(no subject)
It's been about a month since I last posted. I realized last year the WeHo Halloween Carnaval returned, though the city said they didn't want to bring it back after COVID. I have a feeling that the bar lobby pressured them into reviving it. I didn't go last year, but returned this year. It was overall great, though those shoes tore up my feet. I ran into a homophobic Lyft driver too and had to file a complaint with them against that guy. I was in drag and he refused to pick me up. Whatever, he was a dick and I had fun.
Now, my anxiety has been on a rough ride this month, thank you dumbass Americans who thought Trump was going to miraculously get prices lower. I was seriously debating moving away from the country, and I have a bad feeling in a year or two I'm going to regret not making the decision to do so now. It's a bit of schadenfreude on my part, but I've been seeing news since the election of people who voted for Trump who already have buyer's remorse despite him not having resumed power, and it makes me so happy. There are Trump-voting veterans who may lose their benefits, people who were thrilled Obamacare is set to lose funding without realize that it's the same as the ACA (which they're on) and now may lose coverage, factory workers losing Christmas bonuses so their employers can stock up before tariffs hit and others who have been or soon will face layoffs in 2025, gamers who now realize consoles and accessories are subject to tariffs, parents whose kids benefit from programs on the chopping block, and many, many others. While I think it's sad that there are a lot of people who will suffer from this when they had sense enough not to vote for Trump, I do hope anyone who voted for him feels this fast and hard. I know from experience how quickly the damage can be done, and how long it can take to recover. That being said, near the top of the list in my worries is how anticipated spending cuts will affect my job. I addressed it to my boss and she gave me at least some peace of mind: apparently, my organization should be relatively insulated and there are things in place to help keep things running. I'm not thrilled about the next few years, but it would delight me to watch his supporters suffer while I still have a job. I certainly won't like paying higher prices, and unfortunately I think these people are far too stupid to learn a lesson from this, but I do hope they get exactly what's coming to them.
That aside, I'm also finally pivoting to my upcoming trip in a few months. I bought my international tickets and domestic tickets, and reserved my hotels. I'm flying into Cairo, but going to Alexandria from the airport. I'll go back to Cairo the next day, then to Luxor. After that it's a weird back-and-forth with Aswan and Abu Simbel. I told mom about it and she remarked that I should consider somewhere else, like Louisiana. Really? By and large, if there's a part of the US I haven't visited yet, I don't intend to. In most of it, Walmart and Waffle House amount to high culture, and there's so much more in the world more worth seeing. I guess I don't see the draw that other Americans do.
Now, my anxiety has been on a rough ride this month, thank you dumbass Americans who thought Trump was going to miraculously get prices lower. I was seriously debating moving away from the country, and I have a bad feeling in a year or two I'm going to regret not making the decision to do so now. It's a bit of schadenfreude on my part, but I've been seeing news since the election of people who voted for Trump who already have buyer's remorse despite him not having resumed power, and it makes me so happy. There are Trump-voting veterans who may lose their benefits, people who were thrilled Obamacare is set to lose funding without realize that it's the same as the ACA (which they're on) and now may lose coverage, factory workers losing Christmas bonuses so their employers can stock up before tariffs hit and others who have been or soon will face layoffs in 2025, gamers who now realize consoles and accessories are subject to tariffs, parents whose kids benefit from programs on the chopping block, and many, many others. While I think it's sad that there are a lot of people who will suffer from this when they had sense enough not to vote for Trump, I do hope anyone who voted for him feels this fast and hard. I know from experience how quickly the damage can be done, and how long it can take to recover. That being said, near the top of the list in my worries is how anticipated spending cuts will affect my job. I addressed it to my boss and she gave me at least some peace of mind: apparently, my organization should be relatively insulated and there are things in place to help keep things running. I'm not thrilled about the next few years, but it would delight me to watch his supporters suffer while I still have a job. I certainly won't like paying higher prices, and unfortunately I think these people are far too stupid to learn a lesson from this, but I do hope they get exactly what's coming to them.
That aside, I'm also finally pivoting to my upcoming trip in a few months. I bought my international tickets and domestic tickets, and reserved my hotels. I'm flying into Cairo, but going to Alexandria from the airport. I'll go back to Cairo the next day, then to Luxor. After that it's a weird back-and-forth with Aswan and Abu Simbel. I told mom about it and she remarked that I should consider somewhere else, like Louisiana. Really? By and large, if there's a part of the US I haven't visited yet, I don't intend to. In most of it, Walmart and Waffle House amount to high culture, and there's so much more in the world more worth seeing. I guess I don't see the draw that other Americans do.