I started this series of blog posts on April 1 to record my life during the pandemic. This week I started the 3rd handwritten journal. I don't know how long I will continue the daily record, but I hope that I will be able to maintain it until the end of the calendar year at least. Health experts do not expect the pandemic to be over any time soon. The discipline of daily writing is good, even if sometimes I get behind a few days and have to catch up.
Sunday, August 23
Amanda and LeRoy were with us another night, so we decided on an omelette, sausage and toast for breakfast. With Amanda's help I made a fancy omelette with whipped egg whites and finished it in the oven. It turn out to be very good.
After checking the fit of her skirt, I took Amanda and LeRoy home. Again, she drove through the part and did well. Laura and Mike will be home early afternoon.
Today was also bread-making again. I mixed the Levain before bed last night and continued this morning and throughout the day, culminating with 3 pretty good loaves. I still am not getting the final "oven-spring," so that the loaves are light enough and taste good, but are not tall. It seems that when I try the slash, I deflate the bread too much. Maybe I need to buy that special tool for making the slashes.
Monday, August 24
We walked the lake route this morning, then I spent some time catching up on household chores. I left for West Knoxville at 2 pm for a dermatology appoint and got out of that with a few spots removed but no biopsies. Yeah! I took the opportunity to stop in a couple of stores looking for bread-making supplies, but to no avail. I stocked up on wine and picked up a few groceries on the way home. I haven't gone shopping except for necessities in such a long time.
Sometime during the day, Bill discovered a bat, or two as it turned out, in the garage. The droppings on the car hood were the tell-tale sign. The bats were wedged between the rafter and a piece of plywood. Bill managed to dislodge them and after they made a loop or two around the garage they flew away. I wish I had been there with my camera to see him waving his arms frantically to keep them away!
Supper was meatloaf and mashed potatoes - which I very seldom make - and green beans, of course.
The Republican convention started today but we are not watching. They have no shame in telling outright lies and stoking fear. They know they get votes by making their supporters fear the "other." It is disgusting and I will not give them ratings. Many prominent Republicans have repudiated Trump and endorsed Biden. The RNC has not adopted a platform. Their statement just says that they support Trump and their platform is the same as 2016. When I first saw it, I though it must be a hoax! Of course, the 2016 platform criticized the 'current administration' in terms that are pretty ironic under the circumstances.
Tuesday, August 25
We started the day with a walk up Brock Way. I took a few pictures along the way, but a little clump of daisies by the road's edge caught my fancy. I am working on 'Meditation on a Daisy.' If I come up with anything worth sharing I will post it. As I sometimes do, I went to the garden while I was still hot and sweaty to pick a small harvest. I took a lot of pictures today.
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| This little wildflower was no more than 8 inches tall, but exquisite. |
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| I have been watching this mullien, waiting for it to be in full bloom. However, someone has run over the base and knocked it down. At full height, it might have been 4 ft tall. |
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| Not a wall, but stacked rocks waiting for someone's project |
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| Beautiful red oak |
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| The road cut has created some amazing images in tree roots |
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| Too small for hickory nuts. I don't know what they are. |
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| Looking into the trees. |
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| This little daisy caught my imagination |
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| Today's harvest |
At about 3:30 we left in the RV to watch Amanda play golf at Toqua Course in Tellico Village. The sky ominously threatened rain and storm, but we continued on. By the time we got there, the treat was largely past and it was not raining. We rented a cart for the first time just to be safe. The course was beautifully scenic and Amanda did well, shooting a 48 on a difficult course.
As planned, we got takeout from Thai Bistro in the Village. Too bad that it is so far from us. We would eat there (or from there) more often. It is very good.
Lenoir City Schools has had the high school on "online learning days" Monday through Wednesday this week due to Covid cases and quarantines. Laura texted us that they announced this afternoon that they will begin and alternating day schedule for all students grades 7-12, beginning on Thursday this week and continuing through Fall Break, October 9. Students with last names A-L will attend school on Mon & Thurs, M-Z will attend Tues & Fri and all students will have online learning Wed and their alternate days. Extra-curricular activities will continue. So all students grades 7-12 will have 2 in-person and 3 online days each week for at least the next few weeks. Amanda said she was glad to be full-time in the online academy so she doesn't have to worry about changing schedules and disruptions.
My FitBit recorded 7923 steps today. I slightly exceeded my goal of 7500. That doesn't happen every day and never happens unless we have a morning walk.
Wednesday, August 26
Our morning walk was the lake route again. It was not too hot but very humid.
Pastor Kristie had called me late yesterday afternoon to ask if I would do the message again this week. Of course I said yes, so I spent most of the day preparing and writing. I needed to leave at 4 pm to take Amanda to Avalon for golf pictures and I almost had it done by then. Since we were having left-over meatloaf I didn't have to worry about cooking. I got home a little after 5 and had my message finished and revised by about 6:15. Good timing to break for supper.
Today's news has been about the massive Hurricane Laura which will hit near the TX-LA border tonight as a Cat-5 storm.
In other news- another white police shot of another black man, in the back 7 times. The man did not have a gun and it is questionable as to whether he had a knife in his possession. There has been subsequent rioting and news of protestors killed. These cycles are occurring with disturbing frequency. It turned out that the protestors were killed by a 17-year-old AR toting right-winger. The police had not stopped hime for carrying the weapon and had even given him a bottle of water. Systemic racism is real.
Thursday, August 27
For the fourth day in a row, we walked, this day on the lake route. We had a nice conversation with a couple that we had seen on Tuesday coming down Brock hill. Turns out they are from Oak Ridge and spend a lot of time camping in the RV at Melton Hill. The FitBit GPS tracks our route. Today it gave me credit for 8747 steps and 18 floors. I got a little credit for milling around while we were talking in a couple of places.
I got home drenched in sweat. Before I had cooled off, I had a message from Connie to pick surplus green beans from her garden. I was glad to drive up the hill and do that! I shared some with Kathy and put some in the freezer. From my garden I picked enough PH Peas for a small package for the freezer. Below are some pictures of Connie's garden, beautiful but very different that mine.
Damage reports are still coming in from Laura. It maintained hurricane force winds all the way north through LA, but the greatest damage was in Lake Charles and vicinity.
Numbers:
Worldometer: US: 6,037,097 cases; 184,434 deaths; 3,335,576 recovered
TN Dept of Health: 149,416 cases; 111,416 recovered; 1673 deaths
age 0-10 7,405, 11-21 18,194
Loudon County: 914 cases; 9295 neg, 1099 pos, 229 active, 682 rec
17.83 rate; 9.64 actual avg new cases
9 cases at LCHS created 100 students/staff in quarantine
Friday, August 28
I led the whole worship for the 3rd week. My message was based on this week's lectionary, Romans 12:9-21. I called it "Heaping Coals," and it is posted on YouTube and the text on this blog. https://youtu.be/UmZW8uWbXLo
Bonnie fixed bacon and tomato sandwiches again this week. After lunch we went to our Loudon County Democratic 'headquarters' at LC Park by the lake to get some yard signs and buttons. Drug store, gas & grocery rounded out my outing.
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I finished two masks for Sandra's niece and somehow it was time for supper - Salmon, squash casserole and asparagus. I doubt if I'll have more squash and tomatoes & green beans are about done, too. August garden is winding down. Maybe I'll get a few messes of PH Peas and enough okra to fry occasionally. Pepper are still ripening.
The last remnants of Hurricane Laura should pass through before morning.
The Republican Convention finished Thursday night with Trump's completely inappropriate, unethical and probably illegal acceptance speech from the White House lawn. The crowd of 1000 was not safe-distanced and few masks were seen. Earlier in the week First Lady Melania also spoke from the White House grounds.
His speech, as so many were, was filled with divisiveness, hatred and lies. During the 4 days of the convention, 4000 people died of Covid - more than died on 9-11. Yet the only mention was of how well this administration has handled the pandemic and rosy promises of a vaccine. No recognition was given to the loss and suffering of so many. The main theme was "Law and Order," which we've constantly heard from racists politicians sowing fear. BLM protestors are being demonized while extreme white nationalists/supremacists are instigation most of the violence. We are in for an ugly fall election season.
Saturday, August 29
We had some rain and wind in the early morning hours. We used the wet start as an excuse to lay in bed and drink coffee until mid-morning. It was 11 by the time we were eating brunch. I delivered Sandra's masks by noon.
I spent most of the afternoon transferring my journal notes to this online blog. Selecting pictures to match with events is time consuming. I did take some time out to call Melanie and Park. Neither of them had any bad weather from the hurricane. I hadn't talked with Park in quite a while, so it was good to hear his voice.
I used the last bit of meatloaf to make beef enchiladas and some other things that needed to be used to make corn and black bean salsa as a side.
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