SECOND POT OF COFFEE THOUGHTS

I have noticed that baby boomers and millennials are now sporting the same Velcro headgear.  The boomer version is attached to c-pap machines.  The millennial’s are using the same straps to hold virtual reality displays in place.

Those who believe that issues will be important in the 2020 presidential election are wrong.  All that will matter for Republican voters is the persona of Donald Trump and for Democrats the desire to remove him from the White House.

 One would expect very low voter turnouts in Washington County for the May 21, primary.  The one fact that may garner some interest is contested Democratic races for County Treasurer and Register of Wills.  Otherwise, we must wait until November to see some election excitement.

I recently attended a performance of the Edgewood Volunteer Symphony in Pittsburgh, the oldest regional Symphony of its kind.  It was satisfying to learn that our own Washington Symphony Orchestra has ticket sales of more than double those of Edgewood for a typical performance.

It is difficult to determine what the long term effect of the President’s trade wars and tariffs will be on the American economy.  As prices on many consumer goods begin to rise, no one seems to know if sales will be impacted.  The greatest fear is that farmers will lose contracts to export crops to China. China will seek out new relationships with sellers in other countries, leaving the farmers out in the cold when the trade wars are resolved.

I am addicted to Starbucks ice coffee after finishing up at the gym at 4 pm.  My car cannot avoid heading up the hill from route 19 to get in the long line at the drive through lane.  I often see the same vehicles in front of me indicating that a late afternoon caffeine fix is all the rage.

Our group of Washington County patrons had dinner at the Squirrel Hill Eat & Park prior to the aforementioned Edgewood Symphony Concert at the Jewish Community Center.  The ethnic diversity of people both within the restaurant and on the street was a beautiful thing and reminded me of what I miss most about living in Pittsburgh.

What I do not miss about Pittsburgh is the traffic, difficulty parking and the potholes.  Those who complain about such matters in Washington County should realize how good they have it.

Now that Game of Thrones is on its final episodes and the NBA playoffs are winding down there should be plenty of time to attack my stack of books, before football season returns in September.