Stu News' Eighth Anniversary

 Hello everyone! My Facebook comedy page turns eight this week, and I am announcing the revival of a contest from last year. Also, a rare opportunity for my blog readers to see and hear yours truly:  

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Dispatches from Arm's Length, Part 17

 I have been so caught up in personal stuff this first half of 2021 that I've barely commented on the still-nascent Biden administration. Make no bones about it: Joe Biden is running the country from the center-left. Compare him all you want to his pal Barack Obama, but a better comparison would be Bill Clinton. Biden hasn't been perfect --he's been slow to tackle immigration, or at least differentiate himself from his predecessor-- but right now I'll take mere competence. Give him time; it's only been six months.

Like the increasingly unhinged and uninformed far-right, progressives tend to be extremely vocal on social media, yet don't represent a majority of votes within their political party. Their notoriously bleeding hearts are in the right place, but the self-rightousness is palpable. This is why rattling off names of progressive presidential candidates --Dennis Kucinich, Howard Dean, Bernie Sanders-- almost reads like a graveyard. (I am randomly reminded of the prison camp situation on the US-Mexico border.) I hate to say it, but a democratic socialist would've handed Trump re-election.

I mention Biden because when I lost blogged, COVID as we knew it seemed to have its back against the wall. Now we have the Delta variant, a spike in deaths among the non-vaccinated, and the gradual return of mask mandates. Like last summer, we tried to move back into the "old normal" too quick, but now we have a flawed honors system that's hospitalizing the unvaccinated left and right. Unlike 2020 when a weak, deluded president deferred constantly to state governments, we have someone like Biden who can take some accountability and listens to the experts. For all his flaws, Biden is still better than the alternative. 

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Random Notes, June 2021

This month marks 16 years of blogging. As always, my attention span is a tad scattered:

+ My sister and I are still clearing out the house in Downers. I have no valid reason for my inconsistent dispatches beyond that, but it has been grueling. 

+ The Flower Shop Bangers' Zoom show is on hiatus. My improv partner has some family health stuff going on (a most relatable situation) and it's become to much of a burden and distraction. We will keep you posted when we're performing again. 

+ One of my exes recently came out as non-binary. This was a person that I dated for 14 months in 2016-17, and I am happy for their self-actualization. I always had this premonition that they weren't cis female, but for a day or two I contemplated whether I was truly "straight" or not. I've dated non-binary people, but I guess I prefer cis women. I don't think there's a label for that. 

+ This month marks 16 years of writing my rambling thoughts, but also the 15th anniversary of my first Fantasy Emmy ballot. I'm so detached from watching any TV outside of late night that your guess is as good as mine. Odds are, HBO and streaming will dominate the proceedings again. 

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Through a Freshman's Eyes, WMD Edition

Welcome to the second COVID graduation season! The class of 2021 spent a whopping one-third of their high school careers either on Zoom or doing hybrid learning, unthinkable technology 18 short years ago. They were born a year or so after the 9/11 attacks, when the US was fighting one ground war and about to start another. Like the class of '20 before them, their entire lives have been witness to all the trials and tribulations of the 21st century.

Since I wrote last year's list, the Beloit College/Marist College mindset list was adjusted for a more realistic approach to how this year's incoming college freshmen will see the world. I will continue undaunted to write mine the traditional way. 

With that said, if you graduated high school this year...

...Saddam Hussein has never been President of Iraq.

...Tayyip Erdogan has always been leader of Turkey.

...it has always been possible for the US to start a war under questionable circumstances.

...Slovakia has always been part of the European Union.

...a NASA manned space shuttle has never exploded.

...Beyonce has always been best known as a solo artist.

...your mental image of Johnny Depp has always been of an eccentric pirate.

...there has always been Wifi in space (and on Earth, I guess).

...MySpace has always been around, even though you barely remember when it was relevant.

...cell phones have always had cameras.

...Toyota has always made hybrid automobiles.

...there has never been any noteworthy national landmarks in New Hampshire.

...the Oakland (now Las Vegas) Raiders have never played in a Super Bowl.

...there have always been 32 teams and eight four-team divisions in the NFL.

...Josh McCown has always played in the NFL.

...Udonis Haslem has always been in the NBA (yes, really).

...Michael Jordan has never been in the NBA.

...Jimmy Kimmel has always hosted a talk show on ABC.

...Bill Maher has always hosted a talk show on HBO.

...Simon Cowell has always been a judge on an American reality competition show.

...Kenan Thompson has always been a cast member on Saturday Night Live.

...Bob Hope, Mister Rogers, Katherine Hepburn, Johnny Unitas, Kim Hunter, Bruce Paltrow, Aileen Wuornos, Teresa Graves, Ray Conniff, Stephen Ambrose, Sir Richard Harris, Tom Dowd, Jam Master Jay, James Coburn, Billie Bird, Roone Arledge, Lucy Grealy, Joe Strummer, Herb Ritts, George Roy Hill, Sydney Omarr, Maurice Pialat, Maurice Gibb, Richard Crenna, Al Hirschfeld, Bill Mauldin, Nell Carter, Lana Clarkson, Dolly the cloned sheep, Sis Daley, Howie Epstein, Horst Buchholz, Michael Jeter, Edwin Starr, Little Eva, Nina Simone, "Miss Elizabeth" Hulette, Noel Redding, Dave DeBusschere, Robert Stack, Sloan Wilson, Mickie Most, Freddie Blassie, David Brinkley, Gregory Peck, Hume Cronyn, Asa Baber, Larry Doby, Roger Neilson, Leon Uris, Lester Maddox, Strom Thurmond, Joan Lowery Nixon, Buddy Hackett, Herbie Mann, Barry White, Buddy Ebsen, Celia Cruz, Uday Hussein, Qusay Hussein, Gregory Hines, Herb Brooks, Idi Amin, and Charles Bronson have always been dead.

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Dispatches from Arm's Length, Part 16

 I apologize that it's been over a month; my sister and I are still in the process of cleaning out our parents' house, and between that and work I've been too distracted to write. 

The masks aren't going away anytime soon. Yes, I know the vaccinated can go without them, but there are too many intangibles. I had my second shot over two months ago, but some people *cough* evangelicals *cough* tinfoil hats *cough* are still dragging their heels. It's now very much a common courtesy thing, a necessary obligation when I shop or whenever I'm in class.

Things are trending in a positive way here in the US, but my optimism is hindered by a spike in cases in India, Nepal, and other far-flung locales. A new variant has been found in Vietnam, which isn't that far from where COVID-19 was first discovered 18 months ago. (Okay, fine, it's a 10 hour flight, but still.) As I said earlier this year, we can't pretend this is over just yet. 80% is not 100%. 

Next Week: my annual (albeit late) mindset list.

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Better Unread Than Dead

My New Year's resolutions in 2015 and 2020 were relatively similar: I wanted to make a conscious effort to reconnect with people I haven't seen or heard from recently. With 2020 being a wash for obvious reasons, I extended this vague goal into 2021. I have give or take 2,500 FB friends, so someone is naturally going to be left behind. For anyone that isn't on FB or largely skirks social media, it makes for a fun challenge. Having been on social media since the mid-2000s, and being in college when this unique interconnectivity was at its advent, there aren't that many people my age or younger that are "off the grid."

I often wonder about the people that don't answer their messages. The ignored texts, the overlooked emails. Do I have old contact info? Did I land in the spam folder? Admittedly, I used to take this sort of thing a lot harder. I still find it rude, but I have a better understanding of why someone might not reply; most often, they're too busy. By no means do I expect a reply within the hour; I'm perfectly happy with a short reply. Too often, I feel like I'm shooting an arrow through the air; where it lands? No idea where.

The weirdest feeling is when you figure out someone has blocked you on Facebook or Instagram or something without cause or explanation. I've run into that a few times; if I do have that alternate means, I typically write a "hello, how are things?" without directly addressing the snub. Usually, in those cases I don't get a reply. I'm not afraid of confrontation per se, but I'm not going to send an unprovoked "WTF" text either. I'm socially awkward, so misunderstandings can abound.

In any case, I hope they're doing well. I wouldn't reach out to just anyone.

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