Trails for Two

nkrichards wrote:

Mark B wrote:Probably the flu or something like it. How’s he feeling now?

Glad the X-ray was clear. The COVID-19 club isn’t one you’d really want to join. Hope whatever he has passes quickly.  Still, he needs to be mindful of how he feels and seek medical care if he starts having difficulty breathing or starts feeling disoriented or dizzy.

Other than updates on his test and x-ray results we haven't heard much from Gary...I think he's a bit embarrassed that he didn't follow the lockdown rules very well.  We obviously haven't had any face to face conversations.  I'm not sure exactly what symptoms he had/has.  We're cautiously optimistic that it wasn't COVID but we're not confident at this point.  I think Natalie plans to be cautious for a few more days and will resume social contact with her folks after a bit more time has passed.

***

If the decision is to pool funds and keep this going let me know the best way to get the funds to you.  And thanks for doing this for us.  I enjoy the friendships I've formed here.  Sometimes I miss the large vibrant community that existed on Hal's platform but there are other times when I appreciate our little group.

It would seem that Natalie's parents would be 'the canaries in the coal mine.'

I'm up for pooling funds.  I have also done Venmo a time or two.  Mostly on the receiving end.  Might also ask Keven and Steven Foster.

Maybe I’ll post a GoFundUs request where everyone can see it. It sure would not take much from just a few of us to keep it rolling.

Gary is feeling much better and went back to work today...he works mostly alone.  He didn't have a lot of symptoms other than the high fever.  He did have an excruciating headache with the high fever.  In hindsight he realized that he had very minor typical cold symptoms the day before his fever hit but they weren't severe enough for him to even recognize them.

One of the benefits of living in a small community is that your caregiver is also usually a friend...that's not always a benefit.  But anyway....Gary had a chance to ask lots of questions.  They seem confident that it was just a cold.  We're going to consider it a reminder that we still need to be cautious.

Btw...I keep forgetting to ask how Alita is feeling.  Does she still feel like her lungs have been compromised?

nkrichards wrote:Gary is feeling much better and went back to work today...he works mostly alone.  He didn't have a lot of symptoms other than the high fever.  He did have an excruciating headache with the high fever.  In hindsight he realized that he had very minor typical cold symptoms the day before his fever hit but they weren't severe enough for him to even recognize them.

One of the benefits of living in a small community is that your caregiver is also usually a friend...that's not always a benefit.  But anyway....Gary had a chance to ask lots of questions.  They seem confident that it was just a cold.  We're going to consider it a reminder that we still need to be cautious.

Btw...I keep forgetting to ask how Alita is feeling.  Does she still feel like her lungs have been compromised?

So how is Gary, Natalie and her parents doing, these days?

Mark is busy doing nothing as much as possible.

nkrichards wrote:Gary is feeling much better and went back to work today...he works mostly alone.  He didn't have a lot of symptoms other than the high fever.  He did have an excruciating headache with the high fever.  In hindsight he realized that he had very minor typical cold symptoms the day before his fever hit but they weren't severe enough for him to even recognize them.

One of the benefits of living in a small community is that your caregiver is also usually a friend...that's not always a benefit.  But anyway....Gary had a chance to ask lots of questions.  They seem confident that it was just a cold.  We're going to consider it a reminder that we still need to be cautious.

Btw...I keep forgetting to ask how Alita is feeling.  Does she still feel like her lungs have been compromised?

Glad Gary's bug wasn't the bad one... though it still doesn't sound like whatever he had was very fun.

We bought an pulse oximeter for the family a couple of weeks ago to see what was going on when Alita was feeling out of breath. It's showing that generally her blood oxygen % is generally good. (Lowest was 94%, usually 97-98%.) Her pulse is higher than before, however. We know she didn't have pneumonia, so this isn't a huge surprise. 

She seems to be doing better but it's hard to know for sure.

ounce wrote:

nkrichards wrote:Gary is feeling much better and went back to work today...he works mostly alone.  He didn't have a lot of symptoms other than the high fever.  He did have an excruciating headache with the high fever.  In hindsight he realized that he had very minor typical cold symptoms the day before his fever hit but they weren't severe enough for him to even recognize them.

One of the benefits of living in a small community is that your caregiver is also usually a friend...that's not always a benefit.  But anyway....Gary had a chance to ask lots of questions.  They seem confident that it was just a cold.  We're going to consider it a reminder that we still need to be cautious.

Btw...I keep forgetting to ask how Alita is feeling.  Does she still feel like her lungs have been compromised?

So how is Gary, Natalie and her parents doing, these days?

Mark is busy doing nothing as much as possible.

Yep. That sounds about right. Since I've started going back to the office, I lost some time I had to sneak over here. I'm still trying to figure out how to best work walks in. My kid likes it that I have been coming home for lunch, but that means I have to drive. I'm toying with the idea of driving home for lunch and then walking back to the office one of these days to see if that'll work, but it'd have to be a quick lunch, since it's a half hour walk. We'll figure it out... eventually.

We have gone for a couple of walks that were nice, though.

Mark B wrote:

nkrichards wrote:Gary is feeling much better and went back to work today...he works mostly alone.  He didn't have a lot of symptoms other than the high fever.  He did have an excruciating headache with the high fever.  In hindsight he realized that he had very minor typical cold symptoms the day before his fever hit but they weren't severe enough for him to even recognize them.

One of the benefits of living in a small community is that your caregiver is also usually a friend...that's not always a benefit.  But anyway....Gary had a chance to ask lots of questions.  They seem confident that it was just a cold.  We're going to consider it a reminder that we still need to be cautious.

Btw...I keep forgetting to ask how Alita is feeling.  Does she still feel like her lungs have been compromised?

Glad Gary's bug wasn't the bad one... though it still doesn't sound like whatever he had was very fun.

We bought an pulse oximeter for the family a couple of weeks ago to see what was going on when Alita was feeling out of breath. It's showing that generally her blood oxygen % is generally good. (Lowest was 94%, usually 97-98%.) Her pulse is higher than before, however. We know she didn't have pneumonia, so this isn't a huge surprise. 

She seems to be doing better but it's hard to know for sure.

ounce wrote:

nkrichards wrote:Gary is feeling much better and went back to work today...he works mostly alone.  He didn't have a lot of symptoms other than the high fever.  He did have an excruciating headache with the high fever.  In hindsight he realized that he had very minor typical cold symptoms the day before his fever hit but they weren't severe enough for him to even recognize them.

One of the benefits of living in a small community is that your caregiver is also usually a friend...that's not always a benefit.  But anyway....Gary had a chance to ask lots of questions.  They seem confident that it was just a cold.  We're going to consider it a reminder that we still need to be cautious.

Btw...I keep forgetting to ask how Alita is feeling.  Does she still feel like her lungs have been compromised?

So how is Gary, Natalie and her parents doing, these days?

Mark is busy doing nothing as much as possible.

Yep. That sounds about right. Since I've started going back to the office, I lost some time I had to sneak over here. I'm still trying to figure out how to best work walks in. My kid likes it that I have been coming home for lunch, but that means I have to drive. I'm toying with the idea of driving home for lunch and then walking back to the office one of these days to see if that'll work, but it'd have to be a quick lunch, since it's a half hour walk. We'll figure it out... eventually.

We have gone for a couple of walks that were nice, though.

Could be that Alita's body is busy re-constructing and would slow again when re-construction is finishing.

ounce wrote:

Mark B wrote:

nkrichards wrote:Gary is feeling much better and went back to work today...he works mostly alone.  He didn't have a lot of symptoms other than the high fever.  He did have an excruciating headache with the high fever.  In hindsight he realized that he had very minor typical cold symptoms the day before his fever hit but they weren't severe enough for him to even recognize them.

One of the benefits of living in a small community is that your caregiver is also usually a friend...that's not always a benefit.  But anyway....Gary had a chance to ask lots of questions.  They seem confident that it was just a cold.  We're going to consider it a reminder that we still need to be cautious.

Btw...I keep forgetting to ask how Alita is feeling.  Does she still feel like her lungs have been compromised?

Glad Gary's bug wasn't the bad one... though it still doesn't sound like whatever he had was very fun.

We bought an pulse oximeter for the family a couple of weeks ago to see what was going on when Alita was feeling out of breath. It's showing that generally her blood oxygen % is generally good. (Lowest was 94%, usually 97-98%.) Her pulse is higher than before, however. We know she didn't have pneumonia, so this isn't a huge surprise. 

She seems to be doing better but it's hard to know for sure.

ounce wrote:

nkrichards wrote:Gary is feeling much better and went back to work today...he works mostly alone.  He didn't have a lot of symptoms other than the high fever.  He did have an excruciating headache with the high fever.  In hindsight he realized that he had very minor typical cold symptoms the day before his fever hit but they weren't severe enough for him to even recognize them.

One of the benefits of living in a small community is that your caregiver is also usually a friend...that's not always a benefit.  But anyway....Gary had a chance to ask lots of questions.  They seem confident that it was just a cold.  We're going to consider it a reminder that we still need to be cautious.

Btw...I keep forgetting to ask how Alita is feeling.  Does she still feel like her lungs have been compromised?

So how is Gary, Natalie and her parents doing, these days?

Mark is busy doing nothing as much as possible.

Yep. That sounds about right. Since I've started going back to the office, I lost some time I had to sneak over here. I'm still trying to figure out how to best work walks in. My kid likes it that I have been coming home for lunch, but that means I have to drive. I'm toying with the idea of driving home for lunch and then walking back to the office one of these days to see if that'll work, but it'd have to be a quick lunch, since it's a half hour walk. We'll figure it out... eventually.

We have gone for a couple of walks that were nice, though.

Could be that Alita's body is busy re-constructing and would slow again when re-construction is finishing.

Let's hope so!

Hope Alita continues to mend.  I know it took me months to completely recover from pneumonia...I would think that COVID would take just as long or longer.

We have a pulse oximeter.  They are a fun tool to have around.  We take it when we're hiking at altitude.

Has our "little storm" hit the news cycle over there yet?  It was a doozy!  We were on the fringe and suffered very little damage but boy the folks in the path of the worst of it really got hammered.  I haven't heard of any serious injuries but there were a couple close calls.  This wasn't your typical storm.  13 of the big metal structures that carry the power lines feeding California went down.    We're coping with minor damage, power outages, are on domestic water restrictions until they restore power to the water pumping plant, and sporadic internet as they lost power as well.  This morning we sent our crew to help out in the areas hardest hit so we're holding down the fort here without their help.

Considering ourselves very lucky today!

nkrichards wrote:Hope Alita continues to mend.  I know it took me months to completely recover from pneumonia...I would think that COVID would take just as long or longer.

We have a pulse oximeter.  They are a fun tool to have around.  We take it when we're hiking at altitude.

Has our "little storm" hit the news cycle over there yet?  It was a doozy!  We were on the fringe and suffered very little damage but boy the folks in the path of the worst of it really got hammered.  I haven't heard of any serious injuries but there were a couple close calls.  This wasn't your typical storm.  13 of the big metal structures that carry the power lines feeding California went down.    We're coping with minor damage, power outages, are on domestic water restrictions until they restore power to the water pumping plant, and sporadic internet as they lost power as well.  This morning we sent our crew to help out in the areas hardest hit so we're holding down the fort here without their help.

Considering ourselves very lucky today!

It didn't make the news down here.  Sorry.

George Floyd's body, the MN man that was killed, will be flown to Houston soon for the funeral.  He was born in NC, but all of his family lives here and Floyd grew up here.  The Houston PD chief is giving the body a full motorcycle escort from the airport to the funeral home.  The same escort for a fallen police officer.

We haven't had any fires or similar.  A few busted windows, 1 verizon store looted, some police cars busted up, but that's about it.  We don't usually get a whole lot of action, like the rest of the country.  Guess we'll find out what happens tomorrow and the next few days.  I wonder if the protesters will show proper Social Distancing?

ounce wrote:

nkrichards wrote:Hope Alita continues to mend.  I know it took me months to completely recover from pneumonia...I would think that COVID would take just as long or longer.

We have a pulse oximeter.  They are a fun tool to have around.  We take it when we're hiking at altitude.

Has our "little storm" hit the news cycle over there yet?  It was a doozy!  We were on the fringe and suffered very little damage but boy the folks in the path of the worst of it really got hammered.  I haven't heard of any serious injuries but there were a couple close calls.  This wasn't your typical storm.  13 of the big metal structures that carry the power lines feeding California went down.    We're coping with minor damage, power outages, are on domestic water restrictions until they restore power to the water pumping plant, and sporadic internet as they lost power as well.  This morning we sent our crew to help out in the areas hardest hit so we're holding down the fort here without their help.

Considering ourselves very lucky today!

It didn't make the news down here.  Sorry.

George Floyd's body, the MN man that was killed, will be flown to Houston soon for the funeral.  He was born in NC, but all of his family lives here and Floyd grew up here.  The Houston PD chief is giving the body a full motorcycle escort from the airport to the funeral home.  The same escort for a fallen police officer.

We haven't had any fires or similar.  A few busted windows, 1 verizon store looted, some police cars busted up, but that's about it.  We don't usually get a whole lot of action, like the rest of the country.  Guess we'll find out what happens tomorrow and the next few days.  I wonder if the protesters will show proper Social Distancing?

Not surprised that our storm didn't make it into your news Doug...but I would be surprised if it hadn't crossed Mark's desk.  There was also some damage (lightening) on his side of the mountain...just across the river and a bit upstream...my SIL drove Mom up to have a look today.

Now the George Floyd riots did make our news...and quickly drowned out the COVID coverage.  Portland has been pretty active but they are noted for that sort of thing.  Hope they don't tear up Houston.  That doesn't help anyone!  You might want to stay inside and away from any potential violence.  And no...the rioters don't seem to pay much attention to Social Distancing.

I heard about the storm. Sounded impressive!

It's been a very busy news environment this week. I'll leave it at that.

nkrichards wrote:

ounce wrote:

nkrichards wrote:Hope Alita continues to mend.  I know it took me months to completely recover from pneumonia...I would think that COVID would take just as long or longer.

We have a pulse oximeter.  They are a fun tool to have around.  We take it when we're hiking at altitude.

Has our "little storm" hit the news cycle over there yet?  It was a doozy!  We were on the fringe and suffered very little damage but boy the folks in the path of the worst of it really got hammered.  I haven't heard of any serious injuries but there were a couple close calls.  This wasn't your typical storm.  13 of the big metal structures that carry the power lines feeding California went down.    We're coping with minor damage, power outages, are on domestic water restrictions until they restore power to the water pumping plant, and sporadic internet as they lost power as well.  This morning we sent our crew to help out in the areas hardest hit so we're holding down the fort here without their help.

Considering ourselves very lucky today!

It didn't make the news down here.  Sorry.

George Floyd's body, the MN man that was killed, will be flown to Houston soon for the funeral.  He was born in NC, but all of his family lives here and Floyd grew up here.  The Houston PD chief is giving the body a full motorcycle escort from the airport to the funeral home.  The same escort for a fallen police officer.

We haven't had any fires or similar.  A few busted windows, 1 verizon store looted, some police cars busted up, but that's about it.  We don't usually get a whole lot of action, like the rest of the country.  Guess we'll find out what happens tomorrow and the next few days.  I wonder if the protesters will show proper Social Distancing?

Not surprised that our storm didn't make it into your news Doug...but I would be surprised if it hadn't crossed Mark's desk.  There was also some damage (lightening) on his side of the mountain...just across the river and a bit upstream...my SIL drove Mom up to have a look today.

Now the George Floyd riots did make our news...and quickly drowned out the COVID coverage.  Portland has been pretty active but they are noted for that sort of thing.  Hope they don't tear up Houston.  That doesn't help anyone!  You might want to stay inside and away from any potential violence.  And no...the rioters don't seem to pay much attention to Social Distancing.

Seems like all of the non-essential workers are protesting.

We had 60,000 protesters, about 3x the organizer's idea.  200 arrests and no looting.  Today is the viewing, going from noon to 6 CT.  The 'feels like' temp at noon was 99 degrees.

Mark B wrote:I heard about the storm. Sounded impressive!

It's been a very busy news environment this week. I'll leave it at that.

Do tell.

ounce wrote:Do tell.

Don't know where to start, but maybe this very funny and on-point video is a good a place as any.



(If you haven't seen the first chapter of this, when she goes back from April to talk to her January self, it's here: Explaining the Pandemic to my Past Self )

From a news perspective, it means we're getting about 10 bushels of news ... that we have to fit in a 1 bushel bag. It's been like this since March, except more so lately, and it's a big challenge.

So is the old newspaper philosophy of selling ads and filling in the gaps with news still the model? Or does that not work anymore?

ounce wrote:So is the old newspaper philosophy of selling ads and filling in the gaps with news still the model?  Or does that not work anymore?

That model hasn't really worked in a while, since we lost classified, jobs, real estate and auto ads to the internet. Big box stores collapsed in the Great Recession and didn't come back. Advertising used to provide a substantial portion of our revenue, with subscriptions barely covering the cost of delivery, but now we've had to turn to a higher level of subscriber support, both for print and online. It's a huge challenge, and the future is far from clear.

Mark B wrote:

ounce wrote:Do tell.

Don't know where to start, but maybe this very funny and on-point video is a good a place as any.



(If you haven't seen the first chapter of this, when she goes back from April to talk to her January self, it's here: Explaining the Pandemic to my Past Self )

From a news perspective, it means we're getting about 10 bushels of news ... that we have to fit in a 1 bushel bag. It's been like this since March, except more so lately, and it's a big challenge.

These were fun to watch.  I've always believed that the best humor has some truth to it!

I'm pretty proud of our little town.  

• The paper still arrives in the mail every Wednesday.
  
• We had an awesome level of participation in our MADras Runners Challenge.
  
• The schools have done an excellent job staying connected with students and providing distance learning.  That's tough when many of the students are poor, live remotely, and lack internet service.  And don't forget that we have a relatively equal number of Hispanic, Native American, and Caucasian students.  We're one of the most diverse school districts in the state.
  
• We had a small peaceful BLM march through town last week.
  
• And a resident organized the collection of donations and letters of support to present to our local law enforcement officers...both city and county...  The effort was very well supported and so far has stayed out of the political fray. 
  

Let's hope we can continue the success we've seen in the last few weeks.

nkrichards wrote:

Mark B wrote:

ounce wrote:Do tell.

Don't know where to start, but maybe this very funny and on-point video is a good a place as any.



(If you haven't seen the first chapter of this, when she goes back from April to talk to her January self, it's here: Explaining the Pandemic to my Past Self )

From a news perspective, it means we're getting about 10 bushels of news ... that we have to fit in a 1 bushel bag. It's been like this since March, except more so lately, and it's a big challenge.

These were fun to watch.  I've always believed that the best humor has some truth to it!

I'm pretty proud of our little town.  

• The paper still arrives in the mail every Wednesday.
  
• We had an awesome level of participation in our MADras Runners Challenge.
  
• The schools have done an excellent job staying connected with students and providing distance learning.  That's tough when many of the students are poor, live remotely, and lack internet service.  And don't forget that we have a relatively equal number of Hispanic, Native American, and Caucasian students.  We're one of the most diverse school districts in the state.
  
• We had a small peaceful BLM march through town last week.
  
• And a resident organized the collection of donations and letters of support to present to our local law enforcement officers...both city and county...  The effort was very well supported and so far has stayed out of the political fray. 
  

Let's hope we can continue the success we've seen in the last few weeks.

Glad you've got that local paper. It's the best way to keep a community together. 

Looking for trail advice Mark and I know you run in Forest Park.  My appointment with Dr. B is on Wed July 15th at 8:00am.  I don't want to risk driving over early in the morning...to many possibilities to get delayed and miss my appointment.  His office is in the Providence St. Vincent complex on Barnes Rd.  There is a hotel nearby so I'll drive over the night before.  It's only 10 minutes from the Arboretum and since I'll probably wake up early I thought about driving over and parking there and maybe jogging to the rose garden or ??.  I won't have time to get in more than 3-5 miles and don't want to get off on technical trails or into an area that would be unsafe for a single female runner early in the morning.  Are you familiar with this area?  I know you usually run in more remote parts of the park?  Safe?  Suggestions?

Hope you and the family are all well.

nkrichards wrote:Looking for trail advice Mark and I know you run in Forest Park.  My appointment with Dr. B is on Wed July 15th at 8:00am.  I don't want to risk driving over early in the morning...to many possibilities to get delayed and miss my appointment.  His office is in the Providence St. Vincent complex on Barnes Rd.  There is a hotel nearby so I'll drive over the night before.  It's only 10 minutes from the Arboretum and since I'll probably wake up early I thought about driving over and parking there and maybe jogging to the rose garden or ??.  I won't have time to get in more than 3-5 miles and don't want to get off on technical trails or into an area that would be unsafe for a single female runner early in the morning.  Are you familiar with this area?  I know you usually run in more remote parts of the park?  Safe?  Suggestions?

Hope you and the family are all well.

I had to look up St. Vincent's location. It is pretty close to the park, though on the opposite side from where I usually access it.

There are a couple of options:

1. Drive back on Highway 26 and take the Oregon Zoo exit. Go past the zoo and park near the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. That's where several trails commence, including the Wildwood Trail and Arboretum Trail. It's kind of easy to get lost in this section, with lots of crossing trails. It'll probably be the most populated option early in the morning - but it should offer some nice views.

2. Navigate to Pittock Mansion (off Burnside) and park in the parking lot. The Wildwood Trail passes through the lot. If you head either way, you get some nice forest and some impressive hill action. You could also check out the mansion, which has pretty grounds and a great view.

3. Navigate to the NW 53rd Drive Trailhead (2999 NW 53rd Dr, Portland, OR 97210), park along the road and head to the right. (Going left isn't as pretty, IMHO) This offers some of the nicest parts of the Wildwood Trail, and it's a pretty popular area, so you'd be unlikely to be the only person out there. 

Good luck!

---

Quick update for me: I finally started walking to work again last week! Stepping on the scale was a good motivator. 

Now I'm getting in a little more than three miles a day, which has got to help. I can just start to feel parts of my body waking up.

Thanks Mark.  That's exactly the type of information I was looking for.  I knew this wasn't exactly in your neck of the woods but you were my closest running friend.   My appointment is on the 15th...I'll let you know how the run jog goes.

Glad to hear you're getting some walking in.

Stay well.

Ok, because I'm ignorant with regards to geography and schools in the PacNW, Alec is at Washington State, correct? Not UW?

Hope you all are free of Covid now.

I'm sequestering in western NY state which seems to be a good place to be right now as GA is spiking again, but we can only stay through July as my daughter has to report back to teach on August 3rd.  As of right now, it will be in person - masks for teachers are mandatory and only "suggested" for students.  Yup, this will be fun.

Michele \"1L" Keane wrote:Ok, because I'm ignorant with regards to geography and schools in the PacNW, Alec is at Washington State, correct? Not UW?

Hope you all are free of Covid now.

I'm sequestering in western NY state which seems to be a good place to be right now as GA is spiking again, but we can only stay through July as my daughter has to report back to teach on August 3rd.  As of right now, it will be in person - masks for teachers are mandatory and only "suggested" for students.  Yup, this will be fun.

You saw from the "Coug Parent" shirt on Facebook, but yes: Alec is at Washington State. We're trying to figure out if he still has a dorm room, because they're only going to allow one person per room, and they require freshmen to live on campus. He reserved a room for his sophomore year back in February, but we're waiting to find out if that sticks -- or if we need to find him an apartment with very little advance warning. Or a roommate. 

Staying away from hotspots with COVID-19 sounds like a great idea. School is going to be weird here, too. Weirder for Alita, since her students (severely impacted by autism) would have a difficult time managing masks, social distancing, etc. It's going to be ... something.

We're generally COVID free. There's still getting some shortness of breath at times, and that shows up on the oximeter we got, but it bounces back quickly... so I guess that's a good sign. There are other lingering issues, but what can you do? Hope for the best is about it.

We are donating blood later this month, and the blood bank says they will run an antibody test on the sample. I know those tests have not had the greatest accuracy rates, but it'll be interesting to see what it says anyway.

Mark B wrote:

Michele \"1L" Keane wrote:Ok, because I'm ignorant with regards to geography and schools in the PacNW, Alec is at Washington State, correct? Not UW?

Hope you all are free of Covid now.

I'm sequestering in western NY state which seems to be a good place to be right now as GA is spiking again, but we can only stay through July as my daughter has to report back to teach on August 3rd.  As of right now, it will be in person - masks for teachers are mandatory and only "suggested" for students.  Yup, this will be fun.

You saw from the "Coug Parent" shirt on Facebook, but yes: Alec is at Washington State. We're trying to figure out if he still has a dorm room, because they're only going to allow one person per room, and they require freshmen to live on campus. He reserved a room for his sophomore year back in February, but we're waiting to find out if that sticks -- or if we need to find him an apartment with very little advance warning. Or a roommate. 

Staying away from hotspots with COVID-19 sounds like a great idea. School is going to be weird here, too. Weirder for Alita, since her students (severely impacted by autism) would have a difficult time managing masks, social distancing, etc. It's going to be ... something.

We're generally COVID free. There's still getting some shortness of breath at times, and that shows up on the oximeter we got, but it bounces back quickly... so I guess that's a good sign. There are other lingering issues, but what can you do? Hope for the best is about it.

We are donating blood later this month, and the blood bank says they will run an antibody test on the sample. I know those tests have not had the greatest accuracy rates, but it'll be interesting to see what it says anyway.

Yes, school...and life in general will continue to be interesting moving forward.  The outbreak on the reservation is continuing to grow causing Jefferson County numbers to look pretty dismal.  Fortunately the Madras community itself is still not to bad but we do have a few cases.  I'm assuming that they were brought here by tribal members who use our shops and services and/or travelers going through.  It is what it is.

Marty and Kevin both donate blood on a regular basis.  Their antibody tests came back negative.

Take care...

Should anyone have the antibodies in their blood, look for the blood place to near beg you to give.  They can make money selling that plasma to some facility...or a hospital that draws it doesn't have to pay a blood donor place.  Could keep some blood donation places afloat.

Not exactly a benefit to the person with covid, though.

Well I enjoyed Forest Park...or at least my drive through a portion of it and a very leisurely walk through the Rose Garden with Katie.  I'm disappointed I wasn't able to squeeze in time for my run but I did enjoy the time to chat with Katie.  It's all about choices.  I do want to try and go back.  It looks gorgeous.  I can't believe all the trees so close to the urban area.