Not very wet

We had some rain last week and some snow is now on the mountains. Mt. Lassen looks much better with a snowy cap. But it's not the El Nino that we have been promised. They say it's coming, have patience they say. Like all Northern Californians, we are quickly running out of patience...but what can do?

More and more lawns have succumbed to the drought and more are being landscaped with drought tolerant native plants. It's Fall and the trees are losing their leaves. That's a very good thing this year as pretty soon you won't be able to tell the difference between the dormant trees and the dead ones. But Spring will reveal the truth.

We're going up to Lake Almanor for Thanksgiving at my son-in-law's family cabin. It's right on the shore, though the shore line is getting farther and farther away as the water recedes. The power company owns this lake they haven't drained it; a bonus for homeowners here. But, they do use the water for power generation just below the dam. The homeowners here are used to seeing a variable shoreline over the years. This year the water didn't recede till mid-summer.

I had an endoscopy last year around August and I have to have them yearly now after they discovered that I had Barrette's Syndrome. The appointment is for the day before Thanksgiving and the same day we planned on driving to the lake; an hour and a half drive. From experience I know that there is no pain after the scoping. But they don't recommend driving! The anesthesia they use is great as I am asleep for the full 15 minutes they take and then an injection of a 'waker upper drug' into my IV line has my eyes open and I'm good to go.

As a former Navy Hospital Corpsman I find it slightly embarrassing that I don't know the names of those drugs. In the Navy, I had to know the names of a wide range of drugs and know what they did.
Since I'm taking a lot of drugs, I make sure I know what each one does and what precautions I should observe. I have talked to my doctor about my drugs and he knows now that I'm very much aware of the effects and side effects of them. He also told me that very few patients know anything about the drugs they take. "I take 2 orange ones and great big blue one" is their usual response when the nurse asks about their prescriptions. The same thing happens at he pharmacy. I don't know how you can open your mouth and swallow something that you know nothing about. Ae they crazy??? And these people vote.

Yes, they vote and we end up with low intelligence wackos in both House and Senate. Ted Cruz is one with high intelligence yet he's still a wacko. He's probably driving the #RepublicanClownCar as he's the only one that has a good chance of getting a drivers license on the first try.

Shame on me. I should know better than to show my frustration like that. I'm frustrated because of my age. I remember how politics used to be played and it certainly wasn't like it is today. Respect for the President used to be the norm with occasional sharp criticism, of course. Today, it is like a high school gym class where everyone piled on the selected victim. And it's ugly.

I'm not a Republican or Democrat. If I had to join a party it would be torn between the Socialist or the I.W.W. The 'Wobblies' of The One Big Union. Yes, they still exist. I think we have the finest President during the past 50 years. He's intelligent and wise. I disagree with him sharply on many issues. But they certainly aren't issues that would make me utter threats and disparage his work.  So, the Republicans are wackos. Sorry I said it but it's true.