The pandemic has affected all of us.  Some of us may just have suffered from a lack of activity. (Fortunately, most of that is navigable now.)  And others suffered emotionally.  As I do, I will do a mash-up of both and try to output something uniquely mine.

First, in the early days of the pandemic, it seemed like the Martians could have landed on planet earth and taken all leaders back to the home planet.  If the evening news presented this as the leading story, we could have believed it.  Our senses of reality were so disoriented.  We could have been told the Bigfoots of the world had been awaiting this moment and were prepared to make their immunity known.  The bottom line is we were all really confused and walking in a dream.  Eventually, we went out and got food or had it delivered.  We tolerated the rules that we didn’t understand, but we were being forced to accept.  And, eventually, our hope was realized–the Son Of Spanish Flu wasn’t revisiting us 100 years after its first appearance.   COVID-19 was lethal to a very few.  And, your natural immunity was not important.  We lumped everyone into the “possibly asymptomatic” category.

Some, I realize, suffered from far greater depression than I.  Besides the obvious financial concerns, there were many who walked around in complete fear.  What will happen to my kids if I die?  What are we going to do about the wedding?  Are we going to have to cancel the 4th of July gathering?  And, for those who don’t have a Christian worldview, you might think that the world was spinning out of control and only the scientist could solve this problem.  While celebrities may get the sympathy for these feelings of hopelessness, the pandemic did shake all of us foundationally.  Eventually, those who trust in a created universe reaffirmed their trust in God and His plan for each of their lives.  Those who don’t share this worldview suffered more deeply.  They got deeply depressed and questioned why they had to suffer in this way.  I don’t know why the pandemic happened, but I feel confident that He who let it happen will not be surprised when it ends.

Today, I don’t know if the pandemic will touch my life directly or not.   As I have said with nearly all things in my life, “If God wants to take me out, He is going to have to work at it.  I will not make it easy for Him.” And that is how I approach nearly everything–eventually.

Compared to the above, my physical pain seems almost a privilege.  Walking 12,000 to 30,000 steps a day has obvious benefits, but it can be detrimental to.

• I have lost the baby toenail on my right foot.  My shoes were born longer than their pre-pandemic brothers.  I consider it a very acceptable sacrifice.
• Recently, whether due to overworked shoes or an angry foot, my right arch decided it did not want to help me walk the way I was accustomed.  I could not roll from heel to the toes.  I had to swing the foot to avoid stretching it.  Three days in, the arch has accepted it alone cannot make me stop walking.  If it recruits a few more body members, it might keep the scabs from ruining the strike.
• At first, I thought my shoulder pain was from throwing my arm up to acknowledge all the bikes before they passed me on the path.  Now, I think it is a change in sleeping habits.  I don’t think it is pandemic-related.  Yet, I do seem to want to hug myself more tightly…I guess it is possible.
• All of the allergens in the air will affect those who are allergic and outside walking.  When those who are allergic have a sore throat, cough, and a runny nose, is it possible they think they have COVID?  If we did not have a thermometer that read my temperature below 98 degrees during these times, I would have run to the nearest COVID testing location.
• On a positive note, I do have a very nice farmer’s tan.  I have been disgusted by many men of my age range who find walking shirtless as a wise decision.  When you get to be my age, the imagination is a far more powerful force than the actual.

The pandemic has bombarded us from all sides.  Despite the overabundance of bad news, take comfort in knowing God knows how it is going to end.  And if you truly believe that, the “now” is only part of the journey to there…

There used to be an expression, “That and a quarter and yourself can get a cup of coffee.”  While the price of coffee has gone up, an opinion still has the same value.

Because an opinion has so little value outside of your own head, or at least outside of your personal cabal, why are people so free in giving opinions on social media?  I can understand a particular event so dominating a person’s thinking they temporarily believe an opinion expressed on social media is going to make a difference.  The wiser people realize the limits of social media in changing opinions.  The unwise people who think they can save the world plaster their social media with very opinionated posts.  If their posts lean the same direction as you do, the offense is likely lessened.  If the posts are blatantly “anti” your candidate or completely go against your political beliefs, you just turn off posts from that person.  (A person who posts an average of every hour of every day may also suffer this fate.)

Social media to me is a means of staying in touch.  Two posts per week are about right.  If you are convinced you need to post more frequently than that, you may need to evaluate if people care about you enough to read that level of detail.  If you need to tell intimate details of your life, volunteer to buy a friend a coffee and talk their leg off.  If you need to share all of your political opinions including trying to convince others why your arguments are so much more relevant than all the other posts from people who also have the most excellent opinions, contact a major network and try to get hired as a consultant.  The pay is better and they will appreciate you more.

If we made people pay you to listen to their opinions, we might have a workable solution.  Professional athletes are trying to tell us their opinions are worth more than ours.  Their credentials?  They have access to the media and egos to match their paychecks.  (It is my blog so I can state whatever I want) Those who have to tell you they are smarter than you probably aren’t.  If I ask for your opinion, I deserve everything I get.  If I don’t ask for your opinion, but you insist on giving it to me anyway, I will avoid every platform necessary to prevent myself from hearing a sermon from an athlete (or anyone) who should let his athletic skills (or any skills) do his preaching.

As a parent, I deal with the same issues.  As my adult children move further into adulthood, I would like to give them guidance from my wealth of experience.  Yet, if they don’t ask for help and I just start talking, they may hear my shared opinion, but it will be unheeded.  If they ask for my opinion, I can use my experiences to instruct.  And, if we schedule a time to discuss, we might talk over coffee.

As my wife and I watched the news last night, we saw a small little grandmother walk up to a podium.  She was speaking such hateful things.  You could almost see the spittle flying out of her mouth as she reiterated the talking points of her party.

I commented to my wife, “For a person in their 80’s to be that angry, she must be filled with lots of hate.”

She replied, “Oh, I agree.”

If you didn’t know, this grandmother is Nancy Pelosi. She has a handful of kids and grandkids.  Despite these many things that should make her happy, she has to summon all of her anger every time she gets in front of the microphone.  (When the President is a blue-colored animal, the highest-ranking red-colored animal does the same thing.  This is the jockeying part of politics.)  Maybe I should admire her ability to be so angry.  Yet, the inconsistencies in her life make it difficult.  Her actions show she thinks she is better than those she is supposed to serve.  (i.e. the recent hair salon story) Does this make her different from other politicians?  Again, not really.  What motivates a woman in her ninth decade to take part in this charade?  She claims to be working for those who have nothing while constantly breathing in the power.  And, if her power is diminished temporarily, she sucks a youth serum from straw a awaiting her return to the majority.  If her district is smart enough to retire her this fall, they will do themselves a great service.

I should probably indict all politicians who have been in Washington so long.  They no longer remember what it is like to live outside of the bubble.  They use decade-old memories to justify their actions.  They, I mean people from both parties, are so focused on keeping their sins buried and their accomplishments at the forefront.  It is no wonder voters are so jaded.

I know I am.  For President, I take both candidates and scrub all of the political dirt off of them.  Some of the dirt is old, and we are told some of the dirt is not dirt at all.  Yes, I know how I am voting.  Only one candidate will permit me to come out of the voting booth saying, “I voted for [That Guy], but that doesn’t mean I approve of all his actions.”  Oh, and I pray the decision I am making is the right one, too.

In my appraisal of my mental abilities, I am just barely capable of cobbling together the requisite number of words to warrant a post.  Warrant?  No, I am doubtful it will rank that high in the review.  Yet, I persevere and attempt to keep the streak alive.

Today was far busier than one of my normal days.  It consisted of:

• I left the house shortly after 8 to meet with my potential partner.  The goal was to set up a car-counter for a customer.  The customer is considering building a carwash.  They want to have a rough idea of how many cars are going past the proposed location.  After arriving, we found out the speed limit on this road was 55 mph.  And the cars seemed drawn to our fluorescent yellow jackets.  To compound our problems, we had equipment problems.  For safety reasons, I saw the equipment, but I could not participate in the setup.
• My companion for the day is quite the social (read networking) individual.  We met with someone who might play a role in the partnership.  I ate some “burnt ends” for the first time.  And I shook my first hand since the pandemic started.  I have bumped lots of knuckles, but nothing says, “Glad to meet you.”, like a handshake.
• The internet was out when I got back to the house.  Whenever my wife makes me aware of this, I feel responsible.  With her working from the house, her work depends on having access.  With a new neighbor in the house next door less than 24 hours and a cable company truck sitting out front of their house, I saw someone to blame.  I scoped the unattended vehicle.  Then, I called and got a call back from the company.  While I was on the phone, they tickled the internet modem from afar.  It worked after about 10 minutes.  This took all the wind out of my sails for a credit to my bill.  If she wasn’t so nice, I may have had enough energy to push a little harder.
• Last, I was short on an ingredient for dinner.  I ran up to Aldi’s and picked the key ingredient and other necessary items up.  The winner of the “necessary item prize” was the bacon/habanero pretzel thins.  These items are not stocked items.  To keep my sons happy, I am probably skewing the popularity of this product.  But their consumption makes the purchases valid.  Pretzels are another form of “temptation therapy”.  Cookies have also been part of temptation therapy, but they are with the added calorie count.

Maybe tomorrow I will have thoughts worthy of a word count.  Today, I just have a word count.  I am keeping the streak alive so I can celebrate the more cohesive postings.  I didn’t say the journey would be an easy one…

What can you write about when you have made a commitment to be consistent in your blog posting but have nothing to write about?  Ideally, you want to write something people will read.  But, when the goal is to post something and not my readership, you can get away with about anything you want.

If I were to talk about tonight’s unexciting dinner, I would tell you how it was a hybrid.  The hamburgers were warmups.  The salad was a mix bought at the store.  (I dumped it in a bowl.  Then, I tossed in the crunchies, the cheese, and 1/2 of the dressing.)  The broccoli was a 3-pound bag.  I chopped it up into more mouth-sized chunks before putting it in the oven to roast at 350 for 45 minutes.  (I tossed it a couple times along the way.)  The conversation covered the workday and the dinner options for tomorrow night.

Or, I could discuss the drain snake that was inadequate for my needs.  The roots have a firm hold in the drains around the perimeter of the pool.  With a large elm tree nearby, this should be no surprise.  What was a surprise was the hunks of concrete that I could manually remove from one drain.  I cleared the visible network of roots. But there are far more.  I see an encounter with an essential worker who will miraculously clear out my drainage line for a donation to his favorite charity.  Or a check for his company and a tip for him.  (Or her…how sexist of me.)

Finally, I am unsure of the next work project that I have been teasing myself with.  The spreadsheets need to be reviewed, and the viability has to be determined.  And, before we could make any actual money, there would be a series of water hazards to avoid.  If I only had some other fantastic options, I could give my involvement a thumbs-down and move on.  While this option may not be great, this pathway is certain to have some colorful stories.  And colorful stories are more interesting than filler…

As I do my daily morning walk, I see a regular cast of characters.

• I see the guy who walks with the broomstick handle.  Is he prepared to ward off a coyote that might attempt to get friendly?
• I see some bicyclists that are only recognizable by their tattoos.  They go by so fast without warning.  If I did not see their arm or leg tattoos, I would not be sure if it were the same person.
• I see the slow jogger who often walks.  He is usually chatting on the phone when I pass.  When he sticks his hand up and acknowledges me, his body language implies, “I am cooler than you, but since we are in this pandemic together, I will give you some love.”
• There are a few wide and wrong walkers.  They walk on the wrong side of the sidewalk or right down the middle.  My inner rule follower wants to be less nice than I usually am.  I pass wherever I can while doing my best to keep the 6+ feet of separation.

And, up until recently, I saw this guy frequently.  He has a crew cut and a small gut.  He appears built for walking.  Up until a couple of weeks ago, he was the guy who would wait until he knew you were looking at him.  He would give a 2-finger wave with one hand.  The hand would pivot from his waist area. Beyond his cool gesture, he may have moved his lips a little.  That was it until today.

Not having seen him in a while, I stopped today and waited for him to approach.  I asked him, “I haven’t seen you in a while.  Where have you been?

He replied, “I have been busy.”

In the time of COVID, does busy mean you were sick and recovering?  Does it mean, “We may walk at the same time occasionally, but I am not interested in moving you up the friend ladder.  Why would I want to do that?”  Or, does it simply mean, “I have been moving my kids to college and my walking suffered.”

In my world, I assume somebody wants to know the answer to the question they asked.  And, if they wait on you to make sure they can ask you the question, they must think something of you.  If somebody went to that effort for me, I would give them more than a canned, “I was busy.”  The person who paused is showing extra concern beyond the, “We share the path and I will wave at you the first time we pass on the circular path at the park.  Anything beyond that, and you are doing some crazy thinking.”  Well, I must do some crazy thinking!  He must have a lower need for social interaction than me, OR he must get an abundance of it at home.

Regardless, in the time of the pandemic, I guess I falsely thought people would be interested in feeling like they were missed…I know I would.  As beautiful as my family is I have shared the house with for the past 6 months, it would be nice to connect with some random people again.   When my introvert is fully charged, my extrovert just leaps out of my mouth sometimes.  I am expecting a few more hops or jumps before the week is out.  Not everyone can be “busy.”

I didn’t have to let all the tasks pile up until this week.  It just worked out that way.  Between the yard, the pool, and the removal of the expanding foam sprayed along the top of the house to keep the wasps out, I have been exceptionally busy.  All the tasks were predictable.  I knew I would close the days with an achy back and tired legs.  (I woke up Saturday morning with my left knee muscle twitching uncontrollably.)  The pool was the real unknown.

Over the past month, I have tried to get two quotes on fixing the skimmer area of the pools.  I had to call to have the first quote sent to me, and the second quote never arrived.  On the quote I received, I was told the cost was over $1,000 and the pool would need to be drained entirely.  After checking with my buddies at the pool store, I found the product I needed for under $40.  It would be a little messy.  Fortunately, it was not allergic to water like the companies that provided quotes.  I would just have to remove a couple inches of water.

Today was the day of the siphon.  YouTube videos provided the shortcuts.  It still took us two tries to get a slight, but continual trickle out of the “bye-bye” water end.  After weeding in the backyard for two hours, the water level was nearly as full as at the start.  I tried to expand my siphon knowledge and move the hose around, but it made no difference.  In frustration, I started heaving 5-gallon buckets of water out of the pool while my wife was preparing dinner.  Mocking my wife’s tone, my son came out saying,  “Don’t hurt your back, luvvy.”  I was trying hard to use my knees, but tomorrow will bring what it brings.  Believing myself ingenious, I am letting the siphon work all night.  If I have missed something and if the siphon speeds up, the pool may be empty by morning.

Tomorrow I will be mixing this cement-like stuff and applying it to the areas of need.  If I wait until mid-week, the pool temperature will shift past refreshing and into the near-polar-bear range. (A cold front is coming through.) So, whether or not I like it, tomorrow is the day.  If I do it correctly, I get to save myself a few dollars.  And, if I do it wrong, I will hope to give it a favorably retelling.

We all change, and life has taught all of us lessons.  I know I have changed, too. When a decade or two or more pass between your time in high school and those friends you infrequently now interact with, a casual meeting will not allow them to see anything beyond the superficial.  A quick non-discerning glance will show I have most of my hair and I weigh in the same neighborhood—give or take a patio—that I weighed in a high school.  A conversation will show you more.

• Parenting changes you:  Until you are a parent, you only have a hint of what it takes to be one.  On top of our own children, we had foster children, exchange students, and random other children or young adults who volunteered to be subjected to our special form of life.  Not every guest left of their own volition, but we didn’t lose anyone.  Not every problem can be solved, and if is is solved not everyone is going to be happy.  We accepted it, and we were better parents for it.
• I am security motivated and not money motivated:  Prior to getting married, I was certain is wanted to be “rich.”  In the decades since, I found I was targeting the wrong type of rich.  My middle-aged rich is, “having what I need for today plus assurance I will have enough for a few days after that.”  Once you have achieved that goal, you can either desire more, or you can become content.  Once you are content, it is more difficult to “owned” (i.e. employed) by someone who values your time far less than you value it.
• Giving back has a variety of flavors:  Once you accept your daily blessed, regardless of your circumstances in that moment, you want to be part of the solution.  For my family, that has taken a variety of forms.  As noted above, we have done parenting on a variety of levels.  Although we sometimes faltered, God loved all the children in our house.  As the parents, our non-biological kids and biological kids kept us challenged.  We tried to see each kid like God saw them, but it was not always easy.  Any Christian can likely say, “I should do more.”, but we have tried to be proactive in our missions.  There is no shortage of people who need Good News.   We seek to reach those we are uniquely qualified to serve.
• Marriage can get better every year:  Not every day of our marriage has been a home run, but year over year, we continue to grow together.  We both have committed to work on it.  I may not be pulling my weight yet, but I try harder every day.
• It is okay not to like everyone:  As a Christian, we need to be respectful of everyone.  This does not mean that everyone acts respectfully.  We should, “Do unto others as we would have them do to us.”  But, not every person you meet is meant to be your best friend.  If a person doesn’t bring out your best and you don’t like who you are around them, you need to stay focused on being your best you…even if you are temporarily disappointed in yourself.
• You are never too old to take on a new and challenging project:  It seems like I have been trying to learn a language for more than half my life.  It is a combination of not fully committing and not having the right method.  Fingers-crossed the present method will work.  I prefer not to paint or do some other projects around the house.  When I realize the money saved, I put my reluctance on the shelf.  This blog is also an example of this.  I have made multiple runs of being consistent in posting.  If anyone is reading this, they are taking part in a double-digit attempt to reboot it.  And, I am old enough to risk boring you to death recounting all of my other projects that did not come to a satisfactory conclusion.  Tomorrow’s project will be redemption.  d
• I have strong political opinions, but I only talk about them if invited:  If we were to meet, my goal would be friendship.  But, if you can only talk about politics and this politics differ from mine, than the conversation would end quickly.  If we both agree politicians are self-serving regardless of their policies, we would have a point of agreement.  If we would continue talking about politics, then some issues may come up.  The purpose of bringing up these issues is not to convert the other person to your opinion, it is to find points of agreement within the issue–the gray points.  However, I read a lot, so I am pretty sure we could have a conversation and only tangentially touch on politics.