Monday, July 6, 2020

Monday Mood: Summertime Blues


Daily pandemic update:  
  • Australia closed border between Victoria and New South Wales to slow spread of coronavirus.
  • Brazil passed 1.5 million confirmed coronavirus cases as cities reopened bars, restaurants and gyms sparking fears infections will keep rising.
  • India overtook Russia with world's third-highest number of coronavirus cases at nearly 700,000.
  • Spain's Catalonia region placed restrictions on 200,000 people amid surge in new coronavirus cases.
  • People in England will be allowed to visit pubs, restaurants or get a haircut for the first time in more than three months as restrictions ease.
  • United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia infections rose after curfews were fully lifted last month.
  • WHO discontinued trials of malaria drug hydroxychloroquine and combination HIV drug lopinavir/ritonavir in hospitalised patients with COVID-19 after medications failed to reduce mortality. 


6 July 2020
Cases
Deaths
Recovered
11:07 GMT*
Thu 7/2
Mon 7/6
Thu 7/2
Mon 7/6
Thu 7/2
Mon 7/6
World
10,834,202
11,586,780
519,582
537,372
6,054,005
6,553,127
US
2,780,152
2,983,155
130,798
132,571
1,164,794
1,289,687
NY
418,605
422,268
32,143
32,248
90,478
115,168
CT
46,572
46,717
4,324
4,335
11,439
12,760
NC
66,653
72,983
1,394
1,425
45,538
45,538

A moment of silence for those we’ve lost to coronavirus, including the first 100 and the first 100,000 in the US.

As of today 9% of closed cases in the US resulted in death; 91% recovered.
Globally 8% of closed cases resulted in death worldwide; 92% recovered.
Currently 1% of all active cases are considered serious or critical.  

*Documenting time of day because real time data updates continuously.
Tracking specific states:  NY is US epicenter. Son Reid lives in CT. I live in NC. 
Worldometers     Coronainusa     Starsexpress2020     https://ncov2019.live/


In the news: 

  
NC News



In my personal life…

Next door neighbor Daryl texted late Saturday night to ask if our dog Minerva was bothered by fireworks. Although she sometimes needs extra cuddles during severe storms, sounds of fireworks and sirens typically don’t disturb her. It was kind and thoughtful of him to check before lighting his personal stash. Minerva slept peacefully throughout the celebration; no worries.

This morning bird man Jack noticed a rabbit sitting about 3 feet away from Minerva as she squatted to tinkle. With a puzzled look on his face he pointed to the bunny and called out to make sure we saw it. I waved and thanked him as he shook his head in disbelief that a beagle could be that close to a rabbit without chasing after it. Jack pointed to another nearby bunny as he continued his walk through the neighborhood, scowling as he looked back at the dog. Minerva eventually noticed the bunny and lunged toward it but it hopped away. I held onto her leash tightly while we walked along the bunny trail in our back yard. She sniffed and whimpered a bit in frustration before finally giving up and walking back toward the house.

Last week Greg and I drove to Cana VA to purchase fresh fruits and vegetables, country ham, and more Amish style rolled butter. On the way home we stopped by Green Mesa Blueberry Farm since our backyard bushes aren’t yielding enough for recipes. There were a few people out picking, a bucket of pre-picked available for sale, but no attendant on site so we placed $20 in their honesty container to pay for our berries. After ordering groceries online from Food Lion delivered by Oscar we ordered hard to find and out of stock items from Publix delivered by Nikki.

It’s been hot and humid here so I’ve been checking the garden early in the morning and later in the evening to avoid the heat mid day. I’ve diligently pulled weeds, watered plants between rain showers, and sowed lettuce seeds in succession for fresh salads. Greg routinely picks blueberries while I pick raspberries and blackberries. I felt fortunate to finally find 2 super sweet blackberries recently; earlier picks had been a bit tart. Our squash plants are winding down as the zucchini plants gear up for peak production. Cucumber plants are less productive than last year, only yielding a few small cukes. We have an abundance of green tomatoes and a few vine ripened ready to be eaten. Cantaloupe and watermelon plants have been a disappointment; slow to spread and now animals are nibbling blossoms so probably won’t yield any fruit. Fortunately most of the melons we’ve purchased from the Cana market have been delicious.

June bugs (beetles) are annoyingly fond of our berry brambles and fruit trees. We should have put traps out in late May but it slipped my mind. Wood boring carpenter bees are another pest problem Greg is trying to combat. Parsley worms and squash bugs were a nuisance last year but haven’t been this season, not yet, knock wood. Caterpillars munched on our Brussels sprout leaves early in the growing season but the plants survived and are slowly recovering from the attack. Here in NC there is supposed to be a huge monarch butterfly migration but I haven’t noticed any in Pfafftown. We’ve spotted a few lightening bugs during evening walks with Minerva but she hasn’t seemed to notice them.

After dinner one evening we watched the movie Carriers which is about a viral pandemic. It was filmed in 2006 and released in 2009 following Chris Pine’s appearance in Star Trek. The plot unfolded almost like a COVID documentary which bothered me. I didn’t sleep well that night. Luckily I woke up in a better mood the next morning though I told Greg I don’t want to watch any more late night horror movies.  

  
We skipped breakfast this morning after having everything bagels with cream cheese, smoked salmon and red onion two days in a row. Our eggs were getting old so yesterday I made deviled eggs and Greg made crème brulee. For dinner I made pasta with alfredo sauce, grilled chicken and steamed broccoli served with garlic bread. It’s one of Reid’s favorite meals so I texted him a photo and told him we were thinking about him.


My daily actions for racial justice continue to be listening, reading, watching and thinking. Protest information is no longer readily available in daily news feeds so I intentionally search for protest updates online. Having trouble connecting with local protestors to support their efforts.  


Thursday, July 2, 2020

Thursday Thoughts and News Recap


In the spirit of sharing softer news and/or silly vibes:
  • Jon Stewart explained his support for Biden over Swampy Don.
  • Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert explored US history of explicit racism.
  • Stephen Colbert and Jon Stewart discussed 1918 pandemic and COVID-19. 


Daily pandemic update:  
World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned that the pandemic is "not even close to being over" and while there had been some progress initially, it was "actually speeding up".  Aljazeera.com timeline

2 July 2020
Cases
Deaths
Recovered
11:11 GMT*
Tue 6/30
Thu 7/2
Tue 6/30
Thu 7/2
Tue 6/30
Thu 7/2
World
10,455,247
10,834,202
509,215
519,582
5,707,889
6,054,005
US
2,684,266
2,780,152
128,857
130,798
1,122,655
1,164,794
NY
417,328
418,605
31,496
32,143
89,038
90,478
CT
46,362
46,572
4,320
4,324
10,012
11,439
NC
63,734
66,653
1,366
1,394
45,538
45,538

A moment of silence for those we’ve lost to coronavirus, including the first 100 and the first 100,000 in the US.

As of today 10% of closed cases in the US resulted in death; 90% recovered.
Globally 8% of closed cases resulted in death worldwide; 92% recovered.
Currently 1% of all active cases are considered serious or critical.  

*Documenting time of day because real time data updates continuously.
Tracking specific states:  NY is US epicenter. Son Reid lives in CT. I live in NC. 
Worldometers     Coronainusa     Starsexpress2020     https://ncov2019.live/


In the news: 



NC News
  • Greensboro city council voted 8-1 to not renew contract of North State Security Group after complaints of aggressive security at J Douglas Galyon Depot transportation hub. 
  • NC A&T University scheduled webinars to explain Fall 2020 semester registration.
  • NC schools are developing reopening plans without directives from Gov Cooper or NCDPI.
  • Samspon, Stanly, Montgomery and Duplin counties have reached coronavirus hot spot tipping point. Health officials also are concerned about rising case counts in Charlotte and Mecklenburg county. Clay, Cherokee, Avery and Transylvania counties in the western part of the state have relatively low case counts.
  • UNC Board of Governors elected Peter Hans the next UNC System President. He is currently president of NC Community College System.
  • UNC Chapel Hill updated physical distancing protocol to reflect standard 6 foot recommendation after backlash following announcement students would be 3 feet apart.
  • UNC Wilmington announced retirement of controversial professor Mike Adams effective August 1. The school agreed to pay Adams $500,000 settlement to avoid costly litigation.
  • Unemployment insurance system in NC is notoriously restrictive. Piedmont triad region jobless rate remains highest on record in 44 years.
  • US Army announced 90 participants in Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape (SERE) training at Fort Bragg NC tested positive for COVID-19.
  • Variety of new NC laws went into effect July 1.
  • Williamston NC hotel apologized after employee called police on unverified Black guests using pool.
  • Winston Salem community pools and splash pads opened July 1 despite rising coronavirus cases and deaths in Forsyth County.
  • Winston Salem man alleged excessive force when he was arrested at Cooks Flea Market. Charles Moody had intended to purchase car tires from an outdoor vendor and went inside to get cash from ATM. He did not have a mask. After a dispute with employees, a deputy forcibly arrested him.
  • Winston Salem police issued statement affirming support for peaceful protests and condemning criminal violations. Demonstrators met at Trader Joe’s grocery store Monday evening for a sit down protest. Afterward they went to Mayor Allen Joines’ home where he thanked them for protesting peacefully, encouraged them to email questions to him, and invited a representative from the group to join a citizens’ committee to discuss city funding. Tuesday protestors gathered at Publix grocery store and blocked traffic at Five Points intersection. Wednesday protestors met at Hanes Mall. Since May 26 there have been at least 31 protests in the city.



In my personal life…

Greg and I have been talking about traveling together at some point in the future, possibly taking an extended cross country road trip. We’re considering camping to save money rather than staying in a hotel or airbnb every night. In 20 years as a couple Greg and I never camped together, not once. His love of air conditioning, cable tv, room service and indoor heated pools is so strong that we never seriously considered camping when planning family vacations, not until now.

I camped with my family as a teenager, camped with son Reid when he was a cub scout, and traveled with Reid to Brazil in 2018 so we could camp in the Amazon rainforest together. We invited Greg to join us but he declined, responding “hell no!” as he laughed out loud at the thought of such a crazy idea.

Greg slept in the back of his dad’s truck as a child when they went jug fishing together but he never camped as an adult. When we recently discussed the possibility of camping together, Greg had some concerns about comfort and safety. He carefully researched various options: tents, truck camping, tow behind camper trailers, RVs, etc. After several days of thoughtful consideration and product comparisons he picked a Coleman tent.

Monday night we set up the tent in our backyard and placed an air mattress inside. We had difficulty falling asleep due to our giddy excitement though we eventually slept well; no complaints. The tent was easy to set up and take down and was quite comfortable for the 2 of us. It is advertised to accommodate 4 people but I doubt that claim; maybe 4 kids or 2 adults with 2 small children but not 4 full size grown ups. Coleman dark room technology blocks light. However, we lifted the canopy cover to expose the mesh netting for better air flow since it was hot and humid with little chance of rain overnight. We could see the sky so well, it was almost like sleeping out in the open but thankfully with no bugs or mosquitoes bothering us.

Next step we’ll likely stay overnight at a nearby campground, probably Hanging Rock State Park. We’re also considering van camping for better protection than a tent offers.  


We ate the last 2 blueberry muffins for breakfast Monday morning. For linner Greg made grilled chicken with rice along with squash and zucchini from our garden. Afterward we snacked on candy for dessert. Tuesday we skipped breakfast. Greg made hamburgers for lunch; I topped mine with lettuce from the garden, a cucumber (also from the garden) sliced and dipped in humus, and a garlic dill pickle on the side. For dinner we had ribeye steak, potatoes, and more squash and zucchini from the garden followed by more candy for dessert. Greg made homemade blueberry crumble Wednesday. I ate left over grilled chicken for dinner but can’t remember what Greg had. Thursday we skipped breakfast, snacked mid day, then I made grilled pork chops, baked potato, roasted squash and zucchini and corn on the cob for dinner.


My daily actions for racial justice continued to be listening, reading, watching and thinking. I also participated in Nextdoor online discussions regarding Black Lives Matter. It was frustrating to see posts from neighbors insisting all lives matter, though heartwarming to read more comments supporting black lives matter. 

Hindsight 2020

November 2020 After assisting the Forsyth County Board of Elections with a few post election tasks, I finally took time to rest and rechar...