Saturday, April 25, 2020

Day 40 and birthday parties

Today is my first husband's 77th birthday. As we all get up into the higher number years, birthdays become special again -- who knows how many there are left.

Our first family Zoom birthday party was for our grandson's 15th. There were ... lots ... too many? ... little boxes on the screen. Coordinating a group of people to sing the birthday song can be difficult; doing it over Zoom is PAINFUL! Worst, hands down, bar none, worst rendition in the history of ever.

My daughters' step Mom wanted a family Zoom party for G-Dad's birthday but, we had to all promise -- no singing! So we had our semi-regular family Zoom cocktail party and, on the count of three, shouted "happy birthday". Much better than the singing.

There was a lot of discussion about hoping this would be the last "Covid Birthday" in the family. The next birthday, mine, is coming up in about a month and it would be great to have it in person.

One of my daughters families was missing their college student son so much, they got him a plane ticket home for the weekend. He said there were 20 people on the plane and 2 rows in front of him, 2 rows behind and 4 seats next to him, were all empty.

Friday, April 24, 2020

Day 39 and really stupid things

I hope that history books will somehow convey the stupidity of the man who is serving as President of the US during these Strange Days.

First he started touting hydroxycholorquine, a drug that is legitimately used for Rheumatoid arthritis and lupus. A drug that can have serious side effects when not used properly; side effects like ... death.

Yesterday he talked about using disinfectants to kill the virus. Inside people. Disinfectants. Inject them or "otherwise get [them] inside the body". Disinfectants.

Lastly, UV light can kill viruses. So he thinks doctors should try to get UV light into the body, through the skin, or into the lungs somehow. UV light.

It would be humorous, but this is the President of the US saying these things, out loud, in public. And his idiot followers are listening to him. A couple in Arizona drank chlorquine phosphate ('cause it sort of sounds the same, eh?), a chemical used to clean fish tanks. He died; she was hospitalized. She had used it to treat her koi fish for parasites. "I saw it sitting on the back shelf and thought, 'Hey isn't that the stuff the President is talking about on TV?' " she told NBC News. "We were afraid of getting sick," she said.

Thursday, April 23, 2020

Day 38 and the new, fungible, normal

Today at the grocery store there was a 40-something woman shopping during the senior (60+) hours. Faux pas number 1.And she had no mask on! #2 And she was ignoring the one-way signs for the aisles. #3 She stood out like a sore thumb and EVERYONE was talking about her.

It's like she was from a different planet. Or maybe from the year 2019.

As I was checking out, with the Plexiglas shield between me and the cashier, the alien lady approached from the other end of the checkout line; she came over behind the shield, right in the cashier's face, to protest a charge on her bill. She had the shelf price card in her hand, "See, it says right here 99 cents. See here on my bill, I got two of them and was charged $2.00. You need to refund me."  Never mind that the cashier was in the middle of checking out my groceries. #4, #5, #6

The new normal is me, wearing a mask, greeting the two cashiers by their checkout stands, also wearing masks. No more smiling hello, we nod politely at each other.

I noticed a friend shopping as well and we stopped far enough apart that we had to raise our voices to chat a minute.

Strange days.

Meanwhile, our Governor announced yesterday that he is easing the Shelter in Place restrictions so that surgeries can be performed again. So those who need their brain tumors removed, or who need heart valves or joint replacement, or organ transplants have some hope of not dying from something other than COVID-19.


Wednesday, April 22, 2020

Day 37 and those who don't learn from history

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Because of our president's (lower case because he doesn't deserve the respect of upper case) cowardice, narcissism, or stupidity -- or all three -- there was no coordinated, national effort to quarantine in the early days of this pandemic. Decisions for limited or complete quarantines were left to the Governors. Some, notably Democrats, like NY's Andrew Cuomo and CA's Gavin Newsom shut things down pretty early. Other states on each coast followed in a timely manner. 

The South and the Midwest, with more often than not Republican Governors who were tied to the president's coat tails, were much slower. Florida's Governor didn't want to interfere with Spring Break -- and hundreds of college students returned to their home states carrying the virus with them. Louisiana's Governor didn't want to interfere with Mardi Gras. Economics took precedence over Public Health.

Now that NY and CA are showing some slowing of new virus cases, hospitalizations, and deaths, the latecomer Governors, and a coordinated cohort of GOP toadies, are calling for all stay at home orders to be lifted. Even in the states with later closures which are still showing huge rises in cases, hospitalizations, and deaths! Open up the Economy, no matter how many people may die needlessly. Georgia intends a slow, phased in re-opening, starting with hair salons, tattoo parlors and bowling alleys!

The most cogent meme trending these days is something about how, since your rate of descent is slowing, now would be a good time to cut the straps of your parachute. Never mind that you are still 2500 feet above the ground. 

People who know what is going on have, for years, decried the state of education in the US. Never has that been more evident than now. The average person has no understanding of civics, public health, history or even basic mathematics. 

Monday, April 20, 2020

Day 35 and how things will change, or not

Of the things that have changed/are changing in the way we conduct our daily lives, what will change back and what may stay changed?

I do like that stores are more often closed on Sunday. I like that stores have reduced hours of opening. Yes, 9-5 workers need to have 5-9 shopping but, see below.

Wouldn't it be nice if all the people who CAN work from home, CONTINUE to work from home? If nothing else, this pandemic has proven to big corporations that work-from-home and flex-time can still be profitable. Managers don't really need to see your body in a chair in your cubical to be sure that you are working; all they need to see is the bottom line. Did the work get done? Was it done on time? Was it done correctly? Then, HOW and WHERE it got done is moot.

A side benefit would be a reduction in the number of cars on the road at "rush hour". If you only go into the office on Tuesday and Friday afternoons from noon to 4; and Jim and Sally only go into the office on Wednesdays and Thursdays between 10 and 5; and Frank and Joe are there Monday from 8 to noon, think of all the cars that are NOT on the road. Corporations could save on real estate as well: you and Sally and Joe share one office space; Jim and Frank share their space with Mary.

The same goes for school. If students can learn the material, and finish their assignments at home, on their own flexible time, what does it matter if they did it at 8 am in a school building or at 8 pm at home? And class sizes could be wonderfully reduced by having students in the building only 3 days a week, for 3-4 months at a time. A different cohort of students attend in-person classes for a different 3-4 months. Perhaps the cohorts overlap for a month or 2, then overlap with a different cohort for the other half of their time. The possibilities are myriad.

Perhaps, the Western world will no longer have a stigma around wearing a mask in public when one is ill. Perhaps, the Western world will no longer have a fetish around shaking hands, hugging, kissing mere acquaintances, touching strangers.

What else could change?

Sunday, April 19, 2020

Day 34 and realization

I planted my cannabis from purchased, guaranteed feminized seeds this year; too many male plants come up when I use my own harvested seeds. The package of 6 seeds had 12 in it, so I germinated all 12. Eleven germinated, so I planted all 11 in solo cups. One succumbed to  ... probably root rot. California law says I can grow 6 plants for personal use, so I offered the remaining 4 to my niece and her boyfriend.

They said the'd pick them up sometime this weekend, then texted how about Saturday late afternoon? I was looking forward to having company. I picked some lemons for them. I woke, fed, and divided my sourdough starter so I could give them a jar of it. I cleaned the stove top because he is a fanatic about clean stoves.

Yesterday -- He came alone because she was surfing; he stayed at least 6' away from me at all times; he thanked me for the extras; he left after 10 minutes.

All along, I've been saying "I'm fine with this social distancing stuff", "I don't mind being home alone with my cats and my crafts all day", "I don't really need people around."

So, tell me, why am I depressed this morning?

Saturday, April 18, 2020

Day 33 and analysis from a friend

My friend Craig posted this essay on Facebook. This gives a very clear and cogent analysis of our current situation.
The Covid-19 pandemic isn't just a once-in-a-lifetime event, it's a once-in-a-century event. Not since the Spanish Flu (ironically named, since Spain was the only country not lying about it) has the world seen anything like this. WWII is close, and there are about seven million Americans old enough to remember how the war impacted their lives, and the sacrifices Americans made to support the war effort.
Among the many challenges we face today are those who downplay the seriousness of Covid-19, comparing it to the common cold or influenza. While many people may catch the virus and show no symptoms, at least as many (probably more, the research is fuzzy) will have severe symptoms, and 250,000 Americans will die from it before the end of this year.
As we have a common enemy, one that shows no bias for politics, religion, or other beliefs, you would think we could unite against it. But in this bizarre era of tribalism and political polarization, nothing can escape partisanship. And for some odd reason, a significant portion of the country has decided to side with virus and against science.
It began back in January and accelerated in February when their cult leader*, the narcissist-in-chief*, dismissed the threat posed by the virus and attacked the media for reporting factually about it and its spread. He was quickly joined by right-wing media who spread dangerous misinformation, as well as prominent Republicans who urged people to go out and live their lives as though a highly contagious disease weren't spreading rapidly across the nation.
This week saw more outlandish behavior, as people carrying guns, waving Confederate and Nazi flags, and proudly displaying signs supporting the Mango Mussolini* staged protests in at least half a dozen state capitals. Though they were advocating and condemning a variety of subjects, their one unifying objective was the lifting of shut-down orders put in place to keep them and everyone else safe.
These shut-down orders are not oppressing anyone. You're free to pick up groceries, medicine, alcohol and even weed (in states where it's legal). You're free to take walks or go for a bike ride. In California, you can even visit the state parks (though the parking lots have been closed to minimize crowding). The goal, as has been repeated for the last five weeks, is to “flatten the curve” – reduce and spread out infections so we don't overwhelm the limited capacity of our inferior health care system.
So why are the protesters so angry? What is it they want? It's not completely clear. One sign at yesterday's St. Paul protest said “don't cancel my golf season” (bringing to mind Patrick Henry's famous quote, “Give me golf or give me death”). After protests in Ohio and Michigan, the orange idiot* sent out a series of tweets to “liberate” several states (all of which have Democratic governors). He appears to be fomenting revolution only a day or so after telling governors “You’re going to call your own shots.”
In fact, his approach to the pandemic has shown no consistency. After minimizing the seriousness, he reluctantly admitted it was real, but one day he'll repeat the advice of experts and the next day he'll contradict it. As has been his habit since his inauguration (during which time he's told eighteen thousand lies), he lies about the virus and his response to it, then lies about his lies. It's easy to say the reason we're not unified as a country is because we don't have the type of leader (think FDR, Churchill) that we need in this time of crisis. Instead, we're cursed with a malignant narcissist* incapable of telling the truth, more obsessed with TV ratings and his reelection chances than he is the health and welfare of the American people.
Besides his constant lying, Delusional Donald* has continually boasted of the rising stock market and falling unemployment numbers as “proof” of his presidency (even though both lagged those of Obama, whom he frequently derides). He often asked how you could impeach a president who had such great numbers. It's been obvious that with no real achievements he could claim, he was going to make the case for his reelection on the economy. Now that economy is threatened by the shut-down, and that's the primary reason he and his cult followers are so eager to see a reopening.
But what happens if you reopen too early? Remember the “flatten the curve” advice? I've no doubt that many states will lift their shut-down orders too soon, and that will cause a second wave of infections. Depending on when they do it, the second wave could be worse than the first. What's the economic impact of hundreds of thousands of sick and dying Americans? What's the economic impact of making this pandemic last much longer than it really needed to be.
George Santayana said “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” It was our understanding of the Great Depression that allowed us to avert a second one following the 2008 financial crisis. That lesson remained clear when Congress and the Fed acted last month to avoid yet another depression in the wake of the pandemic shut-down (mind you, this time I'm using the phrase both in reference to mandated stay-at-home orders as well as voluntary ones, either out of concern or fear). So why isn't there the same demonstration of knowledge gained from the 1918 pandemic?
Health experts who've studied pandemics are making sensible recommendations, but politicians and right-wing media are dismissing them and encouraging the inane protests we saw this past week, and will continue to see. Florida and Texas are already lifting restrictions, and several states exempted religious organizations from the no-large-gathering rules. I'm not reading about this type of stupidity elsewhere in the world, and wonder if this is another example of Americans choosing to disregard proven science because they find it inconvenient.
H.L. Mencken is credited with saying “Nobody ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American public.” I don't know how one can profit from the stupidity the American public is exhibiting these days, but there's no doubt they're doing nothing to disprove his assertion.

*in case you don't know to whom these words refer, it is Donald John Trump, 45th (and 3rd Impeached) President of the United States of America.


Friday, April 17, 2020

Day 32 and fermenting

One thing that seems to be happening during these Strange Days -- going back in time. People are making sourdough, growing gardens for maybe the first time in many years. Today, I tried making sauerkraut.

One large-ish head of cabbage and 4 Tbsp of sea salt,  shredded and massaged loosely, fills two quart jars. Weighted down with heavy glass weights and covered with special mason jar lids that "burp", the jars now sit in a cupboard in my garage. In two weeks, I will taste and discover if I was successful. Delayed gratification, to the max!

This week a worker in the Tracy produce distribution center that Safeway uses, tested positive for COVID-19. Yesterday, the produce shelves in Safeway were nearly bare. Life is not going to go "back to normal" for quite a while, I think.

Thursday, April 16, 2020

Day 31 and volunteering

Today, I e-signed documents to work as a Health Corps volunteer. I will admit to having some feelings of trepidation. I am pretty sure, as a volunteer, I wouldn't be in direct contact with COVID-19 patients. On the other hand, I will probably be in direct contact with a lot of people and any of them may be contagious.

Still, it is necessary for those of us with some medical training to help take the pressure off of the front-line health care workers. If I can free up someone to work directly with patients, by taking over medical records input, or answering phones, or contact-tracing, or ... I have no idea what ... it is important to do that.

As with so much else during these Strange Days, wait and see.

Meanwhile, the president wants to "open up the country" to boost the economy and my Governor, and most other governors, are holding the line and insisting that any lifting of quarantine be fact-, and science-based. I look forward to reading the history books in 10 years.

Wednesday, April 15, 2020

Day 30 and a word about gardens

Yesterday our county Board of Supervisors decided to reclassify local Garden Centers and Plant Nurseries from *essential* to *non-essential* businesses. Yes, that IS a big deal as non-essential businesses MUST close, must not deal with the public, must send all employees home for however long this shelter-in-place order remains in effect.

This means no vegetable plants for my garden. This means no paycheck for hundreds more people. And, since these businesses count on income from the Spring to see them through the year, this means many of these businesses will not re-open, will not be around for next Spring planting season. Downstream consequences include the wholesale plant growers as well.

Already, there is talk of food insecurity and more people are looking for solutions. For those privileged enough to have space for a food garden (and it can be done in pots on a patio) why take that away?

At least the Farmer's Markets are still open.

Today I'll be putting in a couple of cucumber plants and some Blue Lake bean plants I picked up at the hardware store. I hope they thrive.

Tuesday, April 14, 2020

Day 29 and a strange virus symptom

About 85% of people who test positive for COVID-19, report anosmia*, either at the onset of other symptoms or before. And 25% of those have no other symptoms of the disease! What a clever virus it is.

First, it takes away our sense of smell, so foods no longer have flavor; it may or may not also take away our sense of taste so we no longer can detect sweet, sour, salt, bitter or umami. So we are less inclined to eat. It becomes a chore to cook, why bother when nothing tastes exciting.

With less food/fuel, we are less inclined to move and exercise. It is so much easier to sit on the sofa and binge watch old movies or last year's hot TV series that we, somehow, missed last year. Add in the recommendations for social distancing, and there is less incentive to walk, run, dance.

As we move around less, we tend to breathe less deeply. And then, it has us right where it wants us. Deep breaths, down to the bottom of our lungs' lower lobes, help clear out the virus. It wants us to take shallow breaths, not to disturb its resting place deep in the alveoli. And there it replicates and spreads and ultimately shuts down our respiratory system.

Clever little bugger! 

Every morning, when I open the back door, I smell my lemon tree's lovely blossoms. As I sit, soaking in the hot tub, I smell the wonderful pink rose that has just started to bloom. Sorry, clever virus. Not today. You don't have me today.



*Anosmia, also known as smell blindness, is the loss of the ability to detect one or more smells.

Monday, April 13, 2020

Day 28 and how we shop these days

I talked with my Mom on the phone during my morning walk today. The 3 hour time difference means being creative when finding a time to talk. Like me, she is an introvert and really enjoys her "alone time", so the quarantine isn't as onerous for us as for some people. On the other hand, she is really independent, like me, and much prefers to do her OWN errands, thank you very much! We commiserated about how hard it can be to have someone else shop from your grocery list: no, actually, I prefer *that* brand of rice; thank you, but I'd really rather have hard, crisp pears, not the soft, mealy ones.

At least I can do my own grocery shopping, but so differently now. Before, I would walk a couple of blocks to the store every day or so and carry home just a few items. Now, the store has "Senior Only Hours", Tuesday and Thursday between 6 and 9 am. So, first, I have to get up at 5:45 am instead of 7. And I have to take the car because I can't carry a week's worth of groceries in my hands. All week long I add to my shopping list and if I forget to write an item down, I usually forget to buy it and have to wait another week.  🙁

The procedure at the grocery store is bizarre as well. At the door is a person with a clicker counter, ticking off the number of people entering the store. When the magic number (undisclosed) is reached, you have to wait in line outside the store (6' apart) until someone leaves. There is a bottle of hand sanitizer on a table next to the counting person and you wipe down your hands and the handle of the cart. Lately, shoppers not wearing face masks have been turned away too. Once inside the store, there is no more wandering hither and yon. The aisles are one way only, up one, down the next -- at least I am getting my "steps" in.

The new etiquette is that you don't overtake and pass another shopper in the aisle. Shopping hell is to be behind an old dear with her health aide trying to decide between 2 different brands of spaghetti sauce -- the only 2 jars on the shelf.  Sometimes a polite "excuse me" will get everyone to turn backs to the center of the aisle and you can slip by; other times it will earn you a furious glare.

There are still shortages of many items and lots of "1 to a customer" or "2 to a customer" signs on the shelves by the eggs, flour, toilet paper, or whatever is short this week.

Fresh meat and fish is limited too. Yesterday, a Midwest meat packing plant closed because one of its employees tested positive for COVID-19; this will have a big impact on the availability of pork, nationwide.

My friend remarked that her store was out of mushrooms but DID have bread flour so ... score! She was headed next to Trader Joe's and then to a bodega. That reminded me of shopping when I lived in a small town in Guatemala. Meat and fresh vegetables from the Mercado Central, then over to the bodega a block away for peanut butter, bread and cereal; then some things we only bought once a month when we took the truck into the Capitol.

Strange days.

Sunday, April 12, 2020

Easter Sunday and Day 27

In the list of things I'd like to see continued when we return to "normal", along with no more handshaking, air kissing and hugging of people not family members -- stores closed on Sunday.

Yeah, I know people who work Monday to Friday want to have two full days to get their shopping done. But, maybe another thing that will carry over is work from home and flexible work hours as the rule rather than the exception. Everyone should have time to stop and smell the roses, even shop keepers.

Another thing that I hope gets overhauled is our education system. Regimenting kids into structured classroom learning is not necessarily  the best thing to create well-rounded, thinking and reasoning, human beings. Instead of longer and longer, and more and more, school days why not offer more time for imaginative play, and more time for student-directed learning. Teach the "littles" how to read, then let them choose what to read. Yes, Math is important; but it can be taught in smaller bites.

Year-round school with 2 months at school and 1 month off would help keep students' attention better. If the on and off months could be staggered,  classes could be smaller, with more opportunity for individual attention from the teachers. Working parents would have to be more flexible, but school should not be a substitute for childcare anyway.

Saturday, April 11, 2020

It's never to late to start, or Day 26 of Quarantine

When Gov. Newsom ordered a mandatory "Shelter in Place" on March 16, 2020, we thought it would be 2 weeks and then back to life as normal. I thought it might be nice to start a journal, but why bother? In 14 days, it would be all over and would only be a blip in the history books.

Today is day 26. Schools will be closed for the rest of the school year. Today the US logged 524,242 cases, 20,223 deaths, and 28,755 recovered; California had  21,505 cases, and 597 deaths. Santa Clara county had 1,442 positive tests and 47 deaths as of yesterday. It is time for me to start tracking this new normal.

Let's go back to Day 25, because that is a nice number and I still remember what I did yesterday. Day 25 was a gardening day. I planted 2 eggplant plants from Ace Hardware, and 6 Cannabis plants I had started from seeds. They joined the 2 surviving Blue Lake bean plants, a Jalapeno pepper and a Thai Dragon pepper planted a week or so ago. Hardware stores are considered "essential" businesses but Summerwinds and Yamagami Nurseries are not -- so we make do with "big box" plants and seeds, rather than the good nursery plants of yesteryear.

There had been 6 bean plants, one for each leg of my bamboo tepee but either worms or grubs got 4 of them. There are 4 Cannabis plants left for my niece and her friend to take. Out of the 12 seeds ($40), 11 germinated and 10 ultimately survived to transplanting size.

Today, Day 26 will be a baking and a sewing day. I have sourdough mixed up for bread and it is rising now. Each loaf I make is a bit different, but so far, most have been edible and one or two have been spectacular.

While the bread is rising, I will attempt to solve a setting problem with my latest quilt top (planned version below). The setting triangles aren't such a problem, but the sashing between them is driving me mad. Instead of calculating, I've decide to just go with the empirical method.


My Chickens' First Night

 Sunset  was at 8:11 pm so I went out to the pen a little after 8. The three chickens were milling around, scratching and peeping and seemin...