Thoughts about the new year

I've read recently that October 20 was 'Information Overload Day'.  I find that an interesting idea.  I've read that the average person is spending over 2 hours a day on their smartphone in 70 sessions.  People find they cannot ignore a call or even a text message.  Why not?  It certainly isn't because every call, much less every text, is all that important.  I suppose it is because that attention from others makes us feel important.  And who doesn't want to feel important?  I certainly don't know the answer and I certainly WILL be answering calls from my wife(!) but there must be some middle ground.  Thoughts can be shy, fleeting things and losing them because of a text about a football game is a poor choice indeed.

2018 is going to be another 'interesting' year.  Financial markets are up, a lot.  Crypto-currencies are likewise up except when they are down.  Then there is the elephant in the room.  We have a President in this country who seems to lack the filter between his brain and his mouth that tiny children are easily taught.  He is certainly old enough to have some of the various age-related diseases both mental and physical that we hear touted.  And who, in their right mind, would declare themselves to be "a stable genius"?  Not to mention the many, many times he has made a statement then a few weeks later deny he'd said it?  Who thought the number of people at his inauguration were record breaking?  No one but him!  I've had experience with older people and their faulty memories.  It's not a condemnation, it's just what it is.  We may need to remove him.

Personally, it looks like a fairly good year assuming the President doesn't start a war or Congress doesn't triple the income tax.  We have an early trip planned down to Southern California but that's only for a few days.  Then there is a trip to Europe which, at the moment, is somewhat free-form.  We have been promising ourselves a dog after that but are having lots of second thoughts.  Many of the dogs in our local kennel are pit bulls; we could certainly manage one but traveling with it might scare a lot of campground hosts.  Then again leaving Fido in a kennel for several weeks at a time doesn't seem like something one would do to one's best friend!  Perhaps we'll do more trailer travel in the fall (with or without dog) but we certainly haven't planned that far ahead. 

Right now we are reveling in the first rain in something like 115 days.  And, for the first time this season, there is snow on the mountain. 

Thanks for stopping by.  Have a good one!