Crashing and Burning - Living in Unsettling Times

My summer is starting to crash and burn, rather like the spring did. My annual show in Milwaukee was rescheduled from last week to the end of August in the hopes that the COVID-19 outbreak would be better controlled and things would be safer for the attendees. But yesterday evening, as I was doing a quick review of pending emails, I noticed the bad news. The show has been cancelled completely for 2020 and rescheduled for the normal June dates in 2021. That leaves a single event still on my calendar - the Minnesota Renaissance Festival starting in late August and going through September into October. I'm fairly certain that will also end up being cancelled for safety's sake.

I've attended this annual show since the mid-1990's. It's
painful to realize I won't see friends this year. 

Although it is summer, not winter, Shakespeare still came to mind. "Now is the winter of our discontent" seems apt in a strange way. It also brings to mind the Summer of Discontent which seems so relevant today in the wake of George Floyd's murder. Are you aware or do you remember that summer of 1964? I was alive, but I was young and it didn't make the impact on me that it should have. Are you curious? What am I talking about? Here's a link to a 15-minute read about that summer and its' pivotal role in our long fight for racial equality.

I realize that my link only takes you to the first page of the
multi-page article, and I apologize. The way my morning
has been working, I'm grateful I was able to at least
get that teaser up for you to read and research from. 

I know that it's going to be a long, hot summer and that our usual outlets of festivals, musical performances, small street fairs and corner amusements parks are locked away for another time, another year, a year with more hope. People were already going stir-crazy during their varied stay-at-home orders, many of which are starting to life. But, as they stayed safe or ventured out on quick errands for a variety of reasons, this damned invisible virus was changing the topography of their lives forever.

Will we ever feel comfortable enough to gather in huge numbers
at festivals and musical events? A crowd like Woodstock seems
unimaginable in today's post-COVID environment. 

We will ever be able to safely gather in large crowds again? Will masks become a necessary fashion accessory? I suspect I'll be wearing masks for many more months, so I've purchased some colorful ones, and Chickie has made me several wonderful masks as well. I'm set for fashion, but somewhat unsettled in life. We don't live in a perfect world. We are still learning how to work within the world environment. We can close our doors, huddle in our bedrooms with blankets pulled over us, but what would be accomplished by that? No. We need to put on our glasses and examine the areas where we can improve. Then, gritting our teeth, we need to set forth and change things for the betterment of all. We're not perfect, but we can do better. I have to believe that.

Have a wonderful Thursday and I'll be back tomorrow. Be safe.