Back in the 80s I worked a dual function position in a rural county in Arkansas. On one side I was Administrator of the Local County Health Department. A function that was more or less office manager for the Health Unit and I interfaced with public officials in and outside the county. When I put on my other hat I was the County Sanitarian. As a Registered Sanitarian I had a wide range of duties Continue reading “From NYT: It’s the Fauci Awards!”
This pandemic is real people…
A few weeks ago I posted an article, The Pandemic Blues – Take II. In it I detailed several things that happened to me during a round of golf that disturbed me in relation to folk’s attitude towards the corona virus pandemic. I then mentioned passing a popular bar/restaurant on my way home that is close to the golf course. It caters to a working class crowd, and is a nice place to grab a cold one and a bite to eat. What I noticed that day was how crowded the parking lot was, to the point of overflowing. And how I could not imagine social distancing taking place in there.
The last 2 or 3 times I have been golfing over in Illinois, the bar has been closed. Today at the golf course there was a young man behind the counter who I knew and knew to be from the area. I asked him if he knew the story about why the bar was closed.
Well yes he did. It turns out 2 of the waitresses tested positive for COVID-19. They were going to just close down the place for a couple days for a “deep cleaning”, he told me. He then went on to relate that there was a cluster of 20 COVID-19 cases in a small town close to Columbia, IL When they did the contact tracing they all went back to the bar! So they have closed the bar down for 2 weeks. I suppose that works to… I’m not really sure.
I can only hope when they reopen they test their employees a little better and force their customers into practicing social distancing. I do not really see the later happening in this particular establishment.
We all need to take care and realize that this is a real and serious pandemic, and that it is far from over.
Keep well.
SING… Sing where you can…
If you ask the lyrical Señora Weinhaus she will quickly tell you that her life is music. If she could not sing I am not sure she would find life worth living. Normally she sings in in several choirs, but all that has been curtailed due to COVID-19.
She met two of her mates from the Hospice Choir at a tunnel on the Creve Coeur bike path. Bonnie’s husband shot this video of their jubilation.
The Unintended Lesson – Revisited
I wrote the article below a little over 20 years, and I wanted to re-share this story today.
In all of our lives there are hopefully a few individuals that have made a big impact. My Uncle Dutch and Aunt Peggy were two such people. When, as a teenager, I was having a lot of problems at home, they took me in for a while. They helped firm up my rudder that was wobbling terribly. My uncle passed away today at the age of 92 after living what I would call a good and meaningful life. God bless you, Uncle, and godspeed on your new journey.
My Uncle Dutch is not a tall man, and he has what we affectionately call a Buddha belly. I know that he was skinny once upon a time. I have seen pictures of him when he was young and in the Navy, but that is not the Harry Dodd I know. He is elderly now, with white hair, and it is hard for me to not think of him in a suit and tie. The first thing that you will probably notice about my Uncle is his smile. While he doesn’t smile all the time, it is certainly there more than it isn’t. And it is the type of smile that just lights up his whole face.
He is married to my mother’s sister. Now that I am older, I recognize her as kind, gentle, woman. Continue reading “The Unintended Lesson – Revisited”
Chris from Ohio is a farmer, Trump voter, and lifelong Republican – hear why he will be voting Joe
The Pandemic Blues – Take II
I had a disturbing round of golf Friday. Oh not about my golf game, I describe myself as a Dr. Hyde / Mr. Jekyll golfer. I never know who is coming out, and sometimes I see both these sides in a single round of golf. I figured out last millennium that I was never going to play golf professionally, or even at a stellar amateur level. I am good with that. I still enjoy the game. My discomfort on this round of golf centered around attitudes about corona virus.
Let me describe where I golf most frequently. It is across the Rio Mississippi in the small town of Columbia, IL. This is southern Illinois and it is hoosier land. If your breed is more southern, substitute redneck for hoosier. It is the same concept, different words. I go to this particular golf course as the rates are more reasonable than in Missouri, it is usually easy to get a tee time and the course is generally in good shape. The greens always are. While not the cow pasture golf Continue reading “The Pandemic Blues – Take II”
Need help understanding black anger???
This is from Last Week Tonight with John Oliver. The whole episode is worth your time, but the last 40 seconds is amazingly powerful. We all need to be thinking about what she is saying and why she is so angry.
Again language alert, but these times call for such language
New from Eleven Films – BREAKING The Dangerous Ones
Tissues are your responsibility…
Experts Rate The Risks Of 14 Summer Activities
Here is a link to an article that is on the St Louis Public Radio site. Enjoy!
Coranavirus masks as a political statement
I’ve been saying for 2 or 3 weeks now that not wearing masks and gloves in public was a political statement by many of those folks.
Here is an article that says the same thing: Wearing a mask is for smug liberals. Refusing to is for reckless Republicans.
From the article:
For progressives, masks have become a sign that you take the pandemic seriously and are willing to make a personal sacrifice to save lives. Prominent people who don’t wear them are shamed and dragged on Twitter by lefty accounts. On the right, where the mask is often seen as the symbol of a purported overreaction to the coronavirus, mask promotion is a target of ridicule, a sign that in a deeply polarized America almost anything can be politicized and turned into a token of tribal affiliation.