January 2021 - Page 6 of 7 - Ramblin' with Roger

Tracking the U.S. savings bonds

older series of savings bonds cannot be redeemed directly at the bank

Savings Bond

The family was looking to calculate the value of some United States Savings Bonds we’ve unearthed. I have about 30 of them, $100 Series EE, from the mid-1990s. I went to the TreasuryDirect site, Calculate the Value of Your Paper Savings Bond(s). The earliest one is gaining interest at a robust 4%, the last one at a paltry 1.08%.

When I leafed through them recently, I noticed that I was missing one! I could tell because I was buying them every eight weeks but there was a gap in the summer of 1995. Fortunately, I can send info to the Treasury Department and get an electronic replacement. Savings bonds these days are only issued in an electronic version of either bond, also trackable at TreasuryDirect.

Here’s a useful feature on the website. You can create a list of your paper bonds. BUT “if you’re using Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge as your browser, the Calculator won’t save your inventory.” Nope. You can use Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, Netscape Navigator or Communicator, MSN Explorer, Opera, or Safari. Now I have used IE and Netscape. To my surprise, I DO have Firefox on my current computer, though I don’t recall actually using it.

As a librarian, I had often discovered that there are some obscure state and federal websites that simply don’t use certain popular browsers. Some note this right on-site — and some DON’T. About a decade ago, I realized that if I wanted to download a file from a certain Census page, IE was the only way to go.

Series EE, Series I…

This FORBES article explains the different types of U.S. Savings Bonds. Bankrate notes that “in general, holding any savings bond beyond 30 years is essentially pointless as this is when bonds stop earning interest. So if this is your situation, it’s time to cash in that bond.

Forbes: “If you have a paper savings bond, you can often redeem this bond at a local bank or credit union. According to the Treasury Department, more than 95% of savings bonds are cashed at local banks and credit unions.

“But some older series of savings bonds cannot be redeemed directly at the bank or credit union. In that case, you will need to fill out a special form FS Form 1522, and send the bond to the Treasury Department’s Treasury Retail Security Services team with a certified signature and direct deposit instructions.

“Even if your bank or credit union cannot cash an older bond for you, or if you have special circumstances like needing to redeem a bond that was inherited as part of a deceased person’s estate, the bank will typically be able to help you understand the process for redeeming the bond and can certify your signature on the Treasury form. So, when in doubt, start by going to the bank.”

The year 2020: Hugh Downs, because

The Zen of alphabetization

The nail in the coffin of my 2020 recollection after I stick a silver dagger in its chest.

What was the best book you read?

This Brilliant Darkness by Jeff Sharlet. Probably because I’m briefly mentioned therein.

What did you want and get?

Some semblance of connectivity. Zoom is good for Bible studies, the Dads group at church. Actually, it’s been great for communicating with my sisters. It’s fine for keeping in touch with the choir, but not nearly as good as singing together.

What did you want and not get?

The sense of the creative. I didn’t sing or see a lot of performances or read a lot of books.

What were your favorite films of this year?

This will be different because I didn’t see a lot of films at the cinema. Note these are not the BEST films, necessarily, which is probably Parasite or 1917, but the ones I most enjoyed.

Knives Out
Just Mercy

On video:
Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Coco
Thor: Ragnarok

What did you do on your birthday?

Our church did a performance of Once On This Island the following day, just before the lockdown. So I spent much of the time at the dress rehearsal.

How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2020?

Comfortable footwear. These long-sleeved shirts my wife bought from L.L. Bean that help prevent me from getting sunburned.

What kept you sane?

To the degree that is true – and one could argue that – I play music constantly. Compact discs, because I like the tangible. Then every three months, I put the ones I played away because it involves the mental exercise of alphabetization.

Yeah, most of it is already online, but listening to that doesn’t bring me… JOY. I love reading the liner notes – Ricky Fataar is on a 2016 Bonnie Raitt album; Emmylou Harris is everywhere.

And sometimes, I would alternate between listening to a CD and riding the stationary bike for 15 minutes. The CD might be 29 minutes, or 45, or 74. I like the asymmetrical nature of the process.

Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?

Chadwick Boseman (RIP), Kobe Bryant (RIP), Lebron James.
Ji-Man Choi – pronounced like Eliot Ness – the pudgy but amazingly athletic first baseman of the Tampa Bay Rays.

There are probably others. But it’s been a long year.

In fact, this is so true that I actually forgot Hugh Downs died in 2020. Of course, he did. And I mentioned it

What political issue stirred you the most?

My general belief that we may have already irrevocably destroyed the planet. Democracy in the USA may be unfixable. Oh, and that – surprise! – racism still exists in America.

Who was the best new person you met?

Who meets new people? Actually, one of the best things, in my telephoning exercise, is to reconnect with people I had not talked with in years, such as Janet, Diana, Jeff, Al, Judith, Kim, Maureen…

Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2020

Sometimes, the workarounds are successful, and sometimes, not so much.

Small Zoom gatherings work. Or they don’t for reasons some of us can recite in our sleep. I’m betting Jeffrey Tobin’s ZOOM meeting was really boring. Someone failed to mute, so he forgot to turn off the camera.

“Parties” on Zoom I’m most uncomfortable with. If you’re at a real party, you talk for a while, observe for a while, haul empty cups to the kitchen. But online, you’re expected to be “on.”

At one gathering this year with three dozen people, someone asked ME specifically why I hadn’t said anything. It’s mostly because 1) it’s difficult to know when to speak and not talk over people and 2) I didn’t really have anything to say.

Takeout food. Some are great. Pizza, Indian food. I haven’t had Chinese this year, but I imagine it’d be pretty good. But some, from restaurants I love, are lackluster. Italian food is hit or miss, e.g.

Telemedicine, as noted – meh.

Performances – better than nothing, but an ersatz experience. It’s interesting that, because of the pandemic plus the technology, there are MORE opportunities to hear music online than I could possibly take in.

Tell you what, 2021. If you don’t suck as much as 2020 did, my summary about you will be half as long. Deal?

December 36, 2020

Hey, 2021, you’re not starting off very well. Sluggish COVID vaccine distribution.

And such a blatant attempt to steal the election by the Republican party that all living former defense secretaries have condemned GOP attempts to overturn the election and involve the military.

Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR), who I do not like, nevertheless is partly correct in opposing challenging the Electoral College tally. “Congress would take away the power to choose the president from the people, which would essentially end presidential elections and place that power in the hands of whichever party controls Congress.”

Newsmax, having sold its soul, said that it has “reviewed the full tape and transcript of [his] call to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger.

It claims “The transcript shows [Trump] pressed the Secretary on serious vote fraud issues in Georgia and Trump never acted improperly.”

Naturally, Newsmax blames the mainstream media for “duplicity” in spreading “false” information. The man said on tape, “I just want to find 11,780 votes” and alternately berated, flattered, begged, and threatened with vague criminal consequences if the secretary of state refused to pursue his false claims. He is soliciting election fraud, in his increasingly desperate attack on democracy, dammit.

Movie review: The Antidote (be kind)

Tikkun Olam

The year 2021 has been designated as Be Kind year. Designated by me, because 2020 was so damn difficult.

I was motivated specifically by two things, one positive and one not. On the upside is this article about Promoting the power of kindness. There is “a new documentary, ‘The Antidote,’ on Amazon Prime. Directed by Kahane Cooperman and John Hoffman, the film was inspired by what Hoffman sees as an increasingly dangerous cultural and political climate.

“‘There has been such division and such rancor that if that division starts eating away at these common decencies that we exhibit towards one another, then our democracy might truly be in danger,’ Hoffman said.” The “film highlights people for whom kindness isn’t a random act, but a full-time commitment. Cooperman said, “Kindness is a fierce tool and a weapon for change.”

Movie on computer

So I watched The Antidote (2020). The theme seemed to based less on kindness and more on actions of fairness and justice. The CBS piece highlights Dr. Jim O’Connell. Thirty-six years ago, “his mentor suggested he work for a year at a shelter. The shelter’s chief nurse told Dr. O’Connell to set aside the stethoscope and the medical bag. ‘And she put them aside, and I had to soak feet,” he recalled. Yes, soak the feet of the homeless.”

Reporter Mo Rocca asked, “When we pass a homeless person on the street, what should we do?” Dr. O’Connell replied, “The most important thing you can do is to look the person in the eye and just acknowledge them. Really, what they’re looking for is not to be ignored. Just saying hello to somebody, rather than ignoring them, is really, really powerful.”

Interlocking the movie segments is a classroom in Modesto, CA that requires a comparative religions class. You may not be surprised by the takeaway that most major religions have a similar creed, basically the Golden Rule. But what matters is that the eyes of the kids in the classroom were opened.

Other reviews

I found only a couple of reviews. One was a brief but scathing one-star user screed on IMDB calling the film “delusional.” The other was from the Austin Chronicle by Richard Whitaker, which I’m going to quote at length.

“It’s told exactly how you think it would be told. Lots of pretty shots of different locations, with stirring strings and maudlin arpeggio piano… It’s undoubtedly a Kumbaya chorus but is that a bad thing?… [Its] Panglossian philosophy often made the show seem a little glib.

“But maybe we do need to be beaten over the head with the idea that being considerate should not be regarded as a political act. ‘We need more of that,’ says one amiable gentleman who performs his one selfless act in his own moment of paying everything forward. When kindness seems in such short supply, [we require] a little reminder that it’s easy and takes so little effort.”

Invisible

I said there were two things that inspired my 2021 Be Kind campaign. The other was a post by fillyjonk. It really irritated me. She was waiting in a store for a package of meat. “When the man finally came out, ANOTHER MAN stepped up from the side of the case and said, before I could even open my mouth, ‘I need a pork shoulder’ even though I WAS STANDING RIGHT THERE.” The title of the piece, “Again, I’m invisible.”

I surely recognized that feeling. It is awful and infuriating and demoralizing. We can do better. We MUST do better. Rev. Jennifer Butler from Faith in Public Life noted this recently. “In Jewish tradition, we are called to the work of ‘Tikkun Olam,’ repairing the world. All our faith traditions echo this charge by requiring us to move beyond proclaiming our faith with our words to living out our faith in our deeds.”

The year 2020: gaining on you

The man who lies. A lot.

Another chunk of that damn quiz I do around this time of year. My list of those I hold in esteem was long. Unfortunately…

Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?

Derek Chauvin, Kyle Rittenhouse, Gregory, and Travis McMichael
Samuel Alito, Clarence Thomas
Brian Kemp, Greg Abbott, Ron DeSantis
Louis DeJoy, Betsy DeVos, Wilbur Ross, Alex Azar, Andrew Wheeler, Steve Mnuchin, Mark Esper, Chad Wolf, Ken Cuccinelli, Mike Pompeo,
William Barr, William Pendley
Mitch McConnell/Elaine Chao
Mark Meadows, Peter Navarro, Brad Parscale, Roger Stone

John Bolton, Nikki Haley, Rudy Giuliani, Jared Kushner,
Ivanka Trump, Donald Trump Jr., Eric Trump, Tiffany Trump, Melania Trump
Sean Hannity, Tucker Carlson, Glenn Beck, Dick Morris, Lou Dobbs, Steve Doocy, Laura Ingraham, Brian Kilmeade, Ann Coulter, Mike Huckabee, Bobby Eberle, Rush Limbaugh, Alex Jones, Newsmax, OAN
Jim Jordan, Elise Stefanik, Louis Gohmert, Devin Nunes, Kevin McCarthy, Ted Yoho, Steve Scalise, Steve King, Doug Lamborn, Michael McCaul, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Madison Cawthorn
Lindsay Graham, Rick Scott, Susan Collins, John Kennedy, Tom Cotton, David Perdue, Kelly Loeffler, Ted Cruz, Joni Ernst, Rand Paul, Thom Tillis, Martha McSally, Josh Hawley

Kellyanne Conway, Larry Kudlow, Mick Mulvaney, Michael Caputo
Steve Bannon, Paul Manafort, Stephen Miller, Jason Miller
Scott Atlas, Mike Pence, Emily Murphy
Kayleigh McEnany, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Sean Spicer
Jim Bakker, Jerry Falwell Jr., Paula White
Ghislaine Maxwell

QAnon believers, COVID deniers, Proud Boys, white supremacists, so-called militias

I know there are many others.

Coronavirus (COVID-19)

Oh, and of course, IMPOTUS, who has undermined every institution he interacts with, including, but certainly not limited to, the election process, international relations, the Justice Department, the intelligence apparatus, the postal service, the Census, the CDC, the EPA…

Where did most of your money go?

I’m not sure. Quite possibly non-physical stuff: charities and political contributions. We have a line of credit to do work on the house, but we haven’t utilized it yet.

What did you get really excited about?

I’ve ordered some music and books. The opening of the packages, heck the anticipation of getting the mail. Seeing my Census checks get automatically deposited in my checking account. This doesn’t sound really exciting.

OK, we had a few people over, socially distanced on our front porch, starting in August. THAT was a nice change of pace.

Compared to this time last year, are you happier or sadder?

Almost certainly sadder. It’s not just COVID and the restrictions thereof. It’s my condition. I actually started to “see” a shrink, remotely. It didn’t “take”, and it might have if I had established a relationship in person beforehand. Ever feel it’s all gaining on you?

In fact, I’m not yet sold on telemedicine. More to the point, none of the things I needed to do – everything from getting scans to having my teeth cleaned – can be done remotely.

Thinner or fatter?

Thinner by at least ten pounds, due almost entirely to riding my bicycle while doing the Census. Not incidentally, I find some people’s tendency to say, “Hey, you’re almost down to” the next round number totally unhelpful.

Richer or poorer?

Arguably richer because I don’t spend very much comparatively. And richer than I was four years ago, yet I didn’t vote GOP.

What do you wish you’d done more of?

Watching movies. We have some movie channels, but I find it difficult to sit down and watch them as though I were at the cinema.

What do you wish you’d done less of?

Talking/writing about race. It was necessary to engage. It’s important. I remain in utter shock that white people started finally getting it. But I’ve always found the discussion exhausting. Yet I will do it again, most likely. Still, there are a couple of people I haven’t talked with for half a year as a result. That kind of sucks.

How did you spend Christmas?

My wife and I watched church on Facebook as I peered through the window seeing the snow melt away. Zoom meeting with my in-laws. Watched How the Grinch Stole Christmas; too many commercials, NBC, but a great story.

Did you fall in love in 2020?

I HAD to, just to survive.

How many one-night stands?

Even if I were so inclined, which I’m not, it’s not the kind of behavior consistent with a pandemic, now is it?

What was your favorite TV program?

I just can’t get much into watching television, and there are plenty of shows to watch. CBS Sunday Morning, JEOPARDY, 60 Minutes. Maybe in 2021.

Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?

This question gets more difficult every year. Let’s just say there is a massive, unprecedented for me, level of increased disdain that I have for at least one person.

Next time, the end of this thing.

Music in the time of COVID, 2020

Six Feet Apart! Stay Away!

In the best of times this century, I’m not listening to much current music. Music in the time of COVID is pretty much the same. It’s always a miracle when I purchase tunes put out by an artist whose first album came out since 2001.

What was your greatest musical discovery?

Linda Ronstadt, oddly. I bought one of her Mexican albums, her Capitol albums, plus the complete Trio with Dolly Parton and Emmylou Harris. After seeing the documentary about her in the summer of 2019, I was utterly sad that her singing voice has been silenced.

Also, I enjoyed Public Enemy’s It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back far more than I thought. Those riffs from the Temptations, Isaac Hayes and many others were quite enjoyable.

The only 2020 music I bought was Reunions by Jason Isbell And the 400 Unit, and Gaslighter by The Dixie Chicks, I mean The Chicks. Whatever. I swore in 2003 that I’d buy all of their albums. They had not put one out in 14 years, so it hasn’t been a heavy lift.

I’ve actually gotten to see my niece Rebecca Jade singing from her home. I’d seen her perform live only once before, back in 2018, when I visited her mother. I’ve also seen RJ with her occasional collaborator, jazz guitarist Peter Sprague. They’ve had the only live music shows I’ve “attended.”

Perfidia – Linda Ronstadt
Gaslighter – The Chicks
What Have I Done To Help – Jason Isbell And the 400 Unit
Freedom Highway – Rhiannon Giddens, feat. Bhi Bhiman
Party for Your Right to Fight – Public Enemy
Western Stars – Bruce Springsteen

Rebecca Jade videos

COVIDy

The Boston Globe compiled 40 songs about the coronavirus pandemic. I’ve actually heard several of these without even trying, usually on a news show.

Six Feet Apart – Luke Combs
Do What You Can -Bon Jovi
Let Your Love Be Known – Bono
Stay Away – Randy Newman
This Too Shall Pass – Mike Love featuring John Stamos

And there were “songs written before the virus spread but released because the tracks resonate with the current times.”

Living In A Ghost Town – The Rolling Stones
Tryin’ to Keep It Together – Norah Jones
We’re All In This Together Now – John Paul White featuring Rosanne Cash
Grateful – Jewel

VMAs?

Here’s a matter of self-curiosity. I watched the Video Music Awards this year for the first time in more than a decade. It aired on August 30, but I didn’t actually view it until October. And then in 15-25 minute segments.

As you might imagine, there were people I had never once heard of, CNCO, Maluma, and Doja Cat, who my daughter does not like for some reason. Then there are the ones whose names I’d seen but could not have identified, such as Chloe X Halle and DaBaby.

So THAT’S what The Weeknd looks like. (And he’s significant enough that my spellcheck accepts the spelling of his name.)

Thank goodness for some veteran acts such as Black Eyed Peas and Miley Cyrus. Because my daughter was obsessed a couple of years ago, I actually know more about BTS than any sexagenarian needs to. They premiered the song Dynamite and soon enough it’s not only #1 in the country with half a billion views but playing on some television ad. (For what, IDK, and don’t tell me because I don’t care.)

Lady Gaga won every category for which she was nominated, one with Ariana Grande including a new category.

Dynamite – BTS
Rain On Me – Lady Gaga, Ariana Grande

Quote a song lyric that sums up your year

Nobody told me there’d be days like these (X3)
Strange days indeed
Most peculiar, Mama

Nobody told me – John Lennon (1984, posthumous)