THE REAL TDS

 

Words and Photo by F LoBuono

The examples of the irony found in the current Administration are numerous, egregious and ever-expanding. The list is too long to elaborate on all the transgressions, so I’ve decided to concentrate on perhaps the most galling, i.e. TDS or TRUMP DERANGEMENT SYNDROM. It’s the pejorative term the President’s supporters and sycophants use to disparage those of us who find constant fault in not only Mr. Trump’s policies but his personal behavior itself.

The irony is found in the fact that anyone who defends his abhorrent behavior as his minions CONSTANTLY do, are the truly deranged ones not us! Again, the examples are many. There are the excuses for his mocking of a disabled reporter, the Billy Bush sexual comments tape, the Epstein files, and now the war with Iran (remember the NO MORE WAR candidate?) to name but a few. Finding ANYTHING positive in any of those scenarios takes a deliberate kind of ignorance to the point of, yes, derangement. Some will say that my language here is incendiary and divisive. But there seems to be no other explanation, unless it’s the type of behavior you accept in your own lives. I do not.

I could go on. But not because I want to. I have too! I’d rather be writing about the imminent return of baseball, barbecues, and the other rights of Spring. And I’ve tried. However, I simply cannot look away from the damage being done by a man who has vowed to “Make America Great Again.” Yet to the majority of Americans, he is doing the opposite, i.e. making us weaker, more cruel, uglier. THIS is the very height of irony! The real “derangement” here belongs to the people who simply refuse to see the obvious signs that right now in this Country we are being run by a megalomanic supported by his cadre of ill-informed, underqualified, mafiosi who form the most incompetent Cabinet in American history.

Unfortunately, this column will not change the minds of those determined to support an obviously diminished President (by the way, more irony here – think of what he and his minions say about former President Biden). But I will not remain silent while we in danger of losing the very principals that REALLY make America great. Now, THAT would be deranged.

 

Nostalgia

 The weather had finally broken so I decided to extend my daily walk. For me, walking is more than just mere exercise. And days like that one affords me an opportunity to make my outing a sojourn or what the Italians like to call a passiggiata or “formal walk.” It was an opportunity to tarry long enough to see, smell, and FEEL the world around me.

As I reached the end of my driveway, I hesitated for a second to contemplate in which direction I should head. Since I hadn’t checked on my motorcycle in the garage space I had rented about a half mile away in some time, I decided that it might be a suitable destination. South it was.

My route would take me past my old neighborhood, the one I came to when I first arrived in South Nyack over 40 years ago. On the way I would pass my original apartment, the first house I ever owned, and the apartment I lived in for many years after. Now, this was not deliberate. They just happened to be on the way. It wasn’t as if it had been a conscious decision to pass by them. I’m not overly nostalgic. Still, nostalgia cannot and should not be ignored. It comes from the many paths we have traveled in our lives to be where we are today. However, if we become overly nostalgic, we can become stuck in the past and less capable of moving into the future. So, my approach was pragmatic: I would cross those emotional bridges when I came to them. But I didn’t expect all that much.

The first I encountered was my former home. It’s a wonderful, small house that I bought many years ago. Strangely, it was just up the street from the first apartment I came to live in here. It was the easiest move I ever made. I never rented a truck. I just rolled everything up the street. Anyway, I lived there for about 10 years, part of that time with my then wife and stepsons. The place had been well-kept and had a bright new coat of paint.  It looked good. But what happened next surprised me. As I stood directly in front of the place for the first time in a long while, I was overwhelmed by my feelings. So much of my life had happened there. There were so many memories that seemed to flood into my head and heart that I thought they would burst!

Although that feeling still lingers even days later, the intensity of it faded after a few minutes. It was time to move on, physically and emotionally. After pausing for a few moments, I continued to my final destination. Along the way I passed the two apartments I also lived in for many years, each with their own rich history. Although not quite as intense as they were for my experience at the house, the memories still washed over me like a warm summer wave. I did not resist. And why should I? Just like every gray hair in my beard and wrinkle on my face, I earned each and every one of those memories they represent. In a sense, they provide a road map to my life. And like all maps, they offer a view of where we’ve been but also a plan for where we are going. Keep on moving. I did. It’s the only way to make new memories.

 

 

HANG IN THERE!

 It’s subtle, but it’s there – that feeling of change in the air. Finally! You see, it’s been a long, cold, dark, and hard winter. The kind we used to have when I was a kid and before Global Warming became a “thing.” However, I think it is important to note that this particularly frigid, and lately atypical, winter does not mean the end of the threat caused by a warming planet. In fact, it is a consequence of it.

Nevertheless, it’s been a challenge for most of us, especially me. I am a byproduct of Sicilian ancestry, dark-skinned and highly tolerant of the sun and heat. So, Summer is my season. Although no one, including me, enjoys those “dog days” of 95% humidity in New York, I can at least tolerate them. But in Winter there are those days when it’s so cold that it can actually be painful to even try to go outside. Heat and humidity can be uncomfortable, but freezing is downright excruciating! And on really cold days I wear so many layers of clothing that my partner Amanda calls me “Frankie Five Shirts!”

But there is more to “The Winter Blues” than just the frigid temperatures. There are the long, dark days of isolation when the weather conditions make it more difficult to socialize. We live in a friendly neighborhood and have excellent relationships with virtually everyone on our block. And we support those relationships by seeing and greeting one another when we are working on our yards/gardens/homes or simply returning from a stroll through town. It becomes more difficult when frostbite can strike within 10 or 15 minutes! These simple pleasures are, at least for me, what makes life worth living. We do our best to find alternatives during the Winter, but the challenges are still daunting. So, depression and melancholy can take hold.

That’s why these very subtle changes we feel in the weather may seem rather insignificant but are instead vitally important. These signs include the robins I have recently seen returning to feast on the seeds we leave for them in our yard. Among the many other harbingers of the return of Spring, I have noticed for the first time in weeks the snow pack has receded and I can see patches of new, green grass in my yard. I’ve noticed small buds on some trees and delicate flowers poking through the defrosting soil. Life is returning. And it couldn’t have come sooner!

They say there is a lesson to be learned from every season. Perhaps the best metaphor for it is from the movie “Being There” when the gardener, Chance, brilliantly played by Peter Sellers, uses his experience tending to his benefactor’s garden to explain that each season has its own purpose. And if we live within that purpose, our garden will continue to grow and all will be well.

We’re almost there folks. Hang in and soon all will be well in the garden. Literally.