Today I got craving for beer. Perhaps the spirit of Cinco de Mayo influenced me and by the way I do not celebrate this holiday. It usually means barbecue and booze, which is not me. I'm more latte and book (or laptop). But once in a while I do enjoy a cold beer. A chilled glass with lime and salt on the rim and fresh squeezed lime in the beer. YUM! And I got some doughnuts that I have been wanting to try for a while.
What else? I saw this downtown on my walk the other day. Rent strike. So in Portland and I am sure other places in other states as well, if you can't pay your rent (due to the current state of emergency) you can inform your landlord of it and either not pay or pay as much as you can without getting evicted. This order took effect April 1 and is in effect for 90 days, unless extended or terminated. You would still owe the unpaid rent and it would have to get paid back at some point, so you basically would owe the rent. That can add up fast and become a real burden.
It has also been suggested that rents and mortgages should be forgiven during the ongoing state of emergency. A lot of people live paycheck to paycheck. And rents in Portland and suburbs are high. It is not cheap to live here. It is not cheap to live anywhere PERIOD unless you live for free or got some other arrangement going. So I get it that people are worried and upset.
Now a rent strike is something different. I think it is more of a refusal to pay and I am not sure if that includes a plan to pay back or not. I suspect the latter.
I have been studying. I didn't for a while because that is just how I am. I get consumed or distracted with other things so easily and I tend to procrastinate. Why I don't know. But I am back on track again. Right now I am repeating the law portion.
Here are a few recent notebooks. One my Mom gave me, that one and the light blue one I will use when I am done with my studies and transition (hopefully) to something else. Then I got a dream diary. I decided a while back that I was going to write down my dreams, I had a vivid dream which inspired me get the dream diary. Well, I don't even recall that dream, did not write it down of course and the dream diary is still empty. I tend to recall my dreams right after I wake up, once I am up and start moving around and my mind goes elsewhere and I tend to forget what I dreamt about. A few years ago I had two incidents while sleeping, I woke up screaming loudly in terror both times. I was going through a very difficult time then and it affected me a lot. I developed anxiety and I would average maybe four hours of sleep per night. No more anxiety or bad dreams and I am back to my normal sleeping pattern.
I am down to my last roll of toilet paper! What to do? Should I start scooting my butt on the carpet or should I jump in the shower after each bathroom visit? I will need to go out there into the craziness and enter stores on a toilet paper mission, fighting others for the available rolls.
I have not hoarded anything during all of this. Those people that hoarded stuff, I think it is good that they can't return it. You wanted all that toilet paper, hand sanitizers and whatever else you decided to stock up on then you should get stuck with it. Have fun with your stuff. As far as turning around and making a profit on selling overpriced bottles of hand sanitizers, face masks and whatever else aka price gouging. I think that is morally wrong but hey....isn't that a form of capitalism? And capitalism is good right? At least in America. Make profit! Most of us think it is wrong to price gouge during a crisis, I feel it is wrong to price gouge on necessary goods period. Crisis or not. What about the extreme price gouging on medical attention and medications? When you need medication or hospital care, that is a personal crisis (usually because most people don't seek medical attention unless they need it) and the prices of such services and goods are extreme. To charge people exorbitant prices for medications and health care including health insurance should be illegal and that is morally wrong. Unethical. Quite disgusting the greed that is out there. I am with Bernie Sanders 100%, FREE healthcare for ALL. I like Bernie a lot. And how is it going to get financed, people that don't like Bernie often say. I don't know, again I do not get paid to sit and think about and try to work out solutions for the people. Had I been a politician on a payroll I would had worked hard to try to improve a lot. But if other countries can do it so can the US. I try improve what I can, for no pay at all.
Powell's main entrance. 
And Powell's other entrance. 
Pioneer Square. 
