Coronavirus, Los Angeles, March 28, 2020

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BIG NEWS!!  (not related to coronavirus)

Many of you know that our son Elliott published his first novel, “Baghdad Central” in 2014.  Set in Baghdad after the invasion in 2003, the main character, Muhsin Khadr al-Khafaji, is a detective in the Baghdad police, but now is working with the invaders.  

It has now been adapted into a six-episode TV series, and is available on HULU now.  Good review in yesterday’s LATimes.

https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/tv/story/2020-03-26/baghdad-central-hulu-waleed-zuaiter-iraq-war

If you don’t have HULU, and would like to watch it on your computer, send me an email and I’ll reply with a link to a Google drive location where it can be viewed.

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 25:

Still trying to refine our ability to order from WholeFoods successfully.  Just realized there are two Amazon services: Whole Foods, and Amazon Fresh.  Some items come from one, some from the other.  Who nu? Also using Yummy.com, which I think is only in LA.

Afternoon walk, in Pan Pacific Park.  Three mothers are standing at the bottom of a rise; coming down from the top is a concrete walkway; hurtling down this walkway, towards and then past the women, comes a boy, maybe 8-years-old, on a 3-wheel scooter.  He has that look of combined thrill and terror, that comes when you are on the edge of loosing all control.  I say to the mothers: “Looks like an accident about to happen”.  One of them replies: “Yeah, but the kids need exercise, to burn off extra energy”.

On the radio, someone says "the epidemic may crest in LA in 6 to 12 days”.  I get an image of the enemy coming; we can’t see it, we can’t hear it, we can’t feel it.  (And if we get it, we may not be able to smell it, or anything else).  In my imagination, it is flowing, like an invisible oil spill, down the streets and sidewalks, and into our homes and apartments, seeping in thru the crack under the front door.

THURSDAY, MARCH 26:

As I mentioned in an earlier letter, Thursday used to be my day to attend three classes, which I was now missing so much.  Thanks to the internet and Zoom, they are making a return, for me and all the others who attended.

Rabbi Wolpe at Sinai Temple is now recording his Thursday AM Torah study classes (1/2 hour) on YouTube. His talk today included the issue of plagues, and how they usually do not discriminate between the good and the not-so-good.   (For you non-Jews out there, Torah Study = Jewish Bible Study, Old Testament only.)  If you have any interest in trying one out, search on YouTube for “Sinai Temple”.

Rabbi Lebovitz at Adat Shalom is conducting his Thursday class on Zoom.  Did the first class today, and it went well.  He had to leave for a moment, to let in the dog Wrigley (their family is from Chicago) who was making noise because he wanted in.

Of course, most travel plans have been cancelled.  We were planning to go to Vancouver for Passover with our son, Adam, his family.  My cousin Ada has had to cancel their cross-country car trip she and her husband Don had planned for May/June.  We hope they can do it later this year, and we can see them when they get to LA.

Our daughter Ashley knows that Nadine likes yoga, and suggested “Yoga with Adriene” on YouTube. So I decided to join Nadine today.  Had to take a rest after a 25-minute “beginner" session.  Very hard for me to sit on the floor with my legs crossed for any length of time.  Or just sit on the floor, period.

FRIDAY, MARCH 27:

Morning walk. The sycamore trees, which a month ago were bare, are now fully in leaf after the rain we got, and the warming sun of spring.  No entry lines nor checkout lines at our local CVS.  Controlled entry at Whole Foods, about 2 persons every minute or so.  The line was about 30 people, stretched out almost a block due to social distancing.  About a 15 minute wait to get in.

We have finally run out of peanut butter, one of my favorite foods.  A PB&J sandwich was a treat when I was a kid, and still is.  Have not been able to find any available yet in our on-line shopping at Amazon/WholeFoods. If you run across any, I prefer crunchy and unsalted (but beggars can’t be choosy).  Disregard this last sentence; PB arrived Saturday morning from Yummy.com.

Our Leader says he would like to see all the Christians back in church by Easter.  Just before Easter, Passover will start, traditionally a time for large family gatherings, and discussion about, among other things, plagues…how timely is that!

See 'guidelines for Passover at the time of coronavirus pandemic' attached at the end of this email, from our friend Mona in the OC.

Stay well, keep your distance, call your mother, wash your hands, and love one another.

Coleman

Guidelines for Passover at the Time of Coronavirus Pandemic

Coronavirus, Los Angeles, March 24, 2020

REMINDER: if you would prefer not to receive future emails (who knows how long I will go on?), just reply with a “discontinue" request.

FRIENDS WRITE IN:

From our friend John, in the community garden here in Park La Brea, re the "Spanish flu":

"Thank you so much for this email.  It was shocking at first, since my grandmother's mother died in the flu pandemic of 1918-1919, when she was just 10 years old.  Her siblings were placed in an orphanage, but my grandmother was sent to live with relatives in Canada.  They treated her like Cinderella, more a servant than member of the family.”

(As a teenager, she put on all the clothes that she owned, and alone, fled back to the United States.)

From Ashley, our daughter, in Paris:

"The Champ de Mars and banks of the Seine are closed now, but the windows of the apartments around us are flung wide open at 8 pm to clap and cheer for our healthcare providers here in France.  Louder each nite…"

From our friend Rick Nave, in The Valley, on ordering on-line, home-delivery from Whole Foods:

"Speaking of Whole Foods, I too tried to order on line,  After going through the entire shopping process, surprised as the minimal selection, I got to the check out and was told there were no deliveries available for the next two days.  Why only two day out and not more to choose one is strange.  I keep trying until finally there was a delivery slot.  So I went for it, but when I reviewed my order the only item that was being delivered was one avocado, one! And to add insult to injury, given that the order was minimal I was charged a $14.95 delivery fee. That avocado, which is to be delivered this afternoon better not be over ripe!!  But I preserved and placed another "normal" order which is also to be delivered today.”

SUNDAY, MARCH 22:

We also ordered four items from Yummy.com, which delivers from all the stalls in Farmers Market.  Got all four, and within about one hour.  Not sure that Yummy is available in most areas.

Today started sunny and clear and warm and lovely.  Took our 2nd walk outside about 4PM.  Took an umbrella, and it was sprinkling most of the way.  Past the community pool, which is now closed; drops of rain making circles of ripples on the still water   After we got home, started to rain in earnest, and has been raining steadily for about five hours.  I sit in our front room, and hear the rain drops hitting the palm tree fronds just outside our window.  Then the water runs down the fronds, and drips off the ends.  

Good that it is raining.  Our SoCal rain season is typically Thanksgiving thru Passover/Easter.  This year we got a lot of rain in December, but virtually none in January and February, so we only have a few weeks at best for any more rain for this season.

MONDAY, MARCH 23:

Monday is our laundry day, so we decided to keep it that way (some sense of regularity).  The laundry room is in the basement of our building, four floors down.  Nadine is wary of using the elevator, so we walked our load down four flights, and put it into the washers.  Then four flights back up.  Thirty minutes later, walk down again, and put the laundry into the dryers, then back up.  Forty minutes later, down again, retriever our laundry all clean and warm, and walk back up.  By this time, my iPhone had reported over 2,000 steps and 8 flights of stairs. (should have been 12)

Speaking of the elevators, residents are being very observant.  If more than one person is waiting in the lobby, they usually will let the first person ride up alone, and then take the next car.

Timing is everything, or so they say.  A popular local cafe, Fiddlers, closed about a year ago, to the dismay of many of us in our neighborhood. Another cafe opened in the location, but lasted less than a year.  We walked by a few days ago, and found that a third restaurant business had “opened”, named “@TITUDE”.  The hand-drawn sign in the window read: “Grand Opening-ToGo-PickUp-323-297-3275”.  I hope they are able to survive.

TUESDAY, MARCH 24:

Morning walk.  In the parks, all the play equipment and the benches are cordoned off.  The lines at Whole Foods, CVS, and Trader Joes are not too long, about ten persons each.  From afar, the lines appear to be longer, because people are spacing themselves out, approx 6 feet apart.  

We are alone in our apartment, and have all that we need.  Food, utilities, Netflix, PBS, NPR, etc.  Not much we have to do, at least for our physical needs.  

I keep thinking of all those who are “out there”, keeping things running, in many cases not really having the option to stay at home.   

First, of course, all the medical workers, many of them are at increased risk now.  

All the workers in our food chain, from the fields to the grocery stores.  All the delivery persons, from our mail carrier Deborah, to Fedex and UPS.  Our trash men David and Daniel.  Our building maintenance worker Dora.  All the emergency workers (police, fire, EMTs).  All the utility workers who keep our water, power, gas, cell phones, and internet working.  Keep them in your thoughts and prayers.

“Zoom” is the technology du jour.  Our daughter-in-law Nadia is using something akin to teach her 11th and 12th grade English classes.  Nadine’s book club is considering for their upcoming meeting in about a week (“Olive Again”, by Elizabeth Strout).

POLITICAL COMMENT:

I am heartened that the Dems appear to not be rolling over and accepting (at least so far) the McConnell give-away package for large corporations.

Stay safe, wash your hands, keep your 6-foot distance, and love one another.

Coleman

A little humor, in case you have not seen it already, courtesy of our son Matt.

Zoom in the bathroom:

https://youtu.be/0xqLjc2y6O4

Near our building is a ground-floor apartment; family with two kids, a girl and a boy.

From time to time, each child makes a simple poster and displays it on their front door, which we see as we walk by.

Photo of their current posters below.

Coronavirus, Los Angeles, March 21

First, apologies for that very rough draft that I mistakenly sent out on Friday to many of you.

Re: Spanish flu (1918-1919), our friend Arlene wrote: “My father was 13 years old, living in Chicago, when the Spanish Flu hit. His mother died, and his father could not take care of the children. The five brothers were sent to an orphanage. The baby of the family was sent to live with an oldest sister who had recently gotten married.”

THURSDAY:

This is what happens when an 84-year-old man who (thinks he) can use email, is trapped in his apartment, with too many thoughts running thru his mind and too much time on his hands, and decides to write them down and then send them to about everyone he knows. 

(If you want to opt out of future emails, Please let me know.  No reason needed, no offense taken.)  

Speaking of time, for Nadine and I it seems to be moving very fast.  We have practically nothing that we have to do, but all of a sudden it’s dinner time, and the day is almost over.  Also speaking of time, the solar system keeps on running; it is vernal equinox once again.

But while time seems to be speeding by, the internet seems to be slowing down.  Several times, shows we typically watch are not working on HULU.

FRIDAY:
We got our first home delivery of groceries from Whole Foods, which we ordered on the Amazon website, not really sure of what we were doing.  A pleasant young woman rang the doorbell of our apartment, delivering three well-packaged, WholeFoods labeled bags of groceries.  She said she needed to take a photo of the reverse side of Nadine’s drivers license; we think it’s because our order included two bottles of pinot noir.  After doing that, we gave her a cash tip.  I said to her: “Can I ask you a few questions, because we have never done this before?”  She politely replied that it was her first day on the job, so she doubted she could help us.  One of the first of 100,000 added workers Amazon announced they were planning to hire?  She left the bags in the hallway, and we proceeded to bring each item into the apartment, and wipe it down with Chlorox Disinfecting Wipes.  The oatmeal we ordered was packaged in a plain plastic sack, tied at the top. Photo below. 

Can’t go to the gym, and no stationary bike at home. Long walks outside are very necessary and therapeutic. I can keep up my squats and planks that Phil encouraged me to do a year or two ago. Also doing stair climbs in the stair wells of our building.  Nadine has found many yoga sessions on YouTube, so is able to practice as much as she wants to.

I Imagine most hair salons are now closed? (I really would not know myself.)  "Feels like we’re three or four weeks away from learning everyone’s real hair color”.

 From Ashley and Neil in Paris: Before anyone goes outside their home, they have to fill out, sign, and carry with you an affidavit indicating their reason for being outside.  

This is a translation of the last of five choices for reasons on the affidavit form: 

“Brief trips, close to home, linked to the individual physical activity of people, excluding any collective sporting practice, and the needs of pets.”

The government form is available on the internet.  Gendarmes are out in force checking, on foot and on bicycles and on horseback!!  Possible fine of about $150. Everyone is “jogging for exercise” now,.  Shades of “Show me your papers”.

SATURDAY:

It’s a beautiful day in our neighborhood.  About 68 degrees, sunny with a few puffy clouds.  Breezy, so the air is clear; Hollywood hills in full view. Flowering trees and birds-of-paradise in bloom  Birds are singing.

Got a sad notice from the food bank, SOVA, where I volunteered.  Due to a lack of volunteers showing up (including me), they have decided to close the food bank indefinitely.  The majority of the volunteers were over 70.

This is painful, because the people we served there were those who can least afford enough food for themselves and their families, including a good dose of homeless persons.  The oatmeal from WholeFoods is packaged the same way we repackaged bulk oatmeal at SOVA.

On a positive note, the city of LA, where homelessness is a major and growing issue, is re-opening many closed neighborhood rec centers and converting them to homeless shelters.

Matt got his coronavirus test results back, and they are fortunately negative.  Ki is recovering OK.  Zoey and Clara have no symptoms but have to stay in quarantine with Ki until next Wednesday. 

Three kind neighbors in our building have offered to go the grocery store for us!!

SOME POLITICAL THOUGHTS:

Today’s NYTImes has an article entitled: “$1 Trillion Stimulus Spurs Lobbying Gold Rush”.  I fear another corporate give-away is headed our way a la the 2008 financial collapse.

Unfortunately, I do not have much confidence that the Dems in Congress will resist this tendency.

Here are a couple of my suggestions as to what might be proposed before any assistance is directed to any large corporation:

1. For each corporation getting assistance, the top10% of that corporate workforce takes pay cuts in proportion to the lower 90%.  This means, if they layoff 25% of their workers in the 90%, they make appropriate cuts to the top 10%, either laying off the same proportion or cutting their compensation 25% or some combination of the two.

2. If a corporation wants a cash infusion to stay alive, they can issue added stock, and the US government will purchase that stock at the current (depressed) market levels.  And get a seat on the corporate board.

FINALLY:

Our stockpile of TP now stands at 18 roles, with a shipment due from Amazon sometime next month.

Stay well, keep your distance, wash your hands, call your mother, and love each other.

Coleman

PS: speaking of TP, a bit of humor from our friend Lenny Felder:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qrG09viq5R4

Los Angeles, Thursday, March 19, 2020

When the Spanish Flu hit in 1918, worldwide, I doubt that most homes in America or anywhere else, even had telephones.  Now, with most of us staying at home all day, we have landlines, smart phones, texting, Facebook, FaceTime, email, TV, podcasts, YouTube, the internet and so many ways to communicate, .  So, I am using email. 

Now, all three of my Thursday classes have been cancelled: Rabbi Wolpe, Rabbi Lebovitz, and UCLA-MARC Meditation.  I loved these Thursdays, full of stimulation and calm and walking and riding the buses.  Shout out to my friend Blanche Moss, who is the one who told me, years ago, about both Wolpe’s Torah study and UCLA meditation. What will I do with myself this Thursday?  Write this email!!

Ashley says we should not have our cleaning lady, Alma, come for a while. So, unless things change, we will just send her a check on her regular days, and do some basic cleaning ourselves.  Our place, fortunately, is not that big.

Although it might be better if it was bigger.  Nadine and I each need to be able to escape from the other from time to time.

Matt’s ex-wife, Ki, has tested positive for coronavirus.  Since the girls are going back and forth, shared custody, Matt got tested yesterday.  Results in a few days.

Learning how to use Whole Foods on-line ordering and home delivery.  Yesterday we generated our first order, and then found out (last screen) that there were NO scheduled delivery times available for us to choose, for the next three days.  Thanks to Phil, he told us to try to schedule the order just after midnight, when the schedule opens up for the next day.  Waking up in the middle of the night is routine for me (I won’t say more about that), so at about 1AM this morning, I went onto the WF website, and found an open delivery slot for Saturday from 9 to 11AM.  In that order we will get about 1/2 of the items we wanted; the others are “out of stock at this time”.

Ordered some TP on Amazon.  It’s coming in early April.

And when did we start calling it “shelter-in-place”?  Why can’t they just say “stay in your homes”?  Why do we want to invent new techie phrases when the ones we already have would do just fine.  The first time I remember hearing “shelter-in-place” was during disaster drills at Rocketdyne about 20 years ago.

Last week, our meditation teacher read part of this poem “Wash Your Hands”.  Since we are doing this so much, we can use the exercise as a short meditation.  Marilyn Grant found it on the web and sent it to me.

https://dorimidnight.com/uncategorized/wash-your-hands/

Be well.  Wash your hands.  Keep your physical distance.  Love one another.

Coleman

Corona Virus; Los Angeles; Monday, March 16, 2020

Nadine and I are self-quarantining.  I decide to go for a 2-mile walk to get some exercise and see what it is like "out there".  The winds are picking up and whipping the palm and eucalyptus trees around; the sky darkens; rain is coming.  For me, it is always welcome.  Nadine insists that I take an umbrella.

Streets and sidewalks, especially the sidewalks, are just about deserted.  You could shoot a cannon down 3rd Street and probably not hit any one.  It is surreal.

Ambulance rushes by on 3rd Street, headed west to Cedars-Sinai, siren blaring.  My imagination says that it is someone in distress from coronavirus, headed for the hospital.

I walk thru Pan Pacific Park.  Practically deserted.  A few people out walking their dogs.  Two homeless men sitting under one of the few shelters in the park.  At least they have shelter from the coming rain.

Into the Grove.  The parking valets are standing around, nothing to do.  Some stores are still open, some are closed.  Few people.  Feels eerie.  Frank Sinatra still singing the old favorites on the outdoor speakers.  Apple Store is closed.

Into Farmers Market.  All the outdoor tables and chairs have been removed.  Some of the food stalls are still open: ice cream, donuts, pizza.  But it’s take-out only.  Few customers, few strollers.

Pass by CVS and Whole Foods, and look in the windows.  They were so crowded over the weekend.  The parking lot is half-full, but the lines are very short, and I do not see any empty shelves.  For now, the panic seems over.  Will it return?  I think about all the workers who are the chain that brings food items from fields and farms to our markets; how long can they work; will they get sick.

On my final leg walking home.  One block from our building, the rain starts. Up goes the umbrella.  The gym, theatre, activity center and spinning room are all closed. The cafe is open, but take-out only.

I’m home.  On CNN, a reporter asks Trump how he would rate his response to the coronavirus epidemic.  He gives himself a “10”….of course.  No surprise there.

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We are getting good with pressing buttons without using our hands.  Door knobs are harder.
Social distance.  Wash your hands.  Stay in touch.

Coleman