I am back, and just in time to celebrate the 10th anniversary of my writing for this paper. Thanks to left shoulder arthroscopy with debridement of the superior labrum, glenoid cartilage, humeral head cartilage, interval capsule and subacromial space combined with open bicep tenodesis I missed 8 weeks of writing. Most of us call it rotator cuff repair. Or, do you call it rotator cup?
I am now using my left hand on the computer mouse and pulling nails from reclaimed lumber with my good arm while gingerly collecting the bent fasteners with the repaired arm and calling it “physical therapy.” Things sure went to hell while I was on medical leave.
We seemed to already have enough hate and division in our own country before the pandemic. Maybe you hated President Bush or Clinton, or the second Bush or Obama. Maybe you hated the second Clinton or Trump or Biden. Maybe it is GMO’s, the war on terror, the ACA, the wall, or illegal immigration or deporting illegal’s you hate. Recently we got to hate the virus, masks, the vaccine, the CDC or mask mandates. I think it is time we all unite and hate a common enemy, Russia.
I was not even alive when the cold war escalated into the Cuban Missile Crisis but I was well indoctrinated as a youth to dislike the Soviet Union. If my memory is correct, they were the common enemy/nemesis in many movies and television shows of my youth, as well as the 1980 men’s Olympic Hockey competition. My disdain for “Mother Russia” is growing by the day. Today, I have 21,250 reasons to hate Russia, or perhaps more appropriately, Putin.
We already had major supply chain issues before Putin ordered his troops into Ukraine. Ukraine is a major world supplier of nitrogen fertilizer, wheat, corn, and many other necessities of life. Their absence from world markets and sanctions against Russia have created panic in many grain markets. Corn and soybeans have been up 30% and wheat 50%. We are all aware of crude oil’s wild ride.
Many farmers lamented the chance to sell their unsold crops at higher prices at the expense of world turmoil and war. As wheat rose past $9/ bushel, an all time high, I hedged a wheat contract. I never should have now that I know the wheat contract went up another $4.25 in a week. That meant I had to cover a margin call of $21,250. Normally I would not be too concerned to be caught on the losing side of a hedge because I would be able to sell the cash grain to offset the futures loss.
However, due to the erratic markets, the local elevators/processors have suspended buying wheat. You cannot even make a cash sale. This comes at times when some rhetoric abounds of possible wheat and bread shortages. Apparently, bread riots have been a thing in many countries in the last 100 years.
With a crop of wheat in the field and wheat in my bin I could become the “bread King of Will County.” In the event of a food shortage would I be a benevolent king and distribute my grain to the starving masses to bake bread? Or, would I become greedy and try to recover my futures trading loss by gouging the consumer? Maybe I better start hoarding yeast. With the annual Irish holiday my first proclamation, as king can be, “soda bread for everyone.” Now I want to go look up sourdough bread recipes so I do not have to worry about a yeast shortage. I may joke about my wheat dilemma when anarchy in such a scenario is more likely. I doubt I have enough ammunition to safeguard my wheat supplies if that happens.
While we may groan about the cost of energy, or food, or the shock our pension fund or economy may take during this war I must not forget that many lives are truly shattered. Some Ukrainian farmers are trying to maintain their farms during the day and then report to their militia posts at night. It makes my financial misfortunes seem trivial.
Now is a great time for some kind of miracle, for the world’s sake. Then we would all have to find something new to hate, like the weather.
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