The Diary Project

Virus Watch: Week 11

2020-05-22
Friday
Greetings

How long has Lock-Down been? Well, that's how long it takes me to open my Christmas LEGOS. First project, two Test Towers and a Log Cabin. The Castle is going to have to wait.

A skunk was spotted, hunting for truffles, on our twilight walk.

I'll be reading about The Icelandic Sagas rather than another Covid Report.

2020-05-23
Saturday
And All Is Well

Writing. It's part of a productive day. So, it's part of a full day. But I may be getting to the point in the day where I no longer feel like writing.

A two hour long conversation ends in a Happy Resolution.

Ha! There's a fun idea. Perhaps I should try to write the entries for the rest of the day in Fortune Cookie Format.

You are a good listener, make strong decisions, and are able to find the middle ground.



Stand firm. Hold your ground. And the world will turn to meet you.



You would have been happier with the Chung Pow Chicken.

Well, maybe that's enough for the Fortune Cookies.

I feel like taking a nap.

In my writing, I'm going through the Old Projects, finishing them in whatever way is most convenient, that wraps them up the fastest... but still wraps them up. For instance, I started an Image Inspired Story Project four years ago. But at this point, the main focus of the project is in describing why I never completed (or even made any headway) on the project, presenting the usable content and moving on. I'm making progress.

You finish what you start.

Stale Cookies are better than No Cookies.

I'd like to start a new novel. I'm thinking <words crafted to annoy and cross boundaries, so as to tease my most beloved, who is sure to read these words, for that is the type of He & She that we are>. In truth, I do not know. Being cryptic, I will say it would be easy enough to start at a fence. But if I did, I'd hit a wall before I knew it. Suffice to say, I am wrapping up the current. So in theory, there is space in my mind... or not. I must be honest, Dance Music calls.

Your words are like The Song of the Spheres and make The Heavens Sing.

Modesty never got no one nothing. But bragging only makes things worse.

Life is a party. So, remember to bring the Clam Dip.

Which reminds me. So, that's what I will be eating... or at least, snacking upon.

Gads, I could not care about The Virus. I must admit, a weekly format is working for me. But my notes are clearly not relevant {to the Greater Pandemic} except to say, The Vid is (quite literally) the last thing on my mind.

If you cut to the chase, there will be nowhere left to hide.

Yep. I am a big fan of my own nonsense, even if I have little patience for the same in others.

It is in Bad Times that we learn to appreciate The Good.

You do not work well with others. It's OK. They don't like you, either.

Also, I thought you said something about Clam Dip.

I think tomorrow will be The First Day of Summer. Technically, June 1^st starts summer, in my world. But a heat wave this close and I'm going to make an exception.

I think my sense of smell has improved (i.e. gotten better).

A Basketball Backboard and Hoop with a chain across the hoop to prevent play

2020-05-24
Sunday
First Day Of Summer

The writing this morning was a bit forced. I proofread yesterday's work. So, either it wasn't very good... or my mind {of yesterday and today} just didn't match. It seemed staccato... maybe a bit stilted. It was a long rewrite. Though, it's better now. So, perhaps, time well spent.

It's the hottest day of the year. And I'm sitting in the AC, thinking about putting on another layer of clothes.

The Velocity of The Vid is way down. We are still in Lock-Down. But I think most of The Country is not. I will call Lock-Down over when The Library opens... or The Art Museum, if for some weird reason it opens first.

The Basketball Hoop has a chain across the net, blocking its use. It probably has been there all along.

Fireworks!

Hawaii had the best Neighborhood Fireworks. They'd go on for hours and hours.

Lots of music, today. Just the one track. But it's ninety minutes long. And I want to finish it.

1:32:00 to be exact.

I would do today, tomorrow. So, success!

2020-05-25
Monday
Hot! So, Hot!

Many folks have placed homemade signs in their front yards thanking critical workers. So, I'd like to give a shout out (right here, right now) to all the Drug Dealers of the World. You Keep The World Spinning Round!

It's going to be a hot one. I'll likely hide away inside.

Work or Play? Isn't today a Holiday or something?

Four Ducklings in a tight line. I wonder how many families there are?

Three Bachelor Ducks are loath to yield their shady spot to me. "Quack! Quack!" Translation, "We were here first!"

Cloudy Day!

The park is less active than I would have thought. Sure, it's a Holiday. But I would have guessed that would increase its usage. On the other hand, rain feels near at hand.

There's a nice pre-rain breeze. But I hope we skip the rain... or it will be a quick walk home.

We are on The Flight Path.

I'm sad.

I want My Dreams to be good.

2020-05-26
Tuesday
Background Anxiety

I started reading Report 20, last night.

Writing and Movies... in what counts as the morning.

Storm clouds will be moving in mid-afternoon. And I shall go for a walk.

Out by the Recycling Bin, I found three Shoe Boxes full of Sports Cards. They are fairly modern and heavily worn not to mention a bit damp... on the edge of mouldy. So, worthless. I, also, don't really care about Sports or Cards. But I will consider it quite the coup if I find an '85 Bears or two, as The Cards are of that vintage.

I've written about this sort of Sorting/Collection Behaviour elsewhere, so a few notes will have to suffice. Bottom line, I don't mind being the Final Destination for these Cards. They're not finding another home after me. And likely, before the week is out, the vast majority will be in The Bin.

Bored. Music. Waiting.

Relaxing. Music. Lazy.

Chili carne Chili.

It's Hot!

There's a nice breeze. In the shade (in The Close Park), it's quite nice. I question whether I am going to make it to the bleachers. Um, where I sit in The Far Park is near the bleachers. Let's see. There are six small three-riser bleachers in The Far Park. I have my favorite. In fact, I only really consider two worth sitting at. They both face the afternoon sun. Probably, not what I want on a day like today. {Ironically enough, I believe The Far Park contains eight bleachers, which goes a long ways towards illustrating how un-sittable I consider some of those locations to be.}

The Tennis Courts are Full.

It's sort of odd how I can wear Full On Winter Socks (the heaviest pair I own) on a day such as today and still be comfortable. I value the added cushion. But my feet are not hot. And in fact, are quite comfortable.

This is why Old People sit on Park Benches. It's nice.

I haven't talked much about The Vid. If I were a Conspiracy Theorist, I might wonder if the whole Lock-Down wasn't designed to test The Subservience of the Populace. And then, I might note how many a peon is being destroyed financially during this trying time.

Five Bachelor Ducks. No Baby Ducks in sight.

I've got a bit of a cough, which I'm going to blame on the AC, as that rings true to me.

After I brush my teeth, I gargle. And if retort is made to comment at this time, a round of charades typically ensues. The answer today was "It was a joke." But I accepted "You were joking," which I usually am.

{During the period of time in which I was interested in BioFilms, I came across some Gargling Studies, as Plaque can be thought of as a type of BioFilm. And in those studies, The Gargle Time was set at 30 seconds (if I remember correctly), as time in contact is important. So with this knowledge, I decided to up the ante. And as such, I gargle for quite a bit longer.

Xylitol is my chemical of choice. But it would appear (and/or I would guess), I am in the minority opinion there. It doesn't really matter, as I mix it up quite a bit, alternating between two or three different formulas as the days progress.}

I am reading Report 20. If I infer correctly, if life resumes to normal, one may reasonably expect The Second Wave to exceed The First... or at least, the Report can be seen to support such a conclusion.

As a comment, let me say that I think we {It's an Imperial We} are pretty sick of the Lock-Down (a statement, which in truth, is merely a bit of hyperbole) and would be happy to resume normalcy.

A view through a cyclone fence onto the dirt of a baseball diamond, but it looks more like a beach, this is part of the view from the bench that I favour

2020-05-27
Wednesday
Where'd The Day Go

25,500 on The Dow. I could have made so much money. I mean, I wouldn't have. But in theory, a person could have.

It's raining. Afternoon showers, the kind that build up from the heat of the day. Tomorrow, a front moves in, cooling things off for a few days.

I've hit a wall of laziness.

It smells of Moth Balls or Hairspray.

A stick stuck in the ground with a pair of sunglasses hung off it in an amusing way, turning the stick into a sort of face

2020-05-28
Thursday
So Tired

Last night was a late one. At about midnight, we started talking about the news of the day, which included such emotionally charged subjects as Police Violence and Lethal Restraint.

Oh, you want the solution? Charge Police with Keeping The Peace. That is to say, Violent Crimes are more critical to enforce than Property Crimes and those more critical to enforce than Moral Crimes, to the point The Law Enforcement Community has no time to worry about the later.

Also, 100% Enforcement against everyone all the time.

Finally, we have an Adversarial Legal System, which means The Cops were never on your side to begin with.

Report 20 (if I recall correctly, having already deleted it), used Location Data to track Mobility: All Your Locations Are Belong To Us!

I've had a scratch in my throat like a swallowed hair for a couple of days, now. At first, I thought it was a bit of beard.

A light refreshing rain started about halfway home. It soon turned into a bit more. But no worries. I came prepared... mentally... and had packed a lone Zip Lock Bag for my phone, which was more than enough preparation, if you ask me.

At the end of this, maybe I should track my movements, do some sort of GPS Positioning Project for the last 12 Weeks. I've got the data. Which is to say, All My Data Are Belong To Me!

Report 21 (to my mind) is a repeat of the previous (Report 20), using a different data set (Brazil in lieu of Italy). I learned more about Brazil than The Vid.

Hey! My reporting has been pretty solid this week, yeah?

I sorted through half The Sports Cards. It is highly unlikely any will remain in my possession for more than a week.

Report 22: I am sure I will comment further. But for now, let us just say it feels (to me, such is my intuition, however spurious or misguided) like an exercise in advanced mathematics... fueled by what I will assume, suppose, and/or presume are very spurious assumptions.

I refer to The Imperial College of London Reports. Sorry, it would appear there is no of in the name, so it's Imperial College London.

Report 22: Once again, it feels like Propaganda. But I don't know to what effect. It could be simply this is what is being Studied/Researched at the College. So, this is the type of paper they are going to write.

Existing Focus + Mathematical Model -> Report

In other words, it makes more sense as an Interdisciplinary Report than a Covid Report, to me.

Itchy eyes. Well, the one. And that feeling that I've got a hair stuck in my throat continues.