I should have known when the threat of Santa Ana winds entered the forecast it would not be a good week. Instead of blowing off the ocean, these winds barrel down from the inland mountains like out of control freight trains. They’re generally hot and dry and can blow the flames from a grass fire hundreds of miles in only seconds. Not to mention the damage they can do to a power line.

Listening to the pundits jabber on about what went wrong in the US Election is like raking leaves in a wind storm. Basically, we had two old guys running for president. One of them had the gig before and kept the world in knots and stitches for all the wrong reasons. The other had the more somber task of getting the country running again after a pandemic nearly upended the world’s economy. But it, and the vicious attacks on his only son, the war in Ukraine, the Gaza situation, etc., slowed him down and made him seem not as sharp. So, he had to go. Considering Biden’s long service to the country, pushing him out was a shitty thing to do. It made the Democratic party look disloyal to one of their most faithful. Perception is everything in the world of fake news, especially given the GOP’s lapdogish loyalty to their own.

But it’s done and we are once again the pariah/laughing stock of the world. I hope that those in the MAGA movement will tone down the rhetoric about hanging people, take off their garbage bags and their diapers and the bandages taped to their ears and get a life. But I doubt that will happen. They were having too much fun.

And that is my last word on the subject.

Guess who sprouted up from the ground? When it blooms this plant is gorgeous. But it’s so damn unpredictable.

Like many Americans, I can’t breathe. I’m having trouble sleeping. I can’t write. I can’t paint. And, now that icy storms are moving into Northern California, I’ve put my gardening tools into the shed.

I remember when Turnip was first elected. My cousin was visiting from a small town in Massachusetts and he said “My friends back home will be so happy!” I didn’t know what to say. I knew the friends he was talking about. They owned a small farm outside of town where they made maple syrup and boarded horses. A lovely place that had been in the family for at least a century. The man had suffered from substance abuse for decades before getting sober and, in turn he’d become my cousin’s sponsor. Recovering addicts have a close bond with their sponsors and so I didn’t ask my cousin who he’d voted for.

My cousin has turned his life around and was recently voted Citizen of the Year in his small town. But he likes to do things he thinks I disapprove of … like ATVing through the backwoods of New Hampshire. To his circle of friends, college educated folks who held white collar jobs (like me) look down upon riding anything faster than a golf cart. I let it wash over me. Once someone has that “us versus them” mentality baked into them, there’s not much you can do or say. However, this time I’m fairly confident he’s voting blue. He’s done enough community service that he knows what’s at risk.

In honor of Halloween which is generally my favorite holiday, a blast from the past. The scariest place I’ve ever visited; Renwick Ruin, Roosevelt Island, New York City. By the way, a friend just told me that Conclave is a really good movie so if, like me, you can’t breathe, check it out.

Check out other pictures that need no words at Hugh’s place.

For #WordlessWednesday. Check out other shots at Hugh’s Views and News.

This tile mural was installed on the masonry wall of the Orinda Community Center. To get close enough for a photograph you have to climb the stairs leading to the adjacent library. Thus the slanted angle.

Care to guess what it is a “visual metaphor” for? Here are a few clues:

Above the bull are images of people many of whom are glued to their iPhones. Transposed in front of them is a figure all in white. Why is he running? Is he a cricket player? Do you recognize the climate activist hidden amongst the crowd? How about the political sign?

Below is a close up of the bull – note the palm trees blowing in the wind etched on his torso. Humm, palm trees blowing in the wind … a hurricane?

And then there’s the crumbled figure at the bull’s feet. He’s not dressed like a matador. He’s dressed like a farmer. What does he represent?

Surrounding the the bull (on the red tiles) are images of wild animals – an owl, a lion and a wolf and others. On the blue tiles (and admittedly harder to see) are images of cartoon animals. I think that’s Goofy on the upper left.

I was completely stumped. What on earth was the artist trying to say? A murderous bull with hurricane tattoos, people who only see the world through the lens of their social media, a cricket player trying to run away from the whole bizarre scene?

Here is the official explanation.

Apparently it’s either La Course Camarguise or the Death of James Merry (a Scottish farmer who wanted to be a matador and practiced his skills by wrestling with a young bull. All went well until the bull grew to his mature size and then well …)

I don’t know if there’s any difference between teasing a bull in the bullring or wrestling a bull in a muddy field. Granted, in the bullring you might have a better chance of surviving. What am I missing?