Wednesday, March 17th, 2021
Miraculously I managed to score an appointment at the German embassy today.
EM needs a German ID card and I wanted to apply for a new passport. Our appointment was for a twenty-minute slot. As we arrive the admin person asks what we needed, and I said: “two IDs and a passport please”. Her response: “you have one appointment so only one document”. I am like, well can you not process several documents and we will leave when our twenty minutes are used? Nope, not possible. The rule is one appointment, one document no matter how long or short it takes to process. This is bureaucracy at its best! Who cares about efficiency or customer service? We opted for EM’s ID. Getting all the paperwork done we will need mean six trips to the embassy under this regime. Tis does not strike me as either safe or efficient. It also translates into booking six appointments as one must collect documents in person. Getting an appointment takes weeks as the embassy only has a few slots every week. I was annoyed, so as not to say furious! Securing this one took three weeks! We were done with the ID application in ten minutes, so there would have been sufficient time to process my passport request as well.
German rules lead to maximum inflexibility! And to think I had taken a half day of work for this.
The remainder of the day was pretty much the usual COVID life. Work at home. A 45-minute slot at the pool being the highlight of the day.
Given it was an asynchronous learning day 9aka a bullshit day with no instruction) the teen took of with the BF at 11:00 not even bothering to say good bye before heading out and not knowing when she would be home.
I get the need to severe ties with the mothership and become independent, but does that mean common courtesy needs to fall by the wayside? I have resolved having a heart-to-heart with EM now that her pills have arrived from Germany.
This is my first mother experience, so I am not sure how-to broch the subject. Maybe we should go for a walk or a drive somewhere. I do feel though we need to have a conversation around life choices. I hope I will find the right way to approach and discuss this topic. I would like to be sure that she knows this is her one life and she has all the opportunities in the world; that is up to her to take advantage of them and that the only person she can ever really rely on is herself. I am sure she will not want to hear it as she is terrified of becoming an adult, but I feel it must be said.
The Y will offer her a position as a lifeguard, which is great. At the same time, she must understand that this is one option and using the opportunities afforded to her, means she can be so much more. The world is her oyster.
I also have a mind to have a similar conversation with the BF and I will find a way to do that, which I am sure she will hate. Puppy love is wonderful, but it should not stop people from pursuing their life and their dreams.
During today’s swim I thought about which messages I would like to convey and how best to do so. I am confident the right opportunity will come, and I shall find the appropriate words. And maybe, just maybe, I shall invite the BF to go on a walk with me. Big children, big worries, is a German proverb.
I continue to worry about the virus also. Mainly because I want to resume in person practice and travel. When an empty nester Aikido and work will be my two areas of focus. That does not mean I shall stop my daily swim, but I shall have life priorities in pursuit of personal happiness.
Speaking of which, my Turkish Sensei has just updated his profile picture and I find it deeply disconcerting as it has all Arabic script and shows a bearded man with an assault weapon. What to make of it?
Infections in the USA Are plateauing at a high level with 53k new infections reported over the past twenty-four hours to bring the total to 30.2 million. This is disconcerting on severa llevels.
Firstly, AstraZeneca proves to be ineffective against the South African strain. This is bad news as other variants show similar mutations. Clearly there is a need for a second generation vaccine. Also, given my ties to RSA AstraZenca has now moved from my favorite to my least favored shot.
Secondly, the UK strain is set to become the dominat variant in the US. It is present in all 50 States already and is dominant in Florida and California, bad news as it will increase the spread of people do not protect themselves (wear a mask, maintain social distance, avoid all non-essential travel and be cautious with all other activities). On the positive side all vaccines are effective against b1.1.7
Thirdly, this comparison between different countries and how they fared in managing the pandemic suggests that when numbers plateau it is not the right time to reopen.Rather we must stay the course.
And fourthly, a new variant has been identified in France, while not more infections it appears to be a stealth version of the virus as it cannot be detected by PCR tests. If this makes its way to the USA there may be unrecognized spreads.
On the good news side Sanitize is seeking emergency use authorization in Canada and the UK. This nasal spray can prevent infections were they start, in the nose. It is my understanding that one uses it whenever out and about to prevent infection. Awesome news and it does not even need a needle. I would love to have that spray.
Also, Moderna is testing a modified vaccine version to be more effective against the South African variant. Maybe there is a merrit to be last in line if I can get the modified shot. I hope they conduct their trials in RSA.
At the same time all manufacturers are working on shots for children. If mothers have COVID antibodies they seem to transfer to their babies who are born with antibodies, which is encouraging.
And finally, as more had more people have been vaccinated, reports on side effects increase. This is more in proportion to inoculation increasing then more people showing side effects. What is interesting is the question why some have no side effects at all while it may keep others them in bed for a day or two. the elderly had few side effects, they had exactly the same immune response.