Economic Social Unrest

For an uncommon change of trend, last evening my younger brother failed to arrive home by the 9:30 p.m. deadline that I had in place for him, so when he did make his arrival, I was here at my computer in my bedroom and all prepared to get myself to bed.

It would signify no evening television, however ─ nor a can of the strong (8% alcohol) malt that I seek to keep myself stocked with.

My cellphone alarm was set for 4:30 a.m. to give me ample enough time to become geared up for the 5.625-mile round trip hike to the nearest Real Canadian Superstore outlet (Google Map) that opens at 7 a.m. ─ the plan was to leave here by 8 a.m. at latest.

I live in Surrey, B.C.

I suppose that it was around 3:33 a.m. when I checked the time after taking a bathroom break; and upon returning to bed, I found it so difficult to return to sleep that I accepted that I might very likely not manage any before my alarm sounded.

However, when I did hear it, I was pulled from a doze state.

All went as planned thereafter, and it was 6 a.m. at very most when I left home.

Everything was quite wet from recent rain, and much of my hike was characterized by infrequent spittings of rain that were entirely inconsequential.

I got my shopping done, and even bought at least three extras that were not part of the plan. My cashier was a dear and probable South Asian woman I have spoken with times before ─ she was somewhat short and a bit stout, with rather bagged eyes that were darkly rimmed. She was probably at least well into her 50s, but might have even been in her 60s.

I was to learn that she often worked in a fair amount of pain, and that was the case this morning. Some of her travail related to a past partial hip replacement that I have no doubt does present issues when one has to stand behind a check-put counter for however long she must do.

When I was packing up and nearly set to go, I honestly wished for her to have as fast and as pain-free a shift as might be possible for her. She actually responded to me that me saying this to her meant a lot.

My walk to the store had found me void of alacrity the entire distance ─ I felt almost like I was plodding. Thus, the walk back to home while bearing more of a purchase load dangling from each hand than I had ever intended proved truly challenging. In fact, well before I was home, I had found myself several times putting down my loads in order to change hands; and once ─ a half-mile or so from home ─ I even had to take a short rest break. By that point, both hands and their fingers were experiencing the tingling that probably results of compressed nerves and / or blood vessels.    

It was just after 8:30 a.m. by the time I was back into the house. And about 30 minutes later, I was back into my bed with my bedroom door shut because my brother was about to emerge from his bedroom.

I found lying in bed to be an enormous relief, for my entire body had been overworked. I never weighed myself, but I would hope that I have finally slipped back into the upper 180s (yesterday I weighed as low as 191 pounds in the afternoon while stripped down, and following a small meal). 

I was to manage a little sleep, but decided to rise again well past 10 a.m. because by then I knew that my brother was watching T.V., and the first video that I planned for us to watch via our Android TV Box was a long one.

I went downstairs to boil water and prepare my day's second instant coffee, but this one would not be black and unsweetened like my first had been.

When I joined my brother in the living room, it was 10:30 a.m. before he turned the T.V. over to me. The video I was to locate for us had been uploaded to YouTube by Chris Martenson (as the account 'Peak Prosperity') on May 19. It was over an hour and 52 minutes in length: Banking on Social Unrest. 

I find that alerts like this that counsel about coming economic collapse can be very disturbing when there is nothing that a 'sitting duck' like I am can do to avert what is ahead; but having one's head buried in sand or thrust up somewhere else solves absolutely nothing.

By the time the video was done, there was insufficient time to play anything longer than a sitcom, so I tuned in an episode of the British comedy Ghosts. This took us to 1 p.m. and my brother took his leave to return to his bedroom for a rest ere leaving for the afternoon to reengage his daily 'socializing'.

I soon sought a nap, and was abed when my brother rose and left.

I wish to mention that late into the morning it absolutely poured rain outside ─ I would not wanted to have been on my way to do my shopping in that! At any rate, there was to be no hope of any sunning today, for glimpses of blue sky have been rare, and I never noticed the Sun to be unobscured. Most of the time, the sky has naught but threatening cloud cover ─ and with even very light showers of rain.

So ... maybe tomorrow sunning will be possible.

Although I will sit up this evening to watch some T.V. (via our Android TV Box) with my brother after he gets home ─ provided that he is not too plastered ─ I want to try and watch a movie before he shows up.

If I succeed, I will most likely report on it tomorrow.