Read.Eat.Listen: Staying Open Amidst Shutdowns

I have been so disheartened and disappointed by the current government shutdown. Really. I've been flat-out fighting the blues all week, getting on with things...but sheesh.  Apparently, I had my head in the sand when this happened in the 90s, but this time, as a mature adult who votes with care;  with a close family member who is a government employee; and as a volunteer with an organization that does its work in a National Recreation Area, the ramifications of the shutdown hit home immediately. But the unjustness of it all would still be hard to take even if I wasn't personally affected. I'm simply sick that our democracy and our votes are being screwed with by a small population of oppressive bigots who care about no one but themselves.  What to do?
Write letters. Speak up. Sing out, I say.
MoveOn: Democracy in Action
Read: Studying up on the implications of this government debacle :
Our Democracy Is At Stake
Shutdown: The Hysterical Style of American Politics
A Population Betrayed 
Looking to the greats:
Gandhi: Pioneer of Nonviolent Social Change
Eat: This week felt like fall with leaves turning and falling, the goldfinches doubling up at the feeder and a notable chill in the air. I've been craving warm things, comfort food like soup and toast.  Check out this chef conceived version of Avocado Toast via Tasting Table.  Yum.
Listen: Fortunately, too, I live in the festival loving San Francisco Bay Area. San Franciscans like to party no matter what, and lo,  Hardly Strictly Bluegrass is going off all this weekend! An unusually high number of great acts are in town and its possible to double-down on musical inspiration.  KC Turner seized the opportunity to present yet another great house concert with an act that is touring with Steve Earle (who can take us all to school on how to speak out against injustice), The Mastersons. They're thorny-yet-poppy, folky-but-rocking, not all light but heart-driven, and really great musicians with beautiful voices. Check them out.