Rainy Days and Mondays

In the spirit of spreading happy, positive, and/or silly vibes:

• Baby snuggles with family dog. 
• Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood sing country parody mix.
• Chris Mann sings parody of My Corona about grocery shopping and toilet paper.
• Harry Potter fans can take free online classes at Hogwarts.
• Vintage Carol Burnette sketch shares toilet tissue issues.

Daily pandemic update:  

China reported 108 new cases, the vast majority of which had been imported. The daily number was the highest since March 5, as cases have crept up since a trough on March 12. The border with Russia has become a new frontline in the battle against a second wave.

Spain's daily death toll rose by 619 from a nearly three-week low of 510 the day before, breaking a three-day streak of daily declines and taking the country's death toll to 16,972.  Italy reported the lowest number of deaths since March 19, with 431 fatalities recorded in the last 24 hours, down from 619 the previous day.  Aljazeera.com timeline

13 Apr 2020	Cases		Deaths		Recovered
10:32 GMT*	Yesterday	Today	Yesterday	Today	Yesterday	Today
World	1,792,779	1,862,571	109,786	114,982	411,690	431,732
US	533,115	560,433	20,580	22,115	30,502	32,634
NY	181,825	190,288	8,650	9,385	17,089	25,765
CT	11,510	12,035	494	554	34	34
NC	4,403	4,604	90	92	313	325

*Documenting time of day because real time data updates continuously.
Tracking specific states:  NY is US epicenter, son Reid lives in CT, and I live in NC. 
https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/     https://www.coronainusa.com/  

A moment of silence for those we’ve lost to coronavirus, including the first 100 in the US.

In the news:

• Tornadoes caused catastrophic damage in the south and at least 6 deaths.
• Fauci said rolling economic reentry possible in May, potential normalcy by November.
• Biden proposed plan to safely reopen US economy.
• Trump tweet shifted coronavirus responsibility to governors.
• After Trump retweeted call to #FireFauci, rebuttal #FireTrump quickly trended.
• WaPo: Trump allegedly considered allowing virus to “wash over” US.  
• Mother Jones focused on February Kadlec email.
• MSN and NYT: 8 key takeaways of leaked Red Dawn coronavirus response emails.
• Chris Wallace explored delayed coronavirus response on Fox News; Trump not happy.
• CBS 60 minutes and the New Yorker investigated PPE shortages.  
• VOX explained post office bailout debate: privatization versus save the post office.
• To show your support for the US postal service, text USPS to 50409; then bot will send letter to legislators.  
• AG Barr monitoring physical distancing regulations re: religious services.
• NC AG Stein received more than 1,000 price gouging complaints.
• CT Gov Lamont extended shut down through May 20.
• NC nursing home and rehab center confirms 57 cases of coronavirus.
• Navajo face steep increases in infections and deaths.

Following Kenny Beck’s lead to share a few signs of hope:

• Lexington church spent Easter Sunday delivering food kits.
• Mt. Airy couple married at drive up wedding ceremony.
• Winston Salem quilters create masks to donate.

In my personal life:

Greg and I shopped for groceries together Saturday morning. We both wore masks and gloves; the majority of shoppers and store employees wore masks but only a few wore gloves. As we entered the store, an employee greeted us as she disinfected carts. We thanked her, along with every other store employee we encountered. We were pleasantly surprised to see available store inventory included fresh fruits and vegetables, meats, and TOILET PAPER - FINALLY! Also found unexpected luxuries: Boursin cheese, guacamole, limes, and Easter candy. This was the first time we shopped together since the stay at home order went into effect. We went early and split up to divide and conquer our list. At checkout I moved items from the cart to the conveyor belt while Greg bagged. The cashier wore a mask and gloves; he was separated from us by a sheet of plexi-glass. The payment machine was covered in plastic except for the card reader slot. As soon as we got outside we took off our gloves by turning them inside out, then placed them on the car floor mat until we could throw them away at home. Seeing all the safety precautions the store was taking was reassuring.