I think you’ve been gone long enough.

There’s a bug in my garden. I don’t know what kind of bug. Probably a slug. A snail without a shell. A mollusk gone wrong. I guess it would be slimy and brown if I could see it. But it’s slithering around virtually in my computer. “Updating failed. You are probably offline.” So what? I’ve been offline most of my life, and no muculent little creature will stop me from this writing. Or any writing. Prose? Poetry? Prose poetry. Of course the world has changed since I was last here (could I be more clichéd?) – a year ago. Ted Cruz is no longer my man, nor is John Cornyn. Covid has derailed almost everything. My sense of humor has gotten more and more indecipherable. My living alone at this age is beginning to be problematic. But, then, my living alone has always been problematic.

And the whole country is being torn apart – jettisoned, really – well, no, the country isn’t being jettisoned. I’m still here, and if you’re reading this nonsense, you’re still here. I guess. But the country is without a rudder, with bizarre notions of fact and fiction, with people saying they’ve researched something – anything – when what they’ve done is googled a bunch of nonsense and watched Fox News until their brains are fried – there, now you know which side of intelligent life I’m trying to be on – and found or heard something that corresponds with what passes for “thought” in their brain. Oh, I shouldn’t be so sarcastic, should I? I should be kind and try to reason with – gently, nicely, compassionately – all of those folks, friends and foes alike, who believe that horse dewormer is good for fighting viruses.

Wait! I do have compassion for all those poor folks who’ve been hoodwinked into – – – oh, forget it. Let them eat cake. But I am deeply concerned (not being sarcastic here, in case you need me to explain what I think is funny) – this is not a joke – concerned that so many people believe that having a death wish is a good way to get what they want. I personally feel that a death wish is not a good thing no matter which side of intelligent life you choose. The Texas Lieutenant Governor said a few months ago that old farts like me should be willing to die for their country. Now he’s convinced about half the population that it would be a good thing to die for their country, so they should not wear protective masks or be vaccinated.

So – in case you haven’t figured it out yet – I’m a tad frightened, angry, lonely, and tired. And that loneliness is a bit like the slug in my garden or computer – take your pick. It’s insidious, going about its business no matter what I think of it. Eating anything organic it can find – not much in my computer – and glissading around leaving its slime everywhere it goes. The loneliness is the fertile soil for the roots of – you know –