The Dark Forest, Guilty,

What I am reading this week, The Dark Forest | Cixin Liu

You can't always get what you want someone else to do unless you kidnap their loved ones. "It's for the project." Earth is under a slow-motion attack. The enemy's big swing is being telegraphed from 400 years away. An invasion force of 1000 ships has been detected. Will there be time to prepare? Wait, there is more. Another book is coming.

I went grocery shopping at checkout today and was exhausted from that little effort. I reached deep into my empty pocket to pay and realized I did not have my phone or wallet. I would have to lean into my happy place and drive another Los Feliz to Silverlake Trader Joe's round trip. Back in my car I was rewarded by the NPR news that there was a verdict. Trump's Hush money/Porn Star/Election interference case had a verdict. There was some anticipation because while there was a verdict the announcement was an hour away. I had time to retrieve my wallet and dog for the drive back to pick up my groceries. Also, time to hatch a solution to always having my pay app on hand. I should get the credit card chip glued to my wedding ring. My fingers are swelled up enough that my ring is not coming off. I will be paying with the wave of my hand.

Now, finally, back home, I'm sucking air from my efforts, pulling up the news feed on my phone, and waiting for the actual announcement. I need the NPR app on my phone. I'm thinking I gotta walk the dog before I crash on the sofa. I am like a Tesla on its last 2 miles of charge. I'm stuffing the phone in my sweatpants and putting on my headphones. Opening the passenger side door, so the judgment-day-faced dog can lead me down the block for her turn to pee. My husband texted me to alert me to the news of a verdict. I write back, "Guilty!" As if I knew first, he writes back, "REALLY?" in all caps, just like DJT. I confess that I based this info on what the dog thinks, she has the Judge Judy Face going on. She's trotting down the street to pee, giving me the look she uses to judge people. Believe it! You have not been weighed, measured, and found wanting until you have looked into the eyes of a Jindo dog you have crossed. The real verdict comes in right then: Guilty on all counts, the dog is right.

Will Trump come back from this? No. I trust my dog, who will take food from strangers and eat any scrap off the street, even she has judged DJT unworthy. There is no coming back from that. Thinking more about having the pay app in a ring makes a lot of sense. The damn phone and wallet are pulling my sweatpants down as I walk the dog.