I was 11 years old in 1976 when Jimmy Carter was running for president the first time. He had been the governor of Georgia, a state that borders my own (NC). All I had ever known about US presidents was that they were either bad people (Nixon) or boring (Ford). Carter was exciting. He was nice and famous for his big smile. He had been a farmer like my grandparents, who loved him.

During the Carter era my brother, sister and I traveled through Georgia with my grandparents to two shrines for Southern Democrats. The first was Warm Springs where FDR often vacationed to seek relief from the pain in his polio stricken limbs and where he died in 1944. The second shine was Plains, Jimmy Carter's home town where his somewhat ne-er-do-well brother Billy operated a gas station and his mother, Miss Lillian lived.

Richard Nixon was the first president I was aware of. I started reading newspapers as soon as I could read and my initial encounters with the political press were during the Watergate era. Not only were stories about the corruption in the Republican party always in the paper, the Watergate hearings were held broadcast live on every channel and like the geeky little kid I was, I watched them. I remember when Nixon resigned and how happy and relieved the adults in my were.

Life in America in the late 70s was rough. Inflation was as high as it had ever been. It started creeping upward during the Ford administration but it really skyrocketed after a while. The after affects of the Arab oil embargo were still having a dramatic affect on life in the US. Unpopular mandates like the 55 mph speed limit and the voluntary reduction of home heating use was implemented. Then the Iranians took over the US embassy in Tehran and took the staff hostage, triggering a crisis and eventually collusion with none other than Ronald Reagan. Yeah - that Ronald Reagan - the same one who started selling the Iranians weapons just a few years later.

I don't remember people disparaging President Carter during those years. Life was tough, but people believed that he cared, that he was facing problems head on and that he had a very hard job in very hard times. Most people felt like he had done a lot for world peace when he facilitated the Camp David Accords that resulted in a peace between Israel and Egypt that has lasted until this day.

Ted Kennedy, blind to the anything but his own personal ambition challenged an incumbent president from his own party in the 1980 election. Carter defeated him and polled well against Reagan until shortly before the election, being weighed down my Iran, primarily.

In the years since 1980, Carter has nearly achieved sainthood - a tough go for a Southern Baptist. It became fashionable to classify his presidency as a failure, although most people who repeat that have a difficult time articulating why or defending any reasons they put forth. Instead, we got the union busting, inflation riddled, tax-cutting for the rich, budget ballooning, arms to Iran puppet of the right-wing, Ronald Ray-Gun.

Since Jimmy Carter left the white house, his basic goodness and humanity has never, ever wavered. He has represented the US admirably and performed with unmatched wisdom in advocating for world health improvements that have saved millions of lives. The pictures of him volunteering for Habitat for Humanity into his 90s are famous.

I'm sad tonight to know that I'm going to be on a planet without Jimmy Carter on it for the first time ever.

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I updated my /now page - What I’m reading and watching, plus links to this week’s blog posts, the week’s best purchase, and the links I added to my personal bookmarks.

Today was one of those day when we just had to endure slings and arrows to get what we wanted. We traveled by car from our home in SE North Carolina down Interstate 95 to what will hopefully turn out to be the lovely city of Savannah, Georgia. I didn't even have to drive. I didn't have to navigate. The only thing I had to do was avoid irritating Wonder Woman, who had to fight with stop and go traffic for hours. What should have taken about three and a half hours instead took nearly six. We got off and on the Interstate more than once trying to find a less congested route to no avail.

Honestly, I didn't have it too bad, I wrote a couple of blog posts and half listened to some ultrarunning podcasts, while Wonder Woman, who ran 15 miles just before we left home, tried to find a comfortable sitting position for an aching hip with little success. I'd offered to drive but she elected not to take me up on the offer, not that I was insistent.

What little we saw of our destination city was nice. We are staying in the historic district. The streets are lined with giant old hardwoods. There are park like squares close by and many, many highly rated restaurants nearby. We had to cross the Eugene Talmedge Bridge over the Savannah River to get into town. I don't know what it is about Southern cities keeping the names of devout segregationists on public landmarks. Talmedge, who was governor in the 30s and 40s, pursued openly racist objectives such as restoring the white primary and enforcing segregation of the state universities. The bridge was built in 1991, and they named it for a sorry old cracker. That's a shame.

We plan to tour the city with a special side excursion to Bonaventure Cemetery. We are also going to load up on Dramamine and go out for a boat ride in hopes of encountering dolphins. Wonder Woman will undoubtably run from one end of town to the other. I'll look for stuff to write about. We will be recovered from the car ride from hell tomorrow, I'm sure.

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I often wonder "Why am I like this?" and "Why do I feel this way? " Those aren't the most original questions. Philosophers and psychologists have been pondering them and attempting to answer them for a long time. Trying to figure out if it's nature (hereditary) or nurture (environment) can be a fun parlor game. Alternatively, the truly curious folks, who also have good insurance or a lot of money can undergo analysis in any one of several flavors, Freudian, Jungian and so forth. 

I'd really like to know how I ended up such a political outlier. Both of my parents are Republicans, although my Mother was a Nixon despising liberal until she married a conservative a few years after I left home. Despite living in a red state, never attending college, serving in the military and working in manufacturing, plus being straight, white and cis-male, I'm an AOC, Bernie Sanders type, a loud one. 

Some parts of who I am are definitely genetically influenced. Alcoholism, unfortunately, is a problem that's affected people in my family for more than just a single generation. Luckily for them, my siblings have a STOP button and can drink moderately or not at all when they choose. For me, only total abstinence from everything mood altering has been the only solution. I've never been bitter or jealous about it, though. I just didn't win the genetic lottery.

As anyone who reads this blog with any regularity knows, I consider myself to be the luckiest married man on the face of the earth. I absolutely lucked out when I met my wife. I was 47 and did not have a good track record when it came to maintaining a happy home life. Somehow, though, the two of us have not had a difficult time staying enamored of one another. We spend every possible minute together, and each of us takes care of the other in different ways. How, so late in life, did I acquire the skill to be happily married year after year?

Despite being an average student, I've always performed well on standardized tests. I failed half the math classes I took in high school but scored as high on the SAT as friends who got into engineering school. It was test scores and charm (or manipulation my Mom called it when she was mad) that allowed me to participate in programs for gifted kids in school, not my grades. My only contribution to my own mental development has been an insatiable life-long love of reading and being curious about a long list of things. My brother and sister also had great test scores, but they backed them up with good grades and post graduate studies at flagship universities. Our parents, the children of farmers, both have degrees now, but they didn't get them until their 30s. I tell my wife that I used to be smarter because I scored lower on mental acuity tests given to me in rehab than the ones I took as a teenager. In any case, I was blessed genetically with thinking skills I certainly didn't work for.

There are numerous other characteristics I'd like to have more insight into. I have the skills of an extrovert but the disposition of an introvert. What's that about? Like many, many people in recovery, my preferred sports (before my knees gave out) were all endurance based. Why? Why am I a procrastinator? What makes me go from calm to irate in a nanosecond, but only once or twice a year? I'll probably never get satisfactory answers to those questions, but I'll be OK with that. It will just give me something to think about.

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Wonder Woman and I drove from a family celebration at her folks' house to my mom's on Christmas Eve, a two-hour trip. When we arrived, we spent about an hour visiting and giving reports on various family members. We also opened gifts. We gave mom a puzzle from her favorite company, one of several she received. She gave me a tech widget from my wish list (a dual hard drive bay). Wonder Woman got running socks from her preferred company, Injinji and a new robe. This morning I got up and hung out with Mom, answering tech questions, while Wonder Woman went on her run. When she returned, Mom made shrimp and grits, a Christmas tradition. She told us that she's been buying local shrimp from the same fisherman's family for 44 years.

We set out after breakfast to the home of my daughter and her family, a four and a half hour trip. As usual, Wonder Woman drove while I completed a couple of blog posts while we listened to various ultrarunning podcasts. I also may have taken a nap. I'm not sure. The weather was clear, and the sun was bright as we made our away across North Carolina's coastal plain and into the Piedmont. 

When we arrived, we unloaded gifts and carried them to the door, where my six-year-old grandson was delighted to see us. We spent the day visiting and responding to messages from our other kids and grandkids. We got a video of the youngest granddaughter, who was happy to demonstrate to her mother that yes, Santa will indeed bring more than one gift if you ask. Our oldest granddaughter gave the whole family a gift by waiting until today to announce that she had been accepted to her first choice for college, Mary Washington University in Virginia. 

We had one scare. Our grandson who has mobility issues, took a spill today and had to go to the emergency room. Luckily, the wait was not too bad, and he didn't break anything, so it worked out mostly OK. He's a stoic guy. One of the funniest moments of the holiday happened yesterday when he and I were in the living room of my mother-in-law's house. I thought I overheard Wonder Woman telling the story of one of my less than stellar moments from the kitchen, where she was making giant pans of lasagna with her sister. I asked my grandson, "Is you Nana talking junk about me in there?" He didn't crack a smile, but there was a gleam in his eye as he gave me three very solemn nods to affirm my suspicions.

Like many folks at my age, my greatest joy during the holidays is enjoying my family. A day like today was just about perfect. We had a fantastic Christmas dinner. We discussed the past and the future and laughed and laughed. My granddaughter made delicious deserts that fit everyone's diet requirements. For Wonder Woman and my daughter, that means gluten-free. For me, it just means that there is room on my plate.

In the coming days, I'll visit with my Dad to help him with some end of year computer tasks. I have family visiting from out of state, tickets for the new Bob Dylan biopic and reservations for a getaway in Savannah, Georgia before the New Year. My heart is full and I lack for nothing. Wherever you are, I hope you had the holiday you wanted and a time to enjoy whatever you enjoy. Merry Christmas from Wonder Woman and I!

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Blogging

It's still fun to me to post every day, so I don't plan to stop. I may start writing more reviews of iOS apps to mix things up. I've thought for months that'd I'd stockpile some posts or at least some ideas, but nope. Every day is a blank sheet of paper. I just come up with topics at the last minute. I need to keep better records, because I've duplicated myself a couple of times.

Tech

In the past 12 months, I've updated all my Apple tech: laptop, iPhone, iPad and watch. I'm going to have to come up with a fancy excuse to get anything major in 2025. I'd love to get a Mac Mini or another machine to set up as a self-hosting device and/or Plex server. Unlike a lot of people, I operate solely from a laptop at home with no external monitor or keyboard. Wonder Woman would beat me to death if I insisted on setting up a desk in another room.

As a Citizen

I will continue to be an outspoken and vocal critic of the MAGA movement in every possible venue. I will not let pro-Trump speech go unchallenged in my presence. I'm not going to obsess over the news or watch the daily clown show, but I will stay informed. I will financially support civil liberties organizations

Professionally

My goal at work is to continue to show up as long as it's tolerable. I had to deal with a couple of crazy rude staff members this year. Time will tell if the administration adequately dealt with that behavior or if it will be culturally tolerated. I'm there to help people. I enjoy it, but I'm way past the point in my life where I have to deal with nutjobs.

Travel

I have a standing offer to go to the Alps with Wonder Woman, but I have to up my walking ability first. She knows my mountain climbing days are behind me but she wants me to be able to go for walks along river banks and around lake sides. I'd also like to make a trip to Austin where my son lives.

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