I have a nice post I'm in the middle of, but I don't have time to finish it because I'm off to go play pool with my friends.
Today's the last day I'll be playing pool with them, and the last day I'll be attending an in-person meeting of my recovery group—New York's latest restrictions take effect tonight at 8:00 p.m.
Not everyone I know is planning to follow the directives. However, I usually process decisions like this by considering what I am going to have to live with in the future; I know I have to live with myself. I just don't want to look back and feel that I contributed in any way to what's likely coming. So I'm going to isolate at home, apart from "alone" activities. That might include practicing pool alone, but we're being asked not to gather in groups of any size, so I won't. (I do think it's more than a bit ironic that liquor stores are on the "essential" list and recovery meetings aren't, but this is no time for new resentments.)
Remember: according to the models, the more people there are who minimize person-to-person contact, the better off everyone is. So everybody counts. Your efforts, my efforts, every single person's efforts—they're all meaningful. (And finally, everyone's being required to do something that we introverts are already good at. That doesn't happen very often.)
I can look at the bright side—more time for TOP, more time for working on my book, and more time for roving the countryside alone in my car taking film pictures! I'm going to use this interlude to get down to doing some work.
Blubber, Bub
Before I go galivanting off I wanted to mention, as far as the "Sunday Support Group" is concerned, some good news for me related to diet—on standard body mass index (BMI) charts, I've officially descended past the line between the "obese" category to the "overweight" category. Yay, I guess. Hey, it's progress. Still have a ways to go before I can be considered "normal," but some people will say that's nothing new! Rimshot, please.
I really like this way of eating. After almost seven long years of reading, researching, and self-experimenting, I feel like I've finally found the key to what's right for me. (Here are the detes again: video 1, video 2.) Even if I don't lose another ounce I feel like I'm going to keep eating this way for the rest of my life, which I hope will be closer to 30 years than three months. More about the details in a future post.
I'll finish that other post, about a photographic virtual visit, later in the day. In the meantime, how about a weekend virtual visit to TOP World Headquarters? Here's a nice video about the Finger Lakes. (Again, I don't know who will be able to see this and who won't—apologies to anyone who gets blocked.) I've personally been to almost all of the places they show—except I didn't know about the Tiffany church in Bath. Gotta get there someday, once it reopens to the public.
Mike
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(To see all the comments, click on the "Comments" link below.)
Featured Comments from:
Jim K (partial comment): "Congrats on your reduction of blubber! Me too! My BMI is down to 27, I'm down roughly 35 lbs., I'm enjoying my daily vin-'n'-tonics, and I have a healthy obsession with roasting Brussels sprouts. Like you, this new way of eating has really been enjoyable. I don't count calories, I don't obsess if I do a rare cheat, I'm enjoying what I eat, and I look and feel great!! Keep it up, and thanks for the motivation...."
Mike replies: It's amazing, isn't it? I've been eating salads and green berry smoothies with loads of additives in each for breakfast each day since December, plants other times, and I realized with a shock the other day that all my joint pain is gone. I was coming downstairs in the middle of the night, which used to hurt all over and a lot in several places, when it hit me—no pain anywhere. During the next two days I was hyper-aware of it, and yep, it's gone—joint aches and pains I thought were age-related and inevitable have just plain disappeared.
hugh crawford: "After consulting the BMI chart it turns out that I'm a little short for my weight."
Hi Mike,
I think it's really sporting of the New York strain of the Coronavirus to declare a cease fire until 8:00pm this evening. And of course #19 would not be so sneaky as to contaminate that communal chalk cube or the places where players rest their hands - nah! it wouldn't do that.
Clever negotiating on the part of the governor no doubt.
Stay safe man.
[I don't understand the reason for your snarkiness. The Governor's orders took effect on Sunday at 8 so I complied on Sunday at 8. I complied with the earlier directives when they took effect. What's so hard to understand about that? --Mike]
Posted by: James | Sunday, 22 March 2020 at 02:31 PM
Mike.
I'm a bit confused, and very concerned, when you say "I just don't want to look back and feel that I contributed in any way to what's likely coming." I hate to break it to you, but by choosing to meet with your pool buddies and go to your recovery meeting (both important activities for your health in normal times, but these are not normal times), you are directly contributing to the potential spread of Covid-19 in your area. Even worse, I recall that some of your pool group is in the most at-risk age cohort for complications from the virus, making your decision even more irresponsible.
I'm assuming you have no symptoms, but hope that you know that it can take a week or more for symptoms to appear, during which time you can still spread the virus. Similarly, you have no way of knowing how the folks you will be meeting with have been behaving in terms of social distancing, so you are greatly increasing your own risk of exposure.
I have been impressed with your highly informative posts about the situation, and even your comments within this post regarding social distancing, so I am frankly blown away by your decision. I'm not expecting you to print this comment as it could be construed as me "taking a shot" at you (I am not, I am only expressing concern for a person responsible for an important part of my day), but pray that you will in case there are any of your readers still in doubt about the severity of the situation, especially if any of them are also considering one last social gathering before an arbitrary time (8:01 PM) when they will get serious about social distancing.
Posted by: ASW | Sunday, 22 March 2020 at 02:45 PM
Introvert, Recluse, and Self-Isolation are my middle names. Bring it on!
Posted by: Bandbox | Sunday, 22 March 2020 at 03:05 PM
" (And finally, everyone's being required to do something that we introverts are already good at. That doesn't happen very often.)"
You said it!
I'm like "how is this a change?"
eolake
Posted by: Eolake Stobblehouse | Sunday, 22 March 2020 at 03:12 PM
Enjoy Mike. Maybe this would be a good time to start recommending movies between us. Movies that have some nice photography, of course. Let me start with “Seduced and Abandoned”, directed by Pietro Germi. 1964, I think. Certain scenes look like Cartier-Bresson photos, shot in the middle of the day, when the sun is high. Very funny film. For rent for 3 dollars or so on Itunes.
Posted by: David Lee | Sunday, 22 March 2020 at 03:44 PM
It’s very nice that the virus is going to hold off until 8:00 pm. :-)
Rand
Posted by: Rand Scott Adams | Sunday, 22 March 2020 at 04:06 PM
And hopefully more time to moderate and post comments (insert optimistic smily face here).
Posted by: Gordon R. Brown | Sunday, 22 March 2020 at 04:13 PM
I would really suggest you and anyone reading don't go out at all. I don't actually think we know how contagious this is. I read a study that seems credible but is not reviewed that was mentioned on s very good emergency medicine podcast that gave CV an R value of 26. If that's true it's amongst the most infectious things we've ever dealt with. It means one asymptomatic infectious person can infect 26 people. Seems bizarre but I don't think there is any level of too much caution. It would be fine if it were not deadly.
I totally understand the idea of the last visit with loved ones. But a percentage of those visits are going to kill a lot of people.
Posted by: Paul McEvou | Sunday, 22 March 2020 at 05:35 PM
Hi Mike,
I think that your recovery group (and recovery groups in general) can make a fairly seamless transition to virtual meetings using something like Zoom, at least in the near term. One of my sisters is a therapist and she is meeting with clients this way. It's not ideal, but it is much better than nothing.
Yonatan
Posted by: Yonatan Katznelson | Sunday, 22 March 2020 at 05:50 PM
TOP is on the “essential" list as well! And, it’s allowed to cross the border up here into Ontario.
[I'm honored! --Mike]
Posted by: Julian Behrisch Elce | Sunday, 22 March 2020 at 06:46 PM
I may finally get off my butt and process a small backlog of film. I said film
Posted by: Earl Dunbar | Sunday, 22 March 2020 at 08:06 PM
Introverts. Yes I really think one of the requirements photographers need is the ability to work alone. We can only depend on ourselves. I guess most artists are the same.
I still like to socialize but there comes a time where I hit my limit and have to escape to my cave. Not to hide but to work.
Here in California we are already being limited to what we can do and we are limited to groups of 5 or less. Personally I think it should be less.
I can still take long walks with my camera. I also have purchased an ebike and it is a blast to get on it and cruise the city. If I spot something I can stop and grab the camera and shoot.
Posted by: John Krill | Sunday, 22 March 2020 at 10:33 PM
Hey Mike,
I was gonna take my 'divorce support group' out on Friday the 13th for drinks (and to celebrate my birthday); but I ended up canceling due to concerns about spreading the virus. I've been working from home for the last week. My son is home from UW Whitewater, and the rest of the semester will be on-line. I doubt very much that schools at any level will be back in session this spring. Social distancing and isolation will help to flatten the curve (smush the hump)--and this is good for the health care system.
Congrats on your reduction of blubber! Me too! My BMI is down to 27, I'm down roughly 35 lbs, I'm enjoying my daily vin-n-tonics, and I have a healthy obsession with roasting Brussels sprouts. Like you, this new way of eating has really been enjoyable. I don't count calories, I don't obsess if I do a rare cheat, I'm enjoying what I eat, and I look and feel great!!
Keep it up, and thanks for the motivation...
Posted by: Jim K | Sunday, 22 March 2020 at 11:01 PM
You could use the "Zoom" app or similar to hold video conference type meetings from home. We've set up a local Corvid-19 support group using this technology.
Posted by: Phil Martin | Monday, 23 March 2020 at 04:58 AM
It’s probably a case of NMJ (not my job) or maybe SWSETCADR (sorry we sent everything to China and didn’t restock). A SNAFU no matter which way you look at it. Enjoy the shooting!
Posted by: Chris | Monday, 23 March 2020 at 08:08 AM
While I can’t and of course won’t claim authorship, it’s been said that closing down and imperiling our economy sine die, is akin to an elephant being attacked by a house cat and panicking so it falls off a cliff to its death. I completely agree.
Posted by: Mark | Monday, 23 March 2020 at 08:34 AM
“And finally, everyone's being required to do something that we introverts are already good at. That doesn't happen very often.”
I saw a sign that sums it up:
First Time in History
We can save the human race
by laying in front of the TV
and doing nothing.
Let’s not screw this up!
https://brucesterling.tumblr.com/image/613229782598107136
Posted by: Bruce McL | Monday, 23 March 2020 at 07:22 PM
Mike, I was not worried about you complying with the Governor's orders, I was concerned that the place you were playing at may already contaminated.
We need you to stay well.
[Excuse me for interpreting your comment as snarkiness. I'm feeling raw this week. --Mike]
Posted by: James | Tuesday, 24 March 2020 at 10:54 AM