FLAMING FOOTPRINTS

What if we left burning footprints everywhere we went? I dreamt that was the way things were last night. And the first thing I thought was "well this is going to take a lot of cleaning up". I suppose it would make it easier to find someone, if you knew their foot print. Just follow the dotted burning line and voila, there they are. And that was about it for the upside. Floors would suffer. Not to mention lawns, sidewalks, and so on. And gardening would be quite difficult. Still, in the dream, I thought it was quite appropriate. That maybe we in effect do that anyway, only not quite so visibly. Global warming, acidic seas, loss of species. How many animals have done their last shuffle off this mortal coil because of us? And rain forests. Forests in general, really. Clear cutting our way to who knows where since Cain rose up. Lots of little fiery footsteps criss-crossing out world. In the dream, it just happened all at once. One day, business as usual, the next, feet on fire and flaming footsteps wherever you went. And the strangest part of all was how quickly we all got used to it. There was a moment of despair, then a communal shrug, then back to work. Of course, there was a lot of burnt up garden plots, carpets, and so on. And some injuries. But for the most part, we just moved forward. The Burning Foot Tribe of the Earth.

Yesterday, I filed for unemployment for the first time in my life. Well, underemployment. Completely due to the virus. It felt a bit odd, but was fairly painless. Took a bit of time in front of the computer, but I think we are all used to being in front of screens by now. I didn't feel sad, or ashamed, or anything remotely like that. Just something that needed to be done. Like wearing a mask in public. A bit of a pain, but nothing I couldn't get done. Now I wait two weeks, and do it all again. Or something like that. The wording is a bit obtuse, and I'm not sure how it will all work, but nothing ventured, nothing gained. Right? I do wonder what will happen, economically, to the nation and the world. It does seem like the gears have shifted, that whatever it is that has been driving the bus has taken ill, and we will soon see a different system emerge. It might be a throw back to landed gentry and serfs, or a Utopian commune. Or both. Maybe H.G. Wells really did have a time machine, as posited in the great late seventies film Time After Time, and didn't make up his stories so much as report what he saw on his journeys. Maybe there will indeed be Morlocks and Eloi. For those who haven't seen or read The Time Machine, please do. Also, Morlocks are nasty, selfish people who have devolved into monstrous beasts and like killing things, while Eloi are gentle vegetarians who have devolved into useless and boring beast, who like doing nothing for great lengths of time. Neither is an option. It's like The Dark Crystal- the original movie, not the series which I hear is good. In the movie, there area the good creatures and the bad creatures. They seem to not like each other all that much. An adventure happens to achieve this fuzzy goal that will save the world. And the goal, revealed at the end, is that the good and bad creatures unite, forming these new, powerful, groovy and quite happy creatures who utilize the best aspects of both. Can't we do something like that? Wasn't that sort of what the American Dream was supposed to be? Shouldn't the Land of the Free not refer to people screaming about their right not to wear a mask? Shouldn't the Home of the Brave mean we don't hide from the situation behind booze, baking, and countless hours of Netflix , but confront it head on? I think it does, and I know we can.

So let's do this. Let's kick it in the ass.

Also, Little Richard died. Always love him. He was the best kind of crazy, and could sing.

Here's a song. It's Long Tall Sally by the Late, Great, Already Missed, Little Richard.