Glad To Be Back
In My Bloodstream: Lisinopril, Amlodopine, Omeprazole, Tamsulosin
On The Stereo: Thank You: Jennifer Nettles
Yes, we have some medical news. But with all of my free time of late, I need to release a load of pent up random thoughts.
You probably know that my Mac deserted me. So long ago that since then, we had a Super Bowl. You likely know this as well.
I know that Kansas City was thought by most, to be the league's best team. But this game showed the experts which team had the better defense. The Tampa defense was incredible. We have not heard, in the modern era, that defense wins games. That was the plan years ago. That is not the modern philosophy. But, in this game, the best quarterback in the world, saw half of the game while laying on his back. He might now be a believer. Defense might well be back.
I have to thank Covid for providing us with so much home time. We get to see a lot of TV. Especially sports. We were really looking forward to the game, Kat and I. My only complaint was that Tony Romo was in the booth with Jim Nance. I have never been a fan. I alway thought he was an over-rated quarterback. And now I think he is ill- equipped to provide an expert analysis. There are so many better.
Anyway, Tampa won. I got that news from Tony at game's end. He knows these things.
And the team had a boat parade through downtown Tampa. That was pretty cool. And Tom Brady threw the trophy from his boat to another. The Lombardy Trophy is big, and heavy, and there was more than a few feet of distance between the boats. And Tom's daughter was screaming at him - "Don't do it Daddy!". But he did. There might have been alcohol involved. I was watching. Thinking how unbelievably stupid an act this was. But when it was caught, I did laugh. If it had ended up in the Tampa River, the headlines may well have been very different.
https://youtu.be/DfyLLQO8sh8 for the "Big Throw".
For my northern friends, any future winner from your city will be able to parade and celebrate in the very same manner, knowing well that the trophy might get banged up from an errant throw, but the ice will protect it from sinking. (Just trying to help.)
I have been off line for so long, that I have not had an opportunity to mention Alabama Football. Some of my buddies, here, thought the game to be terrible. They thought it hard to watch and far too one-sided. Not Kath and I. We watched the game without our friends, the Matsons, for the first time in years. So we had to celebrate extra hard. Lots of high fives and yelling, and dancing like we were young. Makes me smile, just thinking about it. Thank you University of Alabama. You educated our girls (and their husbands), provided us with wonderful friends, and gave us yet another championship.
And we have watched lots of golf these past few months. And I won't dwell on the Tiger story. Only to hope that he is well and will soon be home to his family. This Sunday's final day brought out a lot of pros dressed in Tiger's red and black. A nice touch from some good people. Tiger does have his admirers.
I have developed, from watching sports, a new pet peeve. In almost every sport, they have started to provide us with superfluous information and ridiculous visuals. For instance, in golf, I do like their "ball tracker", which most certainly helps us follow the flight of a very small, white sphere. Good information. But I am not all sure what I learn by knowing what the apex and degree of curve are, and why it matters. I miss the romance of the game, provided by a good announcer, reflecting on the stunning architectural features of the course, the beauty of the ball in flight, the smell of the flowers, and the symphony of the crowd. Statistics have overtaken talent in broadcasting. Although several golf analysts and announcers do, indeed, draw you into their world. Most often in Augusta, where the members have sway in how the game, and their club, are being presented.
And the newest trend in sports television, is to show you a picture of a player, and then have it morph into a cartoon - a mock painting of the actual picture. Watch for it. And ask yourself why the picture was not good enough? Someone decided that a computer rendering would be better than an actual picture. Really. Who bought into this idea?
I have this thought that there are talented sports nerds who embrace technology, and then they sell their ideas to network people, who believe that we need continually more information and more technology to keep us interested. We do not. At least I do not. We want to watch good athletes and hear compelling stories. Far too much of this new information is absolutely useless to viewers to me.
110 feet of apex with a 6.5˚, right to left draw, my ass.
Lastly, in sports, the Australian Open presented us with some wonderful and heart-felt stories. It is too bad that most of us missed much of the live action, as it happened at 3 a.m., give or take. We watched the match after we knew the outcome. That certainly removed much of the drama, and lowered expectations. Serena left us with dignity and with a mystery. Will she be back?
For me, one of the more interesting stories from Melbourne, had to do with Covid. The players were relegated to certain hotels, and were not allowed to practice for a great part of the time. At least one of the hotel staff was found to be infected, putting everyone on alert. The entire state was put into lockdown, and yet The Open was allowed to go on. So, the players were deemed to be essential workers. Hmmm.
Millionaires playing a game for more money - essential? OK. So who else was essential? The referee. Alright. The linesmen/ lineswomen were not given that status. Even though they are well-spaced and do not touch the balls. The ball boys and girls were essential. Really? They fetch the balls, handle them, throw them and often are near each other, and the players. And they are children. Can't go to school. But are allowed to be involved with a tennis match. With no fans allowed in the stands. Who makes these decisions?
A particularly funny story about the lines people. The line calls were made by lasers and computers. But the audios were announced using the human voices of the people who would have done so if they had been declared essential. For whatever reason, we were considered to be more satisfied hearing the different voices of specific people, than one voice for all the calls. Who would have thought?
You can see that I have been alone too long, can't you?
So, in our country we have similar dilemmas, with regards to what we believe to be "essential". There are too many for a simple person like me to tackle, but I will provide one glaring example. Grocery baggers are essential workers. Teachers, in many states, are not. The reason? The baggers are not represented by a strong union, with a massive voting block. My guess.
In basketball, the Tampa Bay Raptors are not playing remarkably well, but the players seem very happy to be part of our community. Their new motto is, "We Are The South". Catchy huh?
Having lived in several countries and in more than a few places, we have come to realize that cities we have called home have some commonality. Tampa, Tuscaloosa, and Toronto have all held championships. Different sports and different times. But we witnessed many of them. Just maybe we are the good luck charms. If Trinidad and Tobago make us an offer, we might be on the road (or in that case - water) again.
The Chinese Pandemic
My Child Bride and I have both broken the 65 years of age barrier. We both would be considered compromised by any standard of health measurement. And we have been actively involved in obtaining a vaccine. The rollout of the drug has been ill-planned, overseen by politicians and scientists. Neither of which profession has likely had any practical experience in the real world of business, and in particular, distribution.
Locally, there were about six or seven sources, or distribution centers, for the vaccine. If you were over 65, you could call, and make an appointment with any one of these suppliers, and receive an appointment date and time. Sounds reasonable. However, if you have a phone or/and a computer, you can only access one of these choices at a time. Once you choose one to call, or e-mail, you naturally ignore the others. My point is that you are dealing with only one site, not six.
As an example. I would begin contacting Publix, on line, at 7am and would receive a message that all lines were busy and to stay on the line, which would automatically "refresh" itself every minute, and continue to do so. I was advised not to end the session as I would lose my place. I waited for 1½ hours and then, with some frustration, ended my call. Then I checked the updated info and found there were no slots left - no vaccine. On line, they do not tell you what position you are in, or even when they are "sold out" for the day. I did this for several days. On one of these days, while I was again waiting, Kath told me to quit, as she had just heard on the television news that there was a glitch in their system, and if my call had been answered, I would have found myself on the South Carolina Covid site. This is how you spend your days, my friends. At least, how we have been spending ours.
Humanity lives.
Our neighborhood is exceptional. Not the houses. The people. Most residents help others in need. It is never a bother and I don't mean to imply therefore, that it is a duty. We live in a place a place where people simply do the right thing.
My friend John Messinetti is a great example. He and Maria were able, eventually to book a time for their vaccines. He knew that Kath and I still had not, and was cognizant that we were prime candidates because of our health problems. He, on his own, worked every day, trying to get us an appointment. He had four different devices, all logged on to different sites, trying to get our names on somebody's schedule.
Your heart and soul are measured, not by your words, but by your actions. Johnny is a real hero. He is always there to help. Nothing is difficult. Always a smile. We are surrounded by people like John. Anyone who is struggling has a neighbor and friend to help them out. Good things happen all the time. They are just more acute in difficult times.
Just over a week ago, another friend, Nancy Dicks called to ask if we had been able to book our shots. When she heard we had not, she told Kathy that her daughter had a friend in the health department, and at their office, they had a few doses available daily, and they must be given before each day's end. Some people who had signed up, did not show for their appointment. They may have changed their mind or double-booked, but their vaccines were available. And they were not to be wasted.
In a few days, I answered a phone call from the Department of Health, and was offered a shot that day, for both of us. I said I would be over in 15 minutes, and my bride would follow soon. I then called Kath , who was in school. She could not get away immediately, but could be there by 4:30, if that was agreeable to the nurse, who had called.
Who you gonna' call when you need help? Not Ghostbusters. You call John. I did, and he came right over to pick me up and go the short distance to the Department of Health. I asked, there, if Kath could come later and they said, of course. I called her and now we both have had our vaccines. John was happier for us than I was. Our second shot is scheduled for March 18th.
In the meantime, Kath and I are butting up against our own, separate, health problems. Several areas that I believe to be cancerous have shown growth and have been bleeding. I have booked an appointment for biopsies and have a review with the surgeon two weeks later.
Kathy has been troubled by a series of issues. They range from headaches and stomach nausea to facial breakouts and random bleeding through her skin. Her auto-immune system is wreaking havoc with her very cute body. She has had two weeks of non-stop aggravating issues. Piling on, as I see it.
We are a mess, aren't we. We are taking the proper steps to address all of our problems, but we are both showing stress cracks in our everyday lives. Resolving several of these problems could prove difficult, but we will talk about that when the time comes.
Mac Is Back
Days are so much better with Mac around. Computers have become so necessary in our lives. The poor weather all through February has forced us to have more indoor time than would be the norm, but we like our house and we love our life. We are OK.
Lots to report on next week.
We lost another business friend several weeks ago. Not by Covid 19. He just lost his last battle with cancer. But he did fight the good fight. He was an honest and caring man. We had been talking every week, for months. We commiserated with each other and always ended with a positive message about life and love. He told me that he was looking forward to seeing the face of God. His last words to me.
In the meantime, the rest of us move on, hoping our time is not so soon.
Thank You
I hope you all are well. And staying strong - both physically an mentally. In our lives, we need less fear and more hope. Our world is still amazing and filled with people, like you, who are the best. Listen to the song.
Love from the south, where the weather is ok.
Calls, criticisms, and emails are, as always, welcomed.
Until next week.
jrobinmullen@gmail.com
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