Let’s wrap up the year taking it old school with a live performance by proto-goth, post-punk SISTERS OF MERCY. Why the hell not? Their influence is undeniable and they’ve got their stamp on countless coldwave/darkwave bands since, for the horror movie soundtrack guitars to the Frankenstein vocals. Love you guys! Sisters of Mercy is responsible for what my 2020 sounded like.

The COVID-19 pandemic certainly added a novel twist to the year, but other than that it’s really just been a continuation of the last few decades. All the social issues and woes, racism, homophobia, misogyny and sexism, disparate wealth and all that entails… nothing new. It was sure harder to hide it all with everyone sitting at home, denied their comfortable denial by having no access to their usual vehicles of distraction. It looked like things were heating up but just when the pot was about to boil over, it went relatively quiet again. Maybe people are tired and feeling defeated. The only protests of any size recently have been people blowing up about health precautions.

Let that settle in for a minute or so.

They are protesting being told to take protective measures to save their own lives. That’s what it’s come to. Perhaps they figure if we simply ignore the virus it will disappear the way the other things they didn’t want to think about disappeared for them. Think about it. These are many of the same people who’ve been saying for years that racism doesn’t exist because they don’t see it in their immediate and (usually) all white surroundings, and it’s too ugly to think about. Hence it effectively ceases to exist and they will demand that you don’t remind them. So please don’t die from COVID-19 because they would prefer not to know that such things happen.

It’s a weird world, but that’s not new. It’s just manifested differently with a little Corona virus thrown into the mix. But dying is a bummer and nobody wants to be bummed out. Can’t we all just forget about it, because it’s New Year’s Eve after all and tomorrow is a New Year, blah blah blah. Let’s not talk about it.

The rain settled in on the overnight, as it was predicted to, and it’s a gray morning. Google decided, as it is wont to do, to serve me up a few photos and videos from December 31, 2019, because of course I need to be reminded of how I thought this year might go. Don’t get it twisted. I’m laughing, mostly at myself, because I’d forgotten on this day last year that hoping is good taking action is good but having expectations isn’t always so good. It’s called irony, bitches. It’s okay though because as I’ve been saying endlessly now, 2020 didn’t turn out all that badly for me. I stress “for me” because it’s been a son of a bitch for a lot of people. Me though? It was my original claim that it was no better and no worse than any other year, but it’s actually been better than some. There is no denying that, despite health issues and financial issues and assorted grown-folk things, it’s really not been all that bad. It would be cuntish to whine when so many people have had truly horrible years. But more later… I want to get some movement in today. No plans for tonight except to… well, no plans at all. I’m open, but with no expectations. That’s the plan for 2021.