44012 :: Diversions - or a reflection on vacation

Diversions are nice but do little to change life. That doesn’t stop us from seeking them or enjoying them.

If nothing more, they do give us a moment to catch our breath, take a pause, and reflect on the important. It’s also important to get some perspective and realize there are things in life that are not our responsibility or under our control, and it’s equally important to determine the appropriate way to process and respond to those things.

Getting frustrated, angry or sad have been my go-to responses to so many things that are not under my jurisdiction.

I am trying to learn to be more philosophical and try to see things from other points of view. That’s really the only way I can think of, besides prayer of course, to getting through so much of life’s frustrations.

May Day... mayday

Welcome to May, and part 2 of 3 installments of the year 2020. Who knew, when we were saying goodbye to 2019 that we would be embarking on our own version of “The Roaring 20’s”?

In all honesty, for us this year doesn’t look all that different from last… Well, maybe with a change of scenery, and without a parent dying or a grandchild being born… ok, it’s a lot different.

But as for the rest of the year? Well, I’ll admit that I’m just a little concerned that our COVID interlude was really our opportunity to take a pause and experience a season of camaraderie and pulling together before the heat of another political battle tries to tear us apart again. Call me a pessimist if you will, and I hope I am wrong, but I hear the gears winding up again.

Tsogile sentle wena

It is interesting (to me) that in some cultures, the polite way of greeting involves asking if a person has eaten or slept well. That kind of leads me to wonder how polite we come across to other cultures with our “Hey! How’s it going?” or the French equivalent «ça va?»

I have long claimed that I am not a morning person, but I am coming to discover that it’s not the morning that I am averse to, it’s the waking up before I have had a good night’s rest. These past few mornings I have found myself voluntarily getting up before my alarm goes off, and this morning I discovered that it was actually quite pleasant to have the river bank to myself as I watched the morning unfold. I would say it was nice to enjoy the peace and quiet, but the birds were making all kinds of noise, so it was hardly peaceful or quiet!

We all know this will only last a few more months, and then the sun will be coming over the horizon a few minutes later each day. That means it will be a few minutes harder each morning to beat my alarm clock. But I am enjoying it while it lasts.

Life's Ups and Downs

I'm having trouble wrapping my brain around the current level of hysteria regarding the Corona virus outbreak, in light of the fact that people every year (every day!) die from complications from influenza¹. And not just that, even more people die every day from malaria, but no one is running around like a chicken with their head cut off buying toilet paper and hand sanitizer (as if those things could stem the tide of anything.)

I don't mean to sound callous or hard-hearted about those unfortunate people who find themselves in quarantine on ships or air force bases, or worse, in ICU in critical condition because they have contracted this virus. I am not insensitive and know enough people personally who are going through that right now, as a matter of fact.

It just seems that people have blown things totally out of perspective when it comes to a virus outbreak. Seriously? We have to wait until the media whips everyone into a frenzy before we get religious about washing our hands, for heaven's sake?

So, in the interest of gaining some of that aforementioned perspective, let's just spell out the facts:
As of today in just the U.S.:

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/cases-in-us.html

That's right, 29 deaths in the US, a little over 4,000 worldwide.

https://heavy.com/news/2020/02/coronavirus-covid-19-cases-deaths-updates/

Now let's look at what is really killing people:

New York, 25 April 2018 – Every two minutes, a child dies of malaria. Malaria is a preventable and treatable disease that remains, in many regions of the world, a major public health problem. Ninety-one countries currently experience ongoing malaria transmission. Almost half the world’s population – about 3.2 billion people – are at risk of malaria. In 2016 alone, 216 million new cases of malaria were reported, and approximately 445,000 people died of the disease – most of them children.²

Elsewhere in the U.S. (10 leading causes of death in 2017-2018, from CDC website - bear in mind, these numbers are multiplied by 100,000):

(Don't even get me started that the number of babies killed in the name of "choice" top, yet don't make, the list.)

Do I think people need to be proactive and wash their hands? Yes.
Am I going to be booking a cruise ship to Wuhan anytime soon? No.
If you are or have someone who has special needs or a compromised immune system, you are hopefully already being circumspect about exposing yourself to environments or situations without some kind of precaution. That is just common sense.

I do not normally subscribe to conspiracy theories, and it's certainly not for want of hearing about them at every turn, but one does have to wonder why such a big-fat-hairy deal is being made of this in an election year? Oh wait... didn't the same thing happen in 2016 with the Zika virus?

I'll just close with this thought: WASH YOUR HANDS and STOP LIVING IN FEAR!

He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress; My God, in Him I will trust.”

Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler And from the perilous pestilence. He shall cover you with His feathers, And under His wings you shall take refuge; His truth shall be your shield and buckler.

You shall not be afraid of the terror by night, Nor of the arrow that flies by day, Nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness, Nor of the destruction that lays waste at noonday. - Psalm 91:1-6

¹ CDC estimates that influenza has resulted in between 9 million – 45 million illnesses, between 140,000 – 810,000 hospitalizations and between 12,000 – 61,000 deaths annually since 2010.

² https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/ten-things-you-didnt-know-about-malaria

Ironic, Isn't It?

As we settle in to life at the river, reining in our personal space a bit, as it were, it occurs to me that there is an irony to life. (More than just one, I'm sure!)

As I reflect back over the past 48 years I've spent adulting, I am struck by the fact that I have spent most of those years on a quest to accumulate things. Granted, most of I what I have been chasing after have been useful things, but things nonetheless.

In my quest for efficiency in the kitchen, there have been a multitude of gadgets: food processor, VitaMix blender, KitchenAid mixer, grain grinder, centrifugal juicer, citrus juicer, coffee grinder, food dehydrator, crockpots and pressure cookers, turkey roaster, pressure canner, not to mention the accompanying canning jars and assorted paraphernalia.

In my defense, I actually did use all of these things. And, if I had room to do so, I would probably continue on that path. But the reality is, I do not.

And, it seems somewhat counter productive to be spending money to rent not just one, but two storage units (filled to capacity) to save all of these things on the off-chance I may be Miss Suzy Pioneer Homemaker again some day. Let's face it, I am closer to 70 than I was 5 minutes ago, and the two of us can't possibly eat that amount of food I could possibly can.

So, the next year or two is going to be spent on a quest to get rid of much of what I just spent years and many thousands of dollars accumulating. (Yes, I have heard of Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace... )

Could there have been a better answer?

#lifeinthenorthstate

Today I embarked on a new photo blog project, and will find out if I have the staying power to stick it out for an entire year. Last time it was a family affair, and only once a week - with great to marginal participation.

Now that we have moved to a new locale, I have started documenting my mornings with a single photo of the sunrise and will see where it takes me.

Who can blame me for enjoying this view...

I've Got Rhythm... Or Not

Back in the day, when I religiously practiced "flying" with The F.L.Y. Lady, I believed it was literally true that I could train myself to learn a new habit in 21 days... as a plus, her 28 days gave me a week's worth of grace. It would seem that 21 days is purely anecdotal, but not scientifically verifiable.

According to a study published in the European Journal of Social Psychology, it can take anywhere from 18 to 254 days to get used to a new routine, form a new habit, build a new behavior. All this new information does is to give me pause as I am learning my new rhythm for living in a 300 square foot travel trailer. Pause to not beat myself up and have unrealistic expectations about the adjustment period.

Sunday I made biscuits for breakfast. It was an exercise in patience, to be sure. Let's just say, Julia Childs would probably not be comfortable in my kitchen. (Never mind that I could not even find my rolling pin - just finding a place to knead the dough took several minutes of rearranging just about everything.) But I was not frustrated; if nothing else, it was re-affirming that I could overcome the (admittedly minuscule) challenge.

I am also realizing just how little I can get by with. I don't want to say I am a kitchen gadget junkie...  I don't want to say it, but reality would say otherwise. And guess what, I don't need about half of the cooking tools that I have accumulated over the years.

The same is true just a few steps outside of the kitchen. My project for this weekend is to clear off and designate spaces for all the boxes and files piled up on my desk. No small task, but again, I am not going to beat myself up. And sticky notes have proven to be my new best friend for being able to find where I have stashed things.

It's a process. And there is grace in the process.