Around OakMeadows

Tigger

This morning we had an early morning (8am) HEB curbside pickup for some items left off last Saturday’s grocery list—grapes, bananas, whole wheat bread, and my small canned Cokes. So I went along and we stopped at McDonald’s for an Egg and Sausage Biscuit to share with Angie. We talked about the strange things people believe to be true these days. I’m convinced that the Internet is responsible for the vast majority of it but still people do believe the most nonsensical things.

Yesterday was a grim day in that there are now over 300,000 Covid deaths in the U.S. The good news is that the first round of vaccinations has begun. I have no idea when Joe and I will be eligible for vaccinations but I should think that by March, we will have been vaccinated. Speaking of strange things people believe, there are those who will refuse being vaccinated for one reason or another. (There are valid reasons such as allergic reactions, immunosuppression, etc. for not receiving the vaccine.)  Anyway, I hope enough people will be vaccinated to induce a herd immunity. We shall see.

It is cold and dark with more rain expected. Needless to say, the cats are exceptionally affectionate. The fact that I have a heating pad on my lap is a major reason for.their recently acquired devotion to me.

I am reading two really outstanding books. A Promised Land by Barack Obama is just wonderful. He writes just like he speaks so it’s like listening to him. The other is The Ministry of the Future by Kim Stanley Robinson. I normally detest science fiction but this is so interesting (about the amelioration of climate change in the coming century) and well written that the 563 pages don’t daunt me.

Leftover Beef and Barley Soup and Joe’s bread machine bread toasted and buttered. I have put a container with 2 more servings in the freezer. Such a good meal for a cold, dark, wet evening.

 

January Menu

 

January Menu

1.  Beans & Rice & Ham

2. Bacon Sandwiches, Oven Fries 

3. Beef Pot Pies

4. Potato-Leek Soup

5. Chicken-Rice Bake, Squash

6. Cutlets, GMP, Peas 

7. Leftovers 

8. Out

9. Macaroni and Cheese, Corn, Salad 

10. 

11. Baked Fish, Fire Roasted Vegetables 

12. King Ranch Casserole 

13. Roast, GMP, Carrots 

14. Leftovers 

15. Out

16. Scrambled Eggs, Bacon, Toast 

17. Chicken Pot Pies 

18. 

19. Chicken Tenders, GMP, GB

20. Pizza 

21. Leftovers 

22. Out

23. CB Hash, CSC, Salad 

24. 
    

25. Fried Shrimp, FF, Coleslaw 

26. KFC

27. Spaghetti and Meatballs, Salad 

28. Leftovers 

29. Out

30. Coney Islands

31. Out

Favorite Books of 2020

 

Favorite Books of 2020

Fiction:

The House in the Cerulean Sea by T.J. Klune 

Home Front Girls by Suzanne Hayes

The Dutch House by Ann Patchett

The Redhead by the Side of the Road by Anne Tyler

The Shooting at Chateu Rock by Martin Walker (Bruno, Chief of Police #13)

Where the Forest Meets the Stars by Glendy Vanderah

Science/Nature:

Buzz, Sting, Bite: Why We Need Insects by Anne Sverdrup-Thygeson

Eager: The Surprising, Secret Life of Beavers and Why They Matter by Ben Goldfarb 

Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses by Robin Wall Kimmerer 

Rescuing Ladybugs by Jennifer Skiff

Living on the Wind: Across the Hemisphere on the Wings of Migratory Birds by Scott Weidensaul

History:

The Blood of Emmet Till by Timothy B. Tyson

The Age of Illusions: How America Squandered Its Cold War Victory by Andrew Bacevich

The Soul of America: The Battle for Our Better Angels by Jon Meacham

The Path to Power by Robert Caro

Ascent to Power by Robert Caro

The Splendid and the Vile by Erik Larson

Benjamin Franklin: An American Life by Walter Isaacson 

Nothing to Fear: FDR’s Inner Circle and the Hundred Days by Adam Cohen

Midnight at Chernobyl: The Untold Story of the World’s Greatest Nuclear Disaster by Adam Higginbotham 

Pessimistic

 Pessimistic 

Just because you’ve been labeled as a pessimist does not mean things won’t go all to hell.

I am exceedingly pessimistic because unless both Biden wins the presidency and the Democrats take the Senate, nothing will be done about our three looming problems:

     1. Climate change 

     2. The COVID-19 pandemic

     3. The economic fallout from the pandemic and our growing inequality 

I am turning my attention away from the things over which I have no control and focusing on keeping us:

     1. Fed

     2. Housed

     3. Healthy

Around OakMeadows

 

Common Buckeye on Blue Mist

    It is another absolutely beautiful day. Highs in the mid 70s and lows in the upper 40s. Clear skies and no humidity.  It is very quiet in the neighborhood and all you hear is the birds, including a couple of very raucous crows. The most spectacular thing though is the blue mist absolutely alive with bees and butterflies. Several times a day I go out and sit still in the scooter right by them and just drink in the beauty. We should have them for at least another week, maybe two.

     Today is Election Day and how thankful I will be when it is over. I hope with all my heart that Joe Biden wins. I cannot understand how people could vote for such an immoral, vulgar person as Donald Trump. I expect we will have a pretty good idea who the next President will be by 10 pm tonight. At least, whichever way it goes, the uncertainty of what will happen will be over. 

     The COVID-19 pandemic goes on. 232,000 Americans are dead from it. I don’t see any let up anytime soon. There may be a vaccine after the first of next year. It will take quite some time to inoculate enough of the population to get the virus under control though. Joe and I have been so fortunate to live here on our beautiful 4 acre Oak Meadows. We’d like to be able to go out to a restaurant or to see a movie or just go into a store but all things considered, we are in really good shape. 

Around OakMeadows

 

Something is blooming and has set my allergies off. I’m taking a non-sedating antihistamine and ibuprofen and never getting more than 2 feet from a box of tissues. It has been so beautiful outside with much improved temperatures so that I just cannot stay inside. I would rather deal with allergies than stay inside.

I’m reading a couple of really interesting books. Midnight in Chernobyl by Adam Higginbotham is about the 1986 nuclear power plant disaster in Chernobyl, Ukraine and the response by the Soviet government. Fascinating. I’m also going back and re-reading some old Agatha Christie mysteries starting with The Mysterious Affair at Styles.

The election is just 28 days away. JMM and I voted by mail as we always do. I can’t stand to listen/watch/read all the negative campaign ads nor can I stand any of the Presidential or Vice Presidential debates. I hope will be glad when it is finally over and hopefully Joe Biden is inaugurated January 22, 2021. 

The pandemic continues. 211,544 Americans have died of it. The President and many of the people around him are infected. So far JMM and I remain quarantined and healthy. Being an introverted homebody makes it mentally less challenging for me than for people who are more outgoing. Between housekeeping, cooking, reading, quilting, all the creatures, I am always busy with mostly pleasant activities.

That’s about all for now. Hope everyone has a good week. 

Nothing to Fear by Adam Cohen

 

Nothing to Fear by Adam Cohen

If this had been the usual book about the Hundred Days bringing about the alphabet soup of programs, the CCC, WPA, NIRA, etc., it would have been a dreary book indeed. Fortunately, the author focused on the people who dreamed and imagined and crafted the policies that resulted in the alphabet soup of agencies whose purpose was, as Frances Perkins said, “to take the edge of human misery.”  If you don’t know Raymond Moley, Harry Hopkins, Henry Wallace, Frances Perkins, and others, you will find this a most engaging book. It has certainly spurred my interest in learning even more about these people and this time in America. Not just a good read, an excellent read.