Saturday, July 11th, 2020
After Tuesday’s attempt at holding life class in the park washed out Plank Sensei offered to teach a Jo class today. I was so excited I even cancelled the lane I had booked. The class and many more are badly needed as I clearly do not even manage the very basic concept of the Jo movements; making my body move the Jo and not the Jo move the body. So, a lot of work to do on that front and Plank Sensei suggested to walk forward and backwards while moving the Jo. This makes the movement more intuitive I find.
Given I did not make use of my pool lane I convinced EM to give Patapsco another try, luring her with the promise of a grocery run at Wegman’s. Being low on petrol we stopped at Columbia to fill up the Floh and ourselves – first outing to a restaurant since this mess started. We choose a Japanese place to celebrate that some Aikido is back.
They had five tables outside, two of which were taken. Tables were spaced more than six feet apart. All staff were wearing masks, which could not be said for all the patrons, one of whom had a particularly noisy articulation. Since we had Ramen we were in and out in twenty or so minutes.
We tried a different spot at the Patapsco River, far less busy, but still I find the river is not swimmable. We hung out on a few rocks for an hour or so taking a nap and waded in the rather chilly water for a bit. The Lations had all brought camping chairs which they set into the riverbed as they were chatting and drinking, while the kids floated on the river on inflatables.
Wegman’s, as always, turned into an expensive shop, but they just have such nice produce and items one can not find in many places. Amongst other German Bratwurst which we bought as Bill, Lucy and Sarah from Aikido will come over for a socially distanced BBQ in my garden.
The USA continues to be first when it comes to growth rates in virus infections, seeing another record day today with 68k new cases reported, while globally 12.5 million cases have been recorded. Hospitals in Texas, Arizona and Florida are overwhelmed. This is hardly a surprise, if you add thousands of cases every day? Avoiding overwhelmed hospitals was what “flattening the curve” was all about. As politicians scramble to react, closing bars, making it mandatory to wear masks in public places, the outrage rises and this conflict is now being taken to the courts to resolve. I am not a big fan of masks, but I will wear them to keep myself and others safe. Why is it so hard for people to do such a simple thing? Surely personal freedom can only be upheld as long as it does not jeopardize the life of others.
An almost comic side effect of the virus - rats are descending on al fresco dinners in NYC after having starved during lockdowns.
What next?