Ides of March

I hope yours was assassination-free!

Does anybody still read Shakespeare?

Are kids taught any of the classics? Do they think that “classics” refers to the Beatles or Nirvana?

Were you a little nervous yesterday because it was the Ides of March? If you were, I feel ya.

I picked up this mug years ago at a Hallmark store. Given my obsession with Game of Thrones and the fact that I strongly identify with Danery’s statement, “So many men have been sent to kill me, I can’t remember all their names,” it seemed appropriate.

As Elton John says, in a classic, “I’m still standing.” But I’m always a bit cautious around the Ides of March.

This year mine was quite decent. I worked in the morning, then went into town for a late lunch with a good friend who likes to take me out for nice meals. I don’t eat out really ever, only if someone else is paying, so I greatly enjoy the occasions when I am able to go to a nice restaurant. I would like to thank any of you who have taken me out for dinner or lunch.

A big thank you to my new paid subscribers! Subscribing makes me very happy, and I love you all equally and put none of my content behind a paywall. But for those who find it possible to throw in a little bit in a subscription, I can assure you it goes to good use. You are quite literally feeding me and Loviefluffy. The Fancy Feast is delicious! (so I’m told.)

But back to the Ides of March. I have had bad things happen on the Ides of March. I have also embarked on a project/relationship/whatever, that turned out to be a bad idea.

I don’t go on first dates on the Ides of March.

Tomorrow is Saint Patrick’s Day. There are 16.1% more fatal car crashes on the holiday than in the rest of March. I have a mortal terror of drunk drivers. I am all for people having the right to drink, but yo, impairment begins with the first drink. Please don’t drink and drive, on Saint Patrick’s Day or any day. Take a Lyft. Buy a sober person a meal in exchange for being the designated driver. Many a sober person loves to be the designated driver. I don’t love to drive, so I don’t volunteer to be the designated driver often, but I will be the sober person who talks you out of texting your ex while you’re drunk. Let me know if you need my number.

These are dangerous times. I try to pick my risks wisely. It’s worth the risk to write in support of my Jewish friends, in Israel and everywhere. Getting it by a drunk driver is not a good risk to take.

Thanksgiving and Independence Day are the most dangerous days to drive. Alcohol kills way more people than opioids, btw. I taught my seventh and eight grade students to repeat the statistics. Anyone who goes hating on people who do drugs that happen to be illegal should put down their beer. The only reason why it is possible to drink safely is that the supply is legal and regulated. When you buy whiskey (yuck, I hated that stuff even when I did drink), you know it’s whiskey. If you do drink, please do so safely.

If you’re reading this, your Ides of March was assassination-free. Congratulations! Let’s all join internet hands and stay alive.

I ate a kale Caesar salad on the Ides of March. How could I do otherwise?