my dream - to have a mountain home in the southern Appalachians.  I would be Heidi on the mountain.  All grown up.

This has been an incredible journey.  I've met so many loving people, became part of a town that was going through lots of changes.  Got involved in many non-profit organization.  I did what I always do wherever I live.  Volunteer.   And, I've been honored and am so very grateful to all the people I met along the way. I've made some lifelong friends!

Some of my friends have passed.  I think of them often. Some moved away.  They, too, are always in my heart.  Then there are the acquaintances.  Those are really hard to leave because you know you won't stay in touch.  But the ones near and dear to my heart - wow, that is tough.

I got a dear note the other day from a friend.  The friend knew how hard it was for me to be away from my grandchildren.  They knew sometime I would eventually move closer.

"I don't want you to go," my friend said.

We shared some memories.  The tears refused to stop. The tears say it all.  Other friends have called, written notes, asked to meet for a meal.  Between taking things off the wall, trying to figure out how I can get some needed essentials in my car which I won't have access to for a while is a challenge.  But I will make it work.  I always do.

My daughter lives in an area I really like.  Not too much in the winter, although snow is beautiful.  But, the state moves. It is well prepared for the snow.  Two hours after a storm, the roads are packed with automobiles, people going about their day.  But, the summers.  Oh my.  There is no place like Maine in the summer. And, I do my best watercolors by the ocean. Always have.

But my next adventure includes my family.  And, it has been twenty years since I owned a home near my children.  Now I will live near one of them.  I am also much closer by plane to my oldest, too.  We are all in such a good place.  Settled.  Conscious.  Arms wide open.

In eight weeks, I have been on eight planes.  It will be nice to do a road trip - all 1100 plus miles.  Soon.

Let the adventure begin.