Critters, Art, and Happy 4th of July

A chipmunk lives on my porch  (or maybe a few of them). He resents us when we sit out there.
He often perches on the railing when we are not bothering him.

A Carolina Wren has a nest on Nat’s windowsill. (Photo by Carol/Nat)

Penguins! Alice found this graffiti in Paris.

Another Paris Mona Lisa from Alice and Evelyn.

From my friend Roberta who is also in Paris.

Random web Mona. Something to do with AI.

Another graffiti from Alice. This one is in Strasbourg. 

New murals at the Stravinsky Fountain in Paris. Photo by Evelyn.

Woodworking

Len has been working with new tools and a variety of wood — poplar, maple, and oak — recently. The three boxes in the photos are the very useful results of his project.

Happy Fourth of July!

“The Flag is Bleeding” by Faith Ringgold (1930-2024).
On this July 4th, as I did last year, I have both patriotic and pessimistic feelings.

Update: fireworks this year.

How Happy?

An example of what we have to lose from our government’s policies.

Illustrating why we should fear for our democracy and institutions that we cherish, here's a quote from Michael Roth, president of Wesleyan University, posted on Robert Reich's Substack:

Under pressure from the Trump administration, the University of Virginia’s president of nearly seven years, James Ryan, stepped down Friday, declaring that while he was committed to the university and inclined to fight, he could not in good conscience push back just to save his job.

The Department of Justice demanded that Ryan resign in order to resolve an investigation into whether UVA sufficiently complied with Trump’s orders banning diversity, equity, and inclusion.

UVA dissolved its DEI office in March, though Trump’s lackeys claim the university didn’t go far enough in rooting out DEI.

This is the first time the Trump regime has explicitly tied grant dollars to the resignation of a university official. It’s unlikely to be the last.

The New US Budget

While I have been writing this blog post, the US House and Senate passed a bill that will cause suffering and death throughout our country and the world, while enriching the already rich members of our society.

• This bill defunds much of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, which helps feed people in need (source). Without the funding that has supported food programs and welfare programs in America, there will be men, women, and children going hungry. 
• This bill reduces benefits from Medicaid, which provides healthcare to low-income and disabled Americans, cutting $1 trillion from its funding: 11.8 million more people are predicted to be without health insurance by 2034 (source). 
• This bill defunds many important global health initiatives. Without ongoing funding for programs to prevent and treat AIDS in the US and throughout the world, more people will be infected and victims will die: possibly an additional 6 million HIV infections and 4 million Aids-related deaths by 2029 (source). 
• Environmental programs have also been cut or eliminated. 
• Because of tax cuts for wealthy Americans, this bill will add billions of dollars to the National Debt. 

Sadly, I am thinking about these terrible consequences of the new budget as we celebrate our most patriotic holiday.

“Today, Donald Trump and the Republican party sent a message to America: if you are not a billionaire, we don’t give a damn about you,” said Ken Martin, the Democratic National Committee chair.

Blog post © 2025 mae sander

Shared with Eileen’s Critters, Deb’s Sunday Salon, and Sami’s Murals.