Letter from Las Vegas…Dear Ron: Friday, April 24, 2020

I wish I were better at keeping up with people I love. Especially you.

Rick and I are doing very well with staying home and washing our hands every 10 seconds. We take a drive to break up the time and we have a 1000 piece puzzle we are working (slowly), and with Adreanna’s help we’ve completed the border except for one piece!

Las Vegas is a pretty sad place right now with all the casinos closed down and so many people out of work. There are food lines…so many…trying to keep up with feeding people who have no money and no work.

The world famous Las Vegas Strip- and Downtown- is empty of people and the huge concrete monoliths dedicated to greed and fun are devoid of life. No cars or magic volcanos or dancing waters. Some of the people who make up the majority of this city are not working for big salaries. They work for tips ,staying $5 ahead of their bills. They didn’t do anything wrong. They didn’t get fired. Their jobs have disappeared! Think about how many people it takes to keep all these casinos open and running well. A workforce made up of maids, bus boys, dishwashers, dealers, bartenders, chefs, cooks, pool cleaners, lifeguards, food service workers, housekeepers, mechanics, plumbers, window cleaners, shopkeepers, oh my gosh so many people! Thousands of people whose jobs just fell out from under them. Immediately! No warning.

A woman who is a special events food service worker who made good money, her husband a a blackjack dealer, with three children, they made good enough money. But Vegas isn’t a city where people save for a rainey day…we are almost always in a drought.

I don’t know about you, but I carry a whisper of anxiety with me all the time now. Sometimes I weep for what we appear to be losing.

Then my phone rings and some friend calls and says she misses me and I shake the dread off my shoulders and get back to my gratitude. Get back to my optimism. I put on my mask and head out into the world to see if I can help. Insight and wisdom ride on the back of optimism.

I love and miss you, my sweet friend . Hug Dan for me. Wash your hands, put on your mask, and go out in the world . You always help.

XO, Katy

———————————————–

Being: A Poem

Floating softly

in murky water

beneath my pain

lies the rest of my

poem.

I will be still

and let the water clear.

See what happens.

DHM 4/24/2020

Published by

katy.steinkamp@yahoo.com

I am a Psychotherapist who has taught Groups and Sexual Issues in the Graduate School at UNLV. I have been in Private Practice for 25 years, and am interested in writing a blog about all the nuance involved in relationships. I don't limit that word relationships; all kinds of relationships with those people and loved others. What are our connections? What gets in the way of healthy relationships? How we support and create our relationships with others, self and the world. I hope you will join me and let me know the places you agree and, importantly, the places you disagree.

6 thoughts on “Letter from Las Vegas…Dear Ron: Friday, April 24, 2020”

  1. Katy,so good to read your blog.It’s been awhile.I can identify with what you said,as Theron is recovering from the virus,and doing very well.Let’s hope and pray that we all get through this and back to normal,whatever that is.

    1. Thanks Nancy! So pleased Theron is recovering from the virus and doing well.Blessings to all the Carmans. It’s nice to know we have this connection.

  2. Katy, I am so glad you and Rick are safe and well. I hear your note of worry and caution, but also your optimism. Thank you. I am going to put my mask on. And go out in the world! ❤️

    1. Hugs to all of you nestled back in the South again. Rick and I send our love. I like to think of all of you back there being together and staying close as a family. Take care of yourselves and keep washing your hands. I wish I could fly like a bird and give you all a hug and we’d sit and visit for a while. Many of my fondest memories involve the Little’s.Stay well.

  3. I love love love your words!!!

    The thing that got me the most was the 🎭. I’ve always felt that as humans, we put on a mask; a different mask for each encounter of life.
    How interesting it is for so many decades people have been persecuted for masks and hooded coats. Now it is accepted and encouraged!

    I am so concerned of the uncertainty in the world, and the people that are making choices for us. They’re decisions will affect us in a huge- broad scale, and what our futures will be.

    I find myself wishing for the life that I had before March 17th. Good luck to us all!

    1. Hey Sweetie, I love your comments on the Blog. Your writings about masks and how they have been so controversial and interesting in history and politically. Especially connected to women. Stay well and give Pat a hug from me. I miss ya’ll.

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