I'm Missing Extreme Halloween Of The Past

 Well, Princess T is Sick from Work again Today so I Hope she doesn't get Fired, she had been counseled about excessive Sick Days.  She can't help it, she's got frail Health and now we won't be seeing that Gastro Specialist for another Month after he cancelled our Appointment Yesterday!  She's had a lot of Anxiety Yesterday and sometimes a tense day beforehand for her manifests into something Physical the next day.  So, she has to stay close to a Restroom Today and couldn't have powered thru this to go to Work.  So, I dunno how her Employer is gonna react when she goes back?

The Son was saying they're having another round of Layoffs at his Work and they Laid Off Two Men who each had been Working for them for over 25 Years!!!   One had been there over 30!!!   What a shitty thing to do, Laying Off the most Loyal and Experienced Workers you have, who are Older as well, but not Old enuf to receive their Retirement/Social Security Incomes yet!   Of coarse Companies these days aren't Loyal to their Employees and most show they don't give a shit about their Workers.  Thus most Employee Loyalty is absent too and you can't blame them, they know they're all dispensable.  

His Company has lost some of their best people to a new Competitor who has better pay and Climate Controlled Warehouse.  Once he gets his 5 Years in he's thinking of going over there coz he's already been asked if he'd consider it.   Where he is right now he gets a lengthy Paid Vacay after 5 Years and that looks good on your Resume to have been somewhere that long too, and he's really close to attaining it now.   Plus, the constant Layoffs are worrying him, especially of people with Seniority and his current Employer choosing to keep inexperienced Newbies instead.

Since the Widow took over the Business when her Husband suddenly Died, its gone downhill steadily, coz she cares not about Quality Work and just wants to operate Cheaper and cut corners.  The Son says it's coz she spends Money on herself too freely and that was always problematic when her Husband was Alive, she was taking them to the Poorhouse with her reckless spending habits.  Now she's cutting the Budget for the Business so she can spend it on herself and letting go of the best people who have the most experience and higher Salaries.  She'll run the Business into the ground that way and ruin the reputation of the Company.

Anyway, a lot of places are going out of Business and it's evident the Economy is faltering even when a Business is being run well but struggling for other reasons.  At The Mall I could see how many Stores had Closed and been replaced by new Stores, some of which had no Customers either and likely won't make it.  Princess T pointed out a few Stores there that she says, as many times as she's been in The Mall, she's never seen a single Customer in there.  The Employees are getting Paid for doing nothing except being on their Phones bored for an entire Shift.  Easy Job, getting Paid to do nothing, tough to get thru day after day tho' I would imagine. 

The Food Court is having enormous turnover of Restaurants Closing and being replaced, by new ones, or just being Vacant for prolonged periods.  The Food Court is always busy tho', so it's not as if they don't have the Shoppers eating there instead of leaving The Mall to go eat at the many Restaurants around the peripheral outside of it.  That area has so many options tho', that competition is fierce for where a Customer can choose to eat.   Even the most popular Restaurant Chains around that Mall aren't as busy as the same Chains elsewhere, coz there's just so many other places you can eat at around there.

I'm seeing a lot of Mask Wearers again, I have all mine, but I'm not voluntarily wearing them unless another Pandemic happens.  I'm all Vaxxed Up and loathed wearing Masks, but I did, and I would, if it became a public safety concern again not to.   I wasn't one of those Covidiots who either wouldn't wear one no matter what, or wore it improperly, which, I still see Idiot folks wearing their Masks doing.  If you're gonna wear it under your Nose, there's no Point Sweetheart, you've defeated the Purpose of wearing one at all now.   Now you just look as Stupid as you clearly are and we have no doubts.  We can't even give you the benefit of any doubts now actually.  *Eye Roll & LOL*

Every Halloween Season I have a habit of comparing it to previous ones and you do notice trends and changes over the Years.  I'm missing Extreme Halloween of the Past.   I can look back in my Photo Archives and see that Decorators and Designers have gone Tamer and Safer with their Vignettes.   Even House Decorations have gone more Whimsical rather than Dark and Spooky.  I like Whimsical too, I have some very Old Halloween Whimsy Decor like my Tole Painted Faux Pumpkins.  I have some basic Harvest Themed Decor that I keep up thru Thanksgiving too.  But, you all know me, I do like me some Darkness and Spookiness and gravitate to it more than a benign Halloween.   Yes, give me some of the Macabre you have in you during this Season, you know you have a Dark Side too, embrace it and set it Free for the Holiday!   *Winks*

 

Okay, for some of you I know coming over to The Dark Side ain't never happening and that's Okay too, I Respect that and Honor your Wishes to be repelled by it.   I'm Proud of you if you do Halloween for the 1st time and it's a gradual thing for you to realize it can be such Fun that just perhaps, you'll go a little further next Halloween?  *Winks & LOL*  The Man was like that when I met him, his Family being uber Religious, and that being his upbringing, he was hesitant for a time, then went full throttle and came over to The Dark Side.   Since, well, now he was part of OUR Family, so, it would be a Natural Progression.  *Smiles*   My Mom used to Scare him, even when it wasn't Halloween... he's still convinced she was a Welsh Witch and wasn't to be trifled with.  Not even from The Other Side.  *LOL and Winks*

This is Why her Urn had to stay with my Brother, whereas The Man and I dealt with scattering my Dad's Ashes in a lovely Natural Part of the Desert with a spectacular View.  *Smiles*  The Man was pretty sure Dad wouldn't Haunt any of us, with Mom, he wasn't so sure?  *LOL*  My Brother said for quite a few Years, The Man could have been Right about that and he was tempted to ask our Cousins in Wales if it would be Okay to send Mom's Urn to them to scatter her on the Native Soil she so Loved?  It didn't happen, since, transporting Remains is a tricky thing Internationally especially.   But, in actuality I think it would have been the Right thing to do since that's where she would have preferred to be scattered or laid to Rest in this Realm.  I always thought I'd make it to North Wales at least one more time to show The Man where I was Born, and am a Dual Citizen of, but, it hasn't happened and now just won't.

Beautiful Country, very Green, lots of Hills, Rains a lot, he wouldn't understand anybody.  *LOL*   Gaelic People are very, very different than English People, I can understand why the Cultures never got along or understood each other hardly at all.  The Welsh were far more Curious and Welcoming to any Americans visiting than the English are or were.  I never had a Negative experience the whole time we ever visited Wales and I don't think it was just becoz I had a Welsh Mother, tho', that certainly helped.  *Winks*   My Dad just Loved Wales and the Welsh People, they treated him very well, with dignity, kindness, tolerance and a Curiosity of being the First Red Indian they'd ever seen.  They thought the American Government had managed to kill them all off actually.  Dad joked that they tried but didn't get all of them.  Dad had a Wicked sense of very Dark Gallow's Humor and could Deliver it deadpan so you didn't even know he was Joking.

 

He'd grown quite used to being the only Indigenous Person that even most Americans had ever seen off the Reservations, so the Curiosity Factor never bothered him that people had.  Or the Questions.  Most of them being Stereotypes and Old Tropes.  Some of them being quite ridiculous, my Mom said when she had me in her Home Country the Welsh Nurses asked her if Red Indian Babies could Walk at Birth!?!  She saw them trying to Walk me and asked what the Hell they were doing with her Baby!?   But, for some unfathomable reason, they just thought that like an Animal, we could just Walk right from the Womb or something?!  Which, in the telling of is funny as Hell, becoz it's so ludicrous.  But, when you think deeper, just shows how Ignorance about other Cultures still abounds in the most ridiculous ways quite oftentimes, and how Myths, Misconceptions, Lies and Stereotypes are perpetuated.

 

It was customary when you looked at somebody's Baby in their Pram in Wales, to put Coins in it.  Mom said I made her a lot of Money coz I was a Curiosity, being a Baby that looked very different than any Welsh Babies.   I came out looking very Dark like my Dad, but with her Grey Eyes, so, kinda Freakish looking actually, like a Sideshow Carnival Attraction of sorts.  *LOL*  Anyway, I wouldn't mind going back to Wales for a visit and see how, in my Old Age, I'd view everything differently than I did in the early 1970's?   Going back to places you've been, many Years later, you can feel differently about each place than you did before.  It's not that your Memories weren't accurate necessarily, just that over Time our perceptions change about things, places, people.  One thing I do Like best about Arizona is that my perceptions haven't altered that much from 1974 to now about living here, I still Love it and feel a strong Connection to the Land here.

Princess T bought everyone "Ed's Fish N Chips" for Lunch, including her Uncle who isn't Home from Work yet.  They're under new Ownership so it took Six tries before the Cashier got our Order right, but, finally he did.  Our longtime Friend Penny's Family used to own it, she passed away during COVID and had been running it.   Her Sister had Sold her Interest in the Family run and long time owned Business they established in the early 1970's by their Parents.  Some of the Adult Grandkids were working there, now I see none of the Family there and only One Worker we even know.  Penny had Employees who'd been there since High School and were now in their 40's, all are now gone and the Newbies don't have it running as smoothly as the established Crew did, and who knew everyone.  The Son's 1st Job ever was there Shelling Shrimp as a Tween when we lived in the Historic Home, walking distance from the Restaurant.

While eating my Catfish & Chips with Red Sauce I made the mistake of turning on The News.   Hegseth & Donnie Two Dolls had called a big Meeting of all the Top Military Brass from all the Branches of the Military and told them if they aren't on Board with the "New Agenda" they should Resign!!!   The "New Agenda", he now wants to use all Democratic Run Cities as a "Training Ground for our Military" to fight against "The Enemy Within", ergo, all of us who aren't MAGA I suppose and are now considered at War with The United States Government?!!!!!   And he's on TV saying that out loud, so there can be no misunderstanding that's what he means and that's what he's said!!!  Just WTF, a Retired General said that's right out of the Nazi Playbook and he's very concerned becoz Honorable Military Personnel are not gonna wanna wage a War on American Citizens like we're The Enemy in our own Country!  He's not sure how many would even obey that Order to and said Hegseth is the least Qualified person to lead the Military ever and nobody Respects him, he's a total Nepo Hire and Yes Man to this Maniacal Madman President.

We did Environmental Cleanup late Today, in later Afternoon, but it wasn't real Hot and I picked up more River Stones for the Rock Mosaic Project, got some really nice ones coz Mando gave me a lightweight Wagon to pull along and put the Buckets on, so I could go further up the Riverstone Path collecting the best specimens, it has all terrain Tires and makes light work of a heavy load.  The Wagon is lightweight enuf I can pick it up to put in the Truck's Bed afterwards, it's Metal but like a thick open mesh Metal instead of Solid.  The Man collected Aluminum Cans while I collected River Stones, he'd been petulant all Morning that we weren't going anywhere or doing anything coz we had a Sick Kid at Home.  So, the Adult Kids said they'd look out for Princess T for me while I took their Dad out for a few Hours to wear him out and improve his Mood.  *LOL*

I had told him if he took one for the Team and did the Dishes I'd take him out Canning, so he did his little Chore in exchange for me taking him out.  *LOL*  I didn't really Feel like it, but once I was out there in Nature and doing something Physical it really was good for me too.  Nobody was at the River so we had the Nature Preserve area all to ourselves, a Rare Luxury and the Wildlife were more apparent with less Humans around to scare them off.   I'm very Quiet and Zen when doing what we do so the Animals and Birds really don't seem bothered by my presence, perhaps they just don't perceive me as a Natural Threat?  Lots of Cranes were evident Today and my haul of River Stones was really good, so was our haul of Aluminum Cans.

I'm hoping the potential Government Shutdown on the 1st won't interrupt all our Federal Pensions and The Man's Military Disability Pension?   I'd like to have a Zen October without the worry about not getting Paid, and being able to just pay our Bills on time and have the Money to Exist out of the Pensions we've rightly earned, you know?   Above are some Wednesday Addams Style Antique Dolls without Heads.  *LOL*   Mando fixed the Side Door to the RV Garage Mahal Today, the previous Owners had done something to it and it never closed properly and didn't have a Weather Strip on the bottom, now it closes properly and has a Weather Strip.  It was a fairly complicated fix which required the whole Door to come off, be repaired, and then rehung properly. 

 I think at some juncture someone had tried to force the Door open and damaged it, or break in, that's our speculation anyway.  It was like that when we bought the Property.  It's a nice Solid Wood Vintage Door with some Metal, so I didn't wanna replace it with some Modern Hollow Core Door tho'.   Now everything is repaired and the way it should be.  I swear there's nothing The Daughter's Boyfriend Mando cannot Fix, he's a real MacGyver type Guy.   And don't think I don't take advantage of that being handy around here.  *LOL*    If you're gonna spend most of your Time around here then you gotta bring SOMETHING to the Table.  *Winks*   And they don't fuss with each other around here anymore, I told them, if you're not getting along, do it somewhere other than here... and so, they've chosen to just get along and play well with each other.  *Bwahahaha*  And so, there's no Trouble in Paradise.  *Winks*

The Daughter had told him she'd never seen her Dad and I Fight in the over 35 Years we've been Together.   It's not that we always see Eye to Eye, but, we never had any Disagreements in front of our Children or our Grandchildren.   And he knows I don't like to Fight, or even engage in Arguments, coz if you take me THERE, then Dark Dawn will be who you'll be having the confrontation with, not Dawn Of The Light.  *Winks*  If I Feel I'm getting really Angry, I'd rather disengage and depart, for the sake of all involved.   Then I can go off to Cool Down, come back to Center, and not go Mental on some Fool who decided they wanted to have a Fight with me.   I think most disagreements can be dealt with cordially and respectfully, without harm coming to anyone, if everyone is an Adult in the Room, who possesses some modicum of Self-Control and can Mood Regulate appropriately.  If they can't, it's not worth Engaging with them anyway if you can avoid doing so.

To me, most things that have spun out of Control could have been avoided with some Diplomacy, mutual Respect, and Maturity of whoever is involved.   I know, that seems in short supply these days and people seem so Emotionally Raw, overly Sensitive, and so easily Offended, and perhaps even Hate filled, that it's causing a lot of what's gone very Wrong with Humanity and the lack thereof of it.   Kindness matters, trying to see another Point of View, even if you fail to, can go a long way in at least realizing, people are diverse and have many differences.  Many of that being differences of Opinions they hold, the Filters they see Life thru, sometimes based on their Personal Experiences or Upbringing or where they Source their Information from.   I don't know if I've ever changed anyone's Point of View becoz it's not my Job to or my Intention to, that's Self-Work for them to do. 

The Son came Home from Working more Overtime and said another long time Employee Quit Today.  Mostly due to other long time Employees being Laid Off and over-burdening whose left in the wake of that Bad Business decision.  I guess this Guy wanted to leave on his own Terms, since he saw Co-Workers with 25-35 Years of Loyalty and Experience being Laid Off with no explanation as to Why they were let go?  It wasn't Job Performance, certainly wasn't Job Experience being lacking, certainly wasn't based on Seniority since they had the most Seniority of anyone.  And so it set a bad example and precedent for other long time Employees who now have decided to leave if they have something else as an Option to be lured away from that place.   I know The Son won't stay after he gets his 5 Years in and takes his Vacation earned from that tenure.  He no longer feels indispensable coz they've let Co-Workers go who really were an asset and not a liability.

 

But, he is getting a lot of mandatory Overtime again now and tho' he Hates MANDATORY Overtime, it will mean better Paychecks and he Needs a new Vehicle.   Unlike his Niece tho', he's terrible at Saving and Managing his Finances.  He did well when I put him on a Plan but he strayed from it, as people who can't Manage Money well often do.  I used to Debt Counsel people in serious financial Crisis in my 1st Corporate Life.   And Mitigate Bad Loan Losses of the Financial Institutions I was a Corporate Executive of, running the Collections, Foreclosure and Bankruptcy Departments of Real Property Portfolios.   I was the Bank or Savings & Loan Fixer.   I've seen every manner of how folks get into Financial Crisis and don't Manage their Money well.  It happens, sometimes it isn't their fault, sometimes it is, doesn't matter, Financial Crisis is still a Crisis and nobody likes losing Money or Assets.

I'm aware that many Americans right now are moving from Crisis to Crisis and Living that way almost permanently now tho'.  Especially the Younger Generations and therefore they're Feeling quite Hopeless about their Future.   I don't blame them, I'm sure glad I'm closer to End of Life than the Beginning of it in these perilous Times, I really am.   I want to be Guardedly Optimistic, but am I really?   No.   Don't like the direction everything is going in America, my Observations have me on High Alert.  While, still trying to have a sense of Normalcy to our Days despite all of that, it's quite the High Wire Balancing Act tho', I ain't gonna Lie.  I have some very disturbing Dreams lately and they seem very Real and like Premonitions, so, not Thrilled about that at all.

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Keep On Keeping On Tho' my Friends... Dawn... The Bohemian