Life of Wry

I rather liked our 4th of July this year. We attended Monica and Dror’s annual Middle Eastern Feast for the first time. For decades, we’ve stayed local and enjoyed all the fourth’s fixins that Davis offers… pancakes breakfasts, bike races, kid parades, fireworks at Community Park, of course. One year, we ventured up to the foothills to see Susan and Jim honored as parade marshals in the Dutch Flat parade and 4th of July celebration, which was very sweet. We’ve been out of town a time or two… but mostly we have loved the hometown festivities. I have to say, it’s not the same without Peter, so happy to find new traditions.

So, this year, the Matalon-Frame shindig it was. Thirty-ish folks and look at this spread!

With only a couple of exceptions, Dror (a guy from Israel), made all of it. Chicken shwarma, homemade pita bread, baba ganoush, humus, labneh, tahini, veggies galore, olives, various sauces… it was just absolutely fabulous.

It wasn’t as warm down in the bay area today, but it was pleasant enough to sit outside!

Jim and I had long, fun conversations with Lucy, Charlie, Monica, Dror, Ben, and Nina. And ate superb food. My kinda celebration.

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I’ll be honest, I’m just not feeling a lot of love for what our country has become in the last 7-8 years. There has been such a profound collapse of morality, truth and decency, all of which I lay at the feet of one person. I am so deeply resentful of the hate and division he’s worked so relentlessly to foment. Real leaders in democracies don’t divide their people, they do everything in their power to unite them. Real leaders wake up in the morning thinking about how to help their people, how they can better their lives. Not divide them, not hurt them, not destroy anyone in opposition. Today, on America’s biggest celebration of itself, the twice-impeached, twice-and-counting-indicted former president — and, shockingly, the leading contender for the GOP nomination in the next presidential election — started his day by reposting a Fuck Biden meme. In trademark petty fashion, his opening message of the day was that he’s more popular because people wear his red hats and fly his giant flags. “No Biden hats anywhere. Never seen one!”

Happy Birthday America.

His small minded pettiness, vindictiveness and vulgarity….all on display. I can’t bear it. So.. no, celebrating America feels hypocritical and hollow these days. Would rather take a break on faux patriotism and eat some great Middle Eastern food with friends in Oakland.

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We got home just in time to hear the fireworks start up in Community Park. No time to get up there (or interest, really), but standing in the middle of A Street, I could catch a few of them: