grey saturday

I'm sitting here at the store today. It's very quiet. I'm reading various bad news on line, and I suddenly feel thankful that Nea won't ever understand or have to worry about the economy. She looks like Batman.

An article in the Times Week in Review section today compares the scene at the Wallmart in Long Island (where a worker was trampled to death on Black Friday) to Guernica. It goes on:

"For decades, Americans have been effectively programmed to shop. China, Japan and other foreign powers have provided the wherewithal to purchase their goods by buying staggering quantities of American debt. Financial institutions have scattered credit card offers as if they were takeout menus and turned our houses into A.T.M.’s. Hollywood and Madison Avenue have excelled at persuading us that the holiday season is a time to spend lavishly or risk being found insufficiently appreciative of our loved ones.

After 9/11, President Bush dispatched Americans to the malls as a patriotic act. When the economy faltered early this year, the government gave out tax rebate checks and told people to spend. In a sense, those Chinese-made flat-screen televisions sitting inside Wal-Mart have become American comfort food."

Our neighbor's car window was smashed in this morning. Someone did this in order pop the hood and steal her car battery (worth about $50). She relayed this information to me and then said ominously: "It's starting..."
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My mood soured and I sat down to write something here to clear my thoughts...just now a well-dressed, middle aged woman stepped into the shop and said politely "What's your strongest candle...one that would fragrance a whole room and cover the smell of pot?"

That would be the Cedarmoss. And my spirits are lifted.