COVID is spiking all over and we all know why, but frankly I am losing my patience. We have had enough of it and yet it’s surging happily along. It was reported this week that people who have the antibodies don’t have them for long, so that means herd immunity can’t happen. We will be living with this until we have a viable vaccine. I keep praying though and if you pray, it certainly can’t hurt to keep praying about it.
Right Now:
My youth group meetings are officially on break for the summer. My church began in-person services again via a reservation system but we will continue to watch from home for awhile more.
This means that my day is pretty open. If it’s not too hot, I may work on my patio a little bit because we have a nice backyard and patio but we never spend time on it. My daughter said she wants to hang out there so it needs to be put in order.
This Week:
My daughter has ballet and tap this week. Still via Zoom. She also has a monologue coaching. My campus is closed on Friday to observe Independence Day and that happens to be the day that Hamilton is streaming on Disney+! Then, Independence Day which is the day we celebrate my pup’s birthday. She will be 10!
We will not be attending the city’s firework’s show. We will probably just grill and watch movies. It will be a loud night though. TONS of illegal fireworks in our neighborhood (usually).
Reading:
I finished The Dutch House and I really loved it. I found the story to be a little sad and bittersweet but so beautifully told. It’s a dark fairy tale which might put some people off but it has all the themes you see in a fairy tale but told in a very modern way (the wicked stepmother, stepsisters, a home that is like a palace/castle, etc.) I hope to have my review up this week. I really would like to buy a copy to own as my version is a Kindle version from the library.
Currently, I am reading The Mother-In-Law by Sally Hepworth. One of my students lent it to me. I love that she enjoys the same twisty reads that I do. It’s been fun to share our favorite page-turners with each other. A bit of a challenge to keep it a “clean” recommendation. Not too much language or other inappropriate behavior but we’ve read some good ones and this one is no exception.
Watching:
We will probably finish up the Coben series we are watching on Netflix, The Woods. It’s a Polish crime story and has subtitles but you don’t notice them at all.
I mentioned it above, but Hamilton will be watched this week for sure. Our tickets were cancelled and we are supposed to be going sometime in January. I have to check with my friend who rescheduled for us but will that even happen? Probably not if we keep going on the way we are going.
You guys, I finally bought a nice copy of JAWS, and my Blue-ray player died. Seriously!! That was supposed to be my July 4th movie. We may venture out to buy another one so I can have it in place by the weekend.
Grateful for:
- My son bought me an air purifier for Mother’s Day. Seems like an odd gift but I’ve been using it in the house and it’s amazing for a device that is so small. It’s made by Levoit.
- My pup is finally healing after tearing up her feet during our San Luis Obispo weekend. Between the ratty boardwalks/piers and sand, she managed to shred her feet pretty good. We had to lay off of walks this week but her feet are finally healing. She was walking pretty crooked these past few days.
- My son is doing well at his new job and liking the people and work a lot. This gives me peace of mind.
I think this pandemic is affecting us in a lot of different ways. I’ve seen a real drop in blog posts and comments. I think we are all just trying to do the best we can with what we’ve been given. The news is depressing. Waking up is hard when you are faced with the same routine day in and day out. Let’s look out for each other. If you haven’t heard from someone in awhile, reach out to them. I am going to spend my week touching base with people.
Hang in there.
Book Chatter 
I think we’re in the same boat, feeling angry and bemused about the people who refuse to wear masks and are driving this virus resurgence with their negligence and ignorance (or just plain selfishness). It’s frustrating but we’d already decided we were just going to continue acting like we’re in lockdown mode till a vaccination is available and we’ve been injected. Admittedly, we did stretch beyond that a bit but we’re back to full lockdown mode with every-two-weeks grocery runs. Blah. We’ll get through it but the reaction of our fellow Americans is more than a little disappointing.
Sorry about the pupper’s ouchie feet! Glad she’s doing better. Also glad E. is enjoying his job! My youngest started working in the middle of lockdown, training on a work computer that he had to go check out. He’s in the office, now, but not sure how long that will last because he lives in what’s just become a “hot spot” this past week. So happy that he’s loving the job, though. That means a lot and just having one when so many are unemployed is something to be very, very grateful for.
I’m hoping that the recent surge doesn’t cause another mass shutdown because it will for sure affect our kids who have just started working again. I realize there is nothing I can do to control what other people choose to do so yes, we do stay home as much as possible. We wear masks most of the time unless we are outside and away from people. I’ve never really been depressed but I’m getting there.
Glad the dog’s paws are getting better, glad your son is adjusting well. I hope you have a great week!
I want people to wear masks and stop hanging out in groups. Ugh. You all sound busy and the upcoming Hamilton stream should be wonderful. Santa Barbara has cancelled it’s fireworks and all 4th celebrations. Our part of town is doing a parade, but the parade will come to us. Should be charming.
Santa Clarita is still a “go” for the fireworks celebration. Really not smart. They are asking people to remain in their cars but they won’t.
I am losing my patience with people and their ignorance. I am continuing to only go out if necessary.
I cannot wait to see Hamilton. I cannot afford tickets here so this is wonderful news for us — Kennedy Center tickets in DC are always too expensive.
My husband’s birthday was this weekend. Small family gathering, his favorite ice cream cake, etc. I think I’ll be staying off social media on weekends for the foreseeable future.
This was a bad weekend to be on social media too. So much ridiculousness all around. COVID rearing its head again, political embarrassment all around. When I wake up each morning all I feel is dread now. Not a good way to wake up.
hello! I keep wanting to blog and write reviews/ updates – maybe today? I feel I just don’t have the time! and I want to READ when I do, so… Glad to see you are well and finding tacos and staying safe and updating us on everything. Yes, I think I will blog a random update post of some kind… Happy almost-July!
I think an update post would be good. We all need to check in now and then with each other during this time. I already have two blogger friends waiting on COVID test results and with everything ramping up again it’s just good to check in.
I loved The Dutch House as well; the audio was pitch perfect narrated by Tom Hanks. Our COVID numbers are still declining as our governor was super cautious to re open. Restaurants are just beginning to open for indoor dining at only 50% previous capacity and fitting rooms in stores are by appointment only as there is a whole disinfectant process which must be followed. Masks are required in most places unless health reasons.
Reading has been my saving grace through most of this.
When we re-opened everything, some places took special care to do it the right way but others threw all caution to the wind and opened without any precautions. Now, they are getting shutdown but the damage is already done. I REALLY do not want another complete shutdown, it would affect my son’s new job and he had to sign a housing lease so he’d be stuck with that.
It has been interesting to see how different areas are handling the increase in cases. I hate to say it, but until we get that vaccine, governments are going to have to enforce mask-wearing. I would even say we need to shut down the economy again, but I think that might cause an utter breakdown in society. I do think we could start flattening the curve if we make everyone wear a mask and practice social distancing. Put in the same requirements for the entire country and it ends the local differences and would still allow people to go out and live their lives. It is frustrating though, knowing this country is doing such a shitty job preventing people from getting sick.
And what happens by me is that locally we lock down, so then people flood the next town over. So With the proximity of towns and people coming and going it doesn’t really help. Everyone has to follow the rules and that won’t happen. Too much me me me, going on.
That has been our problem (and by our I mean this country) all along. Making it worse is the far-right belief that the disease is simply a Democratic ploy to prevent people from going to the polls and voting. (One of my BILs holds this belief and is convinced that COVID will disappear in November.)
In California, we have always had absentee voting so the fabricated virus to force absentee ballots doesn’t make sense to me but that is what they are saying here too. You probably saw some posts already but there are some book bloggers out there getting tested right now. I think for most, they didn’t know anyone who was sick. That is about to change.
I hadn’t seen anything about anyone getting tested. Dang. I have a feeling things are going to go downhill very quickly.
Glad you loved The Dutch House… it was a favorite of mine last year. And I couldn’t put The Mother-In-Law down. My mother is reading it now.
The virus is running rampant here and people are being idiots. There’s an emergency City Council meeting tomorrow to discuss mandating face coverings and possible beach closing for 4th of July. I’m afraid this is going to be life for a long time…
As of this post last Sunday, our 4th of July fireworks celebration was still on but it was cancelled yesterday and our governor has closed all beaches through the weekend as well. We’ve had a 40% increase in hospital beds for Calif. Fauci said without strict restrictions, we could hit 100K new cases in one day. That seems unbelievable but I know many people in my circle now who are waiting on test results now. What did everyone expect? Ooof.
It is frustrating seeing people hang out in groups without practicing any safe guidelines. Instead they are indignant that they are expected to wear masks. Our neighbors had a big pool party yesterday – I saw more than family hanging out in close contact so that has me mad too.
Glad the pup is feeling better. Didn’t know she was hurting. The poor fur baby.
Avoiding large gatherings for me is easy. Our church opened with a ticket only system to control attendance but I am not comfortable with that yet. The harder decisions happen when my daughter wants to go to lunch with a friend. A friend who is not in our immediate quarantine circle. Feels fine. My daughter feels fine but both could be carriers. I’ve allowed it twice since March. Definitely not tempting fate too often but it feels risky each time. My daughter needs to finish driver’s training but I’ve held off. Sitting in a car with a stranger? Gives me the germ heebie jeebies. I am positive they don’t spray down the interior every time a student gets in.
Happy Birthday to Otter Pup. I hope she’s all right at 10. My dog Stella turns 8 on July 3rd, so perhaps I will get her a cupcake ha. I too want to see Hamilton !! … but not sure I have access to Disney + hmm I will check to figure out how to see it. I’m surprised your city is having fireworks? My folks in Redlands say their annual city fireworks have been cancelled … which is like the first time in 100 years. I’m tiring of the pandemic too …. which is psychologically exhausting. Not traveling and being able to see relatives … is tough. I’m trying to figure out when to go and perhaps how. Stay well Ti.
Our fireworks were just cancelled two days ago and all of our restaurants are closed for dining again along with many other things. I really wanted to avoid another round of closures. So far, my son’s county is not affected as their numbers are still good but we are level 4.5 out of 5 so pretty bad.
The Otter Pup is showing her age a little. Ever since our trip to San Luis Obispo she’s been dragging herself around. Could be missing the boy, could still be her feet and hips but she is just not her usually peppy self. Still eating and drinking and excited for walks but sleeps the rest of the day. My dog friends say she is sick of me. Ha!