Thoughts about change and COVID-19.

 

Something I have decided, and have not really shared with anyone, but have started living my life in this way, and that is, to think that calling this our new normal is the pragmatic thing to do.  We do not know if, when and how this will end.  We do not know what  things will look like on the other end.  We do know we will never go back 100% to the way things were before.  We initially kidded ourselves, with the help from some national leadership, to believe this would be resolved by this summer.  And it has not.  So when I cannot change things around me, sometimes I have to decide whether to change my outlook and expectations.  This may not work for everybody, especially someone who is idealistic. But sometimes an idealistic person understands how important it is to adjust and adapt.

 

I liken this to being in a war.  Too long ago for my lifetime, but we hear about the sacrifices and contributions the American people were asked to make during World War II:  rationing, recycling, women working in jobs that were formerly felt unfit women, including manufacturing, farming, and other businesses.  And, it opened up some integration prospects previously unthought of.   Well, although people tried to put the genie back in the bottle, women and minorities slowly expanded their roles after the war, often, with a very tough fight.

 

We are now engaged in a multi-front war:  The war against COVID-19.  The war against natural disasters, that are more difficult to deal with because of COVID -19 (wild fires, heat waves, hurricanes, etc.)  The war against social injustice and racism.  This always gets worse when the people on the bottom of the social ladder see possibilities of improvement, and then those possibilities are snatched away. (A black, inclusive president is replaced by an anglo, divisive president.)  When I was in college we learned about it as the Revolution of Rising Expectations.  This article https://www.encyclopedia.com/social-sciences/applied-and-social-sciences-magazines/revolution-rising-expectations indicates it may not be that simple, but it plays a part.  

 

The idea is, we have to change with the change. And the way we change influences the way the change impacts our world.  The actual quote from Mahatma Gandhi is:  “We but mirror the world. All the tendencies present in the outer world are to be found in the world of our body.  If we could change ourselves, the tendencies in the world would also change.  As a man changes his own nature, so does the attitude of the world change towards him.  This is the divine mystery supreme.  A wonderful thing it is and the source of our happiness. We need not wait to see what others do.”  This has been shortened to “be the change you want to be”

 

The societal changes give each of us the opportunity to decide how we will go forward from here.  It is a major burden. Do I have an answer?  No.

 

So, forgive my ramble.  Thank you for letting me ramble. Sometimes, I just need to get it off my chest.  And I ask for answers. 

God's in His Heaven, and All's Right With the World. Well, sort of!

Tonight, Major League Baseball opened season! Yes, near the end of July, with no fans in the stands, canned crowd noise, and some restrictions like no sunflower seeds.  The league will do regular testing, and the travel schedules will be truncated, and announced tonight, they will have an extended play off season that will not extend the season, but add more playoff games. Other changes include "a universal designated hitter" i.e. both the National League and the American League will be using the designated hitter. 

The New York Yankees played the Washington Nationals in Washington, D.C, aired on ESPN.  Before the game, the players took a knee, and connected with each other by holding a black ribbon or rope, for a moment of silence, then stood for the national anthem.  Behind the mound, the MLB logo was displayed in the dirt above the letters BLM (Black Lives Matter.)  

Dr. Fauci, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, threw out the "ceremonial" first pitch.  

The Yankees and Nationals played beyond the 5th inning, when the Heavens opened up, and the skies lit up.  A very heavy thunderstorm delayed the game, and eventually, caused it to be called, with the Yankees winning.

This was a doubleheader night on  ESPN, the next game was the San Francisco Giants playing against the Los Angeles Dodgers.  The opening ceremonies were similar to those at the Yankee - National game.  Only, some players chose to continue to kneel, with the blessings of their team leadership.  

I learned some things tonight:   

Mookie Betts, who had performed so well for the Boston Red Sox, signed a 13 year, $392 million dollar deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers. 

Mike Yastrezmski plays for the San Francisco Giants.  Yes, Mike Yastrezmski is related to Carl Yastrezmski.  He is Carl's grandson.  He wears number 5, and supposedly, when asked why not wearing number 8, he said there was enough pressure on him, he did not need to add to it by wearing number 8.  Wise young man. 

Also, the Boston Red Sox unveiled a 250 foot billboard along the Massachusetts Turnpike, near Fenway Park, that says Black Lives Matter. 



Baseball really is America's game, and Major League Baseball has stepped up to promote racial equality.  

I like baseball.  I am sorry that baseball was segregated until the late 1940s. I like that baseball sponsored a women's league during World War II.  I like that many of our presidents throw out the first pitch on opening day.  And baseball is important enough in our society, that many baseball terms have been appropriated for non-baseball situations.  

One thing I am not sure of is the runner-on-second rule for overtime games.  I understand, especially this year, it is a way to prevent very, very long overtime games, but how is this justified?  Why does the person who made the last out of the previous inning get to be on base?  It makes no sense, other than "time management."  Sorry, our world is full of time management ideas that make no sense, promote stress, and do not allow for quality or pure performance.  

Oh well, there is always good and bad in changes.  We will have to see what survives and what does not. 

Response to COVID-19

I am very concerned about how people are responding to safety precautions relating to the COVID-19 virus. I understand that no one, including me, wants their personal rites curtailed or imposed upon. I also understand the importance of safe social practices. I am not sure why wearing a mask to protect you and me is a violation of my personal rights. I am not sure why keeping a 6 foot distance in public is a violation of my personal rights. I understand that people want to be able to negotiate themselves in public as they want and may not want their public personal interactions limited. But, why would I want to put someone else in danger. As citizens of the United States, we resist restrictions on our lives. But do we feel safer flying in airplanes with the inconveniences of TSA inspections? Do people feel safer having been educated about safe sex practices and other ways to avoid infection by HIV? I want our economy to survive. I want public education to be available to everyone who needs it. But more importantly, I want you and I to wake up tomorrow morning, alive, alert, and able to function without medical support. You tell me, what is more important.

Tea Cozies

Are you a tea drinker? I am, and in the last 15 or 20 years, I have become more of a tea deinker than a coffee drinker.  I sometimes make a cup of tea, but more often, I make a pot of tea.  Sometimes, I use loose tea leaves in an infuser, but more often than not, I use tea bags to make tea.

Sometimes, I go out to restaurants to have a quiet and comfortable meal, with the intension of having a pot of tea  with  the quiet and relaxing meal.

I  have several tea pots, but many are decorative.  I do have a couple of teapots that are functional.  Several years ago, I purchased a tea cozie which I use for pots of tea, either brewed with tea leaves and an infusor, or with tea bags.

Saturday, 4/4/2020 I made tea in the afternoon in my tea pot.  I had it brewing in the pot and under the tea cozie for about 3 hour, before I remembered to drink some of the tea. It was still warm.  The tea cozie did its job.