There’s No Fool Like an Old Fool,

Yes, my fellow retirees, you’re going to pay for your actions.

Photo by Kaspars Eglitis on Unsplash

I remember seeing a lot of old guys walking around Walmart and Lowe’s proudly wearing their red MAGA hats. I remember hearing them talking together about how Trump will take better care of veterans and retirees instead of Biden giving all the money to illegal immigrants. Occasionally, I heard them say they’d never vote for a woman, especially a Black woman. I’ve heard a few oldsters say, “We’ve already had a Black President; we don’t need another one.”

Well, they didn’t get another Black president or a woman. They got what they wanted: an old White male racist, just like them. By voting their racism, they got a hell of a lot more than what they wanted.

Two programs every senior citizen over the age of 65 depends on to survive are Medicare and Social Security. During Trump’s first term in office, he attempted to change both programs in ways that would be devastating to senior citizens. Thanks to the Democrats in Congress, Trump didn’t succeed.

As Trump campaigned for his second term, he promised to initiate these changes. But did these old fools listen and pay attention? Of course not. Even though Kamala Harris vowed to protect Medicare and Social Security, they didn’t believe her because she is a woman and she’s Black.

Now Trump has nominated one of the most unqualified people in the country to lead the Medicare and Medicaid Programs, Dr. Mehmet Oz. Dr. Oz was a successful surgeon who saw he could make more money by becoming a television huckster hawking medical misinformation and unproven supplements. His colleagues at Columbia University voted to remove him from the faculty of their College of Physicians and Surgeons.

Dr. Oz has voiced his support for privatizing Medicare, which could lead to higher costs for seniors and fewer options. Prescription drug prices will most likely increase, as the private insurance companies running the Medicare Advantage plans would have no competition.

Assisting Dr. Oz, will be Trump’s choice to lead Health and Human Services, the conspiracy theory nutjob, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. Kennedy is a staunch opponent of vaccines and drug research. He supports the discontinuation of research into new drugs to treat cancer and other deadly diseases. He also supports eliminating the Food and Drug Administration, which protects the safety of our food supply and prescription drugs.

These old fools will not have to worry about their healthcare costs or lack of insurance because Kennedy and Oz’s plans for the future will most likely kill them. That’s an acceptable price to pay to make sure a Black woman never becomes President.

Regarding Social Security, no one knows what will happen to the program. Trump-backed Republicans favor raising the retirement age to 70 and cutting some benefits. According to the Republican Study Committee in the House, their 2025 budget sees social security benefits cuts affecting 3 in 4 Americans. Hey, but at least the old racist white guy is in charge!

I know that a majority of these old MAGA fools get their news from Fox News, so their ignorance is understandable, if not acceptable. But what gets my ire is the nation’s largest organization that purports to advocate for senior citizens, AARP, did not once warn seniors of the dangers of a Trump presidency. Instead, they asked its members to study the candidates’ views on Social Security and Medicare and make a wise choice. As if its member would actually do that!

Instead of pushing Life Insurance, Car Insurance, and its favorite Medicare Advantage plan, AARP chose not to take a stance in the most important election of their members’ lifetimes. They are nothing but cowards and wimps protecting their own financial interests.

As Trump continues to name his picks for his Cabinet, or as I will from here on call it, his “Wrecking Crew,” things will become worse for not only senior citizens but all Americans. The old adage proves to be true once again: “There’s no fool like an old fool.”

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Self-Promotion is Like Self Abuse,

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But it has to be done.

Photo by Pawel Czerwinski on Unsplash

When I was a child, I was taught that talking about yourself was considered bragging and thus discouraged. I always felt guilty talking about my accomplishments, and I still do today.

Because of my upbringing, I had a difficult time promoting the blogs I created after retiring. I thought once I wrote and published a post, that was it. It didn’t take long to realize no one was reading my posts or even aware I had a blog. I was even too shy to tell family and friends.

I soon discovered that writing a blog wasn’t hard; it was promoting it that was. That’s probably why I never earned any money. Then, I started writing on Medium in addition to my blog.

For the past couple of months, I have been wracking my brain for ways to promote myself and my articles. I then read a story by Adrian CDTPPW, in which he describes the stress he encountered in his efforts at self-promotion. His story is worth a read for all of us:

I have been going through similar experiences to promote my work. I have tried sharing on X, only to have one or two people read the articles I shared. Now that X is going down the tubes, I will no longer share on that platform.

I have had a little better luck with Facebook, where I have switched to the Facebook professional mode. After sharing my articles, I am getting a few reads. It’s not great, but every little bit helps.

I also started a newsletter, separate from Medium’s newsletter, where I share my previously published Medium stories with people who have subscribed to it. My newsletter is sent out once a week, unlike Medium’s subscriber notifications, which are sent out as soon as an article is published. So far, the results have been rather disappointing.

I have recently started promoting my articles and newsletter on LinkedIn, Bluesky, and Patreon, even though I am not too optimistic about getting good results. I’m sure there are other avenues for promotion that I haven’t discovered yet, and I’m sure I will give them a try, too, sometime in the future.

Adrian was right about self-promotion being stressful. But unlike writing a blog on WordPress or Blogger, writing on the Medium platform makes promoting our work somewhat easier. Don’t get me wrong; you still have to promote yourself if you expect to be successful. I compare promoting articles to trying to sell ice to Eskimos—not easy!

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Would You Like to Know What My Favorite Dishes Are?

Here they are in no particular order.

Chinese New Year HotPot taken by author.

Anyone who knows me knows that I love to eat. I particularly love sampling cuisines from around the world. I have had the great opportunity of living in Penang, Malaysia, which is known worldwide for its street food, and its diverse culture.

I grew up in upstate New York, which, at that time, was not known for its diversity of cuisine. It was Italian, meat and potatoes, or Chinese food from the only Chinese restaurant in town. The food was good, and I had no complaints.

As I attended college and began to travel more, I discovered a whole new world of food. I found out I liked spicy food and food with intense flavors. I wanted to try foods I had never had and, in most instances, never heard of. I didn’t ask what was in it before I tried it. I just ate it. I realized that there is so much I can learn about a people’s culture from their food. To deny a person’s food is to deny their culture.

Here is a list of my favorite dishes, in no particular order. I have included a link to some dishes explaining what they are for those who may not be familiar with them.

Photo by Amanda Lim on Unsplash

Malaysian Curry Mee

Chicken Butter Masala

Seafood Crispy Fried Noodles

Peking Duck

Eggplant Parmigiana

Malaysian Hotpot

Lobster

Cajun Fried Catfish

Crawfish Etouffee

Dim Sum

Chicken Mole Enchiladas

Carnitas with Salsa Rojas

Thai Basil Minced Pork (I make this every summer with my homegrown Thai basil)

Massaman Chicken Curry

Thai Peanut Sauce with Chicken Noodles

Sushi

Gyoza

Chicken Makhani

Pizza

Spaghetti and Meat Balls

Greek Dolmades

Baklava

Fish and Chips

Just about all Cajun and Creole Food

Chocolate — all kinds of chocolate desserts.

Homemade Apple Pie

I guess you could say any dessert would be the perfect ending to a perfect meal.

I’m sure I have left out many dishes I love, but it would take too long to list all the wonderful foods from so many cultures. I am fortunate to have had the chance to sample foods from around the world. But I am most lucky to have a Malaysian-Chinese husband, born and raised in Penang, Malaysia, who loves to cook and does most of the cooking.

I hope you have enjoyed reading about what I like to eat. You may even click on a link and learn to love some of my favorite foods.

Photo by author.

Photo by author

Dim Sum Photo by Author

Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons. This is where I ate frequently while living in Penang, Malaysia

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Please Subscribe to My Newsletter.

Yes, this is a shameless plea to promote my stories

Author’s Image

I have no shame. I don’t care. I merely want to get more eyes on my stories. That’s why I created a newsletter outside of the Medium platform to let my subscribers know I have published stories.

I know Medium has an Email subscribers option, but in my experience, it does not work well. First, every time someone publishes a story, an email is sent. If a writer publishes multiple times during the day, multiple emails are sent out, clogging up subscribers’ inboxes. Second, this function does not work. Many times, subscribers were deleted for no reason at all.

When I created my newsletter, Steve Sovie’s World, I intended to send it once a week, on Sunday. It includes links to the stories I wrote the previous week, plus an occasional message or photo I have chosen to share with my readers. Instead of receiving multiple emails throughout the week, you only get one!

I don’t sell courses or products, and I don’t try to entice you to view a YouTube video or click on mysterious links. However, there is a donation button at the end of the newsletter if you want to chip in a few cents to help put me in a higher tax bracket.

I’ve sent out six newsletters thus far. I don’t know how effective they have been. Either they go into your spam mailbox, or the recipient simply deletes them. Some, but not many, are opened, as my statistics have revealed. The good news is that no one has unsubscribed.

What puzzles me is that people continue to subscribe to my stories by using the Medium subscribe icon instead of my signup link in my rather large image at the end of every story.

I apologize for shamelessly trying to promote my articles, but sometimes, we older people act without shame. I worked hard on creating my newsletter, and it may not be comparable to a professionally designed newsletter. But it is 100% me.

If any of you have any suggestions for improvement, or if you have any complaints, please let me know. At least click on the link to see what it looks like, you don’t have to subscribe.

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Author’s Image

Why I Feel Guilty About Not Reading All of Your Stories,

I hope you understand why.

Photo by Richard Horne on Unsplash

There are just so many hours in a day when I read stories on Medium. I prioritize the stories from writers I frequently engage with and subscribe to. However, there are times when they publish something that does not pertain to me. I don’t want to give them fake engagement, so I don’t read the story, and then I feel guilty about not supporting them.

I am retired. I don’t have to work to supplement my Social Security and pensions. I am enjoying my “Golden Years”—or, what time I have left. Part of being retired is the freedom from the unnecessary stress that often comes with a full-time job.

I have chosen writing on Medium as one of my hobbies, but not the only hobby. I write to share my thoughts and opinions and, most importantly, to keep my mind active. I don’t need the money, but who doesn’t like a little extra spending money?

But like many on this platform, I get caught up in the rush to produce, earn more money, compete with the “big” accounts, or solve the mystery of the Medium algorithm. I don’t want to get back into another rat race, and I get upset with myself when I begin to stress out over what I am or am not doing on this platform.

I don’t need to worry about any other goals other than staying healthy and alive. I don’t need to improve my productivity or set any new career goals. I also don’t need self-improvement courses or self-help tips. I am not saying stories about these topics are not helpful, but they are not for me.

As far as “side hustles” go, I guess you could call my Newsletter, Steve Sovie’s World, a side hustle. But for me, it’s like an experiment or a new toy. It will not make or break me as a writer or content creator. I do enjoy reading what others are doing regarding their efforts to improve their writing or earn a little extra money, but I don’t intend to change direction at this point in my life.

When I don’t read specific articles on the topics I have mentioned above, I feel guilty, but I am not inferring I don’t support the writers or that what they say is unimportant. I’m just an old guy passing the time of day, spouting off about politics or whatever is on my mind on a particular day, maybe wishing I had the youth, energy, and abilities to write for a career. So please don’t take offense if I don’t read every one of your stories. I hope you understand. Thank you.

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There’s One Person Who Could End World Hunger,

But would he do it?

Photo by Tucker Tangeman on Unsplash

According to the UN World Food Program, it would take $40 billion a year to end world hunger by 2030. That’s a lot of money. But it could be possible if the wealthiest countries in the world and the billionaires of the world contributed.

There is however one man, who could afford to wipe out world hunger, all by himself, and still have enough money left over to remain a billionaire. Yup, you’re right, it’s Elon Musk. But would he do it?

According to Investopedia Elon Musk is estimated to have a net worth of $335 billion. After contributing $240 billion over the next six years, he would still have $95 billion left, even after paying $130 million to have Trump win the election.

Musk, in 2001, has set up the Musk Fund Charity, but according to Philanthropy News Digest, Musk hasn’t even given away enough of his $7 million charity to qualify for tax breaks. His charity doesn’t even have any employees! According to Forbes 400 List of the wealthiest Americans, Musk gives less than 1% of his wealth, the least of any of the contributors. This is like a person earning $500 per year donating less than $500 a year to charity.

I just thought I’d point this out to people who think billionaires running our government will have your best interests in mind when they get their big tax cuts. Remember him when you file your income taxes.

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X is Sinking Faster Than the Titanic

Are you jumping ship?

Photo by Jason Mavrommatis on Unsplash

X, formerly Twitter, is one of the largest social media sites on the Internet, but it is undergoing some changes. Since Elon Musk bought X and turned it into a misinformation platform, exposing extreme Conservative and racist rhetoric. After Trump’s reelection, X’s membership has been dwindling at an extraordinary rate.

I have been on X for quite some time and had 14K followers at one time. I wasn’t an avid follower, but I checked political happenings there on a regular basis. I occasionally created a post, which usually went unnoticed. I also shared my Medium stories on X, which, once again, fell on blind eyes.

Today, I checked the number of followers I now have and noticed they have dropped to 12K, having lost 3K followers. I am not bothered one bit, as I plan on soon leaving the site. I have signed up for BlueSky Social Network, which is similar to X but a more comfortable platform for me to share my political and societal views. I probably won’t do much better sharing my stories here than I did on X. I also don’t plan on spending much time there.

Are any of my fellow Medium members also members of X, and do you plan on staying or leaving?

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