hate – Site Title

Ode to Google

“Hello darkness, my old friend/ I’ve come to talk with you again”

Remember the lyrics. It was an old song sang by the rock duo Simon and Garfunkel and it was about “the inability of people to communicate with each other.” A beautiful song from a beloved duo.

Now, take out the “darkness” part and replace it with Google and that’s where I stand with Google now. It is my best buddy, my mentor, my go to for everything I’m unsure of, and it keeps my night moving! It is also a wealth of information at your fingertips. Google Search is a godsent for people like me meaning the worrywarts. When something pops into my head and I need answers right away, there it is, my tried and tested true friend. I almost feel like I have someone right there in the room with me at times!

The recent health scare had me relying on Google even before the doctors could set the record straight. I walked in armed to the teeth and knew more than some of those doctors did and at times I would catch them viewing me suspiciously. “Who is she and how come she knows so much and where is her whitecoat?” Hmm…..the problem with knowing everything and more can be a detriment at times. I was hyped to the gills, fear took hold, and I had no peace because I KNEW the risk factors and that in itself was enough to stop me from going through with what needed to be done.

It told me everything from checking in, what to expect, how to prepare, what comes after, what to watch out for, and the recovery period right through to Week 4! Wow! I knew everything and when the doctors walked in, I was ready to bombard them with questions. Yes, you guessed it. They thought I was a royal pain in the you know what!

A friend said recently, “I hate Google!” I think he was going about it the wrong way. Embrace it and it does wonders for your psyche, your well-being, and to put your mind at ease. Not always! There were times when I would ask something and it would switch to Spanish! I would say, “Why Spanish?”

“Oops sorry, I accidentally hit the wrong button!”

Or the time, I would ask something and it would keep repeating the same stuff.

“You’ve already answered that question.”

“Sorry, let’s start again.”

I guess with everything there are glitches and they show up now and then but Google, my friend, you are what I need right now. I can do almost everything without leaving home and everything I need to know is just a fingertip away!

Thank you for keeping me company when the night is long and lonely, for making the silence a little less foreboding, and for easing my stress and tension by arming me with knowledge, the kind I need to survive this ordeal.

I’M A BIG FAN!

I Choose Peace

“Inner peace begins the moment you choose not to allow another person or event to control your emotions.” Pema Chodron

I took my walk this morning hoping to clear my head of the destructive thoughts that had been given a front-row seat last night. Something happened yesterday that threw my nicely-ordered emotions into chaos and anger emerged with vengeful thoughts ready to take aim and to shoot my opponent down and to slay the dragon with no ifs, ands or buts!

My mom once said, “You’re a Scorpio and like that scorpion you come out ready to sting when backed into a corner.” I tend to agree with her since I’ve put that “stinger” front and center before.

I came face to face with someone who was not only obnoxious but she didn’t give a flying flip about it. Having a discussion with her was like banging your head against a cement wall. Her goal was to get me down to her level and for me to wrestle in the mud with her. I was angry but I kept my cool and walked away patting myself on the back for standing my ground. However, I wanted to put that “stinger” out there and to let her have a dose of her own medicine!

I CHOOSE PEACE!

“Distance is my new answer to inconsistency, disrespect and bullsh*t. My mental peace is my priority. I simply remove access to me.”

The woman in question is a fascist. She was as ugly outside as what she stood for. An old battle-ax who had left her “Nazi” boots back in her closet! There, I’ve said it! Anyway, I spent the evening going over the things that bugged me. The thing is, you can’t talk sense or make someone see the light when they are so steeped in hate, intolerance and ugliness.

I CHOOSE PEACE!

Learn to be done, not mad, not bothered , just done.

Protect your peace at all costs. Unknown

The sun is shining and I just passed the guy with the dog. We are still beating around the bush. Today, I said, “Good morning” as we passed but he was tongue-tied and looked like a statue frozen in time and just stared! Oh well, some things are not meant to be.

I CHOOSE PEACE!

Have an amazing day.

Magdeburg, Germany

I shouldn’t touch this one with a ten-foot pole but when has that stopped me?

“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” Martin Luther King

A man drove into a crowd at a Christmas market on Friday evening killing at least five people including a 9-year-old child and injuring over 200 others. It was a horrific incident.

The driver in question is a 50-year-old Saudi national living and working as a doctor for nearly 20 years in Germany. He is a specialist in psychiatry and psychotherapy. The man also has Islamophobic views and so doesn’t fit your normal profile of a terrorist. No motive has been established yet.

Yet, that hasn’t stopped Germany’s far-right from mobilizing and screaming, “Wake Up Germany!” This was a slogan used by Nazi Germany under Adolf Hitler and its usage is a punishable offense in Germany.

Talib A, the perpetrator and driver of the car caused a tragedy of massive proportions but let’s not tar and feather all immigrants as, ‘terrorists,’ ‘criminals,’ and ‘low lifes.’

Let’s take a hard look at Germany’s extreme right. The irony is not lost here. The same groups who promote violence, terror and hate are the same ones marching against violence because in this instance it was caused by a foreign naitonal. The mantra of these groups is “HATE” and “VIOLENCE” is their hand-grenade.

Racist attacks have increased against migrants in the wake of the deadly Christmas market attack in Magdeburg to the point that it has become a hostile and threatening environment for migrants living there. There has been a significant rise in attacks against foreigners who are seen as “looking different” according to these individuals and they have a target placed on their backs. You may think that this is a recent event because of the deadly incident but it has been ongoing. They (the extremists) look for any excuse to promote violence against foreigners. The extreme-right and neo-Nazi parties are demanding the mass deportation of migrants from the country. Sounds familiar America? The cry is, “Deport! Deport! Deport!”

Here’s the question. Where do you send these “hate mongers?” These perpetrators of hate, violence and even death in some cases. Their brand of violence will never stop because they are blinded by hate and that’s the kind you should worry about. Remember, Adolf Hitler, the most hated man on the planet and the hate and destruction he unleased which in turn killed around six million Jewish people? It was mass murder on an unprecedented scale. Let’s not go down that road again.

It’s time to look at violence and terror from a broad scale. Let’s LOOK at everyone who causes ‘terror’ and not just at the Islamic world. Terror is terror, it doesn’t matter who causes it but it needs to be stopped otherwise we’ll have more innocent lives lost. Working on that solution should be the main focus. PERIOD!

Have an amazing day.