The other day, I heard a lady say that if she heard one more person saying how much they loved pumpkin spice lattes, she was going to scream. I don’t even know what a pumpkin spice latte is, but it sure has some people taking sides. I think the problem is really more to do with what people used to call “oversteppin’ your raisings”. The only thing I ever remember in the English language around here that sounded anything like “latte” was a word that was used in an expression of disapproval of one of your friends when they appeared to be "oversteppin their raisings". In this case it was a friend in the fourth grade who had worn his brand-new pair of Buster Brown shoes to school instead of his old PF Flyers in order to impress the new little girl. “Well latte dah, looka here, it's Mr. James Bond with his shiny shoes on.” Yep, "latte" just kind of sticks out in conversations around Swainsboro or Nunez or Stillmore. You just don’t hear it that much. Then all of a sudden pumpkin spice comes along, and it's everywhere. Maybe in Paris latte is an everyday thing, but not Swainsboro, Georgia.
Now, here’s something interesting in history for you. In 1854, they tried changing Swainsboro’s name to Paris, but that didn’t work out either. They changed it back in 1857. There you are, the Town Fathers "overstepped their raisings", just like the 4th grader in his Buster Browns.
Most of the time, people can tell when something fits, or it doesn’t. When something’s not real, people have an extra sense that flashes an “error” message right away. Politicians apparently can’t read those messages, and right now, Republicans are having a heck of a time figuring out what’s real and what isn’t. A Republican representative from deep down Florida gator country who looks like Eddie Munster is popping his suspenders right now because he and seven of his little playmates have shut down Kindergarten, otherwise known as the entire United States House of Representatives. By organizing a mutiny in the Republican party and running off the Speaker of the House, little Matt Gaetz has made Republicans look like the Gang That Couldn’t Shoot Straight. When you combine that with President Biden and the Gang That Couldn't Stay Awake Late, it’s a terrible example to show the rest of the world, at a time the rest of the world REALLY needs a good example of what American democracy and freedom look like. It just makes you wonder if there are any adults left up there in Washington.
So anyway, when you hear all the screaming later on this week, don't get too excited. It's just that lady who has run out of patience with the pumpkin spice latte lovers. If it's not her, then it's just the rest of the citizens of the United States who have run out of patience with Republicans and Democrats and are trying to figure out what's real and what's not and what in the world is coming next.
