It is Friday morning the day before Halloween 2020. I always like to write a post before the holiday season begins as this is my favorite time of year and these final months always seem to fly by. I still try to summon that childhood holiday magic and writing a post helps me focus on that instead of everything else adults need to concern themselves with on a daily basis.
So here we are, the holiday season is upon us. They have come more quickly than usual since life has seemed a daze since the lockdowns started in March and we’ve mostly been confined to our house. I’d usually have a number of reference points throughout the year such as my own trip back to Ohio, the trip to Japan and various gatherings of friends. But instead those reference points are much fewer as well as dimmer since any interactions have been with only a few people or one family.
This year has also been rather sad for other reasons. We’ve lost no fewer than FIVE of our close, “inner-circle” Japanese family friends. I’ve learned that it is difficult to keep long term friendships with the Japanese here in the Bay Area since they are quite transient due to a number of factors. The first is that Japanese “Salarymen” are usually only sent to a specific location for three years and then are transferred elsewhere. This happened to two families that lived here in Pacifica. Another reason has been the affordability of living in the Bay Area. This is an issue for everyone, not just our Japanese friends and because of it some family friends have moved away. The third reason is that some Japanese wives over 50 simply decide that living in Japan is more important than keeping a husband so they decide to move back and the husband can do what he will.
Let this be a warning to all you young people who marry someone from another country. Every country is different but over the past century the trend has been to move to the USA and stay. With the election of Trump I think we’re seeing the beginnings of a reversal as far as the first world countries go. Trump is just the symptom, it is the eagerness of his supporters which really causes alarm. One of the major underlying themes that his supporters *mostly* do not want to emphasis is they prefer a white and Christian America. These are not smart people but they are numerous and Trump has shown he can really whip them up into a frenzy.
Aside from that Japan is a country where older Japanese women seem to want to return after passing 50 years old. This is in stark contrast to Japanese men who are usually quite content and happy to live elsewhere. Like one of my old bosses in a major Japanese company told me when I asked him if he was looking forward to returning to the office in Japan after 5 years in LA, “It is like going from heaven, to hell!”
Returning briefly to politics a few old friends support of Trump has seriously damaged if not all together ended friendships. It is not a huge trauma as they all live far away and I never see them but once every couple of years. Life goes on and people change. The difference here is they are on the wrong team having been completely brainwashed by Fox. It is really quite something when you take a step back and think about it. These people never gave a thought to politics before now it is all they want to talk *argue* about. The spell Trump, Fox and a decade of nasty talk radio have put on the nation is surreal and now we have a bunch of older, lightly educated, middle aged white men who feed off this poison put out by Fox and are in serious danger of being angry for the rest of their lives. The smart ones are liberal and the dumber ones are conservative, just look around it is quite obvious and normally I wouldn’t be so blunt but now hate groups have become a part of their Conservative team. There are places in the USA I’m no longer comfortable to go due to the racism. Furthermore, stupid Trump declined to give my state (California) aid for all the fires until he realized those areas most in need of help where Trump supporting areas!
So in short, if friends / family still support Trump then I no longer want them as friends or family. They themselves might not have anything against the Jews but they still support Hitler. They are on the wrong team and history will surely show it. It is all so highly disappointing to me as I had thought quite a few were so much smarter. Many have never been smart so that is no surprise.
It feels very strange to bluntly state all of that. Given times of great unrest most prefer to stay silent, just wait to it all blows over. I’m not one of those people and I have a very long memory. Even if my memory were to fail I still have this blog and can re-remember. “Remember the time you supported a lying, narcissistic con man who ruined America’s international reputation?” No? Well I do. Hey China Virus; Screw US states in a major disaster if they didn’t support (or didn’t realize they did); Hey Proud Boys stand by!; Hey handicapped people, how does this impression look?; Hey kids, get into these cages!
And so on and so on. Trump supporters are mostly Christian and how amazing it is to see how quickly they are to support someone who embodies everything they are supposed to be against (abortion aside). That is also so very disappointing, you would think a Christian would usually choose the side of good. Nah, too much effort to actually think. Just go to church a bunch and give some money. It just takes money to resolve everything in America, even buys out hypocrisy.
Well, I really got into it there. But it does have a purpose and it perfectly illustrates my mindset during life under Trump. It is a disease eating up my thoughts and energy. I want to be free of it but it is all around us and there is no escape. Should Biden win the hate will continue and I imagine we’ll finally get to a civil war at some point. This state of things is 100% the Republican hate machine’s fault.
I’ve written quite a few paragraphs and notice I haven’t even mentioned COVID? COVID has changed the world but for me and my family we are content to stay at home. We have a nice house, live in a nice town and thanks to the internet have abundant entertainment options. Imagine if a pandemic lock-down had happened in the 1980s! I think we would have all gone crazy! Thank goodness for the internet.
But regardless of the internet the pandemic is/will destroy many families. Pre-pandemic the familial contract was that only a limited amount of time spent together was required. Now that we all have to be together all of the time I think many families are realizing they really don’t like each other. There is something called the coronavirus divorce but since we all are very hesitant to make big moves I think the magnanimity of this isn’t yet realized. As for me and my family we all enjoy each others company so all is well.
OK, returning to the holidays, I now have my pre-holiday post written and as you can see 2020 has greatly changed the contents when compared to the same post I’ve written in previous years. But before I go, let me relate some holiday plans.
For trick or treat we are going to a friends house and their court will be quarantined so the little ones can still do some trick-or-treating with limited exposure. It will be nice to see our friends again too, they are the only Japanese family (wife) that still remain here in Pacifica!
Halloween is also the time I remember to look at Christmas gifts and get ordering before the major toys sell out. What I learned is that there is only one gift out of the popular toys that I think my kids would like and that is Baby Yoda. I ordered two, because as I know my youngest will love it, I don’t want my oldest to feel left out. Fourth grade is a time when you’re spending most of your free time with older kids entertainment such as video games but the pull of some toys can still remain although it gets weaker with every passing day. My oldest is Fortnite all the time and I’m hoping he will burn out on it sooner or later.
Ok, I better get back to work.
