Mini-Review: Tommy Cabot Was Here

You may notice that right now, am averaging a book a day, far ahead of my planned book a week.

This is due to two factors. Maybe three, but the first two are sort of two sides of the same coin. One, it’s fully and completely winter here, and we are all nesting a bit, wanting to snuggle under our covers and just be. The other side of that is that I am constructing a Hygge corner, and the comfy blankets, and the recliner and the cat…well, they just lend themselves to sitting and reading all day, which is what I have done.

That and watch football. I don’t always make time to watch a lot of games during the season that the Steelers aren’t directly involved with, but I do love playoff ball. Stakes are high, and everyone is really good at what they do, and I do get to see players that I don’t know very well. Playoff ball is what introduced me to Patrick Mahomes, for example.

The other reason is that this country I love is on the precipice of something pretty dark, and sitting and reading in a comfy chair with a fluffy blanket and a cat is the self-care I need right now. It may be the self care I need for the next four years.

Which brings us to a well-timed prompt.

There are a lot of qualities that I look for in a leader. Intelligence and knowledge are close to the top of the list, as are good communication skills and the ability to think innovatively. I need someone who can push when it’s appropriate, and pull back when it’s necessary and protect the people who work for her from all the crap that rains down from above. Those are the kinds of leaders I have enjoyed working for and with, and that is the kind of leaders I always tried to be.

I guess I’ve always thought that the indispensable quality, though, is actually caring about the people you lead.

And the guy taking the oath of office tomorrow fails on every one of these metrics, none more than that last one.

Check in on your American friends tomorrow. We are not OK.

Love y’all.