Here There and Everywhere

Expat wanderer

“Your Mission is to Shine”

Today, our priest took on the brave task of dealing – not with politics or political events, (God forbid!) but addressing how we, as members of the body of Christ, are to respond to these events. We are to be light. We are to do what the bible tells us to do. We are to treat our fellow human beings – even those who are not like us, who do not share our opinions, with the dignity and love with which every human being were created.

Holy Smokes! That’s a tall order. We are to love one another. We are to welcome the stranger. We are to share. We are not to gossip or say mean things about our friends – or anyone!

In the resources posted online for his sermon, he quotes C. Andrew Doyle, 9th Bishop of Texas, from his blog. Because it is publicly posted, I am sharing because when he posts, he expects people to read.

Tuesday, January 27, 2026
An Embodied Christian Call to De‑escalation, Dignity, and Truthfulness in Immigration Enforcement



O God,… we thank Thee for Thy Church, founded upon Thy Word, that challenges us to do more than sing and pray, but go out and work as though the very answer to our prayers depended on us and not upon Thee… Help us to realize that man was created to shine like the stars and live on through all eternity. Keep us, we pray, in perfect peace, help us to walk together, pray together, sing together, and live together until that day when all God’s children, Black, White, Red, and Yellow, will rejoice in one common band of humanity in the kingdom of our Lord and of our God, we pray. Amen.
— Martin Luther King Jr.



A pastoral and theological statement for this moment — with particular concern for Minnesota.

Introduction

Episcopal Bishop of Minnesota Craig LoyaI write this statement not as a political pundit but as a pastor and teacher of the Christian faith, as a bishop in the line of the Apostles, now having served in that particular office for 18 years. I have read and followed events regarding immigration throughout my time as bishop and have made no secret of my belief that the church is called to serve all people. Over the last month, I have been watching events across the country, with particular interest in Minnesota.

The Church exists to care for souls, which means I will care for souls on both sides of any partisan debate. I will speak both to Republicans and Democrats, to Independents and the politically exhausted, to immigrants and citizens, to agents and to those who fear the agents, to people who protest and to people who feel threatened by protest. I will not tell anyone how to vote. But neither will I stand silently when fear overwhelms our public life. How could I? Our hearts grieve at what we are bearing witness to in the world around us, especially as it has to do with immigration.

Across the country, immigration enforcement has become a flashpoint of fear and rage. In Minnesota, that tension has sharpened into tragedy and public crisis.

In recent weeks, Minnesota has seen increased federal immigration enforcement, described by the DHS as the largest operation ever, alongside mass arrests, major protests, and increasingly fraught encounters between federal agents and Minnesotans. This includes multiple shootings involving federal immigration agents in Minneapolis this January alone, including both the killing of Renée Good and this weekend’s shooting that killed Alex Pretti. Nationwide demonstrations have followed over the past week, bringing unrest beyond Minnesota state lines.

Many Minnesotans who support aggressive enforcement are motivated by real concerns: the rule of law, public safety, fairness to those who immigrate legally, and the fear that communities can’t absorb disorder. Those concerns deserve a hearing. But no concern, however sincere, justifies dehumanization, disproportionate force, or policies that treat human beings as leverage.

In parallel with this violence, we have watched the conflict escalate rhetorically and tactically: on threats to invoke the Insurrection Act, talk of “occupation,” and weaponized public speech hardened into competing moral absolutes.

This is precisely the kind of moment that Christians should practice what I have elsewhere called an embodied apologetic: arguing not merely with words but demonstrating publicly, concretely, and nonviolently what we believe about the human person, the nature of authority, and the lordship of Jesus Christ. 

By demonstrating, I mean far more than marching or civil disobedience. I mean demonstrating the love of Christ to all people. Remembering that in the migrant in our midst, we see the neighbor as defined by Jesus and the stranger God tells us to care for. 

Groundwork: immigration enforcement and the theological depth of creation

To sit quietly while immigrants are demonized, blamed for crime, or dehumanized is to sit quietly while Christian doctrine is being threatened.

The Christian claim is that the Word became flesh, that humanity is encountered, named, and raised to new life in the material particularity of Jesus Christ. The Christian faith does not treat bodies, human lives, or human faces as incidental. When Christians claim that the incarnation altered the universe, we mean that the material world has theological depth.

Every human being bears the image of God, including the migrant at the border and the undocumented worker. That includes the asylum seeker fleeing gunfire and the citizen bystander who gets caught in the middle. It includes the protester holding a sign in the street and the federal agent wearing the uniform.

Human dignity is not conferred by paperwork, politics, or popularity. Human dignity is linked to God by the very generosity of the Godhead to bring us into being.

And when we understand human sinfulness not simply as “bad behavior” but as the fracture between what God has made and our too-often selfish desire to remake creation in our own image…well, then we have a theological framework for our contemporary moment.

The doctrine of sin explains our predicament. But the Christian gospel that Jesus Christ entered into our fractured humanity to redeem and reconcile us to God is our explanation of how things change.

As Christians understand human brokenness and healing, we are neither naïve about fear and disorder nor resigned to it. We recognize sin; we name it; we flee from it. But we do not stand and watch it with holy indifference.

We do not sanctify fear, baptize cruelty, or call dehumanization “prudence.” To insist otherwise isn’t pragmatism; it’s theological divorce: declaring some aspects of creation safe for politics and using Christian language to justify policies or tactics that degrade human dignity or scapegoat racial and ethnic minorities. The Church cannot allow this faith, the faith of every Christian generation,  to be twisted in the service of anti-immigrant cruelty.

Which means we cannot accept a public order so structured that it trains us, through constant repetition and a steady diet of dehumanizing rhetoric, to see some people as contaminants, vermin, or existential threats by virtue of their very existence. That’s not realism. It’s idolatry.

And when that mythology attaches itself to nation-states, bullets inevitably follow. The Church has seen where such theological claims lead when fused with nationalism, racial mythology, and demands for unquestioned allegiance.

Christ alone is Lord. No other power takes precedence over the Church in Christ. And when any political ideology inclines that way, Christians must stand against it. If race-craft and nationalist mythology run rampant unchecked in our politics, they will destroy our democracy. Worse still, they are in the end a theological threat to the church.

If federal agents lose sight of their own humanity or basic constitutional rights amid tense confrontations, everyone loses. We are not only witnessing a newfound morality that allows harm, but we are also allowing a state to do moral injury to those who serve in law enforcement.

De‑escalation is Christian obedience

Because Christ is Lord, we cannot tolerate panic as policy. Christian leaders should call for immediate de‑escalation tactics in Minnesota and nationwide, especially from federal leaders, federal agencies, and ICE. Here’s why and how:

Because life is not a bargaining chip. When policies or tactical shifts treat human bodies as leverage, political leverage, intimidation leverage, violent “force multiplier” leverage, the state courts us into an anti‑human logic that Christians cannot affirm. It’s that simple.

Because fear is contagious. When immigration enforcement looks like a militarized invasion, everyone gets trained to be afraid: parents who teach their kids to hide, workers who avoid hospitals and schools, congregations that fear gathering for worship, citizens who fear recording with their phones, and agents who become afraid, too (more reactive, more quick to see every person of color as a threat).

That fear feeds on itself. Dehumanization multiplies. When any human group is treated as subhuman, everyone’s capacity for recognizing humanity begins to slip away, including the humanity of agents ordered to do their jobs.

Because the Church has something unique to say about what it means to be human.

Unlike many voices in our public life, the Church does not merely talk about human dignity; our allegiance to Christ compels us to embody it. Our witness must not be a slogan; it must be a public pattern of life: prayerful, truthful, courageous, nonviolent, hospitable, committed to the dignity of our neighbors and the strangers who live among us.

For these reasons and more, what we’re seeing must be named:

Agents are operating with increasing combat‑style visibility: helmets and vests, crowd‑control weaponry designed for more confrontational policing, tactical vehicles, and face masks.

Such a posture is often experienced as intimidation rather than order, and it can train communities toward avoidance and suspicion.

Whether you believe immigration law is too harsh or not harsh enough, Christians cannot remain silent about how our public life is changing. Domination is not justice.

When repeated lethal encounters happen across a concentrated operation, even if investigations ultimately exonerate agents in each incident, the moral burden shifts.

The question is no longer simply, “Was this legal?” but “What kind of society are we becoming, if incidents like this become normalized?”

Immediate steps we are asking for, nationwide

Stop. Take a breath. Listen. De‑escalate.

How can federal agencies and federal leaders de‑escalate tactics and posture immediately?

Pause operations that have produced multiple lethal encounters over a short period of time and inflicted widespread trauma across immigrant communities. Commit to visible accountability: name badges, clear chains of command, and timely release of video and incident documentation consistent with due process. Prioritize de‑escalation techniques in training materials and practices — especially community‑engaged operations where children and bystanders are likely to be present. End tactics that reasonably read as intimidation. Even if lawful, if their predictable effect is widespread fear and trauma in communities, stop them and adopt alternatives.

The DHS itself has framed this Minnesota operation as “the largest enforcement operation we’ve ever conducted in Minnesota.” That is cause for additional, not lesser, scrutiny. 

What can state and local leaders do to protect both public safety and civil liberties?

Fully protect lawful protest while continuing to hold protesters civilly and criminally accountable should violence occur. Commit to clear nonviolent crowd‑management techniques that don’t replicate wartime intimidation. Do everything in your power to lower the temperature, rather than rhetorically inflaming the situation. Provide additional support and resources for communities experiencing disproportionate fear, including immigrant communities, communities of color, and neighborhoods receiving saturation enforcement.

What can protesters and activists do to practice disciplined nonviolence? 
Commitment Card for Peaceful Protests
 
You are angry. You are grieving. Many of you are operating in understandable fear for your lives. But Christians do not get to numb ourselves to moral agency in the adrenaline of a crowd. Violence is not leadership. If you condemn dehumanization, you cannot then dehumanize the person in the uniform. If you are going to protest for dignity, you must demonstrate dignity. 

What can the Church do?

Hold public prayers for peace and truthfulness.

Explicitly call on Christians to lower the temperature where they are: online, in-person, wherever misinformation, dehumanization, and fury are allowed to settle and fester. 


Teach our people that anger is human, but vengeance is demonic. Demand better of our leaders. Insist on civil institutions that honor human dignity.

Open churches for pastoral care where needed.

For immigrants afraid to leave their homes. For families disrupted by ICE raids and detentions. For anxious citizens who feel too afraid to leave their homes. And yes, for agents’ families who love their children too much to let them keep policing. In the Diocese of Texas, we do not have the luxury of believing only one side of this conflict sits in our pews.

Consider organizing accompaniment/aid in lawful and disciplined ways: Food. Shelter support. Transportation to court hearings. Connections to legal resources. Trauma care. Emergency family preparedness plans. We are currently doing this in the Diocese of Texas, as are many dioceses around the country. You can contribute to our legal fund here. You can contribute and learn more about our convening a multi-faith initiative here feeding people. We will have a new immigration portal up in the near future. I hope this will inspire you to gather local leaders to demonstrate God’s love in Christ in various ways to our immigrant neighbors near our churches.

Train de‑escalation teams for vigils/demonstrations: Teams whose explicit task is to lower the temperature, protect the vulnerable, and prevent further harm. Consider training specific leaders for this ministry if it does not already exist in your community.

Preach and teach the holistic truth of Christian anthropology starting now. That Scripture does not sort people into worthy and unworthy buckets as our habit of Christian life. That there is no politics or policy so vital that we should make an idol of it. That we will not hand the American Church over as a get-out-of-accountability-free card to any national leader or political party that demands our silence or allegiance in return for temporary power.

Christianity is a serious faith precisely because it comes with a seriousness of expectation: that we will love our neighbors as ourselves. That we will speak truth to power. That we will love our enemies. And while Christians are not the silent majority, perhaps the silent Church will speak now.

The Associated Press has reported clergy in Minnesota risking arrest as part of their public witness. 
People of faith are beginning to recognize what’s at stake in this moment.

We preach forgiveness, and we preach against sin.

We preach that Christ alone is Lord.

If we say the Word became flesh, we cannot allow policies and tactical shifts that treat human flesh as disposable. If we say Christ alone is Lord, we will not give the silence of the Church to any leader, any political party, or any government agency that demands our blessing as the price of patriotic cooperation.

Social de‑escalation is not merely political point‑scoring. It’s a confession that God’s government doesn’t require us to terrorize our neighbors into obedience, that Christ doesn’t radiate power through humiliation, and that the Spirit produces something other than fear within those who follow him.

Friends, we have been here before in our nation’s history. During my tenure, it was not that long ago that we faced the George Floyd period, among others. Yet, many who will read this can remember the fight for desegregation. We must rise to our better angels again in this moment, wherever we find ourselves. So I say:

To the anxious in our congregations: you are not forgotten.

To immigrant communities in our states: you are not alone.

To officers and agents who feel beyond the reach of critique or moral accountability: you are wrong about that. And, you are also not beyond God’s grace.

To the Church: we must not become the chaplain of fear.

Friends: de‑escalate.

Let’s insist publicly, prayerfully, and steadfastly for social de‑escalation in Minnesota and nationwide. Let’s demand accountable governance and policies that recognize our common dignity. Let’s refuse every ideology that functions by dehumanization. And let’s practice an embodied Christianity that shows our neighbors what it looks like when citizens are governed, not by panic, but by the peace of Christ.

Because otherwise it is not merely a political failure – it is a spiritual failure: a society willing to forget what a human being is. May God give us the courage to tell the truth. The discipline to refuse violence. And the grace to become, together, the kind of people who can carry that peace into a frightened world.


Posted by C. Andrew Doyle at 9:06 AM  
Labels: ICEimmigrantimmigrationimmigration reformminneapolisminnesota

February 8, 2026 Posted by | Blogging, Community, corruption, Counter-terrorism, Cultural, Faith, Interconnected, Law and Order, Leadership, Living Conditions, Quality of Life Issues, Relationships | Leave a comment

Make No Peace With Oppression

From today’s Lectionary readings on the Feast Day of Saint Agatha of Sicily:

PRAYER (contemporary language)
Almighty and everlasting God, who strengthened your martyr Agatha with constancy and courage: Grant us for the love of you to make no peace with oppression, to fear no adversity, and to have no tolerance for those who would use their power to abuse or exploit; Through Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom with you and the Holy Spirit be all honor and glory, now and for ever. Amen.

Read the story of Saint Agatha by clicking on link above.

February 5, 2026 Posted by | Bureaucracy, Civility, Faith | , | Leave a comment

Sunset 2 February 2026

Amd suddenly the polar vortex shifts and spring temperatures appear. AdventureMan and I scurry to uncover the plants. So far, so good; everything looks like it survived.

We are blessed by unexpected phone calls from old friends, out of the blue. Unexpected blessings rolling in as the cold winds roll away.

February 3, 2026 Posted by | Climate Change, Friends & Friendship, Gardens, Living Conditions, Pensacola, Sunsets, Weather | Leave a comment

Streets of Minneapolis: Sing it Loud!

Thank you, Bruce Springsteen. Protests need an anthem, and just in time, you recorded Streets of Minneapolis, the number one song in 19 countries this weekend. That’s powerful. Listen for yourself on YouTube.

Here are the lyrics. Singing is non-violent and unifying; Sing it LOUD. If you can’t remember all the words, memorize the chorus 😊.

Streets of Minneapolis

Through the winter’s ice and cold
Down Nicollet Avenue
A city aflame fought fire and ice
‘Neath an occupier’s boots
King Trump’s private army from the DHS
Guns belted to their coats
Came to Minneapolis to enforce the law
Or so this story goes


Against smoke and rubber bullets
In the dawn’s early light
Citizens stood for justice
Their voices ringing through the night
And there were bloody footprints
Where mercy should have stood
And two dead, left to die on snow-filled streets
Alex Pretti and Renee Good


(chorus)
Oh, our Minneapolis, I hear your voice
Singing through the bloody mist
We’ll take our stand for this land
And the stranger in our midst
Here in our home they killed and roamed
In the winter of ’26
We’ll remember the names of those who died
On the streets of Minneapolis


Trump’s federal thugs beat up on
His face and his chest
Then we heard the gunshots
And Alex Pretti lay in the snow, dead
Their claim was self defense, sir
Just don’t believe your eyes
It’s our blood and bones
And these whistles and phones
Against Miller and Noem’s dirty lies


Oh, our Minneapolis, I hear your voice
Crying through the bloody mist
We’ll remember the names of those who died
On the streets of Minneapolis


Now they say they’re here to uphold the law
But they trample on our rights
If your skin is black or brown, my friend
You can be questioned or deported on sight
In our chants of “ICE out now”
Our city’s heart and soul persists
Through broken glass and bloody tears
On the streets of Minneapolis


Oh, our Minneapolis, I hear your voice
Singing through the bloody mist
Here in our home they killed and roamed
In the winter of ’26
We’ll take our stand for this land
And the stranger in our midst
We’ll remember the names of those who died
On the streets of Minneapolis
We’ll remember the names of those who died
On the streets of Minneapolis


source: https://www.lyricsondemand.com/bruce_springsteen/streets_of_minneapolis

Thank YOU Bruce Springsteen!

February 1, 2026 Posted by | Uncategorized | , , , , | Leave a comment

Sunset on the Coldest Night of the Year

What you can’t see is the wind blowing, and the white caps on the bayou. We had to re-cover and re-clothespin the roses and plumbago, and the ice on our water tubs was an inch thick. No problems with the running water freezing – so far. We have some cold days yet to come, but this is likely to be the coldest day of the year.

We saw One Battle After Another yesterday at the theater downtown that shows art films, foreign films and award nominees. The tickets are $10, the venue is provided free and the guy that runs the show does it for the love of film. Not only do we watch the films, but there are also great discussions.

Friends told me I probably wouldn’t like the movie, but I loved it. Going to Uni on the West Coast, I felt like I knew those people, on both sides. And dark as it was, it held a mirror up to current themes. I love actors who choose challenging roles, and even roles in which they play people who make bad decisions, or aren’t the brightest bulb in the chandelier. Leonardo diCaprio had his work cut out for him in this role, and I think he nailed it. Yes, it is wacky and violent. We are living in wacky and violent times. Who would have thought we would elect a liar, cheat, and felon to be President of the United States, and that we would stand by, helpless, as he gutted our Constitution? Wacko. It’s all wacko.

Today is a Full Moon, a new month and God willing, a time to turn things around. Bruce Springsteen has the number one song in 19 countries, with The Streets of Minneapolis, a roaring anthem fit for the times, and Minneapolis has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for their activism and self-restraing in the face of the goons of ICE.

Atlantic Monthly has a new article on how the Proud Boys aren’t coming in the counter the hundreds of demonstrators; that the Homeland Security and ICE squads are doing a fine job – and they have photos to show how an organization theoretically doing customs enforcement now looks just like the Proud Boys. When did Customs Enforcement dress like troops going into villages in Afghanistan? What legitimate law enforcement officers wear masks? Who in their right minds arrests little children?:

Proud Boys in Washington, DC

ICE agents in Minneapolis

Law Enforcement officers, in civilized countries with laws protecting the innocent (and who are innocent until the system determines them guilty), are TRAINED to operate with restraint. Trained personnel do not fire on civilian bystanders.

I’ve watched the Minneapolis tapes, especially the one filmed by officer Jonathan Ross. I listened to him as, just after the shooting, he said “F@#king B!tch” and I don’t think he was even thinking about Good; I think he was angry that Good’s wife had called him “Big Boy” and told him to go get a sandwich. Most of the guys we see in those uniforms are hefty, and slow, and clumsy. And they do not respond to mockery with self-restraint – as we have seen. They need training. And it wouldn’t hurt if they had grown-up leadership. The kinds of vague, unconstitutional and inciting instructions they have received seem designed to be incendiary.

February 1, 2026 Posted by | Afghanistan, Aging, Bureaucracy, Character, corruption, Counter-terrorism, Cultural, Law and Order, Leadership, Living Conditions, Sunsets, Weather | , , , , | Leave a comment

Oath of Citizenship: Joyful Celebration

It’s not often a courtroom is packed with joyful people. And only for this one significant celebration are cameras allowed – even encouraged – in the courtroom. The difference in atmosphere is palpable.

Yesterday, 33 people from a variety of nations took their oath to be responsible American citizens. There were moments when their was no sound, no noise at all, in the courtroom; the silence was a salute to the importance of the event, and respect for the moment.

Judge Collier managed to be both solemn and celebratory, lauding the diversity of the group and the importance of their choice to be US citizens. He, and other, congratulated the applicants for “earning” their citizenship by learning our history, customs and language, and appreciating it’s rewards even more than those of us who are citizens by birth and heritage.

David Stafford, our long time Supervisor of Elections, now the right-hand man to Pensacola’s Mayor Reeves, gave a moving and motivating speech about the gift of citizenship, its rewards, and the great responsibility each citizen has to sign up to vote – and to vote.

My friends, you receive my frustrated rants and my frequent musings. Today, I share with you a day full of pure joy. A packed courtroom, for all the right reasons; official speeches, short, pithy, and full of positivity and possibilities, and people who fully believe in the Rule of Law, Equality, Diversity as a strength, and the great inclusionary current of neighborly brotherhood that connects people in the United States of America.

January 31, 2026 Posted by | Adventure, Bureaucracy, Character, Civility, Counter-terrorism, Cultural, Free Speech, Law and Order, Leadership, Living Conditions, Pensacola, Political Issues, Quality of Life Issues | , , , , | Leave a comment

Pork with Apples and Onions

This recipe was inspired by a Ken Follett novel where a local squire served a pork dish with apples and onions when the Earl visited. I was intrigued, and found a recipe my family loves.

Pork Tenderloin with Roasted Apples and Onions

YIELDMakes 4 servings

INGREDIENTS

1 large pork tenderloin (about 14 ounces)

3 tablespoons olive oil, divided

2 tablespoons whole grain Dijon mustard

2 teaspoons fennel seeds

1 large onion, sliced

2 medium Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, sliced 1/4 inch thick

1/2 cup dry white wine or apple cider

PREPARATION

Preheat oven to 450°F. Season pork with salt and pepper.

Heat 2 tablespoons oil in large nonstick ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Add pork and sear until all sides are brown, turning occasionally, about 5 minutes. 

Transfer pork to plate. Cool slightly. Spread mustard over top and sides of pork; press fennel seeds into mustard. 

Add remaining 1 tablespoon oil to skillet. Add onion slices and apples; sauté over medium heat until golden, about 5 minutes. Spread evenly in skillet and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place pork atop apple-onion mixture.

Transfer skillet to oven and roast until apple-onion mixture is soft and brown and meat thermometer inserted into center of pork registers 150°F, about 15 minutes. Transfer pork to platter and tent with foil. Let stand 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, pour white wine over apple-onion mixture in skillet. Stir mixture over high heat until slightly reduced, about 2 minutes. Cut pork on diagonal into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Spoon apple-onion mixture onto plates. Top with pork and serve.

From Epicurious who credits Bon Appetite February 2004

January 28, 2026 Posted by | Food, Recipes | | Leave a comment

Autumn Plum Torte

We are watching the farmer’s markets for the first of the Italian plums, those elongated plums that show up around this time of the year. We are getting eager for Pflaumekuchen, or Autumn Plum Torte.

It’s really more like a pie. And I hate to tell you how easy it is to make.

00pflaumekuchen.jpg

This is my mother’s recipe:

Autumn Plum Torte (Pflaumekuchen)

1/4 Cup Butter
1 T Sugar
1/4 t. salt
2 eggs
1 c sifted flour

10 – 12 purple prune plums
1 c sugar
1 T Flour
Dash nutmeg and cinnamon
1/2 cup half and half

1. Cream butter and sugar, add salt and 1 egg yolk. Blend well, add 1 cup flour, mix well.

2. Press mix into bottom of greased 8” pie pan.

3. Cut plums in half or quarters; place cut side up on top of mix. It is pretty if you make a kind of circular pattern out from the center.

4. Combine sugar, 1 T flour and spices. Sprinkle over plums.

5. Beat 1 egg and 1 white, add half and half, pour over top.

6. Bake at 425 for ten minutes, then turn down to 350 for 40 – 45 minutes, until custard sets and plums are cooked.

The smell as it is cooking is divine. You can serve it in wedges, warm or cold.

You can also double this, and make it in a 9 x 14 pan, to serve to larger groups. It goes FAST!

January 28, 2026 Posted by | Cooking, ExPat Life, Germany, Lumix, Photos, Recipes, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Other Than That, Mrs. Lincoln, How was the Play?

That’s the punch line of a really bad joke, and it came to mind today as my good friend from Michigan was asking me, after a long conversation about the current disasterous state of events in our country, how AdventureMan and I are getting through the cold days in Pensacola.

Honestly, the weather is glorious. AdventureMan is busy keeping the bird feeders full (he calls them the squirrel feeders) and breaking the ice in our water barrels. The skies are clear and the stars bright and sparkly when the sun goes down.

It IS cold.We are having waves of cold weather, with a little warming in between. Because it goes below freezing frequently, we’ve got our more fragile plants covered, including 2 avocado trees I’ve grown from pits, that are over 10 feet tall 😊. My roses are the first plants I cover; I brought them with me from our former house. They are white, pure white, with a little bit of pink in the center, only visible when they are first blooming. I try to take good care of these roses! We also cover our plumbago, which grows well in this part of Florida.

“And what are you cooking?” my friend asks, she who made a huge frost covered cake to celebrate the storm in Michigan.

“Pork with Apples and Onions,” I replied, “And an Autumn Plum Torte only with peaches, which turned out to have all the taste of sugar, butter, and flour.” I should have known that the peaches I bought in January would not have much flavor.

The weather will dip even further starting Friday, so I am cooking up a big pot of chili tomorrow.

January 28, 2026 Posted by | Beauty, Birds, Cultural, Food, Friends & Friendship, Gardens, Pensacola, Weather | Leave a comment

EPSTEIN Files, Please, DOJ Pam Bondi

Screenshot

While we watch aghast as ill-trained ICE agents take down and kill American citizens, and Pam Bondi demands voter registration rolls from Minnesota (and according to the Brennan Center for Justice and Democracy Docket, looking for “sensitive” voter registration information from ALL states), 2 million (estimated) Epstein files have yet to be released.

Minnesotans are the least likely “domestic terrorists” ever, dressed in their buffalo plaid wool shirts and snow boots. Minnesotan, those white bread Scandinavian immigrants from long ago, Paul Bunyan-esque in strength an behavior, amicably welcomed their Somali newcomers, and are now protecting them as best they can while staying alive.

We all have to step back and ask ourselves “Am I a DOMESTIC TERRORIST?”

Look at these good church-going Minnesotans, shuttling immigrant children to school, picking up and delivering groceries to them surreptitiously, taking families hidden in their SUV’s to medical appointments. Do these seem like people who are afraid of their immigrant neighbors?

I respect Customs officials. I respect the rules of our nation. I do not respect those who overstep their jobs, who take delight in the adrenaline rush of attacking protestors, who shoot, rather than exhibit the self-rstraint we expect of law-enforcement. Most of us have no problem with ICE going after, as they state, violent criminals, few as they are.

It’s a Numbers Game

What we object to is going after people who are NOT criminals just because the Toddler-In-Chief wants to be able to show numbers. Trump, you started off your campaign in 2015 going after those rapists, criminals and drug addicts. We didn’t believe you then, and we sure don’t believe you now. We believe our own eyes. We are witnesses to violations of our Constitution by people who should be models of legal behavior.

Corrupting the FBI to investigate political appointments, and firing prosecutors when they tell you there is not evidence to get a conviction is not the American Way.

We know you want to keep your party in power. We know you’re afraid you are going to lose big in upcoming elections, and that is the purpose behind bullying the blue states and trying to intimidate their officials is to get an upper hand on the elections. YOU, who complain about rigged elections, YOU who whine that you really won the 2020 election (and your own elections supervisors would not support your claims) YOU are trying to bully, intimidate and subdue the population so that YOU can rig the elections!

Props to Minnesota! Props to them for showing fortitude, for being good neighbors, for welcoming the stranger (as Moses and Jesus taught us) and for showing self-restraint in the face of thugs and goons itching for a fight. Trump is eager to invoke the Insurrection Act, we know because he says so! Props to you, Minnesota, and to you, Portland for having the maturity and persistence and yes, a sense of humor to outlast, outplay and survive this despicable tyrant.

January 27, 2026 Posted by | Civility, Community, corruption, Crime, Cultural, Law and Order, Leadership, Political Issues, Quality of Life Issues, Relationships | , , , , , , | Leave a comment