24 Weeks Behind Us (Weekly Update)

 24 weeks behind us now since Georgia was hit by coronavirus. 24 weeks. Such a long time.

So, what has been going on around here? Not much really. Doug has been super busy with work - which is good (but exhausting). Bri is doing really good with school still (4 weeks down!). The electric guys were here most of last week working on the basement. I've been organizing things in the house and trying to keep my crew happy and fed.

Mei is doing pretty good. I think some of her fur is growing back. I'm not sure - I think so. She seems a bit fuzzier. She doesn't seem to be licking as much. That doesn't mean she isn't hiding and licking though. It is summer, so her fur isn't going to grow back super quick. I'm not ready to dive into allergy exploration with her yet, so she's going to have to deal with this a bit longer. She seems happy enough right now...

 A grayish kitty started roaming the neighborhood over the last couple of weeks. I don't know if it is a girl or boy, but I'll call the kitty a "she" for right now. She tried to run in my front door one day as I was getting some groceries off my front porch. She seems to be looking for attention. She has noticed Mei on our back porch several times and they have had several stare offs. Saturday morning, the gray kitty got pretty close to Mei (see below). Mei was yowling so loudly and she was yowling a bit softer. They stared at each other for the longest time - just yowling...

Then it happened so fast - one lurched and hissed. I don't know who started it. I'm thinking Mei. Then the other one went. They both jumped at each other with claws out. Thank goodness for the screen between them and that Doug, Bri and I were monitoring the situation. We started to yell, the gray cat ran away and Mei walked back inside the house basically unfazed. I'm going to have to lookout for Mei on the porch a bit closer now because I don't want it to happen again.

I think we know now how Mei feels about other cats. I'm not sure getting a second cat will be an option for us. Heh.

I binge watched "Defending J@cab" last week...

 

I enjoyed it a lot, but unfortunately, I wasn't thrilled at all with the ending. I hate when I invest time in a show and the ending doesn't satisfy me. It kept my mind busy though, so I'm still glad I watched it.

 I found out last week that all the J@stice For Girls stores around where I live have closed - which made me sad. Bri and I spent many hours in those stores browsing, shopping and laughing over the years. At almost 14 (and now she is 14), Bri did feel that she was outgrowing the brand. But a couple of months before all this virus stuff happened, we happened to be near one of the stores and decided to make a stop. I'm really glad we made that stop now. B did find a few cute things, including the dress she wore on her first day of school...

 

The store is mainly online now (though there are a couple of stores left in the state), but it's not the same as shopping in person. The store was a big part of Bri growing up, and I'll always cherish those memories...

I'm still ordering a majority of my groceries through Instacart, and I'm not hating it. I was in the grocery store so much before all this virus stuff hit that I was starting to burn out. The break has been nice. Friday morning, my shopper actually found wipes and offered to pick some up for me. I don't even request them anymore because the store is usually out. It's a major score when you can find them!!

 

Well, I guess it's time for the not so positive stuff. Here we go...

Virus numbers are still ranging 2000-3000 new cases a day here in Georgia (mainly the metro Atlanta area). It's still so very high...

People still want to believe this is "just the flu." It's not the flu at all. It's worse. Definitely worse. It punches a lot of people much harder. It lingers. It spreads much easier and faster, but I've already said this stuff before. Over and over and over again.

I honestly can't say it anymore. Either you are going to believe it or you're not. I feel sorry for you (and for me) if you don't.

 

Everything I have said about coronavirus has happened so far. All of it. The reason I have to stick close to home is because of this administration. The rhetoric, the mindset and the failure to acknowledge the truth about this virus has led us to where we all are today. My life has been deeply, negatively affected. 

 

 I've been pretty quiet on the social media front last week. I also limited my time watching the news. I've been mentally fried and I just needed a break from it. I refused watch any of the RNC on TV (though I did read up on some of it afterward). I've already heard enough BS come directly from Tr@mp's mouth to last a lifetime.

Ok - this is where things are going to get very political and I am going to be straightforward. After holding my tongue all last week, I now have a few things to say. Some might not agree with me. Some of you may get mad. Just warning you - stop reading now if you don't think you can handle it. I want to give you an option to stop or go forward...

Half of feel exactly the way I do about this administration. Half of you don't. I really don't understand those in the opposite camp. I wish I did, but I don't think I ever will.

Remember, I'm coming at this from a moderate point of view (though I am admittedly anti-Tr@mp).

1. First and foremost, Tr@mp is not a republican or a conservative. He is a populist and nationalist who manipulated his way into the republican party and hijacked it. It's now the party of Tr@mp and he is the supreme ruler. 
2.  Secondly, B!den is not a socialist. The right is proclaiming something that's just not true. If the majority of democrats were progressives and/or democratic socialists, Bernie would be the democratic nominee right now and he's not. B!den is definitely more establishment, and that is why he was chosen. 
3. Lastly, B!den is a man of faith. Tr@mp, on the other hand, is not. To me, faith and religion (or lack thereof) are private and personal beliefs. It's not anyone's business. I honestly don't care that Tr@mp isn't religious, but that fact that he pretends to be to get supporters is just shameful.

I know what I say here today (and what I've been saying for months) isn't going to make one bit of difference to some of you - you will still vote for Tr@mp...

 

  I can post over and over again that saying the terms "kung flu" and "china virus" are racist and offensive (and has lead to Anti-Asian attacks)...

 

I can explain that Tr@mp is one of the most divisive presidents in US history (always pandering to his base)...

 

I can point out that Tr@mp praises and cozies up to autocrats while criticizing and alienating our democratic allies...

I can make clear that Tr@mp has narcissistic personality disorder...

 

 I can tell you that over 5.8 million Americans have tested positive for and over 180,000 Americans have died from Covid-19 since January (which is scarily still going strong and has tanked portions of the US economy) due to this administration's negligence (while the RNC attendees continued to refuse to social distance and wear masks)...

 

 

 I can also tell you that Tr@mp used the "People's House" (the White House) as a backdrop for political gain (the RNC) which blatantly violated the Hatch Act...

 

I can tell you that Tr@mp used that naturalization ceremony as a political prop and those people reciting the oath didn't even know that they were going to be part of the RNC. They were not asked. Their choice was taken away from them...

 

 I can tell you that while Tr@mp constantly calls out the Antif@ movement and states how dangerous it is (which it can be),

 

 he refuses to condemn or even acknowledge the dangerous extremist movements that have emerged from the right...

 

Q-An@n...

 

 

and the right-wing Militia Movement...

 

All of these radical/violent movements should be denounced and condemned.

I could also touch on the subjects of immigration and the separation of families, the BLM movement, racial bias and police brutality, birtherism, gun control, mail-in voting and voter suppression, climate change, Russian interference, the bullying of the CDC, the constant instilling of fear by this president and so much more, but I would be writing forever.

 I won't be that person who says that Tr@mp has not one thing positive during his presidency. He has accomplished a few things. But overall, the bad (actually horrible) things he has said and done during these past 3.5+ years in office severely outweigh any positives in my view.

 

I'd like to see someone else come in and try to undo the damage that has been done - especially when it comes to coronavirus.

And as I'm saying all of this, it still doesn't matter to some of you...

How the heck does it not matter?

 

Believe me, I know that if you are a hard core Tr@mp supporter that I'm not going to change your mind. But I still will never, ever understand it.

 

 I'm just beating my head against a brick wall at this point...

It frustrates me deeply, but "it is what it is." Right?

 

I have to continue to focus on my "people"...

They keep me going, motivated and sane (sort of). I will do my damndest to stick to what I believe is right and just and do my best to tune out all the rest of the crap.

So, I guess this is what happens when I disappear from social media for a week - heh. Maybe it's not good for me to do that. Anyway, if you are still reading this - try to have a good week. Be back next week.

23 Weeks Behind Us (Weekly Update)

 23 weeks. Wow - 23 weeks behind us since the virus came to GA. I'm beginning to think I should stop counting. It's getting a bit depressing.

I keep seeing memories from years past popping up on FB and in Timehop and it's making me sad (this is us at the solar eclipse viewing in TN - it was so crowded in the park that day)...

I look at our faces and see how happy we were in our normal lives. We had no idea a nightmare pandemic was coming and that it would wreak havoc on the world. Like 9/11, it has completely changed the way we look at our lives now. Everything is different.

I would do anything to turn back time.

 Let's start this blog post with the positives first. Briana completed her third full week of virtual learning last week (and did awesome)...

There was one teacher shake up. Bri got a new teacher for biology. She seems nice but a little overwhelmed. I know everyone is right now. There's been some of shifting and changing around of teachers at the virtual academy. A number of face to face kids have decided to do virtual, so they are scrambling to hire new teachers. They are also pulling teachers in who teach face to face for the county and having them do virtual as well. These poor teachers have to juggle both - I can't even imagine how hard that is. The virtual academy is also trying to get all the new kids entered into the system. Despite all of that, it still seems like less of an interruption than what I am hearing with B's high school going hybrid. Oh - and Bri's former middle school has to go hybrid now too. (I said weeks ago that the particular part of my county was just too concentrated for "normal" school. I'm not surprised this happened one bit.) So, we are still quite happy with our decision.

 

Here is Briana on Friday afternoon painting a project for her art class. She had her furry assistant hindering helping her...

 

Speaking of furry assistants, I have a Mei Mei update.

 Here was M on her way to the vet last week (sad face)... 

  I made her an appointment for Tuesday. Because of Covid, I had to drop her off. Since I wasn't able to go into the building, I wrote a detailed note to the vet explaining what has been happening regarding Mei's "mowing." She called me after examining Mei and said she thinks her over licking is allergy related. She gave her a steroid shot and now we wait and see if some fur grows back. I'm going to give it a couple weeks. She then said if Mei doesn't improve, she will give me the name of an animal dermatologist. I seriously had no idea those existed. I don't want to even think about the time and money that might require. I swear, this cat is more high maintenance than my kid! But I love her, so I'll do what I need to do to help her.

She had a long day on Tuesday, and she was so happy being home on Wednesday.

 She spent time on the back porch... 

And she spent a lot of time hanging near me. She slept in this box directly behind my office chair for hours...

My poor sweet girl.

 

On a different note, we got a nice delivery of meats from Butcher B@x last week...

There was actually a lot of chicken this time - which is nice. There has been more beef and pork in the boxes than chicken lately for some reason. We have a nice mix of everything now. I'm so glad we have two freezers to store all this food!

 Ok - now it's time for a basement update!!

We had the HVAC guys, the framers and the plumbers here last week. Electric is coming this week. Look at what has been done so far...

 Some framing...

 

HVAC...

 Plumbing...

It's getting pretty exciting!

Well, I guess it's time to move on to some Coronavirus talk (which sadly isn't so positive).

Georgia has been named the state where you are most likely to be exposed to coronavirus. 

 

We are #1!!! (insert sarcasm now)...

https://www.11alive.com/article/news/health/coronavirus/state-most-likely-exposed-to-coronavirus--georgia/85-a9feb830-5e96-4b32-ba49-74f4c0e5f4dc

Kemp is super ticked that the White House criticized GA in their Covid report (Georgia deserves to be criticized)...

https://www.ajc.com/politics/politics-blog/kemp-lashes-out-after-white-house-coronavirus-report-criticizes-georgias-response/JZLGAGA57BEKTEZJNKFOJIALR4/

 

 Sanjay says Georgia "is a disaster." I have to agree with him...

https://www.cnn.com/videos/us/2020/08/20/sanjay-gupta-georgia-governor-kemp-coronavirus-newday-vpx.cnn/video/playlists/coronavirus/

Living in Georgia is so dang fun right now. Heh.

And I know I said no more politics talk on the blog, but it's kind of difficult not to address anything political in our highly politicized world today...

So here is a little political talk. Here is your warning. 

 

Stop now if you want...

I want you all to please read the following criteria for narcissistic personality disorder...

 

I hope you read all the criteria regarding this disorder. It is a true mental disorder.

Our commander-in-chief exhibits each and every single one of these criteria. I truly think he should be more worried about his own cognitive ability and mental stability than that of his opponent. I think we all should be worried.

 

I have personal experience dealing with narcissism, and it profoundly affected my life (negatively) for a long time. I think that is why I am so passionate when it comes to what is happening in our country. Unfortunately, I finally came to the conclusion that this was the only way to deal with it...

 

I've never really been the type of person to unfriend someone on FB due to political opinion. I can't say I never did it in the past but was super rare for me. It had to be pretty bad. But now, everything is so hateful in the FB world - especially in several of the local school groups in which I am a member. So much nastiness. So much spitefulness. And yes, even racism. I have unfollowed, unfriended and blocked more people during this pandemic than I ever thought would be possible (and some are on the fence with me). When someone consistently fills their feed with snarky memes and/or unfounded conspiracy theories or comments on other people's posts nastily, I have to draw a line. I think to myself "Is this someone I actually want to associate with (anymore)?" 

 I saw this meme the other day and it really resonated with me...

And I have to remind myself of this...

 

It is hard for me to let go sometimes, but I've gotten much better at it. First and foremost, I will protect and stand up for my daughter. I have seen and heard the term "China Virus" more times lately than I can even handle anymore - especially in the community where I live. I had a good cry Friday night about it - no joke.

Now, I am not saying I would never let someone back into my circle who seems remorseful for being excessively harsh or unyielding. Or admits they were misinformed or misguided. Saying "sorry" can go a very long way. It just may take some time for the relationship to heal. 

 But, I do know that it's also ok to just move on.

  Life is kind of tough right now - not gonna lie...

No "stay positive" message from me this week. Sometimes it's ok to feel down in the dumps or sad. Who says you have to be happy all the time?

 I'm going to end with this...

I guess I am really human, huh? I have to try not to let my feelings or my worries consume me, but it's difficult. I know there are so many people who have it so much worse than me right now. I am going to try to focus as hard as I can on the blessings I do have in my life. I do have a lot of blessings. Believe me when I say that I realize that.

I hope you all have a good week. It's kind of difficult to wish anyone a good day or week nowadays. I'm doing it anyway.

 If you are sick, go get tested. Don't use the phrase "China Virus." Don't gather in large groups. Remember to keep social distancing and wear a mask.

I'll be back next week. Hope you will too.

22 Weeks Behind Us (Weekly Update)

Twenty-two. The number of weeks behind us since coronavirus hit GA. That's a long time.

 Here's my weekly update.

  So, what have we been up to?

Well, Briana completed her second full week of virtual school and she is doing amazingly well.

 

Here is my happy girl all done with her second week (which she rocked by the way)...

 

Life still feels weird and strange for us, but we are making it work. I'm so glad Bri is virtual because her high school is still trying to figure things out in the world of coronavirus. They have now decided to go hybrid - which is what they should have done from the very beginning. But as I've stated before, the view on masking in my neck of the woods is extremely negative and only "suggested," so we'll see if the school can stay open. I'm cool just watching from the sidelines.

 

It's very difficult living where we live right now. We think so differently than many of the people surrounding us. Our family is hanging tough for now, but I'm not sure how long we can continue to hang in there. There are a lot of things for us to think about and consider regarding our future. I'll just leave it at that.

 

So, we don't really venture out all that often to shop for fun or whatnot, but last Sunday, Bri and I decided to head over to a local gift shop to do a little browsing/shopping. We walked around the store for about 45 minutes and picked up a few goodies. It felt nice being sort of "normal" (with a mask on of course)...

 

 

 This was one of my little presents to myself - heh... 

 

Mei is still loving quarantine life because everyone is home all the time. She loves hindering everyone's ability to accomplish any and all tasks.

Hindering Doug's ability to work...

 

And hindering Briana's ability to work...

 

 She seemed a bit bored on Saturday, so I put some TV on for her...

She's been wearing her soft cone still, and the fur on her belly is slowing starting to grow back. But now, she is just resorting to over-licking the parts of her body she can reach. She's a mental case. Going to make a vet appointment for this week.

 

 I'm still cooking and cooking and cooking some more. We do takeout every so often, but I am definitely starting to feel cooking burnout...

Prepare, cook, clean, repeat.

In basement news, progress is definitely being made! The basement guys were framing all last week - which is really exciting. Things are moving along...

I guess it's time for me to do a little coronavirus talk now, huh? 

Case numbers are still doing the whole zig zag kind of thing. Sadly, there is still no downward trend at all. With some school districts opening now, it won't. New cases are still ranging between 2000 and 4000 cases a day here in GA...

 

 I am still so incredibly frustrated by how many times I've read over the last two weeks since school started back up that this virus is no different than the flu or it's not that bad. It's NOT the flu. The flu is a respiratory disease. Covid19 is a respiratory disease that can manifest into a vascular disease. It is different. And it spreads faster. Let me say this louder for the people in the back...

 The above was written at just FOUR months after coronavirus hit the US. Only four months. Now we have over 166K deaths as of yesterday and it's climbing. The first US death was reported in Feb. It's mid August now. That's only 6.5 months. And this doesn't include any of those who survived the virus yet have long term damage from it. Again, you may not get hit hard by this, but someone you know and love just might. Just freaking do your part to stop the spread. #wearamask

This is the lovely crap that is floating around in my part of town now...

 

Now people don't want to get their kids tested to try to keep schools open. Good grief. It's mental. Truly mental. (And remember, I am for schools opening and staying open if it can be done as safe as possible. I know not everyone is built for virtual learning.)

 

 This hit the nail on the head for me when I read it. We definitely need a safe vaccine but...

I was that nerdy kid doing the group project, so I get it - and it sucked.

2020 is beating the crap out of me. I don't think I have ever been this mentally exhausted in my entire life. And I battled infertility for years and adopted a baby from China, so that is saying a lot...

And I really wanted to try to keep politics of this blog, but I just have to address three things quickly...

One ~ the new democratic VP pick was born in America. Period. It's sick that it's even being questioned. 

 

Two ~ Americans need to support the post office and not stand for voter suppression. If you have to cheat to win an election, you shouldn't be an elected official. 

 

Three ~ QAnon is dangerous. Please don't believe or pass around anything they have to say. They are far-right wing conspiracy theorists who have hijacked the human trafficking movement. Don't buy into any of their rhetoric.

 

* End of political rant *

 

 So, that is what has been going on in our neck of the woods for the most part. Just know that...Doug and work - good. Bri and school - good. Mei and baldness - not so good. Lisa and mental state - needs improvement.

Hope you all have a good week this week. I know it can be difficult in this world of covid. Hang in there and stay safe!