Category: Blog

Ok, Karen

COVID-19 Shutdown: Day 35. 4/20 version

Posted on by Paul In The Buff

The K-word? Stronger than the N-word? Listen, Karen – this isn’t about the subjugation of a race of people, or even the subjugation your gender. This is simply about middle-aged, overly-privileged white women who complain in places where they have no place to complain. Such as someone protesting for her right to catch a deadly virus, or bitching at a minimum wage store clerk just trying to do their job the right way won’t accept her old expired coupon, or refund her money on shoes she bought 6 months ago, and worn a dozen times because they didn’t hold up as expected. Call the manufacturer if you think their products are shoddy. Amber at the Target customer service counter doesn’t deserve the grief. 

COVID-19 Shutdown: Day 29

Posted on by Paul In The Buff

Yes, indeed, you can SEE this fucking virus. We don’t need to suspend all disbelief to pretend it is real. Unlike your god who you need to pretend he is in every sunset (but just the pretty ones, not the cloudy day sunsets where it just goes dark), or every baby’s smile (we know how babies are made now too – it’s a fucking biochemical reaction). So if that’s your response to being able to see your god, you’re fucking grasping at straws.

This is the same stupid joke as the “you can’t see your brain either.”  Well, you could. MRI, CAT Scan, they’ll show you your brain. The illogical religious arguments are based on the same level of being illogical that has given rise to criminal religions such as christianity. After all, the ONLY difference between a religion, and a cult is how many people follow it. The concepts, and tenants are no less batshit crazy whether you believe in Jesus, Alien Spirits from Volcanoes, or that guy who plays guitar, and fucks all the women is the messiah.  

COVID-19 Shutdown: Day 14. No, 21! 22?

Posted on by Paul In The Buff

When all this is over, and there’s thousands of surplus ventilators are being sold off, I’m buying one. As long as stupid people keep voting republican our taxes are never going to be used to provide services to the population, so I might as well be prepared for the next pandemic. Because you know, as long as stupid people keep voting republican, we’re not going to be prepared as a nation for the next one.

COVID-19 Shutdown: Day 8

Posted on by Paul In The Buff

“nobody knew what they were getting when we the people elected blah blah blah…”

Yeah, no one knew. Unless you actually paid attention to how scummy he’s always been. Unless you noticed his attempts to buy an NFL franchise, and the league completely shunning him. Unless you realized he took every chance he could get to be on TV, in interviews, and in as much of the spotlight as possible – like that stint with the WWF? Should have changed their name to WTF during that time. Or how about his bankruptcies, all the lawsuits for fraud against him; fuck, he was settling a $75M fraud lawsuit for his fake university WHEN a minority of voters voted for him. That wasn’t a “we the people” election. “We the people” were looking elsewhere, en mass. Read the goddamn fucking data if you don’t get this yet, and keep having to throw out this “We the people” bullshit like it’s going to change the fact he lost the popular vote by millions. I knew what we would be getting, and that’s why I didn’t vote for this huckster.

COVID-19 Shutdown: Day 7

Posted on by Paul In The Buff

I know a lot of you are feeling high levels of anxiety, and stress right now. Perhaps you’ve lost your stream of income. Perhaps you had project that are put on hold. Perhaps you have been or people in your family have been directly impacted by COVID-19.

That’s understandable. Often, when things we can’t control begin to dominate the landscapes of our lives, we feel anxious about it. Being pushed to change our routines, the way we relate to people, the way we even relate to ourselves; it can be a difficult, stress-inducing adjustment. My suggestion is to find things that you can do, and can control while still observing the shutdown protocol. You don’t have to write that 1,000 page novel, but writing something you enjoy would help. You don’t have to become Rembrandt, but you can pick up some painting supplies to play with, and get creative with. Start learning a musical instrument. Start learning a new language. Keep your brain busy, and your body, and psyche will follow.

Yesterday I pulled together all of the window trim for a decorative window we had to dissemble in order to repair a wall in our living room. We’re going to paint it white to match the window, and other elements we’re building into the room. I sanded it all down, and prepped it for painting. That occupied my mind for a couple of hours. I might start into writing a feature length movie script shortly, I don’t know yet.

My point is, this situation doesn’t have to be an awful thing. It gives us the time, and excuse we need to take on things we always complained we don’t have time for.

COVID-19 Shutdown: Day 6

Posted on by Paul In The Buff

Yesterday was fun. Since everything is cancelled we continued our home improvement projects, obviously, but on Saturday mornings I have my kids with me, so we took a jaunt to Tifft Farms Nature Preserve for a little social distancing hike around, and to have a little self-initiated cleanup of nature. It was quiet, and peaceful. There were others out there, but sparse enough of visitors that distancing wasn’t an issue. We started in the open fields, picking up wind blown plastic bags, wrappers, and packaging materials, but as we hiked further into the park, we reached an area that was obviously build up on land fill. The trash became a whole lot of broken bottles, antiques often. We found many shoe soles, a stack of marketing signs on thin aluminum, apparently for a product called Car Stairs. Industrial waste, construction waste, even huge chunks of old industrial slag. We threw out what we figured was appropriate, and filled a bag with about 15 pounds of waste.

Next week, we’ll choose a different park. Hopefully it will also be devoid of people. Honestly, I usually hope for that every time I go hiking; having a shutdown is never needed for me to want to distance myself from others in nature.

COVID-19 Shutdown: Days 4 & 5

Posted on by Paul In The Buff

Our trip through Home Depot was challenging. People literally huddled in masses, hoovering at the paint counter waiting for their orders.  We stood as far away as we could, subconsciously barely breathing. We both realized we simply weren’t breathing normally, almost as if we were trying to not breathe at all. Meanwhile, people packed together, almost more afraid of missing the clerk calling out their order rather than the looming threat of a potentially fatal airborne virus. With sanitizing wipes in our pockets, we frequently wiped our hands discretely, and did our best to maintain social distance. It seemed like all of our fellow shoppers couldn’t have cared less.

COVID-19 Shutdown: Day 3

Posted on by Paul In The Buff

But, hey, it’s just a hoax, right? According to the conservatives in my social media, it still is. Or, it’s just a ruse, to cover-up the horrors of 5G deployment, without of course noting that 5G has been in test deployment around the world (in more advanced countries than the United States) since 2017.  Telecoms haven’t needed a fake pandemic to test these services – tests that have seen the building, and deployment of thousands of distribution points across China, South Korea, Germany, and other nations.  But apparently this is such a horrible technology, we require killing thousands of humans just to put in the technology that will apparently kill thousands of humans.

Oh, but read some section of the Bible because apparently praying to some imaginary being will protect you from the evil plan, just like praying is protecting you from COVID-19!  LOL! 

COVID-19 Shutdown: Day 2

Posted on by Paul In The Buff

So I should thank Jesus for not giving me fatal viruses? For not striking me down with a fatal accident? How about the people who have suffered? By this logic, shouldn’t they be cursing god and/or Jesus for forcing them to suffer, and die? I mean, nothing happens outside of god’s plan in your world, right?

But I should thank god that I haven’t yet been infected with HIV, even thought I made personal choices like engaging in safe sex during my youth, not having indiscriminate sexual relationships, and choosing a path in life that hasn’t involved drug use, or addiction? 

I avoided Ebola? Not sure how wide spread Ebola was in this area, and I believe for transmission you pretty much needed to lick the liver of an infected person. Also, I don’t live in West Africa, which greatly reduces my chances of coming across Ebola, and Boko Haram. However, there are plenty of right-wing extremists like Boko Harem here in the United States, they just kill en mass for their delusional christian ideals, instead of delusional islamic ideals.

I’ve been involved in MANY accidents in my life. I credit both my reflexes, and good engineering for the minimal injuries I’ve suffered. Yes, I realize an accident could take me out tomorrow. Someone around here most likely will perish in an accident soon – they happen almost every day. I’m sure plenty of people who die in accidents probably praise, and thank Jesus, right up until the moment Jesus sends the random drunk driver into their path. Again, all according to god’s plan…

COVID-19 Shutdown: Day 1

Posted on by Paul In The Buff

Although I haven’t hoarded toilet paper, I feel I’m fairly well prepared for this. My only concern is being between jobs and/or contracts right now, so no reliable income. People obviously aren’t going to be buying photography, and video services right now, so I need to really buckle down. 

So far things are ok. Of course, we’re both coming down with a cold right now. Gigs, and events have been all but cancelled through April. New York just announced a required closure of restaurants, bars, gyms, theaters – pretty much anywhere people can gather. Didn’t hear anything on bowling alleys, but I would assumed they would fall into the same category.

My main worry is Evan, of course. He is potentially immuno-compromised on his current chemo medication, so I want to make sure he is protected. School is closed for now, so I get extra time at home with Cortney.

Off to work on home projects, and try to not get injured doing so!