In response to the protests, rioting and opportunistic looting, the US Congress is taking decisive action. Are they passing laws to ensure our undeserved and poor communities (mostly black) have good education and free college? Nope. Are they taking the $37,000 average cost for a Federal Prison inmate and instead using this money to pay…
Lessons From The Black Plague
I’ve been watching “The Black Death” on Amazon Prime Video this week. It is a series of lectures on the history of the plague when it hit medieval Europe in the around 1348. It’s a fascinating history lesson on feudal life, politics, and pandemic. I won’t rehash it here – you should watch it if interested….
Keeping My Opinion To Myself
I wrote this a few days ago. I support the protests, even if I am skeptical that they will have any measurable effect. I’ve got more to say on police brutality, systemic racism and protesting that I’ll save for a separate post. I tried to consider only my own experiences instead of blasting out my…
Jonesing To Resume Exercising Like A Madman Again
It’s been three weeks since I had my surgery. The pain and swelling are nearly gone. I haven’t needed ice or pain meds for a week. In a few days I’ll start some light exercising. Woohoo! I think the surgical pain is now no worse than the pain I had before surgery – that’s a…
Are You Kidding Me?
“We will be closing at 7PM due to the curfew”. One week after Raleigh had moved into Phase 2 of our reopening after a three month pandemic lockdown, our mayor declared a state of emergency and a curfew to “maintain order and protect public health, safety welfare, and property.” This was in response to local…
Uninformed Opinions
I’ve got strong opinions on many things. Politics, the pandemic, public health policy, medicine, law enforcement, military operations, diet, exercise, healthcare, insurance, banking, capitalism, socialism and just about anything else that crosses my mind. One thing most of my opinions have in common, is that I am not qualified to have them!
The Moments of Life
I’ve had a lot of time to think about the past lately. Some of it has to do with my recent surgery and these weeks of recovery with “no strenuous activity”. Some of it is due to this extended period of pandemic mandated isolation. Some of it is because the sights, sounds and smells of…
Playing The Numbers
In North Carolina, we are officially entered Phase 2 of the Covid-19 Safer at Home lockdown and reopening plan yesterday. According to the initial criteria, we were supposed to move from Stay at Home to Phase 1 only when cases had consistently dropped and hospitalizations had consistently dropped. Then suddenly, we were in Phase One…
The Women I’ve Loved
Pam was my first love. When I met her in our high school Spanish class, I could tell she liked me. She smiled a lot and never stopped talking to me. Being a sophomore, I remember thinking sarcastically, “Oh great, a freshman has a crush on me!” She was cute with big blue eyes, blond hair…
How Many People Equals 100,000 Dead?
This past weekend, the news reported that the US is closing in on 100,000 people who have died from Covid-19 in the past 3 months. I’m willing to concede this number is not 100% accurate. News reports claim the number has been understated and overstated for differing credible reasons. Some of these people were likely…