#2016: A Liberal Move in a Conservative Story

By Lorene Funk Accardo and TBD

Followed & Photographed by people in Black Suits & Black SUVs...

Hashtag 2016 is about a WWII granddaughter whose past and present experiences gave what she thought was a unique perspective on the 2016 Presidential campaigns after watching her grandfather and his brothers live with nerve damage from frost bite & Shellshock. She

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lorene Funk Accardo
• Release date: Jul 2, 2019
• ISBN: 9781734379303

Book preview

#2016

A Liberal Move in a Conservative Story

Lorene Funk Accardo

This book is a work of fiction.  Names, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

© 2018 by Lorene Funk Accardo, Lorene Funk Publishing LLC. 

All rights reserved. No part of this document may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior written permission of the publisher.

ISBN-13:  978-1-7343793-0-3

Published in the United States by Lorene Funk Accardo Publishing LLC

www.lorenefunkaccardo.com

Contents

Cover

Title Page

Copyright

#2016

Chapter 1 - #The Female Pen

Chapter 2 - #FDR

Chapter 3 - #The First Family

Chapter 4 - #Mulberry Street

Chapter 5 - #The Lieutenant Commander #The Peanut Farmer & The Gipper

Chapter 6 - #My Tiara and Its Tarnish

Chapter 7 - #The Doll Whisperer

Chapter 8 - #When the Glass Shatters

Chapter 9 - #Rainy Day Migraine

Chapter 10 - #The Apple Tree

Chapter 11 - #Serve God or Burn

Chapter 12 - #Shock and Awe

Chapter 13 - #Lessons Learned

Chapter 14 - #Service and Silence

Chapter 15 - #The Magician

Chapter 16 - #The Game of Life

Chapter 17 - #To Read or Not to Read

Chapter 18 - #White with Wisdom

Chapter 19 - #Xanadu

Chapter 20 - #The Queen of Spades

Chapter 21 - #Dream Dream Dream

Chapter 22 - #The Fixer

Chapter 23 - #Travel Conditions

Chapter 24 - #White Lash

Chapter 25 - #Abraham, Martin, & LBJ

Chapter 26 - #A Basket of Deplorables

Chapter 27 - #Not My First Rodeo

Chapter 28 - #The Boy in the Bubble

Chapter 29 - #My Town

Chapter 30 - #The Governor & #The Constitutionalist

Chapter 31 - #The Basket Weaver and the Missionary

Chapter 32 - #The Participation Trophy

Chapter 33 - #Out with the Old

Chapter 34 - #In with the New

Chapter 35 - #306

Chapter 36 - #Don’t Sound Like It. Be it.

Chapter 37 - #After 306

#The Female Pen

The history of women is a long and winding course through time. There is a large gap between the theories on creation and the first time anyone mentions equal opportunity. I heard about this pen during my undergraduate studies in the English department. Women were not always published. I should say they were not allowed. There were time periods when it was against the law. There are many stories in the literary world about women that were published as anonymous writers or published under a fictional man’s name. I was raised with the idea that true progress for American women would come with the first woman elected as The President of the United States. My husband is the typical white-collar businessman. He travels. We vacation. We have money saved for our son’s college. He makes his travel plans while assuming I am with our son. There are no hesitations. I am asked no questions about his schedule. It is assumed I can have just as much success, completely supported by my husband, while taking our son back and forth to his destinations, until he can drive on his own. I’m guessing those dates are scheduled without thinking if we will have food in the house, clean laundry for his trip, or will the dog be fed while he was away. I am not complaining about the structure of our lives. It is very common, and he does make a good living.

Anne Bradstreet was the first female poet of the New World. I remember reading her poetry in college. People discouraged her about writing. She was surrounded by people that believed her writing served no greater purpose. There were many critics reminding her no publisher was interested in anything she wrote about her personal life and the struggles that came with being a wife and mother in The New World. She is still published and mentioned in college classrooms all over the world. I think the female pen is more personable. I believe women appreciate the little things in life. We are referred to as emotional creatures. I am convinced the female pen has a very sharp point. I believe it can penetrate the soul deeper than any other sharp instrument. I would compare it to the many times people speak about a man’s handwriting being messy while a woman’s hand writes neater and is more legible. Her style is usually more artistic. There are always exceptions. I will always cry during a reading of The Charge of the Light Brigade by Alfred and Baron Tennyson.  But let’s face it, the Tennyson’s were not carrying around extra emotional baggage after birthing a watermelon through a vagina. That is a level that you can’t penetrate unless you have done that, with a room full of people, after all the years you were told that you should always keep your private area covered. It wasn’t for public viewing. I think the same can be said about her writings because she wasn’t writing about searching for a giant beast in the sea during harsh weather conditions. Her writings don’t include the many loud sounds of cannon balls up close and the smell of gun powder. I pictured Anne Bradstreet living a very conservative lifestyle, but I view her thinking and writing as liberal. She was not influenced by the people discouraging her from writing her personal stories down. I am glad she didn’t listen to all her critics. Her writings can say a lot about women in history during our country’s early beginnings. I am inspired by women like her. When I think my work is hard as a wife and mother, it is her words that remind me there were times when women had it much harder than I have it now.

I welcome thinkers that think like me or different than me. I learn from every conversation I have. If I disagree with someone, I learn where I stand on certain topics. If I agree with someone, I also find out where my beliefs are on certain issues. I’m watching the world change. I’m witnessing my country change. I’m not sure it is all for the best. I find myself hearing my parents and grandparents in my head when I have conversations with my son. The advice I give him is much like the many times my elders gave me advice. The Bible tells us, The greatest of these is love. The Beatles said that love is the only thing people really need. It must be true if The Bible and The Beatles agree. I have always loved in abundance. I was raised with the motto, God first, country second, and family third. I love God, I love my country, and I love my family. The greatest divisions I see are in church and in politics. Our country is based upon the division of church and state. Our country didn’t base anything on our nation becoming so divided within the church and within the state. I believe we are more divided now than any time in our nation’s history after the Civil War.

The oldest profession in history is prostitution. I think some may argue with me, but I think the ideology between prostitution and politics are somewhat similar. Both occupations screw people for money. Prostitution is mentioned in The Bible. Early history consistently confirms the only thing women could sell were themselves. Men and women alike are taught in sales positions they are selling themselves as much as they are selling products. They are developing relationships that will potentially persuade people into purchasing whatever he or she is selling. I wonder if people ever really think about where that concept originated. It was the only paid occupation women could have in places throughout the world. The walls of Jericho would have never come down had it not been for a prostitute. I haven’t heard a song written or sung about her efforts. I bet many people still do not know her name. Her name was Rahab. She lived in Jericho and assisted the Israelites in capturing the city while betraying her people. Rahab let spies hide inside her home. Rahab took huge risks.

The French Courtesan is one of my favorite stories in history. The French Courtesan had it going on for herself. She would only court a man that could provide her with large gifts like jewelry, a home, and once the relationship was over, by her choice or his, he was still obligated for her needs and wants. She got a retirement for sex. Some people may frown upon the courtesan story, but I call them wise businesswomen. How many times have we all heard, Don’t give the milk away for free?  I have read about many ugly deaths the courtesans faced by disease. A lot of the men died too. I bet a lot of people still don’t know that Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart died after catching a sexually transmitted disease. History says he was a big player. How did they catch a disease by a man giving them so much financially? Did men cheat on their mistresses? I thought the whole point of an expensive mistress was her loyalty. The men bought out their competition. The French courtesan provides an argument that men are just as bad and maybe worse. They had a marriage, a family, a mistress, and still slept around with other people, causing their death and the death of the very one they paid. I’m not understanding how they could pass the disease to a mistress without also giving it to their wives. Were there any wives sleeping around and giving diseases to the husbands? Were men getting free sex off the homemakers and passing disease? Men were getting screwed and then screwed. Wouldn’t that be a terrible fate? You die from a disease that you caught from your male employer, who caught it from his wife, who was sleeping around while he slept around? How could anyone prove the original source of the disease? We still struggle on original sources these days only it’s more political than sexual. We still have prostitution and we still have no woman president. Things haven’t changed all that much. At least we have antibiotics now.

#FDR

I’ve been reading about the history of our American presidents. The day to day events I’m seeing on the news have me reading about many presidents that ruled before I was born. Their words always comfort me whenever I believe we are stumbling as a country. I’ve heard many presidents mentioned throughout my lifetime. Some are mentioned more than others. Some are mentioned for good reasons. Some presidents are mentioned for bad reasons. My mother told me her thirties were some of the greatest years of her life. I was turning thirty when she shared that with me. The presidents I learned the most about served in our nation’s Presidential thirties. The ones I heard mostly talked about were also military veterans. The President I heard my grandparents mention the most was FDR. My grandparents never said his full name. Nobody did. Nobody does. Ask anyone about FDR and most Americans will know who you are talking about. We have nothing to fear but fear itself are words most anyone that knows anything about American history know they came from FDR. Franklin Delano Roosevelt Sr. was America’s thirty-second president. FDR won against Herbert Hoover in a landslide. He won a record breaking four presidential elections during his political career. He became president during The Great Depression. It was a stressful time in our nation. The country made a come -back, but the country relapsed into a deep recession while he was still in command. He became my grandfather’s Commander-In-Chief when he was drafted into the United States Army after the attack on Pearl Harbor. FDR said the attack was, A date that will live in infamy. Those words are always quoted whenever I watch a documentary film about the attack on Pearl Harbor.

FDR served in New York’s State Senate for the 26th district. He was also the Assistant Secretary of the Navy, and the 44th New York Governor before he was elected as the leader of the free world. He was a reform governor developing programs that helped the state of New York during an economic crisis being felt across our nation. My grandparents and my parents always described him as one of the greatest presidents in American history. My grandfather that served in the Army under FDR’s command described him as one of our best presidents along with George Washington and Abraham Lincoln. He is known in history for the New Deal. FDR instituted a variety of relief programs for our unemployed citizens and our American farmers. My grandma said these programs gave jobs to those needing them the most. Some of our own family members found work because of those programs. People were not just given assistance. They were given jobs. And if they made less than a certain amount, there were additional programs available that offered more help.

The Blue Ridge Parkway spreads across the southern part of the Great Appalachian. The parkway is a long and winding scenic route that winds and winds for hundreds of miles. The parkway has been seen by people from all over the 50 states and beyond. Tourists visit the parkway nestled deep into the mountains. There are many overlooks spread throughout the parkway. Travelers can stop and take in the beautiful views. I always know when the blue shades are their bluest because overlooks are full and there are people everywhere taking pictures. People love telling stories about the blue mountain range. They have been featured in many books and in many movies. My grandmother was perhaps the greatest storyteller about their history. I remember her sharing stories about the gas released by nature into the atmosphere creating all the many beautiful blue shades seen in so many pictures taken all along the overlooks. She would tell us grandchildren how the parkway spans four hundred miles. She would talk about its popularity in the fall and back in the day people were excited because sells would go up at country stores located near the parkway. Everyone made their Christmas money that would buy all their children new clothes, shoes, and maybe some new blankets. My grandmother would tell us how the parkway was created during the Great Depression when people were out of work. It was part of an FDR program. I still remember her eyes full of tears when she talked about the depression. Her voice would shake when she would say, The depression oppressed the oppressed even more and washed out the middle-class savings accounts throughout the Roanoke and Shenandoah valleys.

My family history is rooted in an area where jobs were born for depressed people. I shake my head sometimes thinking about that part of the story after all the depression I’ve watched my own family members battle. I think I was the only grandchild that stayed around for the whole story. Many would leave and play around the yard, climbing trees, swinging on an old rope with a tire looped through it and tied to a big tree. I would stay and listen as she told how The Great Depression was the deepest and longest lasting economic downturn in the history of the Western Industrialized world. It started with the Wall Street Crash of 1929. It was felt throughout the world. Millions of investors were scared out of investing. She said it was called, Black Tuesday. A new world that was created by the Industrial Revolution, had nothing moving. It created a desperate situation for those making their living in production.

The Great Depression was so devastating that it’s still talked about many generations later. I hear people compare it with the financial stress we are facing right now in America. People are without work, without healthcare, educated people are drowning in student loan debt, sick people are without medicine, elderly are without caregivers, and some are kicked out of nursing homes with nowhere to go. The news channels keep reporting that drug addiction is at an all-time high with so many dying by overdose every day. The rate of veterans killing themselves is more than 20 every day. It’s a major crisis that reporters and campaigning politicians keep mentioning.  Many veterans are on waiting lists at their local Veterans Hospitals still months away from any professional help. Many people suffering with chronic pain are refused help. There are cities in America with annual death rates higher than our military fighting in war. We face more threats with the rise of ISIS and its members in the United States. I feel like I’m describing a third world country. I never thought these things would happen in America. I was told growing up that our military troops fight on enemy soil, so we would not have death tolls of war in our own country. Sometimes my mind goes to football. I think it offers an explanation that many can understand in a country where more people watch a championship game than vote on election day. Many teams do better when they play at home on their own field. It’s the field they practice on day in and day out. They have an advantage over another team that may only see that field a few times a year. That is why people refer to it as a home field advantage.

America is currently ununited in so many ways. I don’t see it getting better anytime soon. It’s no big secret that many people were not happy with either candidate during our last presidential election. People turned on each other for supporting opposing candidates of each other’s choice. The news reported tonight that a woman was denied service by a local restaurant owner because the owner did not like the president that was on her t-shirt. People that have been friends for years suddenly