"Ripley: Why do you care about them?
Annalee Call: Because I'm programmed to.
Ripley: You're programmed to be an asshole? You're the "new model" asshole they're putting out?"
Alien Resurrection, 20th Century Fox, 1997.
Time being whiled away.
While I think of vile things to say.
Try and rile me.. but nay.
You could end up in jail.
Don't rely on me for bail.
Let the current situation ail you.
And you can't sail into the blue
when it finally starts to flail.
Did I hit it on the nail?
Yay!
Observation #1: I have shopped at Shaw's twice in the last 10 days. The checkout folks will not touch your reusable bags and for a good reason.
Covidea #1: Continue this practice even after the current pandemic ends. So when the next pandemic rolls around, nothing special needs to be done. Push-back may come from lazy or disabled shoppers. Simply have a separate lane for these folks.. where the checkout person will wear proper gloves, mask, etc. before handling the reusable bags in this lane. Or, to keep it much simpler, continue maintaining special hours during which shopping can be done only by the elderly and disabled folk!
This is just a random picture.. of a spring snow storm that just started outside.
Observation #2: One of the supermarket's two entrances were closed. There was a police man stationed at the other entrance. He was ensuring that the store did not get overcrowded by allowing a shopper in only after an existing shopper from within the store had exited. I remember standing in line like that a few times back in the day when I was trying to get into nightclubs. I hated that experience!
Covidea #2: Make this standard practice if it looks like another pandemic may be on the horizon. How the transition from Police officer "Present" to "Not present" will be made remains to be seen. But I expect it will have to be done when there is a high amount of confidence that a pandemic is over and there will not be a spike seen in the upcoming weeks.
Observation #3: While shoppers kept a reasonable distance from each other while they were shopping, this was not at all possible once they finished their shopping and had to check out. Now everyone was much closer because of a need to congregate by the checkout counters.
Covidea #3a: Just like MassHighway uses a moving machine (zippers?) to adjust lanes on I-93 south of Boston on weekday mornings and evenings, put in place a dynamic system to accommodate shopping lane reconfiguration on weekday evenings, weekends, before snow storms, etc.
Copyright ABC10.. I guess.
Covidea #3b: Look into eliminating checkout lanes altogether by providing the ability to checkout while shopping. Instead, multiple entrances will be established in the perimeter of the store to minimize shopper proximity issues. When a shopper comes to the store, they use a store card or app to first pickup a cart with a checkout device right on it:
When an item is placed in a cart, it is automatically checked out.
To cancel an item, the item is simply returned from the cart to where it was picked up.
Once the shopper has finished shopping, they "commit" their shopping through an app which will allow them to leave the store with the cart and then remove items from the cart.
If a checked-in item leaves the cart for an extended period or a not yet checked-in item leaves the shelf and does not get into its original spot on the shelf -- example: one shopper steals from another shopper -- alarm and lights will go of in the appropriate locations while a beam will be zapped to the local police station with encrypted details about the offense. But more likely, a kid with freckles wielding a broomstick will show up first to eyeball the state of the union.
During pandemics, stockpiling of items can be prevented through this type of automation either during a particular shopping session or across multiple sessions for a given shopper.. now that their shopping history is on the cloud. Anyone smell a bit of communism in there? But remember that this is only during pandemics in order to not to deprive those who really need supplies or cannot get to shop as quickly or as often.. such as the elderly, single parents and disabled folk. This covidea should be an "All-in" strategy and should be implemented by all major stores at the same time. Otherwise, enough shoppers, realizing that they won't be able to stockpile if Covidea #3b were to be implemented, will soon put early adopters of this service out of business by shopping only at the "not-yet" adopters.
Covidea #3b is a huge ask, yes, but one that should prepare nations better for emergencies in the future: better initial preparation leads to less overall enforcement or running around during times of need. If that philosophy can be implemented in other areas such as healthcare and hospitality, pandemics would become non-events and fizzle out before they begin.
Observation #4: A few shoppers had on face masks and gloves. Stores had sanitizers affixed by each checkout lane. Some shoppers missed the sanitizers altogether as they were not very obvious.
Covidea #4: Keep the sanitizers where they are but have them light up with a ding when a shopper has finished paying. Shoppers who have on face masks and gloves will also have their rewards points bumped up. Shoppers will also get rewards points for wiping down carts and/or returning them to the cart cage.
Observation #x: ...
Covidea #x: ...
Observation #19: I found myself constantly surveying the shopper traffic inside the store in order to get the few items I needed without having to bump into other shoppers.
Covidea #19: If shoppers can tap and choose through an app what they need to buy on that particular shopping session before they get to the store and pick up the special cart -- a suggested shopping list could pop up based on their past shopping history, frequency, etc., for instance --, then the app can direct them to the next item they can pick up while having no or the least interaction with other shoppers en route to that item. This is also simply efficient, pandemic or not. This covidea goes.. um.. hand-in-hand with Covidea #3b.
...well, not exactly. The breakfast was delicious and filling. I ate the egg (protein) first. I show a lot of fruit below but I ate only a few pieces. I pick and choose the fruit I feel like eating at any one breakfast. Those two containers of fruit have been lasting a week. I have been alternating eating a loaf of bread one week with oatmeal the following week. Working out well.
If you really must know, the quarter-cup of instant oats is microwaved for 75 seconds with a half-cup of water. Then I throw in a few slivered almonds and either blueberries or craisins and mix it all up with a teaspoon of honey. It makes for an excellent alternative to the bread and provides a few more grams of fiber.
For a richer experience, slap on additional butter and use more cooking oil for the egg. For bread, I prefer butter to cheese. I like cheese but eat it very rarely.. usually with a bottle of red zinfandel on Saturday nights.
Don't waste food. Lick it clean. Yeah, disgusting.. but no one is going to be viewing your plate.
Is it on one side because I was trying to save oil.. as it was just one egg? No, its on one side because of gravity.. my cooking range is tilted ever so slightly to that side. So.. I just sprayed that side with oil knowing the egg will situate itself there with gusto. Clever, huh?
I estimate the value of this nutritious breakfast at around two dollars.
Very happy to have been present when Alex Honnold visited Somerville Bouldering in 2019. The women on stage strike me as, well, being in a moment that most women and men only dream of. Alex, on the other hand, reminds me of a dying breed... perhaps that of the character of Clay Bell from Guns of the Timberlands or maybe Logan Cates from Last Stand at Papago Wells. Not in a "draw fast and make the first shot count" sort of way, mind it. But in a.. can teach us about how to get out of -- and in Alex's case, get into AND out of -- a pretty awful situation sort of way. Incidentally, the character of Junie Hatchett in Last Stand at Papago Wells has festered in my mind since I first read the book as a teenager growing up in Madurai, India:
Let's dive right in. We have already had SARS and now COVID-19 in the span of 20 years. With human population exploding and existing humans living longer, hundreds of thousands of "human beings all jostling each other within the space of a few square miles"1 will become a common theme in pretty much every square mile of the planet. That means, this sort of pandemic will become more common. Secondary inference: we need to get into the habit of quickly adapting to similar situations as they arise in the future. So now is as good a time as any to start practicing.
Those of you who have always had a habit of washing your hands once you get indoors, be it home or the office, you are in luck. Because we already have a stockpile of hand-wash soap and sanitizers on hand.
I have noticed some men in public urinals handling a smartphone in one hand while operating machinery with the other and then not washing their hands before exiting the restroom. Ugh! Those of you who don't have a habit of washing your hands, well, here now is a great opportunity to finally develop a healthy life-long habit.
There is no point in blaming China for this pandemic. It is what it is. We have to trust in China's ability to prevent such infections from arising in the future. But we should also see this as an opportunity for medical and emergency responders around the world to better anticipate and work together in future should such a situation arise. And more situations like this will arise. Vaccines might be developed faster but there will be infections and deaths first.
Social distancing is not a request. It is an obligation to your community. Homebodies are in luck as they don't really have to do anything remarkable. But those of us who have a need to get out under the sun or hit the gym will need to curb our enthusiasm and just rein it in. I have resistance bands on hand. And, of course, calisthenics. Time to start practicing the handstand and doing a little tumbling work. Gyms closing temporarily are a great idea as everybody touches everything and breathes out something heavy in gyms. Therefore, sanitizing surfaces and spraying to negate aerosols in such environments may just not be good or fast enough.
If it’s a sunny, “near Spring” day out, bring your beach gear out to the balcony and do a bit of reading!
Having difficulty shedding those extra pounds? This would be a great time to ration your supplies, eat less and lose some serious weight!
Having difficulty in stopping spending on drinks at your local watering hole.. or on amazon.com every month and then promptly getting rid of cardboard packaging, etc.? Well, let's use this opportunity to rein all that in.
In an ideal society, there will not be any panic buying. But there are no ideal societies. Particularly in a democracy like the United States which is home to a vast number of group mentalities and mindsets, and therefore deep distrust between groups and between groups and their government, panic buying will be the norm. It is hard to fault parents with young children and the elderly in such situations. But everyone else should make an effort to be considerate in their purchases and put trust in the infrastructure that they have had a hand in gradually building and honing over the decades. So be considerate and leave some supplies on the shelf for others. This is easier said than done though because.. there are no ideal societies.
Continue ordering the occasional food delivery to support your local **reputable** restaurants but be prepared to disinfect surfaces of the food containers -- using wipes and not by spraying -- just behind your front door.
Notice that other than the hand washing part, which should be general practice anyway, there is no "medical advice" in this post. If you are not a medical expert from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), stop texting and forwarding home grown or unattributed medical advice to your family and friends. I get this stuff everyday from family and it annoys me to no end.. because then, when they do call, I don't feel like taking their calls.
Lastly, it would be a good idea to stop constantly talking and posting about COVID-19. I, for one, am tired of hearing about the damn thing. You have done everything in your control to prevent the spread of this virus. Now we wait for the pandemic to slow down and end. But how about this post then? It is talking about COVID-19? Well, nobody reads my blog. So its okay!
I will talk more about the advantages and disadvantages of my super-popular No-routine routine in a future post. I will note, however, that I do that routine on Saturdays only when I am staying in town but want to expend some energy and just be in a gym environment. In the meanwhile, here are some short goodies that I now have had significant experience with:
Sauna
I remember using saunas occasionally back in my 20s. But then I did it more because it was available at the gym and it seemed a "cool" thing to do in a harebrained sort of way. This past year, I started using saunas both because I decided I needed a pro-active way to take care of my skin, particularly of the face, neck and lower legs.. and also because I read about Olympic lifter Dmitry Klokov using the sauna for recovering from hard workouts. Here is a video of it, actually:
The recovery aspects of using the sauna caught my attention because I wanted to move away from using post-workout protein shakes. I still think protein shakes are needed to gain muscular body-weight but my goals no longer involve that sort of thing. I wanted to remain strong and mobile. That's it. And, yes, I diligently started using the sauna Tuesday and Thursday evenings after my upper body workout. I only use it for 15 minutes at a sitting. On Sundays, I might hit the gym to just sit for another 15 minutes in the sauna. The idea is to work up to 30 to 40 minutes of total sauna time per week. And it works! My skin looks and feels better and muscle soreness is not evident at all. And then there is just that great feeling of relaxation you have when inside the sauna. Now I start twitching when I think of hitting the sauna as I cannot wait to finish a work day and earn my "reward".
Knee Sleeves
I have long had crunchy knees. By crunchy, I mean that my knees make a little creaky noise when I get back up from, say, sitting or kneeling on the floor. But there was no pain and my knees were always very mobile. Strangely, I don't hear that noise when I am squatting with a heavy barbell. In recent years, I no longer squat heavy preferring to stay around the 250 lb range for several sets of five or six reps twice a week. Still, I noticed that as I got near the 200 lb range, my knees would start feeling "uncomfy" like they were going to explode out the sides. Then I saw a YouTube video where Dexter Jackson was answering fan's questions while sitting outside a gym:
And one thing he mentions in the video is about how wrapping his knees saved them and that he wished he had started wrapping them earlier in his career. Now Dexter is known for his longevity in professional bodybuilding. The guy just did his 18th or so Mr.Olympia in September 2019 and placed fourth at age 49! Needless to say, when I first saw this video last summer, I decided to invest in a pair of knee sleeves (which are somewhat different from knee wraps, by the way) and.. voila! Just as with the sauna, I saw immediate results. My knees seemed to track better, yes, but the more significant effect was in how compact and "young" my knees felt. These days I always start my leg workouts with Leg Curls, followed by Good-mornings before moving on to squatting. The reason for this sequence is simple: the Leg Curls warm up my knee area thoroughly while the Good-mornings grease my hips well and also warm up my glutes and lower back.. and the net effect is much better prep for squatting. I generally do a couple of warm-up sets with an empty bar and 135 lbs without knee sleeves. Then I put on the knee sleeves and rep out the third and fourth sets with about 185 and 225 lbs respectively. Then I add another 30 lbs to the bar and do two or three sets of five or six reps. A nice, tight finish. Do I take the knee sleeves off right away after finishing squatting? No. Because I do kneeling ab pulldowns next and the knee sleeves provide nice padding for my knees when I am knelt down. They also continue to keep my knees warm for a while after the squats. But I noticed that about seven or eight minutes after the last set of squat, my knees get cold anyway. At this point, I take off the knee sleeves, turn them inside out and wipe them down with a towel provided by the gym. If you don't do this, the funk builds up. Still, I now have a second set of knee sleeves that I use on alternative weeks.
Conditioning not Cardio
Listen. Have you been attempting to lose weight, body fat, whatever and failing miserably? I have a thought that might help you out. Here it is: get on that treadmill with an intent to improving your general fitness and your conditioning so that you can play better.. be it lifting weights, jumping into a lake with your family in the summers or just walking around town or the workplace without dragging your feet. Stop thinking about losing weight because that has a lot to do with your eating, drinking and merry-making habits. Be honest with yourself. If you are eating and drinking as you please, you are not going to lose weight. So simply get on the treadmill and maintain a good walking pace on, perhaps, an uphill slope. Yes, all you need is brisk, steady walking. There is no need to run unless you like to run or are preparing for a marathon. Steady walking has the benefit of not screwing up your joints and your feet. It might actually make your knees and lower back feel better. If you are working out to gain muscle, steady walking will not affect that goal either. As for time or distance, use this general rule of thumb when first starting out: either walk 20 minutes or a mile, whichever comes later. So if you have walked 20 minutes but have not yet reached a mile, keep walking until you reach a mile. Or if you have a reached a mile but are still short of the 20 minute time period, keep walking until you reach 20 minutes of walking time. As with the sauna, two or three short walking sessions a week is better than one long session. This way, you won't feel too bad if you have to skip a walking session. Also, multiple sessions -- be it walking, sauna, lifting weights -- provide better structure to your week days, which is supremely important. At some point, you will find yourself increasing that time and distance to say 30 minutes as your conditioning improves. That's fine. But I suggest that you first increase slope and walk uphill more before attempting to increase the time/distance component. The best time to get on the treadmill is immediately after lifting weights. I like to walk after my lower body workouts on Mondays and Wednesdays.
I spent a recent Wednesday shooting the breeze at the Sachuest Point National Wildlife Refuge in Rhode Island. In its scale, the refuge had strong resemblances to World's End in Hingham MA. Sachuest Point though felt a bit more out there unlike World's End from where you can see packed Hull MA as well as the Boston skyline. The former also had noticeably more wild life. I spotted whales out on the bay, for instance. Here are some National Geographic totally non-winnable photos taken with an iPhone 7:
Is this a butterfly or what?
What's the grassy equivalent of a scree called? Lots of bugs flitting about.
More flowers in this shot. When I reviewed this shot on location.. on the iPhone screen, the depth of field was not as obvious as it is here.
What the sign says.
This bunneh looked like it wanted company but it would never have worked.
Butterfly.
Shady tree. It started getting quite humid in the early afternoon.
In the end, there was not much to do. Since access was free and each of the trails rather short, I could certainly see this spot as a place to take a sunny break from your work day if you are a supremely bored remote worker who lived nearby. There were a bunch of kids for a school trip, lots of fat locals, a few in-shape locals and joggers, fly fishermen and tourists like me who were just showing up to walk around, grunt and leave. End.
