Monday, May 11th, 2020
Monday, start of another week of homebased work. I do not mind the working from home bit too much, but I note that I exceedingly miss the social interactions with friends and colleagues. MS Teams, Webex, Zoom, Jitsi, Facetime, WhatsApp and so on interactions are just not the same, albeit far better than email. Have resolved to do more chatting, still it is not the same.
Generally, it is a weird day, the weather is neither here nor there which is kind of reflective of the entire day; just uninspiring. But then again, not every day can be perfect, I guess. I just hope I will be able to overcome this sense of cabin fever!
I am desperate to get into a pool. Every day when we pass our community pool, I entertain thoughts of breaking in in the middle of the night for a swim. Thankfully, the water is to cold still. Also, I think muscle memory will forget how to roll (the little bit I had 61 days ago that is). And I really miss entertaining friends; not that EM is not a great consumer of the food I produce every day, but it would be nice to have others join in. Something to look forward to is tomorrow’s Jitisi Aikido practice and the subsequent beer waza, not the same as actually seeing the folks face to face, but the best we get for the time being.
I still have high hopes for book club next week. May the weather be nice enough for us to congregate in my garden which would afford us the necessary 6 feet distance.
My garden continues to be my happy space. The colors of spring are just beautiful and it is so nice to observe how nature changes every day. There are so many little things. The Gladys bulbs I planted a few weeks ago are sprouting, well half of them at least. I think both the Mondo-Grass and the wild Ginger I planted yesterday are taking well to their new environment. And during our post lunch walk around the Hood we observe the evolving vegetation in other people’s gardens, which seem to be weeks ahead of mine. Wondering if maybe I have a funky micro-climate. My neighbor’s roses for instance are in full bloom, mine barely have buds. Same with the peonies.
Now that the warmer weather is on its way I am again antagonizing over my windows, some of which have broken strings. I got a quote from Pella – a whopping US$ 7.500 - to replace three (!!!) windows. That is so not happening. Through our amazing Listserv I found a gentleman who can repair old windows at US$ 150 apiece. He will come in two weeks to fix the two living room windows. If we could use them again it would make for a nice draft once summer arrives. Also, the contractor who build my addition can replace the mal functioning hall window for a fraction of what Pella quoted. This means I can have the mason come out and recement the steps which have cracked during the winter frosts.
Even the news today was neither here nor there. I tried very hard to find something fun or positive, but most of it is bleak. The nicest story I unearthed was form Kenya where girls now have Corona hair-dos to raise awareness. Now this is truly creative.
Also on the semi positive front is SNL host John Oliver discussing the US postal service. I will now go and buy stamps to support USPS!
All the rest was pretty much Corona only. Globally infections today are up by ~100k and have reached 4.17 million. The death toll in the US has broken the 80K ceiling, a dismal performance and the outlook for is bleak. There is no concerted action. No one seems to be ready to reopen, and while masks are proving to be effective there is widespread resentment to wearing them. It is a shit show with the shit hitting the fan in the next month or so as infections post reopening States are bound to rise rapidly again. This means 61 days of sequestering may well be for nothing or rather, the current state of affairs is likely to last. This perspective is not helping me feel less depressed. It is so disheartening. How can the safety of all Americans become such a partisan issue? Especially if it is not even about how to manage the crisis, but rather manage versus just let it take its course. In fact, it seems to be getting worse. Instead of a concerted nationwide effort, not only States are each pursuing a different course, but even counties are breaking away on what seems to be based along party lines.
At least the WH has had a change of heart and is now with the program as recommended by CDC. Just about four weeks after everyone else I might add. And of course it excludes the fearless leader from the mask requirement.
Is it just me or is the state of affairs getting gloomier by the day?