Introduction

So here we are.  I started this blog about 7 years ago and it's taken me this long to add anything beyond those first four words.  Things have changed a lot since then.  In 2010 there was a prevailing feeling of hope and optimism across the United States.  The uncertainties we all felt during the financial crisis of 2008 were starting to give way to a cautious optimism and we were starting to become more comfortable with the new reality it had dealt us.  Barack Obama's "Yes We Can" catchphrase was as contagious as a winter flu and we were hearing better news from Wall Street and Washington for a change.  People were starting to get excited about the future.

Fast forward to 2017. We have just endured two years of filthy, dirty, disgusting, underhanded politics leading up to a presidential election that has left most Americans scratching their heads and wondering if what they just experienced actually happened.  It has left many Americans uncertain about this new reality and where they fit into it.  Some Americans are truly excited about our country's future, some are unsure, some are elated, and some have just given up trying to figure it out.

So here we are, less than two weeks after the inauguration of our new president.  We have a president who apparently plans to govern the country 140 characters at a time, a divided and ineffective legislative branch, a judicial system crippled by a Supreme Court seat that has remained vacant for almost a year due to partisan politics, a ban on immigrants from predominantly Muslim countries, a national government that is more friendly to big business than accountable to its citizens, and cabinet positions being filled daily by people who are singularly unqualified to do anything more than making money at the expense of others.

Don't get me wrong.  I'm not doing this blog to endlessly ridicule our elected officials, although I may as well warn you right now that I'll be doing some of that. Especially right now as the new administration starts to build their new America and the rest of us try to figure out how we're going to live in it.  I'm also planning to blog about some stuff far less relevant, maybe my thoughts about people, places, music, or a form I had to fill out at work in order to order more forms to fill out. And maybe some photos.  I like to take photos, so some of them will surely end up here. And I might as well warn you that we have some cats, so there's a good chance you'll get to read about them if you choose. Not everyone likes cats, so if you decide to skip over that part it won't hurt anyone's feelings.  Ok, that's the plan. Now let's get to it...