Tag Archives: coronavirus

happy may day in coronavirus land

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May Day 2017 St. Peter’s School Philadelphia, PA

It’s May Day. Some are scratching your heads. Beltane. Still scratching your head?

From the History Channel:

Beltane

The Celts of the British Isles believed May 1 to be the most important day of the year, when the festival of Beltane was held.

This May Day festival was thought to divide the year in half, between the light and the dark. Symbolic fire was one of the main rituals of the festival, helping to celebrate the return of life and fertility to the world.

When the Romans took over the British Isles, they brought with them their five-day celebration known as Floralia, devoted to the worship of the goddess of flowers, Flora. Taking place between April 20 and May 2, the rituals of this celebration were eventually combined with Beltane.

Maypole Dance

Another popular tradition of May Day involves the maypole. While the exact origins of the maypole remain unknown, the annual traditions surrounding it can be traced back to medieval times, and some are still celebrated today.

Villagers would enter the woods to find a maypole that was set up for the day in small towns (or sometimes permanently in larger cities). The day’s festivities involved merriment, as people would dance around the pole clad with colorful streamers and ribbons.

May is named for Maia, the ancient Roman Goddess who was the incarnation of the earth mother and goddess of spring.

Those of us who went to St. Peter’s School at 4th and Pine in the Society Hill section of Philadelphia will always remember May 1 fondly. Heck if you lived near the school on May 1st you will always have May Day memories. Which is why I was a little wistful this morning when I realized there would be no Maypole or dancing at St. Peter’s today.

May Day, early 1970’s St. Peter’s

May Day was so awesome. We donned our spring best and we did many traditional Celtic things including dancing around the Maypole. The multi-colored ribbons being woven in and out as we danced. (Here is a video from the School in Rose Valley so you can see.) There were also pipe dancers over clay pipes.

May Day was one of the best things about being a kid back then. Ribbons and balloons and music. All your friends and parents were there. It was so joyful. (St. Peter’s photos found here – not mine.)

So Happy May Day to my childhood friends! Happy May Day to all of you!

May Day Maypole Dance Early 1970s (circa 1974 maybe) St. Peter’s School Philadelphia PA

the gratitude jar…2020

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A few years ago I started a gratitude jar. It’s about positive affirmations. It’s about being grateful.

It’s nothing complicated. You write down little things in your life you’re grateful for onto little pieces of paper and you put it in the jar. Some people empty out the jar on an annual basis and start fresh, others let the little slips of paper accumulate. I don’t add to it as often as I should, but I have let all my little slips of paper accumulate and once in a while I read them.

“Be content with what you have; rejoice in the way things are. When you realize there is nothing lacking, the whole world belongs to you.”
—Lao Tzu

Feeling grateful as a powerful emotion. An hours a time where as hard as it is we also have to be grateful. Grateful that we are alive. Coronavirus and COVID-19 is separating so many people from their families. Coronavirus and COVID-19 are killing people in our communities every day.

Our new decade has started with a global pandemic and that has a lot of negatives to it. But if we’re doing our part and we’re staying home and we’re with our loved ones, that’s something to be grateful for. Even if we’re all separated and we’re all OK it’s still something to be grateful for.

Small things matter. Giving thanks matters. Do you keep a gratitude jar?

coronavirus breeds hate

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I actually think angels are weeping over the behavior of humans. Some days in this land of coronavirus in which we live it is hard to be anything but repulsed by fellow human beings. People keep saying over and over that this virus brings out the best and worst in people. Over the weekend I saw the worst again.

NextDoor is a social media platform that a lot of people who are on it for some reason don’t think it’s actually a social media platform. The end result are things that you wouldn’t even see on Facebook at times. Sociologically and psychologically it’s fascinating even when it’s terribly sad.

A conversation thread went up over the weekend of someone looking for literally Chinese takeout food. A lot of the restaurants are closed, one in particular may have lost their lease but no one is sure, and because of the horrible nickname COVID-19/coronavirus has been given, I think a lot of these places are closed because they’re scared of peoples’ reactions to their nationality.

The thread was humming along with people posting restaurants open and closed here and there and then boom! All of a sudden up pops this one woman who says something to the effect of she couldn’t believe anyone would want to patronize Chinese restaurants. this person goes on to write other things that can only be described as both prejudiced and racist.

Then a separate post pops up. From a gentleman who ironically claims to have an Asian descended wife. And it’s basically why would anyone want to have Chinese food they caused the virus and my Asian wife agrees with me. I am paraphrasing, but that was the gist of their post.

I sort of sat there gob smacked looking at it because this is a person whom I know to be intelligent and can be quite thoughtful. But sometimes they go off the rails and I guess this is one of those occasions. But to take an entire nationality to task over a virus that may or may not have originated in a particular country is just repugnant. I say originated because I don’t think anyone has determined the ultimate point of origin for coronavirus/COVID-19. And I think starting and originating are two different things.

It’s also the whole sick argument of if people look different so they must be different, therefore they must be bad and I just can’t stand it. And I just am amazed at the hate that is fomenting in this country even more so than before the virus took over our lives.

I am descended from people who were discriminated against in this country because of their nationality. Irish, Italian, and German. And don’t forget the religion – I’m Catholic. That’s been a huge problem here and there in this country as well. And not just today because of the issue of pedophile priests.

I have a step sister-in-law who is Taiwanese by birth. I have another good friend who is Taiwanese by birth. I have an honorary Chinese mother who is also actually Taiwanese by birth. These three women are all important to me and I feel very lucky to have them in my life.

I have other friends who are Indonesian and others who are Korean and Vietnamese. I do not look at any of these people with descriptive tags attached. Their cultures are unique and beautiful and they share them openly and generously with all of us. Just like my friends of other cultures like Poland, Romania, the UK and Ireland, France, Germany, Spain, Latin America, and so on and so forth. My friends come in many different races and nationalities and isn’t that part of what being an American is about?

We are a country born of immigrants and founded of immigrants. Yet we seem to be devolving into a country of pig ignorant people. Racism and prejudice seems to be rampant right now. And why can’t we just take a breath and pause? Why do we have to be so hateful to one another? We are all affected by what is happening because of COVID-19/Coronavirus.

I also know people who have adopted children of different nationalities and even different skin colors than their own. These sentiments for lack of a better description terrify them. They worry how it will affect their children, if their children will be safe in this world in which we live. And can you really blame them?

We (again) are a nation born of immigrants. It’s our literal history. This country was formed because people wanted a better life and less persecution and religious freedoms.

Yet here we are.

Every time something goes wrong in this country instead of dealing with it you have some faction that goes off and place the blame game with races and religions.

My wish, heck my prayer for this country, is we stop and pause and use this time out of our control to better our country, to stop the hate.

Yes it’s a tall order. But we never seem to learn from our history how to deal with our mistakes. And among those that are the most grievous are racism and prejudice.

I’m far from perfect, you all are far from perfect. To be human is to be imperfect. But we just have to try to do better.

Please. We are stronger together than apart. And that is a big component of why things are so agitated right now. You have the whole economic fallout from coronavirus/COVID-19 and then there’s the emotional component. But we have to stay the course.

Pay it forward when you can. If you can’t just do your part and stay home. And try not to blame other races and nationalities for something that is beyond the world’s control at this point.

I wish you all peace this week.

coronovirus emotions are high…can we pause a moment?

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Gardens in the Rain : abstract serene rainy garden painting ...

 

We are ALL struggling to varying degrees on some days because this is not an easy thing we are going through.

The world of Coronovirus / COVID19 sucks.  There is no other word for it. We all need to be able to hit the pause button, or should hit the pause button, but so many aren’t, are they? And so many can’t.  Their head is stuck on a loop of uncertainty.

I have not cried at all over this thing we’re all stuck in… until this morning.  CBS This Morning honored some of the dead. Yes, those who died from Coronovirus.  A young firefighter from Chicago.  And the one that really got me? A mom who was my age who died and her son with Down’s Syndrome a few days later.

Did I know any of these people? No, but I cried just the same.  This could be any of us right now.

This crapola is real, people.  And no, Lysol isn’t going to save us so for God’s sake ignore that suggestion from our President to inject disinfectants.  And no, it’s not fake news. Just the verbal meanderings of an utter narcissist.

I know people are delaminating, and rainy days don’t help.  But there are people with real troubles so I have a problem with the attention seekers.  These people are popping up on social media.  They are freaking out friends and acquaintances.

Suffice it to say, things I do not respect include people threatening to harm themselves… just for attention.

Please do NOT cry wolf for attention.

Why? Because it means when someone is truly in crisis, help might not get there in time.

I have seen it happening and the other day someone who is not someone I personally know freaked a lot of people out.  Not very nice. And very, very selfish.

 

 

Maybe I sound hard-hearted here.  I am not.  I think this person probably really needs help.  I hope they get help.  But I have lost people in my life who were friends to suicide.  They didn’t warn us.  They didn’t announce anything on social media or elsewhere. They just did it.  And left lots of people to pick up the pieces.  It’s a heartbreaking thing that haunts those left behind.  But I think in a time like this to cry wolf is perhaps even more awful.

 

 

So again, please don’t cry wolf.  Please.  We are all having good and bad days right now.   I have a friend who is living with a man whom I know is delaminating.  This person has been completely irrational and I am worried about my friend.  Part of me wishes he would just pack up and leave.  He is creating a verbal and emotional reign of terror.

Whether we have families we are home with or even if we are living alone, this COVID19 existence is lonely.  I for example hate the hashtag #TogetherApart because in my head it’s #TogetherAlone, which is so depressing.

 

 

Even a homebody like me wants to get out of the house. But I know I have to stay home. I miss my friends and my family.  I miss my routine.  I miss normalcy.

Except I can’t help but wonder what normal will mean and what normal will become when restrictions are lifted?  What will be our new normal going forward? Going back in time to the last global pandemic, don’t you wish we had some survivors of that to talk to?  To learn what their lives were like and what changed?  What became their new normal?

 

History seems to go on a loop.  Just when we think we’ve learned, history repeats itself.  How can we actually learn from history so it sticks?

A friend of mine said today that her emotions are very close to the surface these days.  That resonates.  We all are living a heightened emotional existence to an extent  because nothing much is normal.  And some days I think we all do have to dig deep to stay positive and to be present.

I wish personally some days I could turn my head off.  But I have to remind myself we don’t know what is next, and not to borrow trouble.  We have to believe. I am grateful my family is alright near and far.  I am grateful I have a garden I can tend and a home I can nest in.

The song videos? Just songs I have listened to this week on Spotify playlists. You have to have music in your life. No particular underlying meaning.  Just songs I like that appeared on playlists this week.

Hit the pause button. Listen to some music.  Remember the blessings we do have all around us even in a world full of turmoil and uncertainty.

I will close with a quote a friend of mine put up:

He will feed his flock like a shepherd. He will carry the lambs in His arms, holding them close to his heart.
Isaiah 40:11a

 

 

it’s getting to me a little bit today

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I’m going to admit that all this coronavirus/COVID-19 is getting to me a little bit today. I am grateful that I am safe and I have a home and my family is safe and well, but this is insane.

My one stepbrother lives in England. He and his wife are medical professionals. Their children are safe at home, but physicians and surgeons like nurses and other emergency personnel are on the front lines. I think of them all of the time. England has massive shortages of safety gear and other things…much like this country. I have childhood friends in other parts of Europe. I think of them a lot too. Our family is all safe thus far, and I am grateful for these blessings. But still it’s hard some days.

I have greatly reduced my news watching. It’s stressful and often contradictory. And when news conferences that are supposed to be about how we as a country are faring but keep turning into little political pimping moments it’s even MORE depressing. And scary. We need our government to lead and the dictatorship imitations complete with propaganda is too much.

And it’s like death is all around us. My friend’s mother passed away from COVID19 away from her family alone in a nursing home. And the stories on the news of nursing homes not reporting virus cases and also not telling relatives of residents what is going on.

Where has our humanity gone? Some days I wonder.

And a couple of weeks ago a friend from high school died. Not from COVID19 but because of COVID19, no service.

And then there are the people who every day want to tell whomever will listen that coronavirus isn’t really happening. That it’s just government trying to control us. That’s crazy town.

Friends who have to go out are almost having panic attacks. This virus, this life we are living is anything but normal. Many I know have lost their jobs. And with layoffs comes COBRA healthcare pricing. We are all worried about money if we’re honest aren’t we?

And then there are my friends who are alone. People used to being alone, but the isolation caused by trying to fight this virus together apart gets hard. It’s hard for my little family unit and we are definitely homebodies. We all just miss our people. Friends, family, co-workers, business owners of businesses we all patronize. We just miss our lives.

So I swear I heard my late father’s voice today. He said “this too shall pass.” He used to say that.

So yes, this too shall pass. And in the meantime we will all keep on keeping on. Together. Apart.

Stay well. Stay home. Thanks for stopping by.

corona cooking the good friday edition: salmon loaf

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Yes…Salmon Loaf the finished product.

I know it’s one of those things that kind of reminds you of your grandmother. Salmon loaf. I’m told it was a big thing in the depression because canned salmon (or canned mackerel) was something that a lot of people could get a hold of and it stretched a meal.

Today in coronavirus land, I was looking to use things up. In my refrigerator, I had three foil packets of Harry and David cooked salmon. Each is about 4 to 6 ounces per packet. They came in gift baskets over the holidays. And they last forever in the refrigerator unopened but it’s not like nova or gravlax, so I’m always at a loss what to do with it. then I remembered things my mother used to make on Good Friday when we were little.

So I put Carly Simon on Alexa, and got to cooking. Yes Carly Simon. Sorry not sorry but her music is something I have always loved, along with Cat Stevens AKA Yusuf.

First preheat the oven to 350°F.

Next I made the white sauce to go with the salmon loaf after it is cooked.

White Sauce – 1/2 cup of mayonnaise, a 1/4 cup of sour cream, 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice, 2 teaspoons of dill, a good dash of Tabasco sauce, 1 tablespoon of milk, 1/2 teaspoon of sugar, 1/4 teaspoon of ground pepper. All you do is whisk it together and refrigerate it until you serve the salmon loaf.

Salmon Loaf– If you don’t have Harry and David cooked salmon to use, 1 large can of red or pink sockeye salmon will do. I would say you need a good 14 ounces of salmon. You also need 1 can of cream of celery soup, 1 cup of Panko breadcrumbs, 1 small sweet onion chopped fine, 3 ribs of fresh celery diced, 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, 1/2 cup of mayonnaise, 1 egg beaten, 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice, 2 teaspoons of dill weed, 4 tablespoons of whipped cream cheese or the equivalent of block cream cheese mushed up, a little salt and pepper to taste, some potato chips, and Tabasco sauce.

Mix the cream cheese with the Tabasco sauce (just a dash or two to taste), the lemon juice, the beaten egg, the mayonnaise, the cream of celery soup, the celery, and the onion. Next incorporate the salmon which should be pre-fork mashed in its own little bowl. Finally add the breadcrumbs and a little bit of salt and pepper – about a teaspoon of salt and pepper together. I think I used less.

Take a loaf pan and grease it. I used butter because it happened to be out on the counter. I’m sure you could use olive oil. Spread the loaf mixture evenly into your prepared and greased loaf pan and crumple potato chips over the top.

I will note we rarely have potato chips in the house, we just happen to have them from a take out order a couple of days ago.

Then all you do is throw it into your preheated 350°F oven and set your timer for an hour. For those of you who don’t know the size of a loaf pan it is roughly 9“ x 5“. serve with the white sauce and a simple salad. Note that you’re not actually taking the entire loaf out of the loaf pan it will fall apart you get your servings out and refrigerate the rest in the loaf pan once it’s cooled.

Thanks for stopping by.

Salmon Loaf just before going into the oven

who has seen the wind?

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Who Has Seen the Wind?
BY CHRISTINA ROSSETTI

Who has seen the wind?
Neither I nor you:
But when the leaves hang trembling,
The wind is passing through.

Who has seen the wind?
Neither you nor I:
But when the trees bow down their heads,
The wind is passing by

thoughts and a message of hope…from england

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I have been watching less and less of the news. It’s a repeating loop of Coronavirus on steroids. Often we are not learning anything new, it is just a constant repeating of the horror the world is going through. But I think the biggest problem I have with this whole global pandemic and how it affects us here in the U.S. is what comes out of the White House.

That man we call President is not Presidential. I was even reminded of that last night when I watched a PBS special on the Roosevelts.

A couple of weeks ago I called my mother and she shooed me off the phone almost immediately. “The President is speaking . I can’t talk now.” But honestly, what is he saying? He spent weeks not really taking this whole #COVID-19 thing seriously. Then all of a sudden he says it’s a pandemic and he thought so all along. Then he works something in about campaigns and his administration. Then everything will be open by Easter, then everyone wear masks but he won’t. Then he talks about how many people are going to die from this virus. Then he talks over the medical experts at his press conferences annoyed that people are asking the actual medical professionals questions. “Didn’t I just answer that question?” (paraphrased) he angrily shot at a reporter who had recently directed a question to Dr. Anthony Fauci at a press conference.

We need a national leader about now. Trump isn’t leading. He’s an angry man child embodiment of chronic contradictions and a stunning lack of compassion and that brings no comfort. It makes me anxious. At first I was trying to watch the news conferences from Washington to look for information and leadership in a time of crisis. Coronavirus-time IS like war-time and we need a leader who gets it, who gets us as Americans. Not a quasi-dictatorial narcissistic man child who still blows up Twitter daily with his petty bulltwaddle and spelling, punctuation, and grammatical errors. Dude all of your Tweeting is bad for America.

And then there are people with their Marie Antoinette attitudes of let them eat cake. Like the guy in North Jersey who defied stay at home and social distancing orders and threw a giant Coronavirus booze fest party. He’s apparently now being charged for doing so. Good. And don’t forget the kids in the Pittsburgh area who had to have a giant blowout and where are their parents?

But it is because of all of this swirling crap that I have taken to tuning out the news and staying put and working in the garden more. Whether we want to or not, the fates have decided we are slowing down.

But there is one leader who may God bless and keep her who is truly leading. Queen Elizabeth II of England. She gave her subjects comfort and hope in a time of crisis. She also gave the rest of the world comfort and hope. No angry tweeting about fake news and newspapers that have done her wrong. Talking to the people and offering support and comfort.

BBC News: Coronavirus: The Queen’s message seen by 24 million

About 24 million TV viewers watched the Queen’s broadcast to the nation on Sunday, according to overnight figures.

In a rare speech, the monarch thanked people for following government rules to stay at home and praised those “coming together to help others”.

The message was seen by 23.97 million viewers, making it the second most-watched broadcast this year….It was only the fifth time the Queen has given such a speech in her 68-year reign.

Her most recent Christmas Day message drew a combined overnight audience of 7.85 million.

In her speech on Sunday, the Queen said the UK “will succeed” in its fight against the coronavirus pandemic.

She thanked people for following government rules to stay inside and paid tribute to key workers for their efforts.

Speaking from Windsor Castle, the Queen said the pandemic was a “different” challenge compared to what the nation had faced before.

The message ended with the words “we will meet again” – an apparent reference to Dame Vera Lynn’s bolstering war anthem We’ll Meet Again.

The Queen’s four other special addresses were given in 1991, 1997, 2002 and 2012.

It was truly a beautiful thing to listen to her speak in this time. Say what you want about her and sometimes people criticize Queen Elizabeth but she knows how to lead in times of crisis. And it was just so good to hear a message that was realistic yet not full of gloom and doom. It was also good to hear a message that wasn’t all about them. 

We will get through this. And it will take its toll. I hope we all get through unscathed but really it’s beyond our control at this point. We can only do our part and stay home. And if you have extra supplies to donate to first responders contact your local firehouse or hospital.

This weird time is giving us time to meaningfully connect with each other if we can stop and see the good in that. I also know it’s frustrating and scary. It makes you nervous. Trust me, I have felt all of those things. Especially because of the bombardment of so much news and the contradictory behavior coming out of Washington D.C.

One day at a time I think is the only way to handle the hot mess of Coronavirus. Yes much like a 12 step program, one day at a time. I will close with a quote from Teddy Roosevelt:

Rhetoric is a poor substitute for action, and we have trusted only to rhetoric. If we are really to be a great nation, we must not merely talk; we must act big.

#StayHome

sometimes people should just stop picking at other people. this is one of those times.

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I swear there is a meme for everything and this one is pretty much perfect. Why am I posting this? Because some people just floor me on social media. Facebook especially.

Backstory: a few years ago when I had my first knee surgery, I was literally just home from the hospital and practically still drooling from the anesthesia. Sitting in a daze in bed, I was mindlessly looking through social media on my tablet. I noticed this one woman posting comments on my Facebook timeline that I just didn’t want to deal with. So I didn’t say anything, I just deleted the comments. After all, your personal Facebook page is like your virtual house, right?

So the woman whose comment I had removed posted another comment in the same vein. There I was practically drooling like you can do after surgery and anesthesia and I wondered what alternate reality I was living in that this woman wouldn’t just get I probably didn’t want to deal with this? I made a decision. I deleted the new comment and quietly unfriended the woman and went to sleep.

Unfriending this person was not something I wanted to do. But when I was still sitting in bed the next day scrolling through Facebook still somewhat dazed post surgery, I knew it was the right decision. Why? Because she took the argument of the deleted comments and moved them essentially to another woman’s Facebook page (whom I also knew – ironically I introduced them to one and other) and sat there talking about me like I couldn’t see it. Kind of like they were talking on the phone only it was all playing out on Facebook. It was crazy and I decided, sanity and maturity should prevail, and I just blocked both of them so I wouldn’t have to see their online brand of crazy in the future.

Still part of me felt bad. I had known the one woman for many years. But knowing her was sometimes exhausting. The other woman was always just kind of sad always striving to belong. Also exhausting. I sent both women a note explaining why I had decided to distance. I figured I’d make one last attempt at salvaging the relationships. I explained to them I just had surgery and I didn’t want to deal with any of this right now. But if they wanted to talk about it, explain what they didn’t understand, and I would try to listen. Need list to say, that didn’t happen never heard from either, and I went on about my life. I wish I could say I missed either woman, but I don’t.

I especially don’t miss people who act like this while experiencing a global pandemic. Life is kind of stressful enough right now. What I didn’t expect was that they would do this again to someone else. I sadly thought this behavior was because of me. But it’s just them.

A very nice woman who is a very close friend has literally just had a similar experience with these two over the past couple of days. My friend had posted on HER Facebook timeline that it really bothered her that people including the President keep referring to COVID19 as the “Chinese Virus.” She said she found it offensive. In my opinion she’s not wrong.

Now you would think that would have been the end of it. But sadly no, the other woman I had removed from my circle of friends a few years ago for chiming in where it wasn’t her concern did so again. Seriously:

So my friend unfriended and blocked the other one too. I truly am stunned at how pig ignorant people can be. It’s like these women have this whole tag team of nastiness, which is truly sad.   I wonder if either one of them gets it yet that more and more people distance themselves from these two all of the time. They are having social distancing practiced on them as a matter of keeping one’s sanity.

My friend wasn’t “slamming” the President. She was specifically referring to a term in this whole coronavirus world we live in that she found offensive. 

Given the times we currently live in and everything that everyone is going through, wouldn’t you think that these two women would have better things to do than to argue and spread vitriol? What do they gain with these little Facebook games?

I am really sorry that this happened to my friend too. I remember how upsetting I found it briefly at the time. It’s like this whole sense of betrayal when people are so nasty. Then you realize no one is worth that crap.

Look, OK, we probably all have a more than small dose of cabin fever at this point. We are living our lives in a way we’ve never had to live them before. But when I look at what those who live through World War II have to say it just sort of gives you a whole new perspective.

I can’t make people be kinder to one another. And I’m sure some will have comments about what I have written today. It’s just one of the many things I am thinking about because face it, we all have so much time to think right now. And perhaps that is part of the problem. I don’t think some people are comfortable with their thoughts.

But I don’t understand with all that we have to deal with why these two women persist in doing this? All they are doing is isolating themselves further from people within their community and showing the world how unhappy they are. And that’s the thing that we are also discovering through all of this staying at home and self isolation: we are not islands unto ourselves after all. Humans need human contact and community, and it takes a global pandemic to realize it. So try being nicer, right?

I have always maintained that social media is both a blessing and a curse. It would be nice if right now with our every day lives up-ended indefinitely if we could try to make it more of a blessing than a curse.

If something annoys you or you don’t agree with it, you don’t have to leave a comment every time. Sometimes you can just scroll past it. That way people don’t fight and friendships remain intact during a very difficult time.

Try to be kind today.


sign o’ the times: curbside pick-up and contactless delivery

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Malvern Pizza: Curbside and Contactless #shoplocal