All of those Republicans who are quitting the party and calling on folks to vote Democrat, are they doing it because they honestly, genuinely detest Trump and everything – and the word everything is crucial here – he is doing or are they simply unhappy that he doesn’t seem to be as in thrall to the Reaganite free marketeer dogma? They keep repeating with regret that “this is no longer the party of Reagan” like it’s a bad thing.

I just don’t believe that the second Trump goes away everything will be fine. Economic globalism and free markets at all cost are bad with or without Trump. I want to take a stand against that and not just against Trump or any specific individual. I want to see a general consciousness that this is the real issue. I want a real plan that addresses this real issue.

I’m not following the World Cup but Uruguay was always my favorite team. The legs on their players are a work of art. Really, really beautiful players.

I’m glad they won even though I’m deprived of actually seeing any of the famous legs this season.

When I was a kid, I was never hungry. Crowds of adults danced around me, trying to tempt me into eating something. But I hated all food, even the kind kids usually love. I remember being constantly nauseous throughout my childhood because I couldn’t stand the look and smell of food.

And then I traveled to the UK at the age of 14. The climate is different in the UK, and people have different metabolism. Portions are minuscule compared to what we consider to be a normal portion in Ukraine. So for the first time ever, I experienced hunger. And it never went away since then.

After the gallbladder removal last week, the doctor came to see me.

“Do you have any questions about the surgery or the recovery?” he asked.

“Yes!” I said. “When can I eat?”

“Erm. . . What?” the doctor asked, looking like this was an unusual question to hear. “Are you hungry? Erm. . . That’s a good sign, I guess.”

The only time in adulthood when I didn’t feel like eating anything was in the two days after giving birth to Klara. Other than that, it’s always mealtime for me.

I totally blame the small-portion, a-boiled-egg-is-dinner Brits.

I just made a huge vat of tefteli (Ukrainian meatballs with rice type of thing) and egg soup for Klara. And yesterday I drove to the grocery store. Obviously, I only got in the car after being off meds for over 36 hours. But nothing makes me feel as normal as grocery shopping.

I’m still resting today but tomorrow I’ll be back to work.

Democrats now have their own Masterpiece Cakeshop in the person of the restaurant owner who refused to serve SHS for ideological reasons. As usual, nobody will have an ounce of self-awareness or consistency. The defenders of Masterpiece will condemn the restaurant owner without noticing the irony. They will organize campaigns to put her out of business while howling to the moon about the folks who did the exact same thing to Masterpiece Cakeshop’s owner.

Finally, a plan has surfaced:

The Council on Foreign Relations reports that most of the refugees headed north are fleeing some of the most violent countries in the world. The instability is the product of both U.S. interference and neglect. It won’t be solved by harsher enforcement of our own laws but by the Northern Triangle putting its own house in order and making El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras safe again for their own people.

I think this person is advocating an invasion of El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras. I have no idea how you can make them “safe again for their own people” otherwise.

Hey, I respect this person for at least trying to articulate something. The professional weepers who have been wailing over Central American immigrants for weeks haven’t even done this much. This is at least somebody who is ready to stick their head out of a well of self-congratulation by a millimeter and try to come up with some ideas. Even crazy ideas are better than nothing at this point.

I want to believe we have turned a corner and a serious discussion of Central American immigrants is going to begin.

“Time to wash your hands,” I told Klara.

She got on the ground and started wriggling and hissing.

“I can’t wash my hands, mommy,” she explained. “I’m a snake. Snakes don’t have hands or arms.”

I never answer my phone if I don’t recognize the number. For years, I didn’t have voicemail but then I finally relented and switched it on. And so recently I started getting messages on the voicemail in angry Chinese voices from NYC numbers. It’s getting annoying because I receive them a couple of times each week.

Does anybody know what it is? A new form of phone harassment? What’s the point of it?

Numb to Outrage, Republican Voters Feel a Deepening Bond to Trump.

I’m now a registered Democrat and I feel no bond with anybody, especially Trump, but I totally get the “numb to outrage” part.

The people I don’t get are the ones who are arguing over which side started the family separations (or laid the groundwork, or made the first tentative move in that direction, etc.) At this point, nobody yet knows how to put an end to this horror. Nobody knows how to reunite kids with their parents.

It’s not about anybody’s moral high ground. The bickering over who’s a better person isn’t helping these kids and isn’t solving the issue.

And I really hope nobody asks me what I think will help because I already answered this a million times. A clear-cut, unambiguous immigration bill that will stop giving people false hope and luring them in with false information. Let’s make up our minds already and let the world know. Whatever it is, let’s just decide already and stop torturing people with false hopes while we use them to pat ourselves on the back for being better than whomever.