Dispatches from the Heart of the Apocalypse
I reactivated Facebook yesterday and it wasn't as horrible as I thought it would be. In fact, it was kind of nice. It was good to check in with some of the people I haven't caught up with since I deactivated at the beginning of September. It's not going to last long, though, because I don't think I can weather Facebook through the thick of the election mess. I want to do everything I can to disconnect and hide under a rock until it's all over sometime next week. I'm afraid not only for my own mental health but how the chaos and uncertainty will affect my clients. Nevermind the bigger picture issues. There's a lot of those.
Of course, no matter what happens on Tuesday (or, more likely, sometime next week--at the earliest--after ballots have been counted and court challenges have been made), we have a fight ahead of us. The fight for our lives and rights doesn't somehow magically end with a Biden presidency.
///
I was saddened to learn that the Riverwest Public House closed its doors permanently on Friday. In fact, being off FB, I didn't even know it was actually going to close last month, but they miraculously made it a whole extra month. It sounds like they went out in style, holding a funeral with customers reading eulogies to the bar. I wonder if I would have gone, had I known about it.
The Public House is one of those places in Milwaukee that is inextricably tied to my own story. I played countless shows there; I hosted trivia for two years; we held a wedding "after-party" there that remains one of the best nights of my life. Maybe, like another one of those Milwaukee haunts, the Borg Ward, the writing had been on the wall for a while. But that doesn't make it sting any less.
///
My friend Charlie Hoehnen released a record yesterday. I haven't done much at all with music since Lamb's Legs broke up, but I had the immense honor of being asked to play on it. We had plans for a few songs, but thanks to the demands of parenthood and working full-time, I ended up on only one. I'm really proud of the work we did together, though, and I highly recommend checking out Resembles, a raw and beautiful piece of art that haunts, hurts, and heals.
///
No other big news right now. I've been trying to play roleplaying games as much as I can. I'm running a twice-weekly game of Scum & Villainy, and have been joining some games through Gauntlet RPG when I can. It's a good way to stay sane during a time when it's difficult to feel connected with others.
///
That's it for now. Not sure how often I will be doing these, but I'm grateful that y'all feel like reading this gibberish is worth your time.
I love and miss you. Be as well as you can be in these fucking wild times. We are living in the apocalypse, and it is strange and horrifying and at times beautiful. Take care of each other.
j.