The Hannibal E-lector Edition
Still reeling as December 2024 rolls in
Well, since the last edition of this newsletter we had a li’l ol’ election. The outcome was not what I, nor many others, were hoping for. Even worse, the outcome was what many *were* hoping for. That’s just sad/confounding/inexcusable.
I’ve seen many articles, op-eds, and social posts about “Trump fatigue” — how folks just don’t have it in themselves any more to rail against him. I’m just as sick and tired of him as the next clear-headed person… but I plan to continue chipping away at his horrendous personage through the use of what I allege is humor, one molecule’s worth at a time.
To that end — I am thinking about relaunching “The Trump Poems” website post-inauguration, under a new sobriquet and URL. That way I can push the Trump-y stuff one direction, and the self-effacing stuff another. Details to be found most likely in the next edition of this newsletter.
Anyhoo — here’s the collection of political verse since last month, along with one inward facing post that seemed to tickle more fancies than usual. At least by my standards.
(First: from the home stretch…)
Ladies’ Worst (10/30/2024)
Trump said he would protect the women, whether they wanted him to or not. But he obviously didn’t mean it since he stayed in the race.
This Idea’s Got Some Teeth In It (11/3/2024)
Announcing that his former-foe-turned-ardent-supporter RFK, Jr. would be his nominee for Secretary of HHS, Trump all but guaranteed the emergence of an unfettered bird flu epidemic, along with a boon to dentists across the nation. (Was the American Dental Society a big donor to his SuperPAC?)
Plebiscite Unseen (11/5/2024)
Written on Election Day — one final effort to change the minds (if not the decorative diapers) of people who supported a certain candidate.
(Then: as PTSD began to set in…)
Return of the Living Dread (11/13/2024)
Not the gleeful post-election result verse I had in queued up in my Drafts folder…
Stocking the Cabinet (11/16/2024)
I mean — when Marco Rubio is the only so-called “sane” choice…
The (Toilet) Seat of Government (11/21/2024)
This one is in the voice of several (far too many) Trump-adjacent retrogrades. If they let MTG use the ladies’ rooms on Capitol Hill, then Sarah McBride should be able to stroll in as well, no problem.
An Unqualified Disaster (11/23/2024)
As more names of nominees surfaced, a bar that couldn’t be set any lower somehow was.
And here’s the aforementioned “look what I had to undergo” post:
Prostate the Obvious (11/21/2024)
Proving there is no limit to the level of discomfort I will share with my audience, I thought a post about my recent procedure would generate some chuckles. I may have come up with that idea while still under the influence of propofol.
We had a lovely Thanksgiving here in Maine; I trust you enjoyed your holiday as well, whatever you did and wherever you did it. We’re continuing the festivities tonight by making a trip to Portland to see an assemblage of area musicians who stage an annual series of Beatles-themed concerts. They perform as “Spencer and the Walrus” and draw sell-out crowds to their three post-Thanksgiving shows. They’ve been doing this for over two decades; it’s been a few years since we last attended but still carry great memories of that show, and are excited about tonight’s gig.
A local radio station is playing the Beatles from A to Z over the weekend, so we’ve got a perfect soundtrack for the shlep there and back.
Thanks for reading and occasionally even liking (and maybe sometimes sharing?) the newsletter.
As we launch into the holiday season, and while recognizing everyone celebrates something different (with some choosing not to, and that’s cool as well) — I’m still thrilled to share that our good friend Ekua Holmes designed the 2024 Kwanzaa stamp!
Ekua is a renowned creator of stunning visual art, often working through collage to tell stories of self-determination, love, and community. She is also an award-winning illustrator of several children’s books and, I believe, has a book coming out that she has written as well as illustrated.
In any event — this year we will be blending a celebration of Ekua’s accomplishment into all of the other seasonal traditions deserving of everyone’s respect (hear that, “War on Christmas” troops?) for the joy and history they reflect upon.
Have a Happy/Merry/Feliz-laden Whatever!
~ JB