today an amicable intelligent neighbor said to me, "we finally elected a black president, and he's leading us into slavery."  i chuckled politely and walked away. i thought about all the laws carved in stone that now are crumbling to dust, supplanted by numerous new laws, more restricting and unforgiving. the guards with high-powered weapons at the airport are not going away. internet profiling is not going away. wall street bonuses and washington lobbyists are not going away. police sirens and choppers overhead are not going away. clean air and water and earth's creatures are going away.

 i'm just a stupid-ass painter, and don't know or understand. i live by cycles, the moon, stars, seasons. i garden, practice yoga, and am having a difficult time aging, always learning from mistakes, never comfortable to sit on laurels, or enjoy rewards. what rewards? no one should follow my path. i look back in regret, and wish i knew better. where is understanding? success? freedom? love?