Month: March 2020 (Page 1 of 3)

Reader’s Notebook, 3/31/20

March 31, 2020 / DB

First off, in my last entry I mentioned that I had forgotten to include a book in my December updates. But I had also forgotten the book’s title, so I could not mention it at all. Fortunately the author of the book blurbed one of this entry’s books which jogged my memory. This is my official recognition that I read and enjoyed Blake Crouch’s Dark Matter. It’s a terrific, mind-fucky novel.

The Blaze – Chad Dundas
I find new books to read in strange places. I learned of this one via a golf writer on Twitter. The writer, Kevin Van Valkenberg, played football at the University of Montana, and through that has some connection with Chad Dundas. KVV blurbed this on Twitter, I added it to my list, and I’m glad I did.

The Blaze is focused on Matthew Rose, an Iraqi war vet who returns home with most of his memory wiped out following an IED attack. After spending time with his mother in Florida, he returns to his native Montana following his dad’s suicide. He reconnects with high school friends with little idea what their previous relationships entailed. He also stumbles across a house fire that kills a grad student at the local university. The fire elicits a memory of a fire from his youth, and soon he and his high school girlfriend, a reporter for the local paper, are digging into possible connections between the two. As they unravel the mystery the outcome is a little telegraphed. But that only takes away slightly from what is a pretty solid, easy read.

Golden State – Ben H. Winters
The former Butler professor with another novel placed in a slightly different version of the modern age. He wrote the Last Policeman trilogy based on a world that was about to end thanks to a collision with a comet. Underground Airlines imagined a modern US where the Civil War had never been fought, and the country was split in two.

Golden State takes place now, or maybe slightly in the future, in the fictional “Golden State,” which is the name for the new nation that occupies the physical space California once held. We never really learn what caused the split, but the Golden State is a land where lies are not allowed. The truth must always be told, because when people do not tell the truth, terrible things happen. Like whatever destroyed the old US of A.

Laszlo Ratesic is a member of the Speculative Service, policemen who are allowed to male informed guesses to help solve crimes. While investigating a pretty normal death – a worker has fallen off the roof of a building – Laszlo stumbles into a very messy case that involves the standard police, a high-placed judge, and the Experts who run the Golden State. What makes the case so messy is that he uncovers a rot at the core of the country that shakes everything he believes in.

Winters does a nice job of combining crime writing with sci-fi and speculative fiction. This book feels uneven, though. He was on the path to something potentially great and just missed his mark. A coda where Laszlo is banished from the Golden State and discovers some of the reality of what happened to the rest of the former US felt tacked on and unnecessary.

Night Boat to Tangier – Kevin Barry
I forgot that I read Barry’s Beatlebone a few years back. After I read this book I looked back on my review of Beatlebone and saw that I didn’t like it very much. I guess I’m 0–2 on Barry’s books now.

This is a story centered on two middle aged Irish criminals who are holed up at the Spanish port of Algeciras, hoping to find a daughter who has been missing for several years while she lives a nomadic life. Barry jumps back in time to show how the men got to that point: how they made it, briefly, big importing drugs; how they crashed both in terms of addiction, personal failures, business disasters; how they went through rehab together; and even when one of them stabbed the other. We come to learn why the daughter might not have any interest in reconnecting with her father and his best friend. Barry introduces the daughter late in the book, as she sees the men waiting and avoids them thanks to a change in her appearance. She boldly walks by them and stares directly into their faces before boarding a boat to Tangier. All the men can do is admire her boldness and wonder, moments later, if she didn’t somehow look familiar.

This is a pretty tight book. But I struggled with it. Part of it is the patois that Barry writes in. These are relatively uneducated, Irish tough guys and his printed dialogue is exactly how they would speak. Some sentences I honestly couldn’t make sense of.

But I also struggled to connect with the story. There were parts that were funny, but none of it was all that compelling to me. I didn’t feel sympathy for the men. While I hoped that the girl got away, I wasn’t super invested in her, either.

All that said, I must admit that I read this the week of March 16, our first week of home schooling and limited lockdown. I was a little distracted. I often found my attention drifting either to whatever horrible news story I had just read, or toward the next BBC news bulletin. I think this novel is a bit tough, but I still wasn’t able to give it my full reading powers.

The Wanted – Robert Crais
I haven’t had a one-day book for awhile. And on a day when I was able to spend time outside, no less! But I did start this last Friday afternoon and finished it mid-evening Saturday.

I’m sure I’ve read some of Robert Crais’ work before, but it was in the days before I tracked every book I read. Which is a damn shame because this was a terrific read and I really should have sprinkled his books over the past 15 years or so.

Crais has two characters that populate most of his books: private investigators Elvis Cole and Joe Pike. Here Cole is hired by a single mom to investigate why her teenage son has a room filled with expensive clothes, a Rolex, and other things he has no business possessing. Cole quickly determines that the boy is involved in a series of burglaries of rich, LA residents’ homes.

However, Cole is not the only one seeking the boy and his partners. In their burglaries they took a laptop loaded with damning evidence of a murder an LA business tycoon covered up, and he has hired hitmen to track down the laptop and kill anyone with knowledge of it.

The book is a brisk race between Cole and the hitmen to find the boy and his partners first. There is, naturally, a highly violent and satisfying confrontation at the end.

I’m about to finish the stack of books I grabbed from the library before it closed. I’m pleased to see they have a number of Crais’ books in Kindle format. I believe I will be wearing out that list between now and when the library is able to open again.

Covid Chronicles, 3/30

March 30, 2020 / DB

Happy spring break, everyone! So excited to leave dreary, cold Indiana behind for a week in sunny, warm…

Well shit. We weren’t even supposed to go someplace warm, but it is still crappy to remain stuck at home rather than on day two of skiing in Colorado. Who knows, maybe staying home means one of us didn’t break a leg or blow out an ACL on the slopes. Regardless of what is going on here, we are glad the resorts shut down as the Keystone-Vail corridor is apparently a hotspot thanks to at least one person who traveled from Italy to that area in early March.

The past week has been very boring. The stress and excitement of the first week of being stuck at home wore off. The girls got into a routine, but that routine was not ideal. If she didn’t have an early class meeting, M was sleeping until 10 or so before she woke to get started on her assignments for the day. She was generally busy all day, each day. C and L again got most of their work done early in the week and spent the rest of the week on screens large and small. L got outside quite a bit, as the weather was decent most of the week. We played a lot of HORSE and took a few bike rides.

I did have to re-teach myself some fifth grade math – dividing fractions – as L got a little stuck and her online resources weren’t clear in what she was supposed to be doing. I had to break down and call a friend who used to be a math teacher to make sure I was on the right track. Math is my biggest worry for the two younger girls. I hate for them to get behind or I teach them something wrong and it affects how they perform in the future. I imagine teachers all over the country are trying to figure out how to avoid this, and lesson plans next fall will be adjusted to make sure kids aren’t too far behind.

We’ve been pretty hands off with their eLearning, though. We let them know we are available to help, remind them to check in with their teachers if they run into issues, and make sure assignments are being completed. They all seem to be getting everything turned in and getting full credit, so we will continue to let them operate independently when they jump back in next week.

Last Wednesday was an absolutely glorious day. It was in the upper 60s, the skies were clear, the winds were calm. Our street was a constant stream of dog walkers, runners, and bikers. We adjusted our meal plan for the week to throw some burgers on the grill, as it was the perfect grilling day. While we were outside we could smell other people’s grills and hear folks playing music outside. In the evening there were fireworks scattered about. It was an impromptu celebration of the beautiful weather and an opportunity it get outside after just over a week of most of the world staying inside.[1]

In these strange times people are doing strange things. For example, over the weekend the Indy radio station that plays Christmas music between Thanksgiving and Christmas pulled out all those tunes from Friday evening through last night. Even I, the “Christmas Music Must Only Be Played During the Holidays” zealot tuned in for a bit. I felt weird doing it, not because it was out of season, but because I didn’t know how it made me feel. Was this a momentary adjustment to bring some joy to a grim time? Or was it a sign that the end of the world was nigh and we might as well enjoy things we may never get a chance to enjoy again?

It felt especially weird to listen to the station Saturday. We had the windows open to enjoy the near–80 degree weather, there were thunderstorm watches and warnings, and late in the evening we had a torrential downpour that flooded our yard. It didn’t exactly look a lot like Christmas.

I made a grocery run early Sunday. It was designed to be a small, quick trip so I went to the grocery store around the corner. I had been there two weeks earlier and found it was very much picked over. Things seem to have stabilized, though, as I was able to get just about everything on my list plus a number of additions I made on the fly.

It is a sign of the times that you leave a grocery store with an immense feeling of relief if you get 90% of what you needed.

Normally we run our pantry and fridge/freezer pretty tight. I will shop early each week and plan on 3–4 dinner ideas, knowing we’ll squeeze in a leftover night, likely a dinner out, maybe a “cereal for dinner” night, and then figure out a plan for the weekend when Friday rolls around.

Now I keep a very detailed list of how many dinner options we have. Where we are normally good for a few nights, and I often have to run out to grab a few things multiple times during the week, I currently have us set up to get through at least a week, likely closer to two. Our freezer is jam-packed and I’m making plans to have some electrical work done to add a freezer to the basement once this is over. I’m constantly checking the list to assure myself that I don’t need to venture out to a store again for a few days.

It is these little obsessions that give you an anchor in these uncertain times.

Test note ↩

Friday Vid

March 27, 2020 / DB

“The Rising” – Bruce Springsteen and the E. Street Band
It’s a big new music week. I’m a few songs into my first pass at the new Pearl Jam album. There are at least four more new albums that require my attention today. So just a video today, and something to hopefully give a little hope that things will get better.

Covid Chronicles, 3/25

March 25, 2020 / DB

I find myself bouncing between hope and despair quite often these days. The numbers from Italy and Spain are so staggering, and our country’s reaction so inept, that it is difficult not to live in great fear of what comes next. But I also know that despite all the issues we have had in preparing for this, America tends to do pretty well at crisis once we can get moving in the right direction. We have tons of amazing scientists working on the problem. The best pharmaceutical, bio-tech, and straight tech companies in the history of man are focused on finding solutions. Whole swaths of our manufacturing base will eventually pivot to fight this. I’m not much for prayer, but I do pray that we get our big, American machine cranked up in time to make a difference.

Indiana officially entered lockdown today. I chuckled to hear that beauty salons were absolutely packed up until midnight last night. I say that because S had her monthly hair check-in a week ago and was thrilled that she got in before things shut down. Especially since she had to film a video for her health network.

We are letting M and C color their hair. I’m not sure what they picked but I know orders have been placed and packages are en route. I’m kind of excited to see what they picked. L wasn’t interested but did ask if she could do a mohawk or something. We think she was kidding but we said absolutely not.

I’ve noticed significantly less traffic on the main road outside our house today, so perhaps people are taking the shut down seriously.

I went out for groceries first thing Tuesday and although it was just before 7:00, it was still strange for there to be so little traffic. It felt more like a Sunday morning.

No issues at the grocery store. I got 90% of what I needed, but that was also because I went to a bigger grocery store a few miles away instead of the ones closer to our house. I did my shopping in 30 minutes or so then got in line. There was a single line for all registers, even the self-check out ones, that stretched about halfway through the store. It took me a little over half an hour to finally reach the register, which wasn’t terrible. People were being polite, although there was very little interaction. I tried to smile and say excuse me to everyone, but most people would mutter something back and not make eye contact.

The entire time I was in the store I kept thinking, “I hope I don’t pick up any germs while I’m here.” I’m not normally a germaphobe but I think we all are now.

I had a little tickle in my throat last week that seemed to go away quickly. Except for there was always a little hint of pain still there, like that warning you get a few days before a cold. I wondered if I was really fighting something off or if it was just nerves. Yesterday I was a little sneezy and my throat began hurting again. Today, fine. Never any Covid-specific symptoms. As bad as spring colds can be, it’s kind of funny that you are relieved if you begin exhibiting signs that are more cold-related. “Sneezing, itchy eyes, sinus headache? Thank goodness!”

A couple times I’ve tried to write about the economic impact of all this. It always ends up being too daunting, though. Because the fact is our economy is fucked, and fucked real good. I like to think that whenever this ends, society will pick right back up and get moving again. I realize that’s pretty naive, though. It is going to be very difficult to get all the gears of the economy turning again, and large swaths of the world will be affected by this for a long time. I also think about these billions and trillions we will be spending in the coming months and wonder where those dollars come from. Eventually we have to pay the bills which is a whole other level of crap to dump on an economy that is attempting to restart.

So from that perspective I have an understanding of what people who are arguing that we shouldn’t kill the economy to kill the virus are getting at. There are likely some ways to split the difference, as South Korea has done, but our country does not seem prepared or willing to take the steps required to pull off that balancing act.

And I, too, have been disheartened by those graphs that show how controlling the coronavirus now likely means another spike or two later this year. Our sacrifices now seem futile if we may have to scurry inside again in six months.

But these people who continue to argue that we should be back to normal in two weeks are utterly insane. Their comparisons to how the seasonal flu, car accidents, etc do not interrupt the economy are so insulting and infuriating. Yes, tens of thousands of people die from the flu every year. BUT NOT ALL AT ONCE. Hospitals aren’t so overrun with flu victims that they can’t see the “normal” sick and injured people.

I am fed up with being stuck in the house. And it’s not been two weeks yet. I get queasy when I look at our retirement accounts. I’m sad that we’ve already cancelled one trip and may end up having to cancel another one later this year. I fear the long-term effects this disruption is going to have on the economy, my kids’ education, my wife’s career, and society as a whole.

But, fuck, look at what is happening in Europe, what is beginning to happen in the US, and realize this is just the beginning, and tell me saving tens of millions of people isn’t worth whatever it costs.

Our political leaders have an impossible task. I trust the ones who are speaking to us honestly, who are focused on keeping as many people healthy as possible, and who understand that while it will be an immense challenge to come back from this, we can’t be measured in response to our immediate threats for fear of what comes after.

Reaching for the Stars, Vol. 39

March 24, 2020 / DB

Chart Week: March 24, 1984
Song: “They Don’t Know” – Tracey Ullman
Chart Position: #30, 5th week on the chart. Peaked at #8 for two weeks in April/May.

It’s been a minute or two since I’ve done one of these. Part of that is because my AT40 workflow has changed. My normal, weekday routine is to turn on the iHeart Radio Classic American Top 40 station while making breakfast, eating lunch, and other moments during the day when I am in the kitchen alone. Those moments have disappeared with everyone stuck at home.

It also seems like the local, Sunday replays have been repetitive of countdowns I’ve heard on the streaming channel relatively recently, so I haven’t been listening to those much either.

Sunday I caught 30 minutes or so of the local broadcast while making French toast. Casey didn’t share a great tidbit about this song or its artist. But it is a song that I’ve always loved and think never got its due.

While she’s had a long, varied, and successful career, Tracey Ullman is probably most famous for her variety show that ran on Fox in the late 80s. And it is most famous for being the launching point for The Simpsons, which originated as shorts on her show. Ullman also sang, and she released two albums in the 80s.

This song appeared on her 1984 album You Broke My Heart in 17 Places and was written and originally performed by the wonderful, late Kirsty MacColl. It sounded so out of place in 1984, with its 60’s callbacks. But it was a delightful song that has made me happy every time I’ve ever heard it. And I think right now we could all use more happy songs.

Enjoy this campy video and watch for a pretty significant cameo near the end.

Lydia Loveless put her own twangy, Midwestern spin on the song for her 2014 album Somewhere Else.

March Memories

March 23, 2020 / DB

Kudos to ESPN and CBS for dropping some classic college basketball games on us to help pass time. I’ve recorded every KU game that has been on so far. I’ve watched a few minutes of the triple overtime Oklahoma game from 2016 and the 2007 Big 12 tournament championship game. In anticipation of Sunday’s airing of the 2008 national championship game, I fired up the YouTubes Saturday and watched that year’s national semifinal against North Carolina.

This was time well spent.

The Carolina game was such an emotionally pleasing game, running the Tarheels out of the arena for the first 12 minutes of the game, at one point leading by 28 points and eliciting Billy Packer’s classic, “This game is ovah!” line. I remember running around my house during commercial breaks that night, wound up by Bill Self getting over on Roy Williams.

Until KU got sloppy, Carolina strung some buckets together, and made a run before halftime. An early second half surge pushed the lead out again until the script completely flipped and UNC went on a huge run, getting as close as four points until a final KU push stretched it out to an 18-point win. I recall getting pretty puckered up when it looked like KU might blow a nearly 30-point lead in the Final Four.

KU looked soooooo fast in that game. Carolina was supposed to be the quickest team in the country and KU made them look slow. ACC media bias exposed. KU manhandled Tyler Hansbrough inside. Other than his flopping, which drew four fouls on the night, he was mostly shut down.

Ah, the ’08 title game. I remember that day very well as I came down with a bug and spent most of the day in bed. I tried to eat dinner but could not, returning to bed and hoping I could rally in time for the game. Which, I did, kind of. I spent the entire game lying on the couch, sometimes watching with my head sideways on a pillow, putting the pillow over my head during breaks. The last 2:12 of regulation and overtime are legendary, but I really don’t remember much of the actual game since I was kind of out of it.

What a great game, though. Those were two very well-matched teams, and they took turns making runs at each other, making life miserable with attacking defenses on both ends, athletic big men battling inside, and two great coaches matches wits on the benches. Derrick Rose’s banked-in shot at the 4:00 mark was initially ruled a three, but changed to a two after a review at the next time out. That was a new rule that year. In 2007 Memphis might win the game by that point, although with four minutes left you never know how things would have worked out.

As well as I remember the end of that game, there were some huge moments I had forgotten. Sherron Collins had a chance to tie the game with about 20 seconds left on a breakaway layup that was swallowed up by two defenders. Sherron, again, absolutely wiped out in front of the Memphis bench late in overtime, giving the Tigers back the ball.

A bad moment I never forgot was Darrell Arthur getting beat for a rebound after Chris Douglas-Roberts missed a free throw with about 16 seconds left. Shady had an incredible game, going for 20 and 10. If not for Mario’s shot, he may well have been named Final Four MOP and it would be his jersey and not Mario’s hanging from the rafters in Allen Fieldhouse. But, man, he got worked over by Robert Dozier on that rebound, giving Memphis two more free throws. Derrick Rose could hit just one, setting up Mario’s shot. I remember almost passing out I was so angry in that moment in 2008. I nearly passed out again moments later when Sherron avoided a foul and losing the ball to shovel it to Mario for the biggest shot in KU history.

Arthur kind of gets lost in KU history. He’s remembered as a really good player on a title team that has had four other players’ jerseys retired. I think most people forget how freaking good he was because that whole team was so good.[1] So athletic, so fast, so skilled, so versatile. He’s the guy on that team who it is most surprising he never did much consistently in the NBA. He always had little moments like that rebound where he made you crazy. But it was also his 19-foot shot that started the last comeback. He hit three other ridiculous shots in the game.

While watching I texted friends that he would have been the Big 12 POY had he come back for his junior year. Maybe his presence is enough so that KU doesn’t blow that 13-point lead in the Sweet 16 against Michigan State. Maybe with him KU is back in the Final Four in 2009. But had he returned, I doubt KU would have gotten the Morris twins, which changes the 2010 and 2011 seasons significantly. It’s always interesting and maddening to consider these What Ifs.

Speaking of What Ifs, seeing how damn good that game was, how good both teams were, got me thinking about those tiny margins that change history. If Mario misses, if Derrick’s “three” had counted, if CDR hit one more free throw, or if one of those tough Arthur shots had rimmed out, how do KU fans view that team? I suppose it all depends on what happened the next few years. Would Sherron not have gotten fat if he hadn’t won a title as a sophomore and he gets KU to two more Final Fours, winning one? If Mario misses his shot, does he come back for his senior year and pair with skinny Sherron to be a ridiculously good backcourt? If Mario comes back, Tyshawn Taylor doesn’t come to KU… You can make yourself crazy going through all the possibilities.

Anyway, it was a lot of fun to watch those games. I also watched parts of two of the Saturday replays, the 1982 and 1983 national title games. Both were classics. It was so strange seeing the court in 1982 without the three-point line. Weirder was the court in New Mexico in 1982 which had a three-point line, but since that was not an official NCAA rule yet, shots beyond the arc were still two pointers. Some other assorted thoughts from those games:

I loved Georgetown and Patrick Ewing back then. I was so disappointed when they lost to North Carolina. A decade later I would be rooting hard for Michael Jordan to beat Ewing’s Knicks in the playoffs every year.
Basketball in domes has come a long way, but the setup in the Superdome in ’82 was pretty rough.
It still makes no sense how North Carolina State won the ’83 title. Houston was so much better than them, and had complete control of the game fairly late. Like Memphis in 2008, though, they couldn’t hit free throws.
So much fun watching Ewing, Jordan, James Worthy, Sam Perkins, Clyde Drexler, and “Akeem Abdul” Olajuwon in college again. Those were the glory years for talent in the college game, and I ate that shit up when I was a kid.
It was always easy to hate Billy Packer. But he was awfully good at identifying things that were going on inside a game. Unlike Dick Vitale, he generally kept his focus on the game in front of him. His downfall was his love of the ACC, his desire to prove how much he knew, and his tendency to raise his voice a little too much, too often. He also loved to point out what he thought were missed traveling calls. “OHHH HE GOT AWAY WITH A DOUBLE-DRIBBLE THERE!” Every game I watched this weekend he would yell shit like that multiple times.

It sucks immensely that we weren’t watching new NCAA games this weekend, making new March memories. I’m still super sad for Udoka. It eased that pain a little to watch some classic games.

I love Brandon Rush’s line about people giving him grief for not scoring more in college. “Man, our whole team was killers.” ↩

Covid Chronicles, 3/21

March 21, 2020 / DB

Our first week of home schooling/working is in the books. The girls all did about as well as we could have hoped. They’re bored, bummed they are not seeing their friends, and it can be a struggle to get them out of their rooms. But so far, so good, for the most part.

M was scheduled to have her first in-car driving lesson today. We were a little surprised the company didn’t cancel appointments, so we went ahead and cancelled it on our own. They sent a message saying they were taking extra care to sanitize cars between appointments. But that doesn’t guarantee her instructor would not be carrying the coronavirus or that he got everything cleaned from the previous student. I was also worried about the chance that once S begins taking the occasional shift in her office, she could encounter someone who is a carrier and transfer that to us, which M could in turn pass along to her instructor. Like most things, it was just better to keep M at home. We’ll get driver’s ed knocked out at some point.

Yesterday L and I went outside before the weather changed. We threw a football and baseball for a bit in the glorious, warm spring morning. Then, seeing the low part of our yard was flooded from the mid-week rains, she decided she wanted to build a boat and see if it floated. After a couple of attempts she fashioned a pretty sturdy craft out of foil, paper, packing tape, and twigs. She christened it the SS Corona and we spent 20 minutes experimenting with the current and winds to see how well it did.

While we were outside our neighbor came out to say hello. He is pushing 70 and had just moved his 92-year-old mother home to get her away from her assisted living center. With that in mind, we chatted across the narrow side street that separates our homes, never getting within six feet of each other.

Our homes face a main street that is normally very busy. As we spoke a car drove down the main street and just laid on its horn the entire time it passed. We didn’t see anyone in front of them, pulling into their path, etc. Neither of us recognized the car. We looked at each other and shrugged. We weren’t sure if they were just being jerks or if they were honking at us because we were conversing across 8 feet of asphalt.

I made a grocery run Thursday morning. I got most of what I needed, although it took stops at two stores. I was unable to get any ground beef or fresh chicken breasts. Fortunately I had some beef in the freezer and grabbed one of the last packages of frozen chicken. I guess it’s just a matter of when you hit the store in relation to their re-stock times. My first trip down the bread aisle found the racks totally empty. Ten minutes later restocking was in progress and I was able to grab a loaf. I’m debating whether to give Costco a try next week. I’ve heard they are limiting how many customers can be in the building at once and want to go on a dry day so I’m not in line in the rain if I can’t get inside right away.

Two more local pieces of news. Thursday afternoon they announced that all Indiana schools would remain closed through at least May 1. In his announcement the governor admitted it would take a minor miracle for schools to open again this academic year. I think we all know that but I approve of the incremental closings. Better to leave some glimmer of hope. Hey, who would have thought kids would be begging to go back to school?!

Earlier today CYO officially cancelled all spring sports. That bummed C and L out, as they held out hope that kickball and track would still happen, even if under compressed time tables. That also means I am officially done as kickball coordinator. I have promised my successor that I will guide her through the fall season since she did not get a chance to shadow me through the spring season.

Finally, I have chilled on the news a little bit, and feel better for it. I’ve taken more to checking the Washington Post and Guardian’s daily live blogs than read through every story. I’ve found this gives me a good overview of what is happening, direct links to the stories that require closer reading, and are easier to disengage from once I’m caught up. I recommend them both.

Friday Reading Assignment

March 20, 2020 / DB

There is so much information about Covid–19 out there right now it is easy to get overwhelmed. Especially when the news is bad, as was the case earlier this week with the release of a British study that suggested the strategies the national governments of both the UK and US were taking would simply push the flood of sick people out until late this year or early next year.

The situation is fluid, though, as everyone seems to be saying.

I just finished reading the article linked to below. I don’t know whether the science and assumptions behind it are accurate or wildly off-base. I do know while most of it is extremely sobering, it ends on a very hopeful note. Social distancing combined with better testing and stronger efforts to isolate infected citizens can mean this period of lockdown we are currently in can end relatively soon and that it can dramatically reduce both the direct effects of Covid and the collateral damage. Going from tens of millions infected to tens of thousands would be a massive change.

As more states and local governments issue Shelter in Place orders, this piece suggests that the short-term pain, frustration, and isolation caused by these orders will absolutely be worth it. Hopefully soon.

Coronavirus: The Hammer and the Dance

Friday Playlist

March 20, 2020 / DB

Shit was real this week. Let’s go ahead and call it the worst week ever and hope that next week doesn’t immediately grab that title away.

The only bright spot is my new music playlist is absolutely bursting with great tracks right now. So another extra large edition for today. Take a few moments to chill out and listen to some good tunes.

“The Garden” – Briston Maroney
I shared this with a brother-in-music earlier this week and his summation was, “That slaps.” Indeed. This song is full of delightful twists and turns.

“Win on Tin” – Jess Williamson
This song is vast. Some Hope Sandoval in the vocals. Just a tinge of country in the music. And a majestic, cinematic vibe to the entire thing. A gorgeous track.

“Rock & Roll” – Trace Mountains
This sounds like the music I was listening to in 2005–06 mashed up with what I’ve been listening to over the past few years. There’s a Belle & Sebastian, mid–00’s, Twee vibe along with a The War on Drugs adjacent jammy feel to it. I love how it kicks in from the start and keeps building and building until the solo at the end finally releases all that pressure.

“Walk in the Woods” – Snarls
This Columbus, OH band fits into a sound that has been dominating my interests lately: indie-leaning melodic pop with a DIY influence by girl groups. Yes, I am intentionally trying to see how long I can stretch out my description of new bands’ sounds. That’s more fun than just saying, “This is a good track.”

“Pure Shores” – Eliza Shaddad covering All Saints
I don’t know a thing about the original version of this, which was recorded for the Leonardo DiCaprio vehicle The Beach back in 1999. Remember when the turn of the millennium was going to bring about the end of the world? Yeah, those were quaint times!

Anyway, apparently the All Saints OG is held in high esteem in certain circles. I listened to it this week and it’s not for me. But, oh my lord, Eliza Shaddad’s version? When she drops her moody, atmospherics onto it she turns it into something completely different than the original. It is magical and might be the song of the year.

Shaddad recently had to cancel some dates from her European tour because she was ill. Fortunately she Tweeted yesterday that she is recovering and should be back to normal soon. These days those reports about performers you enjoy are a little extra scary. Glad she is improving.

“On The Brink” – Peter Bjorn and John
I listened to PB&J’s new album over the weekend. Nothing really jumped out at me, or at least nothing compared to their classic tracks like “Young Folks,” “Objects of My Affection,” or “Up Against the Wall.” Then I made it to this, the final track on the album. It is unlike the songs they are most famous for, which makes its tenderness and joyful nature hit even harder.

“In a Big Country” – Big Country
This is likely the song that has made the biggest jump in how much I love it from the 1980s to now. Like most guys my age, I loved it in 1983 because of its unique sound and that great video with the band tearing around Scotland on ATVs. But I also didn’t take it terribly seriously as a 12 year old. In time, through some of Big Country’s other music, I realized they were a great band and this was a fantastic song. It’s one of the rare 80s songs I keep loving more and more every time I hear it.

This live vid from The Tube show is just awesome. You see how great of a band they were through a kick-ass performance. Big Country might have been the best 80s band at bouncing in tune together as they played. Plus there are awkward Scottish dudes jumping onto the stage and dancing around.

Keep your eyes open at the 4:33 mark. There is a semi-close up of a few dudes in the crowd. One of them has his arms crossed and it looking around suspiciously. That was me. I’m kidding! I wonder what that dude’s issue was. Was he drugged to the gills and didn’t want anyone near him? Was he trying to take in the majesty of the song and was annoyed by people dancing? Had he sent his girlfriend to grab him a beer and she was long in returning? Or had his girlfriend just dumped him and he was trying to hold it together.

RIP Stuart Adamson and all our lost Scottish musical heroes.

Covid Chronicles, 3/18

March 18, 2020 / DB

I’m not sure if these posts are useful or interesting. But I feel like I need both an outlet and a way to document this bleak moment in history. I’ve probably read too many post-apocalyptic novels where some artifact of an earlier age is discovered and helps explain how the new world came to be and am angling to leave my own artifact. If you’re reading this from a Covid-free future, hello! Apologies for we residents of the 21st century for fucking up the planet.

My normal days – you know, a week ago – normally involved a lot of sitting around. Sure, I ran errands daily, hit the gym, and tries to do other things to keep active, but I also had stretches each day when I was stuck in a chair or on a couch, dicking around on the internet, reading, or maybe cranking out some content for this site.

So this week has not been a huge change for me. The only difference is the girls are here with me and I’m limited in where I can go if I do want to leave the house.

In recent years I’ve tuned out the news quite a bit. I believe the American media has become toxic and more interested in generating views/ratings/clicks than advancing legitimate discussion on any issue, political or otherwise. Some are worse than others, but I am deeply disappointed by the state of most of our media.

Over the past week I’ve reverted to teenage me and become totally news-obsessed. I’m constantly flipping through a collection of news sources, have added some Covid-related follows on Twitter, and so on. It started with the dopamine rush of how powerful and vital TV was from last Wednesday night when the NBA fell apart through Friday afternoon when the NCAA cancelled the tournament.

I needed to find a way to keep that buzz going. Sitting on my ass, running down the battery on my iPad while jumping from the Washington Post to the Guardian to Talking Points Memo to Vox to Andy Slavitt’s Twitter storms is the best way to get it.

This elevated sense of excitement, uncertainty, and fear was exhilarating for awhile. But after a week, it’s starting to wear me down. Yet, with things happening so quickly it is difficult to disconnect and give myself time to breath knowing taking even an hour off will require catching up on at least three things that on a normal day would be massive news.

I’m going to begin making a concerted effort to put the iPad down and do other things. The world will go on, hopefully, without me keeping my head submerged in the flood of news.

I think I’m generally a realist who remains steady in tense moments. I don’t freak out in the face of tornado warnings, power outages, etc. That has served me well over the past week. I know there is no interruption in our food supply. I know the hoarding of toilet paper is silly.

But, man, you make a trip to Target and see empty shelves where the toilet paper should be and you start to wonder what you should be grabbing. A mental switch flips and you realize how the psychology of hoarding works. Even as I tell myself there is no need to start grabbing, say, bandages and shampoo, there is this tickle deep inside of me that wants to begin filling a shopping cart with anything we could possibly use.