Small Talk: The Polygamous Cul-de-Sac

[Kohola3]

2 minutes ago, Yeah No said:

  Imagine how many would die if we just let it "run its course" without any restrictions at all?

It boggles the mind.  I want to smack everyone who says it just needs to "run its course" and we shouldn't be "living in fear" and "don't let it rule you".  I think two million deaths is a really good reason to be living in fear!  And I volunteer every one of those a-holes to be one of the two million.

[Yeah No]

35 minutes ago, Kohola3 said:

It boggles the mind.  I want to smack everyone who says it just needs to "run its course" and we shouldn't be "living in fear" and "don't let it rule you".  I think two million deaths is a really good reason to be living in fear!  And I volunteer every one of those a-holes to be one of the two million.

I think having a parent or other close loved one die of this is another really good reason to live in fear, plus being over a certain age and having medical conditions.  I've read stories of families that have lost several members each to this.  It's unthinkably callous and evil to suggest that we don't live in fear and just let this thing run its course (at our expense of course).  Especially when most people don't have access to the best medical care and experimental treatments that aren't approved for use yet.  I just can't get over how incredibly and openly evil this is.

[sharkerbaby]

Thank you @Kohola3 for responding.  Interesting.  I'm going to back out of this conversation and I think this entire board.  I wish everyone all the best.

[Kyanight]

1 minute ago, sharkerbaby said:

Thank you @Kohola3 for responding.  Interesting.  I'm going to back out of this conversation and I think this entire board.  I wish everyone all the best.

Everyone here doesn't have to think alike or share the same opinions.  This is just a sensitive issue for everyone - no matter how you look at it.

[Meowwww]

I 49, with a heart condition. I work with several teens, seniors in high school.  They are going in to school. Bored.  Taking their masks off at every opportunity.  They, coupled with all the customers every day complaining about the restrictions, don’t care. 
As I said before, I live in an alternate universe where no one anyone really knows has caught the virus.  Or if they have, they were asymptotic and were good. 
My sister in law, her hubby and her son had it.  They were barely sick. Fever of 100 for an hour, headaches.  
It really messes with my head.  If my family had it and were fine, and my customers have had it and were fine, is it so bad?  YES IT IS.  It’s just frustrating, working retail every day and feeling good with customers who are also feeling good. 
I process tons of shipment every day, (literally 4000 pounds plus of items) boxes that were touched by who knows how many people.  I wait on 100 people a day.  I haven’t caught it (I’m sure, kind of, I already had it returning from London last October with terrible lungs)....but my coworkers are fine too.  
I’m not sure what I am trying to say here.   It’s just....difficult.  

Edited October 16, 2020 by Meowwww

[LydiaE]

The problem is that this isn’t a normal way to live and many people don’t have the financial and emotional tools to cope.

However, as a woman in her early-to-mid 40s with one grown child and one 17 year old son at home, I’ve done my best to put myself in the place of many different groups in order to empathize.

Senior citizens are naturally going to want to protect their vulnerable health and remaining resources, but they may be too far removed from the life of a young mother who is both scared for the health of her young child but also fearful she may not be able to feed or clothe her child and also mourn for the future of said child. There isn’t much optimism to go around.

My son, a goal-oriented individual, is graduating this year and has no idea if he’ll be able to work towards those goals in the conventional ways previous generations have been able to. Middle-aged men and women historically have had a difficult time securing promising employment opportunities once long-term job security vanishes. I can’t even imagine how terrifying it would be to be a pregnant woman in 2020.

Depending in which phase of life you’re in, you’re naturally going to focus more on safety or more on productivity. Add to the mix all of the vapid and rabid political fanatics, and life sucks immeasurably for all.

[Teafortwo]

On 10/15/2020 at 3:08 AM, Yeah No said:

nd you want me to feel sorry for "grave psychological harm" from missing one's PROM? 

I do not have any answers to this whole situation. I wasn't thinking of proms when I wrote my post. I was referring to things like lost educational and job opportunities, particularly among the hardest hit and socio-economically disadvantaged groups. There are many young people who do not have decent internet access and enough food without school lunches. Furthermore, some after-school programs are running on extended hours while some school systems have reduced or staggered hours, so kids and caretakers end up exposed together in the after-school program anyway. 

I feel like we are living in the Stephen King universe represented by "The Stand."

[suomi]

[more at link]

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/17/opinion/covid-19-winter.html?action=click&module=Opinion&pgtype=Homepage

In My Mountain Town, We’re Preparing for Dark Times

As the contagion spreads, we look ahead to winter and wonder whom we can safely pull close.

At dawn the deer are as thick as cattle in the valley bottom, feeding on what remains after summer’s final haying. Soon, hunting season’s first shot will scatter them to higher country, where winds shake the aspens’ first golden coins to the ground. There’s not much time. So they eat the stubble without pause, fattening up for the hungry months ahead.

At the river, the water is skinny but runs cold again with the return of freezing nights. The trout feel the change and are voracious. This makes them reckless, and the fishing is good in the squinting hours around sunrise. 

It is autumn again in the mountains of the West, and what is not gracefully dying is desperate to live.

Even in the lovely moments, a frantic-ness belies the season here, the underlying rhythm of life in hard places. The black bear roots for the last frost-shriveled berries. The fish lurches to the fly. The woodcutter’s saw screams in the quiet forest, as she piles the rounds that will warm her family. All of us in our fashion rush to lay in the things we need before winter descends.

This autumn feels different than those of the past. The wistfulness of the season is stronger, and the pace of the days feels more urgent. All spring and summer, as places such as New York suffered terribly because of the pandemic, we enjoyed our relative isolation and the lack of outbreaks. Our valley wants for many things, but we do not lack for elbow room.

The other asset that makes this place special is its sense of community. Late each autumn the already-small population of the valley shrinks smaller still, as avalanches close one of the few roads to Seattle and the snowbirds migrate south. People who have scattered to the woods and peaks and fields all summer now return, and the community knits itself together again for the cold winter months, buried in snow.

In an era of contagion, though, closeness is treacherous. We are told to stay out of one another’s homes. We are advised to avoid gatherings. What makes us human - the need for connection, for human touch - is now suspect.

And so we also grab at the invitations to dinner outside with others - invitations that once felt casual but that now feel urgent. We sit on the patio drinking summer drinks long after summer is gone, ignoring the shivering night. We look for more human connections to make, wondering who we can safely pull close, whose friendship will keep us both warm. We are laying by memories for winter, as the bear puts on fat, in hopes what we have will be enough for the long, dark times to come.

Edited October 18, 2020 by suomi
typo

[suomi]

The Dodgers won the 7th game of the NL series so they are going to the World Series. They won 3 of the last 4 NL series making them the first team to do so since the 1963-1966 Dodgers of the Drysdale/Koufax era.

The Braves were awesome opponents (and pitcher Ian Anderson is a stone fox) so it was one helluva series. But, Go Blue!

[ginger90]

7 hours ago, suomi said:

The Dodgers won the 7th game of the NL series so they are going to the World Series. They won 3 of the last 4 NL series making them the first team to do so since the 1963-1966 Dodgers of the Drysdale/Koufax era.

The Braves were awesome opponents (and pitcher Ian Anderson is a stone fox) so it was one helluva series. But, Go Blue!

As a Mets fan, I know, I know, I’m glad to see the Dodgers in it. 😁

[suomi]

I play solitaire on my PC while I watch the news because I can't just stare at the TV screen, it drives me nuts. I never turn the sound on but I got used to seeing solitaire interrupted by some Purex detergent commercials with a charming looking guy. A couple weeks I decided to find out who he is and... his name is Jordan Watson, he is from New Zealand and I do love me an accent. 

Turns out he wrote a dad book and churns out dad videos (his youngest daughter is in the Purex commercials). His mother emigrated from England to NZ where she met his dad, who is Maori. So I have a new boyfriend and I'm still working out how to break it to Jason Mamoa. Bonus: I have to see Lisa Bonet's face everywhere and Mrs Watson is never visible. I need to tell Jason before he hears it elsewhere, I owe him that much at least. 

Jason has two kids and Jordan has three kids, and they both do Haka and I, evidently, Have. No. Shame. Maybe he will make you laugh.

 

 

 

 
 

Edited October 25, 2020 by suomi

[Kyanight]

HA HA HA HA HA!!  I especially enjoyed the video about folding the laundry!

 

Edited October 25, 2020 by Kyanight

[xwordfanatik]

He's cute!  I like accents, too.

[Kohola3]

I'm right there with him on the fitted sheets!

[Yeah No]

Thanks, @suomi, I needed the laugh!  I'm going to show these to my husband.  He'll get a kick out of them, LOL.

And the guy is really cute!

[TurtlePower]

2020 is still up to its tricks: it was 90 degrees yesterday in southern New Mexico. Today, we have a winter storm warning. Luckily I'm from the north originally, but the local people are going to lose their shit. The pandemic will be nothing compared to desert folk clearing out a store because of an approaching snow storm (which will melt in 2 days). I saw it in Las Vegas in 2008 when there was 7 inches in the valley, this will be no different. People were buying milk for weeks--and the snow was gone in a couple days. 

 

[Kohola3]

39 minutes ago, TurtlePower said:

People were buying milk for weeks--and the snow was gone in a couple days. 

Pre-Covid I was always amused by visiting a grocery store to see what people felt were essentials in an oncoming storm.  Bread and milk were always high on everyone's list.  My favorite was a guy with 5 boxes of Cheerios, a couple of cases of beer and two bags of dog food.

[Sandy W]

2 hours ago, Kohola3 said:

Pre-Covid I was always amused by visiting a grocery store to see what people felt were essentials in an oncoming storm.  Bread and milk were always high on everyone's list.  My favorite was a guy with 5 boxes of Cheerios, a couple of cases of beer and two bags of dog food.

Funny where your mind goes.  I was in Costco days after the pandemic was declared and immediately thought I should stock up on flour as well as tp.  All they had left on the shelves were 25 lb. bags, so I wrestled one into my cart, now keep in mind that we are a family that never eats bread, aside from a French stick for periodic Italian meals or to go with a salad.  When I got home, I stared at that bag, wondering where to store it and more so, how to utilize it.  It would be 9 more months before I would need that much flour for holiday baking.  Then it struck me, I had a bread machine tucked away, so feeling like Dora Domestic, I pulled it out, found a recipe for sunflower bread and have been churning out a loaf every few days. This may account for my Covid 10 pounds.🤣

[Kohola3]

3 minutes ago, Sandy W said:

Then it struck me, I had a bread machine tucked away, so feeling like Dora Domestic, I pulled it out, found a recipe for sunflower bread and have been churning out a loaf every few days.

I have read that bread making, canning, home improvement projects, and gardening had huge surges since Covid began.  My local greenhouse sold out of virtually everything very early on this spring both flowers and vegetable plants.  

[Sandy W]

4 minutes ago, Kohola3 said:

I have read that bread making, canning, home improvement projects, and gardening had huge surges since Covid began.  My local greenhouse sold out of virtually everything very early on this spring both flowers and vegetable plants.  

There has been an increased interest in crafting projects also.  It has kept kids not able to attend school on the regular as well as adults with time on their hands busy and productive.  I think we will see a huge outpouring of lovingly created gifts this holiday season, giving true meaning to the reason for the season.

[Lovecat]

2 hours ago, Kohola3 said:

Pre-Covid I was always amused by visiting a grocery store to see what people felt were essentials in an oncoming storm.  Bread and milk were always high on everyone's list.  My favorite was a guy with 5 boxes of Cheerios, a couple of cases of beer and two bags of dog food.

Bread, milk, and eggs.  I imagine everyone out there making piles of French toast.  Mmmmm.  French toaaaaast.

[Roslyn]

1 hour ago, Kohola3 said:

I have read that bread making, canning, home improvement projects, and gardening had huge surges since Covid began.  My local greenhouse sold out of virtually everything very early on this spring both flowers and vegetable plants.  

Yes. I can confirm. To the point that counterfeit canning lids from China and sold as "Ball lids" are now a thing.

[laurakaye]

3 minutes ago, Sandy W said:

Funny where your mind goes.  I was in Costco days after the pandemic was declared and immediately thought I should stock up on flour as well as tp...........This may account for my Covid 10 pounds.🤣

And I decided that for whatever reason I needed to stock up on Peanut Butter Monster trail mix from Target.  I recall the day vividly...it was still fairly early in the pandemic days, probably April, and I was making a rare excursion to that particular store to buy things I couldn't get at Aldi.  Since I was home for the most part, I thought my house should at least smell like an Ocean Breeze or a Succulent Garden so I decided to browse the candles and then felt incredibly guilty that I was (A) browsing for something so normal during a pandemic and (B) realizing that I was pulling my mask down to smell the candles.  I threw two or three into my cart and when I went down the cereal/trail mix aisle, I randomly tossed in a container of PB trail mix which I had never had (and these are big containers at $7.99 a pop) because at that point I was unsure of what, exactly, I was supposed to be buying/looking for/doing.  All I knew was that the things I really needed were gone, I was feeling extremely uncomfortable, and I like peanut butter.  Long story short, we have not been without this trail mix since that day.  We put the containers in the fridge and we literally go through a container a week...which most likely contributed to my own Quarantine 15. 🙂

 

On 10/17/2020 at 9:03 PM, suomi said:

In My Mountain Town, We’re Preparing for Dark Times

And so we also grab at the invitations to dinner outside with others - invitations that once felt casual but that now feel urgent. We sit on the patio drinking summer drinks long after summer is gone, ignoring the shivering night. We look for more human connections to make, wondering who we can safely pull close, whose friendship will keep us both warm. We are laying by memories for winter, as the bear puts on fat, in hopes what we have will be enough for the long, dark times to come.

This article hit me in the feels, and especially that last sentence.  Here in Michigan I am mentally preparing for my winter "hibernation."  Not so much a laying-around-being-lazy time, but a time when you go outside and don't see your neighbors, it gets dark very early, for a short time we go to work in the dark and go home in the dark, and I have to prep my brain for not being able to go out and walk every day (but only ice and sub-zero winds stop me).  This year definitely feels very different though.  I have a strong desire to purge my house room by room, drawer by drawer, giving things away or throwing things away until I am left with only the things I have use for.  And I also wonder how long the hibernation is going to be - just because it's March or April or May doesn't necessarily mean that I will be able to roam free again.  It's a bit unnerving, to say the least.  My Seasonal Affective Disorder Happy Light is going to get a workout this winter.

[Kyanight]

17 minutes ago, laurakaye said:

I have a strong desire to purge my house room by room, drawer by drawer, giving things away or throwing things away until I am left with only the things I have use for. 

You aren't alone.  I have tried to take a load of things to the thrift stores - PLURAL - we have them all over the place - and they aren't accepting anything right now because they are too full.  On weekends when you drive by you see trucks and cars in a line dumping stuff off next to the closed stores. (After hours).  We've also seen couples scrounging through the donations when the stores are closed, and although this outrages my son, I told him that anyone who needs stuff that badly should be welcome to it - afterall, it was unwanted in the first place.  Yes, it's stealing - hopefully the people really need it.   I don't want my nice stuff ruined in the weather, crushed, etc. - so I drive around with the damn stuff in my trunk and back seat, waiting for the opportunity to drop it off when they have an employee there to take it in.  They have really reduced hours you can drop stuff off even when they ARE accepting items - 12:30 - 4:00 according to the signs posted.

I guess less people are shopping at thrift stores right now, although you could have fooled me since the parking lots always look packed.  I like to thrift, but it's not happening these days.  Plus it's counter-productive to buy more junk when I am trying to get junk OUT of my house!

[MonicaM]

35 minutes ago, laurakaye said:

This article hit me in the feels, and especially that last sentence.  Here in Michigan I am mentally preparing for my winter "hibernation."  Not so much a laying-around-being-lazy time, but a time when you go outside and don't see your neighbors, it gets dark very early, for a short time we go to work in the dark and go home in the dark, and I have to prep my brain for not being able to go out and walk every day (but only ice and sub-zero winds stop me).  This year definitely feels very different though.  I have a strong desire to purge my house room by room, drawer by drawer, giving things away or throwing things away until I am left with only the things I have use for.  And I also wonder how long the hibernation is going to be - just because it's March or April or May doesn't necessarily mean that I will be able to roam free again.  It's a bit unnerving, to say the least.  My Seasonal Affective Disorder Happy Light is going to get a workout this winter.

I just brought mine out a couple of days ago.  There has been so much cr@p going on, both in my personal life and in the outside world, that I pretty much forgot I might have a way to relieve at least a little of the depression and anxiety that's overwhelming me most days.  I've had it for a couple of years, and while I'm not totally convinced it helps, I can't say for certain it doesn't help either.  What I really want is a magic wand to make everything all better!!

[laurakaye]

5 minutes ago, MonicaM said:

I just brought mine out a couple of days ago.  There has been so much cr@p going on, both in my personal life and in the outside world, that I pretty much forgot I might have a way to relieve at least a little of the depression and anxiety that's overwhelming me most days.  I've had it for a couple of years, and while I'm not totally convinced it helps, I can't say for certain it doesn't help either.  What I really want is a magic wand to make everything all better!!

Right!  I don't know if it works but I don't want to not use it just to see what happens, especially this year!  

A magic wand sounds good.  We have Halloween and a full moon this Saturday, followed by the terrible horrible no-good Daylight Savings Time on Sunday, followed by the election.  Sometimes I just have to take a deep breath and remind myself that we will get through this!!

Edited October 26, 2020 by laurakaye

[Lovecat]

2 hours ago, laurakaye said:

Right!  I don't know if it works but I don't want to not use it just to see what happens, especially this year!  

A magic wand sounds good.  We have Halloween and a full moon this Saturday, followed by the terrible horrible no-good Daylight Savings Time on Sunday, followed by the election.  Sometimes I just have to take a deep breath and remind myself that we will get through this!!

I hate to be "that guy," but unless you're in the Southern Hemisphere, you are on Daylight Saving Time now, and will be returning to Standard Time this weekend (DST is summer time) 🙂  While it gives me pause to know that this time (about 5PM) next week it will be dark, I sure am looking forward to that extra hour of sleep...

[Scarlett45]

3 hours ago, Lovecat said:

I hate to be "that guy," but unless you're in the Southern Hemisphere, you are on Daylight Saving Time now, and will be returning to Standard Time this weekend (DST is summer time) 🙂  While it gives me pause to know that this time (about 5PM) next week it will be dark, I sure am looking forward to that extra hour of sleep...

I’m so very said that the next time we will have 25 hours of Halloween Celebrations will be 2026. Halloween 2015 also fell the night of Day Light savings time ending and it was such fun. 
 

Anyone else listening to the podcast about Short Creek? I’m on episode 5 now. 

[laurakaye]

12 hours ago, Scarlett45 said:

Anyone else listening to the podcast about Short Creek? I’m on episode 5 now. 

I am.  It's fascinating - but I cannot believe that the host decided to temporarily live in Warren Jeff's old house.  She's very brave - I can't hear his voice without a chill going down my spine.  I am also addicted to Leah Remini's scientology podcast and a podcast about Diane Downs.  I balance it out with listening to recaps of The Great British Bakeoff so as not to overload my brain with only bad stuff.

[DakotaJustice]

1 hour ago, laurakaye said:

I am.  It's fascinating - but I cannot believe that the host decided to temporarily live in Warren Jeff's old house.  She's very brave - I can't hear his voice without a chill going down my spine.  I am also addicted to Leah Remini's scientology podcast and a podcast about Diane Downs.  I balance it out with listening to recaps of The Great British Bakeoff so as not to overload my brain with only bad stuff.

There's a Diane Downs podcast?!?

I've been bInge watching Curb Your Enthusiasm. Never watched it before! I find it laugh-out-loud hilarious. 

[laurakaye]

1 hour ago, DakotaJustice said:

There's a Diane Downs podcast?!?

I've been bInge watching Curb Your Enthusiasm. Never watched it before! I find it laugh-out-loud hilarious. 

It's called "Happy Face Presents Two Face."  Season Two is about the daughter that Diane had while in prison, and her coming to terms on who her mother is.  I read "Small Sacrifices" while I was in college and it has always stuck with me, so here I am decades later listening to that baby tell her own story.

[Lovecat]

2 hours ago, laurakaye said:

I am also addicted to Leah Remini's scientology podcast and a podcast about Diane Downs.  I balance it out with listening to recaps of The Great British Bakeoff so as not to overload my brain with only bad stuff.

I listen to a lot of true crime podcasts, so my mental palate cleanser is Pack Your Knives, which is a Top Chef recap podcast.  They're currently finishing up a re-watch/recap of S6, the Las Vegas season with the Voltaggio brothers and Jen Carroll.  Thanks for the reminder about the GBBO podcast; I've been meaning to check that one out!

[Yeah No]

On 10/26/2020 at 1:47 PM, laurakaye said:

This article hit me in the feels, and especially that last sentence.  Here in Michigan I am mentally preparing for my winter "hibernation."  Not so much a laying-around-being-lazy time, but a time when you go outside and don't see your neighbors, it gets dark very early, for a short time we go to work in the dark and go home in the dark, and I have to prep my brain for not being able to go out and walk every day (but only ice and sub-zero winds stop me).  This year definitely feels very different though.  I have a strong desire to purge my house room by room, drawer by drawer, giving things away or throwing things away until I am left with only the things I have use for.  And I also wonder how long the hibernation is going to be - just because it's March or April or May doesn't necessarily mean that I will be able to roam free again.  It's a bit unnerving, to say the least.  My Seasonal Affective Disorder Happy Light is going to get a workout this winter.

I feel this way too and coincidentally I've already begun doing it.  On Sunday I went through all my kitchen drawers, got rid of a lot of junk and reorganized everything.  I'm going to continue.  Here in the North we normally go through a winter hibernation of sorts so it won't be too different from what I normally do.  I'm just going to make sure to take a lot of vitamin D to help with the SADS.  Maybe I'll even unearth my own "happy light", which is somewhere in the garage.  Plus I have to be extra vigilant about my weight because I'll be getting less exercise.  I only wish I could afford to get a Peloton or something similar.  The other problem is where I'd put it - not a lot of space in this small house.  Just hoping to ride this thing out and survive as well as possible.

On 10/26/2020 at 2:31 PM, MonicaM said:

I just brought mine out a couple of days ago.  There has been so much cr@p going on, both in my personal life and in the outside world, that I pretty much forgot I might have a way to relieve at least a little of the depression and anxiety that's overwhelming me most days.  I've had it for a couple of years, and while I'm not totally convinced it helps, I can't say for certain it doesn't help either.  What I really want is a magic wand to make everything all better!!

I feel the same way!  My doctor put me on an anti-anxiety medication because I wasn't getting enough sleep but it made me feel so tired even in the tiniest dose that I thought I had Covid, so I stopped taking it.  I'm still looking for that "magic wand".  I am feeling a little better lately since it got colder and it's easier to sleep, but I know I'm on the edge and not out of the woods.   Hopefully we'll get some good news soon - all of it has been so bad for so long....

Edited October 28, 2020 by Yeah No

[Kohola3]

26 minutes ago, Yeah No said:

I'm just going to make sure to take a lot of vitamin D to help with the SADS. 

Plus more and more has been written about how poorly people with low levels of D do when they have Covid.  Not that we should be taking handfuls (because that can become toxic) but be mindful of it. I have been on D for years, my oncologist wants me at a high normal;  it's an anti-inflammatory and interferes with tumor growth.

[laurakaye]

I am going to try vitamin D for the first time this winter. A co-worker talked me into trying it for awhile, she swears it helps keep the SADs at bay.  And like you, @Yeah No, I was also shopping Pelotons but there's no way.  Normally I would use my twice-weekly yoga classes to get me through, but who knows if those are even going to happen and if they are, if I even want to go.

My free Tuesday yoga class opened back up three weeks ago.  It's held in a church meeting room which is large enough for lots of social distancing and we mask up the whole time.  Yesterday we were told to check our emails because if cases continue to go up, the class will not continue.  I am torn - I love going and don't even mind the mask if I'm going to get a good class out of it, but at the same time if it does continue despite cases rising, do I want to go?  I don't know!  We're all basically policing ourselves during this mess.  I have noticed some of the stores I frequent have changed their signage from "Mask Required" to "Mask Recommended."  I was like, when did that happen??  Last I knew they were required, but maybe it's the store's way of not having to police their clientele themselves because who wants to confront someone not wearing a mask, especially at this particular time?  Again, I say "I don't know."  Interestingly, that's also how I typically respond lately when someone asks me, "How are you?"  🤔

[iwantcookies]

I take so much vitamin D and I’m still deficient! 

[suomi]

Have we seen the trailer for Let Him Go with Diane Lane and Kevin Costner, scheduled for release on Nov 6? It's based on a true story. I won't go to a theater but surely it will stream somewhere later on.

How about The Undoing on HBO? I don't have HBO but I read the novel it's based on called You Should Have Known. It was so good. I read about the huge differences between the book and the film and have pretty much decided to stay with the book. I started it a second time and have decided to read it more slowly, so it will last longer.

 

 

[TurtlePower]

On 10/26/2020 at 9:40 AM, Kohola3 said:

I have read that bread making, canning, home improvement projects, and gardening had huge surges since Covid began.  My local greenhouse sold out of virtually everything very early on this spring both flowers and vegetable plants.  

People are being forced to think about being more self sufficient, which is a good thing. This is just normal to me because my childhood consisted of growing and preserving most of our food. It's a good reminder that food doesn't just appear on shelves, someone has to grow it and ship it and during a major crisis, it likely won't be on the shelves. 

I imagine when there's another war or the country collapses, the Amish, farmers and ranchers (and those who have similar skills) will fare best. The cities will have looting and gangs and fighting. I know people who have nothing beyond 3 days' worth of food or supplies and have no plan if something bad happens. 

[Yeah No]

On 10/26/2020 at 11:40 AM, Kohola3 said:

I have read that bread making, canning, home improvement projects, and gardening had huge surges since Covid began.  My local greenhouse sold out of virtually everything very early on this spring both flowers and vegetable plants.  

Speaking of stuff selling out, I was warned at my local supermarket by staff that there are rumors of coming shortages of holiday season canned products like cranberries and pumpkin.  I saw articles debunking any coming canned pumpkin shortage but nothing about cranberries.  I don't usually give in to fear mongering, but I bought a few extra cans of each just to be on the safe side because such rumors can actually CAUSE shortages as people stock up.  Plus I got extra stove-top stuffing, LOL, as there's a rumor about that too and I use it in a recipe.  The positivity rate in my state is going up so I am engaging in stocking up right now to beat the crunch.  Hubbie and I just discussed going back to Instacart for most of our shopping starting in Novmeber.  My limited freedom was nice while it lasted..... 😥

[Kohola3]

1 hour ago, TurtlePower said:

I imagine when there's another war or the country collapses, the Amish, farmers and ranchers (and those who have similar skills) will fare best.

You are probably correct.   In defense of some folks, they have not got the room for growing enough to sustain them and we certainly cannot all have a herd or flock of animals for meat.  It's just not practical.  Canning isn't that difficult but you do need the tools.  And getting the canning lids and jars has been getting so hard this year.  Luckily always buy ahead for next year so I was OK.

Anybody want to place bets on the next big shortage?  I think we've probably all stashed TP just in case but what will be the surprise item this time around?  Because we're on a fast track to another shutdown.

[Absolom]

Crazy as it is, but I just bought Costco packages of toilet tissue and paper towels for my daughter.  I went during senior hours so with the size of Costco it's probably safer for me than going to a grocery store.  It does seem odd to have grandma doing shopping for others though.  I already have plenty of paper products stashed away for me.

[laurakaye]

I now own enough antibacterial wipes to last me more than a year....however, I'm glad I have them in case someone I know needs some and can't get out of the house.  It's like a primal cavewoman need to be able to supply my tribe with things they might need if I can get it to them.

[Kohola3]

1 hour ago, laurakaye said:

I now own enough antibacterial wipes to last me more than a year.

Still cannot get those here but I have enough hand sanitizer to bathe an elephant herd.  And for the same reason, if someone needs that I can supply it.

[Absolom]

I have yet to see disinfecting wipes at Costco although my housekeeper said she bought a pack there.  However, Wal Mart has store brand and name brand ones and Target put generic ones on sale last week.

[xwordfanatik]

26 minutes ago, Kohola3 said:

Still cannot get those here but I have enough hand sanitizer to bathe an elephant herd.  And for the same reason, if someone needs that I can supply it.

I heard a joke on tv the other night.  A kid was bugging his great aunt about Covid protection, and she said, "I eat disinfectant and crap sanitizer."

I've got a couple of containers of wipes.  Lysol spray is still impossible to find.  I got a box of sanitizer 2 oz. bottles from Costco Instacart delivery.  They were out of paper towels.

[laurakaye]

When my Target finally got in Clorox wipes, I literally stood there in front of the display with my mouth open like I was looking at a live purple unicorn.

[suomi]

For the most part I have enjoyed a reprieve from robocallers during the past few months. It went from 3 or 4 every day to a couple a week to none for weeks at a time. 

A week ago today my phone started blowing up again, along with my email. I'm not sure which is the greater intrusion because both require many steps to clean up the uninvited clutter.

There was one bright spot: I almost won the Jamaican Lottery yesterday! I say "almost" because the call went to voice mail, which nullified my win. Bummer. 

Edited October 29, 2020 by suomi
typo

[iwantcookies]

The only spam phone calls I get are in Chinese! Wonder what they say?

[Sandy W]

I would be concerned if I didn't hear from my 3 weekly callers.  2 are robocalls, offering to test my well and clean my septic tank.  Each week I carefully explain to the robots that I am on town water and sewer to no avail.  The most annoying is a real person that calls weekly offering a deal on cleaning my ductwork, I have hot water heat, thus no ducts.  Her English is very poor, so I don't think she understands me when I politely tell her, no I still don't have forced air heat and never will and ask her to please remove me from her list of callers.🤦‍♀️

[iwantcookies]

8 minutes ago, Sandy W said:

I would be concerned if I didn't hear from my 3 weekly callers.  2 are robocalls, offering to test my well and clean my septic tank.  Each week I carefully explain to the robots that I am on town water and sewer to no avail.  The most annoying is a real person that calls weekly offering a deal on cleaning my ductwork, I have hot water heat, thus no ducts.  Her English is very poor, so I don't think she understands me when I politely tell her, no I still don't have forced air heat and never will and ask her to please remove me from her list of callers.🤦‍♀️

Block the numbers 

I do every day but they keep calling from different numbers