I apologize in advance for the tone of this week’s
report …
A week ago marked “Blue Monday”, deemed by some experts
to be the most depressing day of the year. I certainly hit the wall this past
week, and it was little consolation to note that I am not alone. Shauna’s
health is not getting much better, and I cannot avoid the constant negative
chatter on the news, chipping away at my ever-waning reserve of hope. I just
heard a song by Loudon Wainwright III called Older Than My Old Man Now, and boy, does that song resonate today.
While I haven’t talked much about Shauna’s health in
the past months, she is still struggling with the same problems which surfaced
six months ago. The vision in her left eye might be marginally better, but
there is still an almost hallucinogenic distortion, and we are told there has been permanent damage to the optic nerve, and to her eyesight. Most worrisome has been
her extremely negative reaction to the prednisone, prescribed by her specialist
to reduce the inflammation. A word of caution: If you ever need to go on this
drug, read up on the side effects, because you won’t likely get a straight
answer from the doctor who prescribes it. For Shauna, who suffered from chronic
pain and inflammation for decades before she was put on this drug, this past
five months have been discouraging. Her reaction to prednisone has been devastating,
with symptoms ranging from extreme weight gain, increased pain, agitation,
insomnia, skin problems, back problems, potential bone density problems,
cognitive issues, etc. We still do not know what the long-term damage might be,
or if the drug is even helping, and in the back of our minds is the
ever-present apprehension that the neurological attack may not be over. Later
this week, we will head down to Toronto for yet another appointment with an ophthalmologist
/ neurologist who has been treating her for the last five months. We hope to
learn that the inflammation which attacked her eyesight has continued to subside,
and that she can wean from this awful drug. Among other things prednisone shuts down the body’s adrenal
gland, and a slow wean is necessary to avoid the dangerous side effects of withdrawal.
Last Saturday, to mark (like a fire hydrant) the first
anniversary of Rump’s inauguration, there were marches across North America to
protest the Bloated Orange Emperor. Millions of mostly angry, indignant women, marched in protest of sexual harassment, and some were marching just because they despise the
Commander-In-Tweet in general. As I write this, Congress is about to reconvene
following the shutdown of the government. While I see this this shutdown as all
about political posturing and trying to make Trump look bad, it simply shines a
light on exactly what it was that got Rump elected in the first place: government
dysfunction and partisan politics. It seems to boil down to an unacceptable
quid pro quo – money for the Great Wall of Mexico and/or other concessions, in
return for not scrapping DACA (Deferred Action On Childhood Arrivals). Without
that concession, about 700,000 illegal immigrants, many of them young and
raised in America, stand to be deported. So much for “Give us your tired, your
poor, your huddled masses…” I feel as if the U.S. Constitution is being
re-written by a fool.
There is a philosophy in the business world, especially
true in certain circles of the real estate business, which professes that he
who is the biggest bull-shitter wins. In my heart I think I know right from wrong, but for
the life of me, amidst this hurricane of bad press, I can’t see the white hats
anymore. Just a bad day I guess. “Blue Monday” hit me a week late.
Written by Jamie Oppenheimer c 2018 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
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