The Bear and the Star
Abandon illusion, all ye who enter.
This column is a sociological examination of the year of 2020, through an explicit op-ed lens of Generation X. Politics of that time concerning that era’s administration, for the most part, are purposefully omitted from this column. We here at The Dogs of Generation X have chosen not to feed any narratives specifically concerning the forty-fifth president. Accordingly, our segments reflect that decision.
The Bear and the Star. Copyright © 2024 by Frank Bard. All rights reserved. Digital edition issued via Substack.com. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without the author’s written permission, excepting brief quotations embodied in reviews, analyses, and commentary posts. For further information or rights inquiries, please contact the author through the Substack message form.
First Edition.
CRN#TXu 2-425-910, March 12, 2024.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Chapter 1: And Lo, It Began
Chapter 2: Famiglia
Chapter 3: The Bear
Chapter 4: Lockdown
Chapter 5: My Kingdom for a Mask
Chapter 6: Small Town Whiteboys (Part One)
Chapter 7: Small Town Whiteboys (Part Two)
Chapter 8: Late Night Dining, Looting, and Pillaging (Part One)
Chapter 9: Late Night Dining, Looting, and Pillaging (Part Two)
Chapter 10: Trending Participation
Chapter 11: Whiteboyism (Part One)
Chapter 12: Whiteboyism (Part Two)
Chapter 13: Anarchy Isn’t Guaranteed
Chapter 14: June Gloom
Chapter 15: Weeds
Chapter 16: Hornets, Locusts, and Dust Clouds, Oh My
Chapter 17: The Way of the Wanderers (Part One)
Chapter 18: The Way of the Wanderers (Part Two)
Chapter 19: The Way of the Wanderers (Part Three)
Chapter 20: The Way of the Wanderers (Part Four)
Chapter 21: The Way of the Wanderers (Part Five)
Chapter 22: Alas, Poor Karen
Chapter 23: States of Confusion
Chapter 24: The Rabbit
Chapter 25: Naked Athena
Chapter 26 My Little Red Dog
Chapter 27: Charlie Foxtrot
Chapter 28: My Little Blue Dog
Chapter 29: 8 Fingers
Chapter 30: Dust to Dust
Chapter 31: One Drop
Chapter 32: Justice (Part One)
Chapter 33: Justice (Part Two)
Chapter 34: Justice (Part Three)
Chapter 35: Justice (Part Four)
Chapter 36: Justice (Part Five)
Chapter 37: Milk and Honey (Part One)
Chapter 38: Milk and Honey (Part Two)
Chapter 39: Milk and Honey (Part Three)
Chapter 40: Fire Tornadoes
Chapter 41: Viva La Fiesta…Or Not
Chapter 42: 25 Happenings in a Half Year of Quarantine
Chapter 43: Paper Cranes (Part One)
Chapter 44: Paper Cranes (Part Two)
Chapter 45: Braaaiiinns…
Chapter 46: Unplugged (Part One)
Chapter 47: Unplugged (Part Two)
Chapter 48: Pressure
Chapter 49: On a Good Day
Chapter 50: Guns and Chicken
Chapter 51: Big Sur Magicks
Chapter 52: The Panther
Chapter 53: Desert Redux (Part One)
Chapter 54: Desert Redux (Part Two)
Chapter 55: Bless Your Heart
Chapter 56: Nah, You’re Not Worm Food (Part One)
Chapter 57: Nah, You’re Not Worm Food (Part Two)
Chapter 58: Heat Rays
Chapter 59: Zombie Fires and Oregon Sleeper Cells
Chapter 60: Savanna Greywind
Chapter 61: Patterns
Chapter 62: Papers, Please
Chapter 63: Unfriending
Chapter 64: Spit Hoods (Part One)
Chapter 65: Spit Hoods (Part Two)
Chapter 66: AC/DC and the Pope
Chapter 67: Olvera Street
Chapter 68: Indigenous People’s Day
Chapter 69: Eddie
Chapter 70: The Big Orange Cheese
Chapter 71: All Saints’ Day
Chapter 72: The Little Kid In Me
Chapter 73: The Puck
Chapter 74: 2020: An Earth Odyssey
Chapter 75: At Last, a Vax
Chapter 76: Unthanksgiving
Chapter 77: Of One Blood
Chapter 78: Thunderdome
Chapter 79: Shebang
Chapter 80: A Pandemic Christmas
Chapter 81: The Rain
Chapter 82: Auld Lang Syne
Chapter 83: The Most Stressful Years in History
Chapter 84: The Gauntlet
Chapter 85: Don’t Tread On Me
Chapter 86: Woke Supremacy
Chapter 87: The Jab
Chapter 88: Triggered
Chapter 89: The Eagle Has Landed
Chapter 90: The Last of It