Life in the Age of Corona

A Daily Diary

Saturday, February 27th, 2021

Harpers Ferry

After what was meant to be a class in the parking lot at BCC but became a class in the park (as apparently school sports has restarted and MCPS does not want students to mingle with other users of the garage and field) and my thirty-minute swim EM and I went on a lunch outing to Harpers Ferry.

It has been a long time since we have ventured out together, possibly not since the late summer. Our last joined trip had been to Lake Arrowhead. I think some of the tensions in recent months can be attributed to us being in the same house, but not actually living together as each one of us spends their days and nights starring at the respective computer. From the beginning of the pandemic until the weather got colder and the school schedule changed we walked the neighborhood together every day after lunch and did day trips every weekend day to various waterholes for a swim or a hike or the local outdoor pool.

The walking stopped as lunch has moved from 14:30 to 11:30 and we no longer have the time to walk during the lunch break. Instead I use the time to swim, as I would have while still in the office. As a result, I cannot take time for a walk when her classes end, and she takes out the bike instead.

Weekends I do my thing on Saturdays and she hangs with the BF on Sunday. Well, it turns out the BF has no time this weekend, so I planned a little trip for us.

Haper’s Ferry is a cute little and town now a national park. It feels a little like an open-air museum sitting where the Potomac meets the Shenandoa river to merge into one. We strolled once around the tiny town before settling on a place for lunch (half the restaurants were closed and there were only 8 to start with), like the town a tiny pizza shop with tables out in the sun. We ordered a pizza each, which by American standards was also tiny in keeping with the size of the town, but just the right size for us. The crust was super thin and the rim extra crispy. IT had home made tomato sauce. All in all a great pizza.

After lunch we inspected every single open shop, which were about ten. The greatest find was a candy store which makes candy as it was made in 1700, 1800 and 1900. The ladies working in the store explained how sweets evolved and each packet had a description not only of the contest but also of the history of the specific candy. I only regret not having bought the Aniseed candy despite avoiding sugar.

Once done we drove the one hour or so back home and picked up some milk on the way. As always when I enter a shop, we of course bought more than just the milk, but also mandarins, Zinc and flowers.

The rest of the evening will be a movie night and I may startt a fire.

During the drive we had time to talk about all sorts of things,like fact checking claims. One big topic was that as of August I will live by myself as she is of to university. This is such a strange thought to me and I can not even begin to imagine what life alone might look like. I think it is beginning to hit her too, even though she in denial of this reality as evidenced by her reluctance to clean out her studio. Mentally I am already selling the house and have been getting rid of stuff since July. She can and will of course always come home, but she will never again live at home the way she has been for the past almost eighteen years. I think this is a good time to contemplate my next move. This may well depend on where she ends up for university. I am still rather partial to Segovia but am trying to not let it show too much. Ultimately it is about her future, so her decision and three universities have as yet to respond. At the moment the choice is between Tilburg and Segovia. For both I would prefer to belocated in Europe, the Middle East or North Africa, despite my love for South Africa and the possibility of spending more time in my Cape Town house and with Anderson Sensei if I opted for Johannesburg.

New infections hover around the 60k mark with 63k being reported today to bring the national total to 29.2 million. At the same time testing has declined again, seeing less demand, so the real numbers might be higher.

As more vaccines are licensed consumerism is taking root around the world, with everyone suddenly a vaccine expert and only wanting what is perceived to be the best. Health experts consider this as stupid (those are my words). Vaccines with a lower efficacy may not prevent infections as effectively, but all vaccines prevent severe illness, much like the flu shot. It is also likely that regular booster shots will be required, which can most likely be from a different producer. Again, much like the flu shoot. Trials mixing shots are already underway in the UK and scientists are learning what may work best in record time. The progress which has been made in less than 11 months since the world shut down is truely amazing.

German politicians are encouraging leaders to get the Oxford shot produced by AstraZenca as a means of instilling confidence with the general population. I truely believe if Merkel, Steinmeier and others would be publicly vaccinated it would help. Currently some 1.5 million shots are unused. This is simply outrageous, and the Ministry of Health is declining opening up these shots to anyone who wants them, blindly sticking to the rules. How very erman!

Today the use of the JNJ vaccine was authorized by the FDA. It will begin shipping in the coming days. That is excellent news! Rumor has it that anyone older than forty will be eligible for a shot come April. I cannot wait to get mine, which ever one, especially given latest research cited above that a combination of different shots (as in one shot and a different booster) may produce stronger immune effects. As a result, it is unlikely to matter which shot one gets first.

There is also increasing interest to conduct research into repurposing drugs for treatment of Corona patients. Like dexamethasone there may be other drugs licensed for something else which could be an effective treatment for Corona patients.

Adding treatment to vaccines could drastically improve our perspective to return to normalcy at minimal risk. I feel very positive after months of depressing news!