We may be the last people on the planet to begin watching the excellent series The Sopranos. I am surprised that it has taken so long for us to view the murder, mayhem, sex, lies, cheating, cruelty and overall gangster behavior. But after the first few episodes we had to stop for a while. I realized we spent most of our days obsessing over a guy playing a gangster in the White House and I really didn’t want to then spend our evenings watching a guy playing a gangster in New Jersey. A few weeks later we came back to the show. But the analogy seems right. Tony Soprano and Donald Trump are very much alike. They both play the part of a New York, tough-guy goodfella layered with a smooth-talking charm and a blood-thirsty ruthlessness. Family, loyalty and power is everything. They never forget a slight and will seek out brutal revenge eventually. Nothing will get in their way of gaining as much money, power, and domination as possible. They both teach us brand new ways to be cruel. At least Tony Soprano is going to a psychologist. Because we are only in the middle of the first season, we will see how that works out.
I have long been aware of the long running series South Park. I have seen bits and pieces of it over the years but never have been a loyal fan. I am delighted to see how recently they have been ruthlessly skewering Trump and his out-of-control administration. A recent season has gone after Kristi Noam and her ICE Follies One episode show ICE agents making a raid on heaven to pick up frightened Latino angels. This is both horrifying and hilarious to watch but this kind of humor is one of the things the Trumpers really seem to fear. They love being called fascists and horrible but are terrified of being made fun of, especially in front of a large TV audience. Just ask Stephen Colbert.
We are now engaged in some serious “deep hanging out” at our cabin in the woods in Vermont. There is some guilt in doing nothing while our country is falling apart. But we hope to use the month here to gather our strength and clear our minds for the hard work ahead when we get back to San Francisco. Before we return, we will be traveling, photographing, and working for six weeks in England and other parts of Europe. More on that later. In the meantime, here are a few photos from our arrival in sweet New England.
Library Road Trip 