Saturday, May 23, 2020

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Donald Trump went golfing today. The moment I read that, my palm flew to my face. In the USA, close to 100,000 people are dead from CoVid-19, about 38 million workers are without jobs, and an estimated 20% of our populace is close to foreclosure or eviction from their homes.

Do you remember Nero? According to legend, the emperor fiddled while Rome burned around him. Nero was cruel and ineffectual, and obviously self-centered and void of compassion.

I researched this story a bit. Historians do agree that in July 64 A.D., a great fire burned for six days, destroyed 70 percent of the city, and left half the population without homes. When the fire erupted, Nero was at his villa 35 miles away, but he quickly returned to Rome to start relief measures. Despite this, he was unpopular with the people. Many believed that Nero ordered the fire started, since he later built a palace and opulent gardens on the cleared land. But Nero placed the blame for the crisis on someone else, namely the Christians, who were still a small sect at the time, but many were nevertheless arrested and executed.

The fiddle, however, is the “fake news” component of the story, since instruments of the violin family were not developed until the 11th century.

Our own Nero went golfing. I don’t begrudge anyone a day of rest, but why flaunt it?

Today’s drink is inspired by golf legend Arnold Palmer (see what I did there?), whose signature beverage was a combination of lemonade and iced tea.

In a tall glass, combine 2 ounces vodka (I used a chai-infused one, but a citron-flavored one would be lovely as well), 4 ounces iced black tea, and 4 ounces of lemonade. Stir, add ice, and a lemon wheel for garnish.