“Do you know where the Apple TV remote is?”
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This is the question I seem to ask my kids, husband or myself on a daily basis. Why Apple cleverly designed their remote to slide seamlessly between couch cushions and act as a shiny beacon for my toddler’s mouth is beyond me. It’s almost as baffling as how Donald Trump is the President of the United States.
The reason I’ve needed my Apple TV remote so much recently is because I can’t bear to watch the news and need to seek refuge in iTunes or Netflix. Ever since that fateful day in November, I’ve been terribly depressed. (The election coincided with me binge watching Gilmore Girls: A Year in a Life, so I might also be experiencing a come down from that life changing high.) I’m pretty sure it’s the whole Donald Trump thing though.
Last year, ABC Central West asked me twice on air if I thought Trump would be president. It was so absurd that I laughed (loudly) when I answered, “not a chance.” Since the majority of my family and friends are massive Hillary supporters (myself included,) I genuinely didn’t know anyone that was voting for him and was convinced the world was safe. I was so confident that I almost didn’t bother to send in my absentee ballot from Australia. (Don’t worry, I did!)
After months of watching the world’s reaction to Trump’s presidency, I’ve concluded that these are the best of times as well as the worst of times. People are protesting, writing, speaking, working, volunteering and relentlessly resisting what will be a very embarrassing period of history. It’s inspiring to see and does provide a bit of light in this very dark situation. Obviously, if Hillary was president, we wouldn’t have to spend our precious time marching, calling our senators and donating every spare dollar to Planned Parenthood, BUT it has been amazing to watch women (and men) come together and fight for what they believe in: women’s rights, universal healthcare, compassionate immigration laws, public arts funding, and PUBLIC EDUCATION.
Watching DeVos, Pence, Spicer, Trump and the other unqualified monkeys (no offense to monkeys) parade around the US spouting hate and nonsense is sucking the life out of me and I’M A PRIVLEDGED WHITE WOMAN LIVING IN AUSTRALIA. I can’t even begin to imagine the pain, fear and hopelessness people are feeling in the US right now. Families are being torn apart, students’ futures are being compromised, people may lose sufficient health insurance and entire religions and races are being oppressed and shunned because of ignorance and greed.
I don’t know why Brexit and Trump are happening. I recently read an article written by a way smarter person than me about data mining and am convinced that the mega billionaires of the world own the game and we are just their pawns. I’m also convinced the only hope we have is to rise and resist and keep personally showing love and acceptance to those being discriminated against by that narcissistic (and clearly tanorexic,) DT.
This weekend, the Mudgee Readers’ Festival is presenting the Sydney Writers’ Festival Live & Local, streaming a selection of SWF events live to Mudgee. On May 27 at 10am – you best believe I will be at the Town Hall Cinemas on Market Street watching All The Girls To The Front and I hope you’ll be there too. Jan Fran talks to important voices on the front line of feminist writing. Yassmin Abdel-Magied (Yassmin’s Story), Clementine Ford (Fight Like A Girl) and Tracey Spicer (The Good Girl Stripped Bare) discuss taking action and writing for change.
Join me at 11:15am after at Eltons Eating + Drinking to continue the discussion on how we can resist Donald Trump. #allthegirlstothefront #notmypresident
Summer Land is a blogger and author of Summerlandish: Do As I Say, Not As I Did. Get a signed copy of her book from http://www.summerlandauthor.com