Stop the World

The house was cold when the alarm sounded at four this morning. I wanted to just roll over and snuggle under the down comforter. Stump had other ideas. He knows once that alarm sounds he can go outside. He was relentless with his “paw-bats” to my nose to prod me out of bed! Opening the side door to let him out I shivered at the frigid morning air assaulting me. Checking my Google homepage on the way to make coffee the temperature showed up at 26°. This last cold spell is wearing me out.

Turning on the kitchen radio I learned of the shootings over in Pakistan. Then the newscast went to the economy: HSBC bank is in horrible shape and the Dow Jones at the same level it was at in 1997. This is not the kind of news I need to start the day on a cheery note. Checking out my hometown newspaper on-line I read where a classmate and former “boss” from my Burger Chef days was stabbed. (He is in stable condition according to the article.) One of the newsblogs I read had a link to a Wall Street Journal piece looking back to the great depression. The catch phrase back in the early days of that downturn was, “Prosperity is just around the corner.” It sounds too much like the “kool-aid” we are being fed today nearly eighty years later.

I can’t take it anymore! The radio was turned off, and my Pandora station was accessed on the internet. I started a load of laundry. While I had hot water primed in the system, I did up the dirty dishes in the kitchen sink. The thermostat was cranked up to 60° and extra lights turned on to brighten up my house. My great aunt Teenie used to always turn on all her lights to make her feel better during the winter months. She was on to Seasonal Affective Disorder before anybody had a real name for it!

Stumpy only lasted some forty fine minutes out in the cold before he clawed at the bathroom window to let me know he wanted back in. Once in the house it was time for “wet food treats”. With full bellies, Daggy is sacked out at the bottom of the bed, while Stump is asleep on top of his favourite Edison phonograph in the study.



Sunrise from my bedroom windows 3-3-2009 6:09 a.m.



The sun is rising it always does in good times and bad. There is still coffee warming on the stove. In an hour or so I’ll head to the barber to get a buzz, and then go to the Y for a workout. Life really is good for me. I try to not let the bad news grind me down, but I will not keep my head in the sand ignoring the reality of the world either. It can be so hard to find that balance….