Welcome, my post-apocalyptic survivors.

Today I want to discuss a few interesting developments with regard to the “pandemic we were afraid of, but now, not so much”.

1) The Spanish Flu

Thanks to my brilliant friend Kathy for this observation.

If you speak with people who lived through the Spanish flu epidemic, you’ll note that it didn’t really stand out in their minds, versus the World Wars, or the Great Depression.

I thought about this for a bit and then realized that in 1918 dying from an infection was pretty common.

Other than the small pox vaccine, used since 1798, there were no antibiotics and so many people died from diseases we have since conquered.

In fact, it was well known that the most common cause of childhood death was infectious disease.

So, ironically, we literally shit our pants (Thus the run on toilet paper, another mystery solved.) at the thought of dying from a viral infection.

What I find yet more amusing is how the anti-vaxxers have weirdly sought to promote their agenda by saying don’t get the Covid vaccine, assuming we ever get one.

Thus, they have the opportunity to live like those in the olden days and watch kids die of preventable diseases.

I’ve often wondered if they took antibiotics, since those are also chemicals, made by Big Pharma.

At any rate, humankind has survived innumerable pandemics (See “Black Plague” which killed about 25% of Europe.) and we will survive this one and the inevitable next ones.

And get vaccinated, please.

2) Hydroxychloroquine

Ah, yes, the mystery drug that has caused all sorts of consternation.

Now, I will not discuss what Trump did, because I do try to avoid politics.

The story here is that the 2 articles printed in Lancet and The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) today were retracted, because the data used to say that the drug was ineffective and dangerous was highly suspect.

What I’d like to focus on is the NEJM.

Having studied at Harvard, as I have nauseatingly mentioned innumerable times, the NEJM was considered the most prestigious medical journal in the world.

It still is.

However, what I have observed over time, is that it has occasionally become somewhat of a “Media Whore”, to put it politely.

There has been, over the years, a rush to print very timely articles on hot topics, knowing it’ll generate a ton of press.

So, when an article is retracted, one (or at least me) cannot but help to question where did the system break down.

The study came from a relative nobody, not in infectious disease, who heads up a somewhat mysterious company.

Why this paper was accepted is beyond me.

The problem with this error, however, is not simply that they published bad data, but the country became insanely divided over the use of this stupid drug.

Now, all the people who were made fun of for pushing for it can say to the other people who called them idiots for ignoring science, “See? It was bad science!”

Not that they knew that, of course, but no matter.

It does serve to further denigrate faith in science, which has taken a pretty big hit lately.

3) Stress

Lastly, I have an opinion about the protests and riots.

Wile the horrible death of George Floyd served as the spark, I firmly believe that the reason for the magnitude of this explosion is because people had been cooped up too long.

It is important to realize that the initial quarantine served to relieve the burden on a health care system that was overwhelmed and about to collapse.

And we succeeded.

However, in my humble opinion, we waited too long and were too cautious on reopening.

Had we opened up in May, yes, we would see a spike in cases, so instead, we will see it in June.

The sole hope is that it won’t be as large as the initial spike.

However, taking people’s livelihoods away, when the economy was doing well, had to have sent many, who felt they were getting somewhere in this world, into abject depression as they saw their sources of income dry up.

Suddenly, you went from being financial independent to not being able to make ends meet.

Furthermore, your place of business either went bankrupt, or was destroyed in the riots.

Maybe I’m wrong and this would have happened anyway, but I’m not so sure it would have been to this extent.

There are many lessons that we can learn from all that has occurred so far in 2020, and I sincerely hope we do take time to reflect on them and plan for the future better.

In the end, anyone who tells you they know more about the disease or it’s treatment or it’s effects, for God’s sake-STAY SKEPTICAL!

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I have always loved love.

Since I was a little girl there was nothing that I enjoyed more than watching romantic movies, reading books about two people falling madly in love and recently watching an obscene amount of wedding videos on Youtube.

To me, there is just something so magical about how people who truly love each other look at one another, how they support each other throughout whatever life throws at them, and the life that they have built together. But out of all of the movies I have watched and stories I have read, there has been one love story in my life that has really made the biggest difference – my grandparents.

Today, 50 years ago Rick and Carol got married and started the rest of their lives together.

It isn’t one of those love stories where everything was perfect and a dream come true. They were young. They had obstacles and challenges that were not going to be easy to overcome. But they believed in their love and it was that love and those vows that got them to today.

June 5, 2020 – 50 Years of marriage.

And in my 22 years of being a part of this love story, I can tell you that there is so much to celebrate today.

The life that they have created together.

The family that they built.

The love that is still so apparent every time they look at each other.

It is unlike anything I have ever watched in a movie, read in a book or seen on a Youtube wedding video.

IT IS REAL.

I can only dream of a relationship so strong and so pure that it can get through the toughest challenges of life and still allow for so much love. They have set an example and precedent for me that I will forever be thankful for. That your partner should not only love you but that they should support you, defend you and believe in you, ALWAYS.

That young boy and girl who had their whole lives ahead of them had no idea that 50 years from then that this would end up being the life they were going to be celebrating today, but they believed in their love… and to me, that is the best love story of them all.

Congrats, Grandma and Grandpa! I love you.

The events and images of the past several weeks, coming on the heels of an extended lockdown and in the midst of the worst pandemic in a century, have left Americans reeling. In all the madness, I want to give props to a group of people that is getting largely overlooked in all the protesting and rioting of the past week.

These are the journalists on the ground who have been risking their own necks to bring these chaotic scenes into our homes, where we sit safe on our couches and recliners. They have been placing themselves squarely in the middle of incredibly volatile and dangerous situations in order to keep us informed. Situations where any “pop” or bang could be a gunshot or bomb.

Over the weekend, I saw news crews for Fox and CNN literally being chased, harassed, and physically assaulted by protesters, who were throwing water bottles and other projectiles at them. Reporters’ attempts to put microphones in front of some of the protesters to try to give them a voice was often met with profanity, hostility, or worse.  They also had to suck up tear gas and pepper spray set off by overwhelmed cops.

Forget whatever you might think of the politics of Fox or CNN. The people on these news crews are human beings–something we tend to forget–and I could see very real fear on their faces as they tried to keep it professional and keep their cool while dealing with a terrifying and unpredictable situation.

And let’s not forget the photojournalists: the cameramen/women–who are also journalists. Because we never see their faces, it’s easy to imagine that the camera that’s bringing all these horrible images into our homes is holding itself. No, there’s a flesh-and-blood human being behind it, who is just as frightened as we would be.

Journalists have been badly injured and even killed covering wars overseas. Many of them probably never imagined there could be a very real possibility of that happening while they were covering news stateside. People love to beat up on the news media; I’m guilty as charged. But these journalists on the ground are unsung heroes. Let’s give them all their due.

* * * *

Shifting gears a little, I want to share something I read in the Wall Street Journal that I found pretty insightful. I have been telling my friends during this pandemic lockdown that we are lucky; we all live in spacious, comfortable homes with large yards and we’re relatively financially secure. Others aren’t so fortunate. They have to shelter-in-place in small, cramped, crummy apartments, often with one or more other people, and they live with precarious economic circumstances. I have been in such living situations myself, most of us have. This must be especially rough on the young, who can’t go out and play basketball or other sports, go to the movies, or hang out with their friends. The result: a ticking time bomb.

If you think the riots don’t have something to do with the virus, you are probably one of many Americans living in a comfortable suburban or country house, with independent means or a high-paying job that can be done from a laptop. You may have forgotten previous periods of your own life: what the lockdowns would have been like if you were 15 and stuck at home, or 20 and booted from college, or suddenly jobless in a crummy studio apartment or in a group home full of equally unemployed roommates. Never mind being a member of a large immigrant family jammed in a creaky high-rise or a single parent without savings or safety.