Politics, Schmolitics, Be a Critical, Independent Thinker.

"The enemy isn't conservatism. The enemy isn't liberalism. The enemy is bulls**t.''
​—Lars-Erik Nelson, political columnist

I do my best to be apolitical, although I LOVE the quote above. Even though the author is a political columnist I don't think the quote is particularly political. I think it is just good, common sense.

It's not that I don't care about what is going on in politics today (AND A LOT IS GOING ON!!).

I DO care.

I DON'T care to get into the arguments that happen lately if you and another person don't agree on politics. Or don't support the same people.

I don't believe everything I hear or read.

I like empirical evidence.

I would like to think that I'm a critical, INDEPENDENT thinker.

I have my biases, as does anyone else!

If I do get political I typically write it, sit on it for a little while, and delete it. Perhaps I write it just to get it out of my head.

All in all, in the end, it's not worth it.

I believe in agree to disagree, dialogue and discussion.

I don’t think everyone has to see eye to eye.

That’s what makes life interesting.

I teach you, you teach me, and every once in a while, when we don’t gel, we come to the conclusion that it’s not worth an episode from the WWE.

However, there are some folks who want to fight to the death and be right at all costs.

I prefer not to engage if a situation comes to that.

I'm content to wish you love and happiness, and exit stage left.

I’m not getting particularly political here. I just have a little story to tell.

I wrote this a few months ago and decided to tweak it and republish it.

I was shopping at the Marine Corps Exchange Henderson Hall in Arlington, Virginia (near D.C.).

The White House Chief of Staff John Kelly and I happened to be in the same department.

I saw him and his gargantuan Secret Service escort a few aisles away.

Kelly is unmistakable. Quite tall, impeccably dressed and stiff.

Yes, I said stiff. (I think pretty much anyone would be stiff in the White House today. Yes, that was a little political.)

His eyes stayed forward. He walked with a determined and purposeful gait. He did not interact with anyone.

I wouldn't expect any less of a retired four-star general and a presidential appointee.

When my husband, who was in a different aisle, saw him he saw red, but then again he is much more into politics and political personalities.

What I DO know is that I am not in alignment with Kelly's hardline policies on certain important issues.

I was walking down the main aisle and texting my son about the sighting.

My son had a few choice words to say that I won't share. (I will say they were SO funny!)

While I was texting my son Kelly and his imposing Secret Service escort whisked by me.

Right by me.

Kelly and I were shoulder to shoulder.

My husband (who saw the encounter) said that from his vantage point it appeared I hadn’t seen Kelly.

HOWEVER, he said the moment after Kelly and his escort passed by me I nonchalantly lifted my head and rolled my eyes.

He said he wished he had gotten it on video.

Mind you, I knew he was there all the time.

I chose not to look up.

A friend told me that by doing that I threw “shade” at Kelly.

Did I?

(Honestly, I'm still trying to figure out what "shade" actually is.)

​I guess since I can’t say that I’m a fan, maybe I did "throw shade".

The provocative thing is that the air was electric with his presence.

He did not go unnoticed... by anyone.

Being a sensory driven person, I could hear the creak of his expensive, polished, black leather shoes as he breezed by me. (My head was down so I got a glimpse of them.)

I could smell a faint whiff of cologne or aftershave (or maybe it was his deodorant. As I mentioned he got pretty close to me).

He walked like someone who knew he was important.

A man with a purpose.

If I had half a mind I would have stopped him and asked him a few pointed questions.

But, I have more than half a mind and I decided it wasn’t worth it.

AND...
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that I didn’t want to end up on the 6 o’clock news.

You see, apolitical, critical, independent thinker, with a filter on my knee-jerk reactions. (At least this time...)

​As always, thanks for reading.

​See you next week.

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