August 11th, 2020
Just another normal day of pandemic life with calls from 8:00 -13:30 none stop. As a result, I did not get any of the writing done, which I wanted to focus on; well tomorrow is another day. One day pretty much like the other with a fixed work/ swim rhythm.
Generally I enjoy the flexibility of getting up between tasks and meddling around the house for a little while before settling down on the next task. In the old world, when people still went to offices, such breaks would include meandering past a colleague’s desk for a friendly chat. Today instead this did not happen until 16:30 when I discussed where the outdoor heaters should go and how the wiring needed to run with the electrician. Installation is now September 2nd, 2020 and then we are set for outside entertaining in cooler weather. It is very hard to fathom that this will come, that in less than four weeks the outdoor pools will close and summer will be over.
At least my handbook is coming along nicely. Today the first three of six chapters came back from the editor and designer with all my edits incorporated and it looks very neat. That is the good news on the work front. Otherwise all calls had a level of frustration to them, which made me so grumpy that after my last call I apologized to the participants for my rather negative mood. It is flabbergasting how a great organization is able to become its own worst enemy; tripping itself up.
I did not have time for much news today. Not being exposed to all the incompetence of the administration, the lies and deceit, the two-facedness, the horrors of a breaking democracy, the dismantling of the US Postal Services and so on, was a nice respite. This does not mean the Virus has stopped its spread.
The USA is reporting 5.29 million infected, while global numbers have increased to 20.1 million.While numbers are growing exponentially in the USA, New Zealand has not had a single new case or transmission in 101 days! In light of this everyone is hoping for a vaccine; especially since it is increasinglunlikely that the USA will find any other way to stop the spread, given the stupidity or rather undisciplinedness of large parts of the population. And much as I wish for a vaccine, I am not joyful at the news that Russia has licensed the first vaccine. Sounds like good news right? Well it is not because the vaccine has not even entered phase 3 trials. None of the results from previous trials have been published or peer reviewed. It is entirely unclear if the vaccine is safe or effective. This has not stopped scientists from inoculating themselves and their families; including President Putin’s daughter. It is a worrying development and I fear the US may follow the same path, just for the orange moron to have a Corona solution for his re-election campaign. Or better yet, agent orange’s October surprise – a dose of the Russian vaccine for every American!
All other vaccines under development are unlikely to complete testing before the end of the year and even if the vaccine by Oxford/ AstraZeneca has good results by the end of August licensing would still take a while. With a lot of luck first vaccine doses will be available in early 2021.
I end the day with a fun read. I very much enjoyed a satire about gyms reopening.