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Quarantine Tuesday Reading Kaffeeklatsch - 10/13/2020
I'm so happy that you were able to get away and it sounds like it was amazing! We are in full Fall weather here... the leaves are changing and we've got our stereotypical wet weather. We are being hit by a wind storm today... of course... since I have a tree service coming out tomorrow to take care of some dangerous trees.
I submitted my Amazon writing assessment today and I feel really good about it!! I also had my meeting with the recruiter today and talked about the compensation package which is above what I was hoping for! The interview is a week from today and she'll call to make the offer on the afternoon of the 22nd. I'm really excited and cannot wait!
Just got my hair cut and colored. Four days and counting to my son's wedding. My nearest and dearest arrived with negative test results, so I'm making every effort to set aside my contamination anxieties. It is really wonderful to see my son and daughter(s).
What an exciting time for you Jgrace! Wishing for a gorgeous day filled with love for you and yours!
@JGrace - revel in this time as it will be special. I just know it.
It was Canadian Thanksgiving yesterday, so I had the day off. Which meant, my one day at work this week actually AT work (not at home) was today. I always come home feeling tired! Was the worst my first day back in person, but still tend to be more tired on those days. Next Monday, I will only be there about half a day, before coming home, eating lunch, then attending a work town hall (via Teams). Technically the town hall is after I'm usually done at home, and goes later than I usually stay at work.
Made things tricky to figure out the day they chose since I also have a dentist appt (15 minute walk from home, but too far from work for me to make it in time if I stayed late at work for the town hall). I could have made it from work for timing if not for the town hall. Anyway, my supervisor said I could do it this way, so I can do the town hall and still get to my appointment.
LibraryCin wrote: "It was Canadian Thanksgiving yesterday, so I had the day off. Which meant, my one day at work this week actually AT work (not at home) was today. I always come home feeling tired! Was the worst my ..."Ridiculous isn't it how much time and energy these simple things are taking?
I have a CLEAN APARTMENT! First time since mid-March that my entire apartment is clean!Quarantine forced my cleaning lady of many years, both in age and service, into retirement. It was time anyway but this allowed me to transition her. Since I have not cleaned the house myself for decades, things had reached a pretty seriously bad state. I have a lead on a new cleaning lady, but as I did not want her to run screaming the first time she saw the place, I went online and found Zen Cleaners off Angie's List. After checking out 3, I went with the one that had strongest reviews and seemed to be dealing most efficiently and professionally over the phone. Pearl and Letitia turned up at 9, left at 2.15, and we managed to work around each other. I had scheduled a slew of calls for time they were here which I could do in bedroom.
We were all careful about masks etc. Would use them in a heartbeat to handle a big clean every few months.
Now on to hiring a regular....and enjoying my CLEAN APARTMENT.
@ Charlotte - Love hearing all this good news from you! We're all cheering for you, you know.@ Library Cin - Good for your supervisor for being flexible. We cannot ignore medical / dental appointments.
@ Theresa - LOVE a clean abode! Our crew skipped the first two months of the pandemic, but they've been coming ever since May. NOT all their clients have asked them back, though.
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My eye is responding well to the ointment, and I've figured a schedule for use that has the smallest impact on my reading life. I use it first thing in the morning, then apply my hot compress while I sit in the recliner and listen to the morning news. And I use it again right before Hubby and I sit down for dinner. It certainly does NOT affect my ability to find my fork and my food!
I got my ballot today. I filled it out and my husband took both of ours to the nearest drop-off location at our local library. Crossing my fingers and praying for change in November.
Attention all PBTers!Today October 15th is National Grouch Day! At least acccording to Sandra Boynton.
https://www.facebook.com/114554295246...
I know of at least one member who will embrace it! Think I will revel in it as well.
I'm having a couple days off. This week it's school's autumn holiday. What was earlier referred to as 'potato holiday' - you can guess why. We're currently moving things around our house - the kids (how old are they before you can't call them kids anymore?) are changing rooms, and we've sorted a lot of stuff to put to the toys and clothes circle of life. A lot of dust bunnies are exposed in this procedure ...Next week it's my oldest 20th birthday and we're having a handful of family over for the first time in forever. We're only mixing people who see each other anyway, and my son gave it a lot of thought. He's seeing his best friends another day so we don't mix friends and family (which he usually likes). I can feel the strain this pandemic is having on my kids, especially the teens, and their ability to be young, even though Denmark is more open than a lot of other places.
I oppose national grouch day on principle! Theresa, so many lovely good things! Charlotte, J Grace, Cindy, happy wonderful blessed things both in the moment and ahead!
Jenni Elyse - its been really neat to see people across the country begin to vote! Funny that my husband and I feel strongly about going in, in person, on election day. Remember when that was a thing? We are going to take the younger two kids - news flash, both who want now to be Senators. The fifteen year old and the ten year old. Historic night!
... I mean they are really thoughtful and follow guidelines to the t, but I think we're starting to see the long-term affect it's having.
@Amy, yes, give those kids a sense of the importance of participating in a democracy!
Johanne, we crossed in our posts! Good things for you too! And you're right, this has been a tough time on everybody. There have been blessings and losses all intermixed. Most of my patients and friends are talking about how overnight we have hit the place where we are looking at less light and cooler weather, and how to adapt to that..... Dark year of the soul....
@ Johanne-IMO they will always be "the kids". Some of my friends give me a funny look when I call my daughter "baby girl"-Oh well, they can deal with it-She will always be my baby girl.@Theresa-refrain giving my secrets away 🤨 LoL
@B.C. good to hear food intake is not affecting you-hoping that includes being able to find the wine glass!
@ Jenni Elyse FYI you can go online and check that your ballot was received, give it a few days, it takes that for them to record it. We dropped outs off last week and I checked yesterday and we all good!
Over 1 million people in Michigan have already voted-record breaking!
Joanne wrote: "@ Johanne-IMO they will always be "the kids". Some of my friends give me a funny look when I call my daughter "baby girl"-Oh well, they can deal with it-She will always be my baby girl.@Theresa-r..."
My youngest sister, aged 54, is still my baby sister and the baby of the family.
Sooo, I didn't reveal a thing, Ms. Joanne! You just gave yourself away! LOL.
In WA state it's almost 100% mail in. People can go register and vote in person, if they need to, at the voting offices but they mail out ballots to everyone. And our ballots are mailed out today!!! I can't wait to get my hands on it!!When Biden is elected there are rumors that he'll pull our Governor, Inslee, in for a position in DC. That means whomever we vote into office for Lt. Gov has a likely chance of becoming our Gov. The way our Primary works is the top two candidates, regardless of party, are the two candidates on the ballot for the election. So both of our candidates for Lt. Gov are strong candidates from the Democratic party. I'm not really worried about Inslee being voted in as Gov. He had 70% of the vote in the Primary. His challenger is a very, scary Republican who has absolutely no experience.
I found out yesterday that I made it through the first round interview with Limeade and was scheduled for the next step today!! Although this isn't the job that my gut is telling me to take, there is a ton of good things about it and I'm torn. They offer 100% medical/dental/vision and remote working! They are really big on real life balance to the point that a friend told me this would be the easiest job I ever had if I took it.
I asked for a sign yesterday that things were going in the right direction and this would all work out for the best and I got my sign!!! It was a banana slug and there is a whole long story behind why that is my sign. But a friend in the know summed it up the best... The sign of a slug to remind you of the web of women you're connected to.
Theresa wrote: "Attention all PBTers!Today October 15th is National Grouch Day! At least acccording to Sandra Boynton.
https://www.facebook.com/114554295246...
I know of at least one m..."
Well I followed the spirit of the day even though I didn't know about it! I fell asleep before dinner so I was blaming the grouchiness on feeling sick. Thanks for letting me know I was actually celebrating a holiday!
Charlotte wrote: "In WA state it's almost 100% mail in. People can go register and vote in person, if they need to, at the voting offices but they mail out ballots to everyone. And our ballots are mailed out today!!..."I'm glad your job search is going well, Charlotte! Limeade's benefits sound terrific, especially the 100% coverage for health care and remote working.
In Ohio, many people are using the absentee ballot option. Since mail can be iffy, many are hand delivering their ballots to their county election board. My husband and I went and did this on Tuesday. On our way down there, we passed many lawns boasting political signs. Passions are running high.
NancyJ wrote: "Theresa wrote: "Attention all PBTers!Today October 15th is National Grouch Day! At least acccording to Sandra Boynton.
https://www.facebook.com/114554295246...
I know o..."
🤣🤣 This made me laugh, Nancy!
There was some commotion in the neighborhood this week, State Police, ATF guys ... no one knew what was going on. Local Paper came today: Turns out, one of the lovely militiamen who thought it might be a good idea to kidnap and kill Michigan's Governor , lives within walking distance of me. We do not live in the woods. we live in a pretty suburban area...just a small town outside of Detroit. I don't know what I am so surprised, because I have known for 5 years this is Trump town
Joanne wrote: "There was some commotion in the neighborhood this week, State Police, ATF guys ... no one knew what was going on. Local Paper came today: Turns out, one of the lovely militiamen who thought it migh..."I think it is more shocking in a pretty little town than finding out for example, in a NYC luxury condominium with 200+ units that your neighbor is on the Convicted Sex Offender list (true story - a client building received official notice a couple weeks ago).
Pretty wild though.
Joanne wrote: "There was some commotion in the neighborhood this week, State Police, ATF guys ... no one knew what was going on. Local Paper came today: Turns out, one of the lovely militiamen who thought it migh..."Oh My Stars!
My pretty little village (population 4500) had an attempted armed car-jacking a few mornings ago. Three young men (at least one was only 14; one 17; the other remains at large) ... loaded 9 mm .... approached a man in his car at the stoplight. The man hit the accelerator and drove off ... then dialed 9-1-1. This was at 5:15 a.m. at an intersection of two state highways, right next to the interstate freeway. So a busy intersection with many people traveling through to make a quick stop at Starbucks, the gas station or McDonald's before getting on the freeway. Hubby likes to go to McD's at 5:00a.m. when he can't sleep ... then he takes his coffee to the park and reads the paper in the car. I'm a nervous wreck about this now ... the man rarely carries his cell phone, and half the time he has it with him it's turned off.
Oh my Joanne! The world is a crazy place!
We still have not received our ballots!!!! I heard that some of the ballot boxes have already filled up in parts of King County... way to go Seattle and suburbs!!! I want my ballot!!
My alma mater is the college that had to postpone two football games and none the coach has Covid. He had to apologize for comments he made and I’m surprised but I’m not. I had hoped he would have been smarter because he was doing so much to promote diversity. Oh well. Sigh.
What a seriously crazy world..... if we are not fearful of Covid, or our government leadership, we are fearful of our neighbors! This is getting crazier and crazier. By the time the plot to kidnap the governor came into play we have long been into telenovella. I sincerely hope that after this world is righted again, the crazies and the haters are exposed and there is no more room for them. That we are moving towards the light, and true law and order begins to take form. Meanwhile, all of you guys my dear friends, take very good care, in every possible way!
Charlotte wrote: "Oh my Joanne! The world is a crazy place!
We still have not received our ballots!!!! I heard that some of the ballot boxes have already filled up in parts of King County... way to go Seattle and..."
@ Charlotte-I would call your local Township/county hall-you should have had them by now!
Amy wrote: "What a seriously crazy world..... if we are not fearful of Covid, or our government leadership, we are fearful of our neighbors! This is getting crazier and crazier. By the time the plot to kidnap ..."We can only the hope the world will right itself. I remember, way back in March or April, I said something like "perhaps this pandemic will bring out the very best in people"...*sigh*
Joanne wrote: "Charlotte wrote: "Oh my Joanne! The world is a crazy place!
We still have not received our ballots!!!! I heard that some of the ballot boxes have already filled up in parts of King County... way..."
There's been a problem with getting mail-in ballots here in Ohio. Thousands of people have not yet gotten them. The printing company has not yet printed them. There's been worry about voter suppression.
Holly R W wrote: "There's been a problem with getting mail-in ballots here in Ohio. Thousands of people have not yet gotten them. The printing company has not yet printed them. There's been worry about voter suppression. ..."I read about that. It seems the company that contracted to print and mail the ballots claims to have been "overwhelmed" ... but the owner of the company is a huge supporter of the man currently in the white house.
We had our election on Saturday - my husband was firmly informed that I was going to watch the coverage from 7pm and there was to be No Channel Surfing On Pain Of Death. He is still alive. Though the amount of whining about the quality of the graphics and interviews and how boring it all was created the occasional moment of doubt about whether that state of affairs would last ...
Landslide victory for the incumbent government which has done a really good job during COVID. The overall result is not a surprise to anyone but the margin of the win was unexpected. Our voting system usually creates coalition governments, so having an outright majority is very surprising.
All of our family voted in advance (along with a record figure of nearly 2 million other people). There’s no mail-in ballot here for national elections so we don’t have the stress of waiting for ballot papers (we only have mail voting for local council elections) but there were masses of places where people could go to vote either in advance and on Election Day so it was super easy to participate. As it happens we had no community transmission at that time, but it was organised as if we had restrictions in place, with further contingency plans in case of serious COVID outbreaks. I am fond of my small well governed democracy (which is conveniently surrounded by a large most that helps to keep us safe!)
Can I just say as an outsider, your election system seems very confusing. I need to read up on it in order to fully understand it. Though I don't think I'll ever understand a supposedly democratic country with a system where some ballots are 'accidentally not printed'.
Johanne wrote: "Can I just say as an outsider, your election system seems very confusing. I need to read up on it in order to fully understand it. Though I don't think I'll ever understand a supposedly democrati..."
It confuses us as well. And there should never be something like unprinted ballots absent high corruption. Oh, yeah, we have the most corrupt government in our nation's history. Duh.
KateNZ wrote: "We had our election on Saturday - my husband was firmly informed that I was going to watch the coverage from 7pm and there was to be No Channel Surfing On Pain Of Death. He is still alive. Though..."
A client was commenting about wanting to relocate to NZ if both the Malignant Orange Toad is reelected and we fail to flip the Senate. I said I doubted they would open their boarders to anyone from a country where the virus is mostly raging out of control, even if we are coming from one of about 3 states controlling it.
It is unusual (it’s most similar to the German system I think) and it certainly looks complicated on paper. Having 7 separate Māori electorates is also an unusual feature though an excellent one because it ensures direct representation of tangata whenua (‘people of the land’) in Parliament. But the system is actually pretty simple to operate and count (unlike some other proportional representation systems). Everyone gets two ticks. One vote for a local MP. And one vote for the party of your choice - with the party vote determining the overall number of seats in Parliament that the party will get. The proportionality is pretty accurate overall.
The US electoral college system is way more complicated to my mind - that really frazzles my brain!!
Immigration enquiries are at a record high, Theresa! Though the way is shut...
KateNZ wrote: "Immigration enquiries are at a record high, Theresa! Though the way is shut..."I did say to him that borders were closed I thought...and he is not my only client making such noises!
One client relocated two months ago to Belgrade, Serbia. The ony European country with borders still open to USA and with low COVID. He plans to make it permanent. He is officially retired...from teaching...although a writer so never really stops writing. I have my doubts it will truly be permanent but who knows. He monitors our political news far more closely than I do, evaluates polls closely, etc. We will see.
So wheat! If Ohio is pulling this about the mail in ballots, it means that the nursing homes are screwed. But doesn’t mean that everybody just needs to get the hell out to the actual polling place? Like if he screws with the mail in ballots, people can still vote in person or n Election Day or before.... right? As far as I can see all this crap about having one ballot box where people have to drive hours and miles, it’s making people so infuriated that they are finding their way to make a day trip of it and just do it. Or get themselves to the polls. I am Magine if it makes people mad they will do what they can do to make sure their vote is counted. Of course it’s voter suppression..... yet another thing this guys going to be tried for. But it doesn’t make sense to me that the people who don’t get the ballots aren’t just going to show their support and their anger by doing what the Republicans said they would do. Swim through Covid to vote. If necessary, I would show up in a hazmat suit! I hope the Ohio folks are good and angry. This is yet another not nice luck for the Republican Party, or rather the Trump supporters.....
Amy wrote: "So wheat! If Ohio is pulling this about the mail in ballots, it means that the nursing homes are screwed. But doesn’t mean that everybody just needs to get the hell out to the actual polling place?..."Certainly people have the option of showing up in person ... and they are doing so in droves! But think about this. Let's say you are dependent on public transportation, are elderly or disabled or otherwise in a high-risk group, and that you live in Harris county TX (which isabout the size of Rhode Island!). You are facing hours on a bus and then hours standing in line (reports on the first day of in-person early voting had lines up to 11 hours long!), then hours on a bus (if they are still running by that time) to get back home. Without bathrooms, food, a chair to sit on, ... etc.
And yes, people are still doing it. Doesn't make it fair. And it's still voter suppression.
I remember when there was still a poll tax. My parents would sometimes give other people the $ to pay that tax so they could vote.
Book Concierge wrote: "Amy wrote: "So wheat! If Ohio is pulling this about the mail in ballots, it means that the nursing homes are screwed. But doesn’t mean that everybody just needs to get the hell out to the actual po..."Reminds me of my mother, who would walk in the rain/snow, to vote when my father was being un-american-LoL
Many people I know are worried about voting in person and being exposed to covid. Currently, our county's cases are soaring.
Yes Holly, that seems a valid concern.Also - you once had to pay to vote?? How long ago was that? I mean until 1915 you had to own your own property to vote in Denmark, which is sort of similar. You also had to be a man and other such keep the patriarchy things.
Fingers crossed that we get our ballots today!! Someone posted in our local facebook group that they haven't received theirs either and asking who has. No one in the neighborhoods near me have received them but others in our area have. Our local post office isn't the best so I'm sure it's something going on there.Luckily the ballot drop off is nearby, at the local library.
I saw pictures from my old home town in FL, who opened early voting today, and the lines were super long. I don't miss in-person voting. I started doing absentee in FL years before I moved away.
Our family isn't comfortable with mail in. My son tried it last year because he was in the city for school for the entire voting time and he never even got his ballot (and we took it in in person in time). We're glad we can all go vote in person here.
Yesterday I spent much of the day on a trip to Cambridge so my son could perform in an outdoor soirée, and it turns out he could have played more than one piece since there were only 4 performers (to keep it smaller so we could sit far enough apart) and the others all did 2-6 or so selections. It was fun, though, and a reminder of what it's like to hear live concerts. Two of the performers are professional (and I mean very good professional, not just getting paid for stuff but not being that good, which happens).
Johanne wrote: "Yes Holly, that seems a valid concern.Also - you once had to pay to vote?? How long ago was that? I mean until 1915 you had to own your own property to vote in Denmark, which is sort of similar. ..."
I don’t think it was official. It was used in the U S South specifically on black people, along with bogus literacy tests, like reciting the Constitution, which white people didn’t have.
@Charolette, we got our ballots this weekend, and that timing has been normal for Oregon. We're also always mail-in/ballot box drop off. I'm very excited to drop my ballot off this afternoon. The drop box is conveniently outside my local branch of the library., which is now open for holds only. YAY for being open!
I will sneak in some reading though.
I had a simply wonderful time at Mohonk mostly reading, with generous amounts of sleeping and eating in there. I felt really safe there, too. Masks and social distancing were observed by all. No one entered your room without your express request, not even housekeeping. I did enjoy a sublime facial one morning, but was not able to take advantage of the pool or hot tub because I left my bathing suit at home in my last second packing. Saunas and showers were closed but the other facilities were open.
I had fires in my bedroom fireplace every night. The bed was incredibly comfortable. My only complaint - the chairs in the room were not particularly comfortable. But the rocking chairs on my private balcony overlooking the mountains were just fine.
I'm already plotting to return in December for a few days mid-week.
Back in NYC, I've hired Zen Cleaning Service to come in tomorrow and power clean my apartment, which has not been properly cleaned in months. Then I have a new cleaning lady starting on a regular basis. I'd much rather, clearly, spend my time reading and even working than doing housework. I also don't want to overburden my new cleaning lady on her first day on the job, hence hiring a service. We'll see how it all goes.
And one day this week, I'm getting another mani-pedi!
Getting away those few days has really made an enormous difference in my stress and anxiety levels. Work will inevitably bring it back quickly, but I don't feel so much on edge of disintegrating into a heap of tears, which was pretty much my state prior to going away.