But They're Everywhere

 Laura had been alone in her apartment for days. 

She’d been content catching up on her reading, adding to her scrapbooks and deciding which new photographs she should display on her walls. The reading and the photographs were her favorite things to do inside her apartment. Reading had been her favorite hobby for as long as she could remember. The photographs she took of family, friends and nature simply made her happy.

But Laura knew the time was coming that she was going to have to leave the apartment. It was Thursday. She had to be back at work after her vacation on Monday. Even before that, though, she knew she was going to have to venture outside and then to a store to buy deodorant and some food. Her refrigerator and cupboards were leaning toward being bare, although she knew she could make due for a couple more days.

She called her friend Maggie and asked for some advice on how to find some motivation – other than the deodorant and food – to get herself out of her apartment.

“I don’t understand why you can’t just shower, get dressed and go out,” Maggie said.

“I’m afraid to go out,” Laura said. “What if I see a Cybertruck? It’ll make me think of how stupid people are. I mean, why would anyone with an ounce of sense buy one of those ugly things?”

“Seriously, Laura?”

“Not only that,” Laura said, “I’d start thinking about Musk and how evil he is. I’ve been able to chill out and stay calm for a few days now. I don’t want to ruin it.”

“Having something like that ruin your mood is your own choice,” Maggie said. “You can tell yourself not to let it bother you. It doesn’t affect your life so why should it upset you?”

“What do you mean it doesn’t affect my life?” Laura asked. “The stupid people are the ones who voted for dismantling the Department of Education, cutting Medicaid, which will more than likely close our hospital, tax cuts for the rich and a tax increase for the rest of us. And don’t get me started on Alligator Alcatraz! A concentration camp, Maggie! A concentration camp in the United States of America in the year 2025.”

“C’mon, Laura. You’re overre …”

“Don’t even tell me I’m overreacting,” Laura interrupted. “Every bad thing that Hillary predicted back in 2015 has happened, or is close to happening. The only things she got wrong are that ‘deplorables’ isn’t a strong enough word to describe and there’s way more than just a basket of them. It’s more like a giant warehouse full.”

“But still,” Maggie said. “You don’t have to keep everything that’s happening from letting you lead your life. All we can do is go about our daily lives and hope things change after the 2026 mid-terms.”

“I wish I could be that optimistic and dispassionate.”

“You could be,” Maggie said.

“I don’t think so,” Laura said. “It’s not in me to ignore the news and, by watching or listening, I get the terrible feeling that we might not even have mid-term elections. What if he declares a state of emergency, declares martial law, and cancels the elections? I wouldn’t put it past him.

“Then, of course, we have his brainless followers. How the hell can they not see who and what he is? Don’t answer that. I get it. I get it. He hates the same people they hate and they put him in a position to do something about it. What if I’m behind a couple of them while I’m in a store’s checkout line and they’re talking about some bullshit thing Dear Leader said like it makes even a little bit of sense. 

“I just can’t with these people anymore, Maggie. I just can’t.”

“Realisticly, though, you know you’re going to have to encounter and deal with them for quite a bit longer, right?”

“I know. I know,” Laura said. “I realize that even after he’s six feet under, which can’t come soon enough, by the way, his followers are going to have to be deprogrammed and that will take quite a while because some of them are so far gone that it really is sad.”

“You know what else is sad?” Maggie asked. “All that’s happened over the last 10 years has stolen your joy. You used to be so upbeat and optimistic.”

“That does make me sad, too,” Laura said. “And I was joyful for a few months last year. Then came the night of November 5. I think part of my problem is that I’m still in shock from that night.”

“Could be,” Maggie said. “But you're also strong and resilient. You need to find some joy again and the best way to do that is go out, ignore the stupid and live your life. And don’t be afraid.”

“I’ll try,” Laura said. “But I will continue to be afraid of what I might do if some red hat-wearer mentions the price of eggs.”