I remember sometime in October 2016 voting early and thinking, “This is a shoo in”. Over the previous year, Trump had made unbelievable gaffes, acted the ass in the debates, suffered through shit storm after shit storm involving women, pussy grabbing and claims so egregious no one in their right minds would conceive that such a person could actually win the presidency in the enlightened America I thought we lived in until recently.

How stupid of me. I also remember just days prior to the 2000 election thinking there is no way George W. Bush could be elected in America. He was, well, just too hackish, or at least, so he seemed. Still, America surprised me. The next eight years I spent in anticipation of when “W” would be out of our lives and “normalcy” would return to the land of the free.

Usher in the Obama years. I will be the first to admit that I was a supporter from day one. I also became a detractor in year two as he repeatedly took the side of Wall Street, anti-immigrant groups and other pressures, some of his own making with others thrust upon him by a recalcitrant do nothing Congress spearheaded by some of the meanest son of a bitches from the Republican swamp ever to walk upright on two legs. I still revere the public Obama and his ability to move people with his sincerity and love of this country and the American people. The politician, not so much.

Of course, I was a Bernie supporter. His innovative ideas and willingness to confront the one percent was a breath of fresh air after years of failed dreams and bullying by the reigning Republican majority in Congress. The Democratic National Committee (DNC) shot Bernie down after an incredible run. If he had been allowed to compete on a level playing field, he might have changed politics as we know them today. He’s not through yet.

I will admit I was never, and am not, a Hillary fan. Like so many of us, I held my nose and voted for her simply to keep Trump out of the White House. A lot of good that did. Now, I have to live with the tainted knowledge I voted for her, but to his credit, Trump took her to the woodshed for a very public whipping the likes of which may never be seen again in my lifetime. It was a Democratic wake up call long overdue. I can’t feel sorry for Hillary. She ran a stupid, egoistical campaign that relied on polls that turned out to be, not just wrong, but monumentally so. The one good take away from this debacle is that her time in the political limelight has dimmed and may never spark again. Let’s hope not.

So, where to from here? Who the hell knows? Even if by some miracle, Trump was given the boot before or soon after the Inauguration, we would still have to contend with Mike Pence. An avowed wacko fundamentalist Christian, Trump enabler (read: quasi supportive of Trumps racist, misogynistic beliefs and alt right rhetoric) and despicable purveyor of right wing vile ideas. Pence is a better option than Trump but only marginally. Given Trump’s seemingly inept political chops, Pence might even be more dangerous. Add Jeff Sessions, Rudy Giuliani, Steve Bannon and a host of other racists and neo-Nazi types to the pot, and it’s easy to ascertain we are in for one hell of a ride over the next four years.

My plan is to chronicle this unfolding fiasco from the relatively safe environs of sedate Carson City. Really though, we have to ask ourselves are any of us or is any place not called Trump Tower safe?