This is depressing information. Texas surpassed one million COVID-19 cases on Monday evening, becoming the first state to do so. The U.S. marked over 100,000 new daily COVID cases every day since November 4th. This is a first for ANY country. So, this is not a peak, it is part of a steady climb. Headlines I found said, “We are in Big trouble”, “No End in Sight”, “Things are Bleak”, and “Virus is Everywhere.” With the way things are going, the daily death rate could triple by January, and 500,000 Americans could die of the virus by the first of the year. It was described as “a dark winter of disease and death.” States need to encourage more safety measures and people abide by them. France, Germany, Italy, and Greece have imposed either new lockdowns, restrictions, and curfews. Spain has ordered a curfew and declared a second nationwide state of emergency. Let me say that if we can control this without another lockdown, by just wearing a mask and distancing ourselves from each other for a couple of months, then let’s do it. It is like everyone has just given up. We have the same tools available that we’ve had since the beginning, but in order to put out the current fire, these tools all have to be deployed aggressively, with more resources and better communication than they are right now. Small business will not be able to take much more.
2020: Stop asking “is everything okay? And start asking “is anything okay?”
Last month, an Italian sheep farmer’s dog, Spelacchia, gave birth to a litter of five pups, four of which were white like their mixed breed mother, but the last little boy dog was covered in green fur. They are all up for adoption except for Pistachio, he will be staying. The farmer said, “We are keeping him, he arrived in a dark time, but he will bring luck.” This condition is rare and is believed to happen when a light-colored puppy comes in contact with biliverdin, the green pigment found in bile. It mixes with the amniotic fluid from the placenta and dyes their fur in the womb. This reminds me of my babies first diaper changes. Remember the greenish-black, tar-like poop. Who can forget…?
As you are aware, I am full of useless information. The following is a perfect example: I told you in the past that I always try to buy farm eggs from farmers markets, but since I don’t get out much lately, I buy Vital Farms eggs. I am a sucker for good advertising and theirs is the best. Vidal Farm eggs are certified humane and produced by farmers who raise happy hens in pastures with sunshine, grass, and bugs to eat. They even enclose a little newspaper called Vital Times inside each dozen, topped with quirky headlines like “Our Girls Get the Munchies.” This edition talked about double yokes, so I had to do a little research. Double yolks occur when a chicken releases two ova, when ovulation occurs too rapidly, or when one yolk catches up with another slow-moving yolk in a hen’s oviduct. Double yolks are usually produced by young chickens whose reproductive systems have not fully matured, or older chickens nearing the end of their egg producing period. The chance of finding one is about one in a thousand. It is also believed to be a sign of good luck…belief of finding a double yolk in an egg means someone in the immediate family is pregnant. If she already knows she is pregnant, it means she will have twins. See. I told you. Oh, and did you know that it takes 25 hours for a chicken to make one egg. Yes, I am full of it.
Lin-Manuel Miranda has been working like crazy since his smash hit Hamilton. Films like Moana and Mary Poppins Returns. 2020 looked just as remarkable for the star, who was bringing his 2008 musical In the Heights to the big screen, to be released in June, but Warner Bros. decided to change the release of the movie to June 2021, because they feel that it needs to be seen on the big screen. The cast includes Anthony Ramos (from the original cast of Hamilton), Jimmy Smits, and Miranda himself, with a story that follows a bodega owner in New York’s Washington Heights neighborhood. Great musical. Perhaps soon, we will again be able to enjoy the things that we took for granite before COVID.
RECENT BIRTHDAYS: Actor Kathy Kinney is 67. Mimi, the outrageously made-up, flamboyantly vulgar, and vindictive nemesis of Drew Carey. Actor Kate Capshaw is 67. Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. Comedian Dennis Miller is 67. Singer Adam Ant is 66. Actor Loretta Swit is 83. MASH. Singer Bonnie Bramlett is 76. Bonnie & Delaney. (one of my favorites.) Singer Bonnie Raitt is 71. Former Entertainment Tonight host Mary Hart is 70. Former Playboy CEO Christie Hefner is 68.
Actor Mackenzie Foy is 20. Renesmee Cullen in the 2012 film The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn. Singer-songwriter Rickie Lee Jones is 66. Chuck E’s in Love. Singer-actor Leif Garrett is 59. TV chef Gordon Ramsay is 54. Actor Lou Ferrigno is 69. The Incredible Hulk. Singer Nick Lachey is 47. 98 Degrees. Blues singer Bobby Rush is 86. Lyricist Tim Rice is 76. Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. Jesus Christ Superstar and Evita. Actor-comedian Sinbad is 64. Actor Mackenzie Phillips is 61. One Day at a Time. Country singer Narvel Felts is 82. Guitarist Vince Martell is 75. Vanilla Fudge. Singer Paul Cowsill is 69. The Cowsills. Singer Marshall Crenshaw is 67. Actor Stanley Tucci is 60. Actor Demi Moore is 58.
Marge Champion, a dancer known for movie musicals, died at 101. Most interesting was she danced and provided a model for illustrators to base Snow White’s movements and dance for Disney’s “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.” She said, “There was no choreography: I was making it up as we went along and showing them how to dance. They were looking for the feelings that Snow White had when she was dancing with the dwarfs…they really used the motion that I invented when I was dancing with them.” She also danced for the Blue Fairy in Pinocchio and Hyacinth hippo in Fantasia.
Alex Trebek had been the host of Jeopardy! since 1984. In 2019 he revealed that he had been diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer, but despite multiple rounds of treatments, he continued working until 10 days before he died at the age of 80. It was announced that his final day on Jeopardy! will air on Christmas Day. Ken Spears was a TV writer and producer best known for co-creating Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! He said, “We were worried it wouldn’t last but one season, much less 38 years. It was up against ‘The Hardy Boys’ on NBC and we thought we’d get clobbered in the ratings.” Spears died at 82.
About 2.5 million beehives exist in the U.S. today compared with 6 million in the 40’s. Remember that honeybees are responsible for more than 35 percent of the food we eat. I think about them every time I hear the mosquito man drive by.
Denmark is the world’s largest producer of mink. Currently there are more than 15 million mink raised at more than 1,000 farms in Denmark. Several hundred farms have reported infections among their mink. As the virus spread, it picked up genetic mutations and Danish authorities are concerned that if the mutated virus spreads to humans, the COVID-19 vaccines currently in development may not work against the new mutation. All the mink will have to be killed to prevent the spread of coronavirus, because of the chance of infection between the animals and their human handlers. Sounds horrible.
Me: I brought charcuterie. Party Host: Is this a Lunchable?
Independent bookstores are struggling right now. We need to help them stay alive. My favorite is a little store on Memorial Drive in Houston called Blue Willow Bookshop. I ordered a book from them this week as a Christmas gift. Yes, I probably did pay a few dollars more, but I would rather give it to a small business than Amazon. These guys have gift cards, free gift wrapping, and real people to help you. Sign up for their newsletter if you know a reader. You can even shop in person with an appointment. There is nothing better than having a book in your hand, or on the bedside table.
Do you remember reading Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Café? It came out in 1987, where it spent 36 weeks on N.Y. Times Best Seller List, then was made into a movie in 1991 and nominated for two Oscars. Fannie Flagg has a new novel out, The Wonder Boy of Whistle Stop, that revisits Whistle Stop, Alabama…a homage to Southern, folksy, small-town America of the past with a nod to how times have changed over the decades. This is the book that I ordered for my mom. Hope she likes it.
“Well-behaved women seldom make history,” I whisper as I don’t wait the full 10 minutes for the oven to preheat.
Elf cereal will be available this holiday season for a limited time. It is flavored with maple syrup, (which Buddy the Elf (Will Ferrell) poured on his spaghetti in the movie.) President Trump was in Grand Rapids giving a rally speech when he decided to introduce supporter and rapper, Lil Pump, but forgot and called him Lil Pimp. If you are looking for a new soap, try Dr. Bronner’s Pure-Castile bar soap. We prefer the peppermint at our house, but I have the eucalyptus liquid soap at my office right now. It is lovely. Did you know that Boris Karloff’s makeup in the movie Frankenstein from 1931, took six months of research (no Google, no Amazon, no nothing), and four hours to apply every morning. 19 Crimes Wine teamed up with Snoop Dog to create Snoop Cali Red, a combo of petite syrah, zinfandel and merlot wine. Snoop says, “19 Crimes allowed me to come up with the perfect blend for me. Strong, bold and incredible – just like the D-O-Double-G.” This morning I opened my ‘final’ crisply starched and ironed white shirt from the LJ Downtown Laundry and Washateria. She always starched the collars perfectly and they just smell so good. Like lavender on a rainy day. They closed because of COVID and I sure miss having them downtown.
As I sat at my desk, a newsfeed popped up on my phone. 40 Things You Didn’t Know About Kim Kardashian By Kim Kardashian. Must have been an awfully slow day in attention getting. Forgive me Kim, for not looking.
Thank you to Nick at Culligan for cleaning the filters at office so we can drink water again without holding our noses. To Gerald at Luycx for cleaning the water filters at home so we can have water and ICE again. To Mr. Abdul Panjwani for the Vanilla Chai & Tropical Protein drinks…trying to keep us healthy. To Tracy at Luby’s for the nice conversation and wonderful lunch. To Texas Roadhouse for dropping off hot rolls and cinnamon butter, for no reason at all. They were delicious. To the SPCA for all the help with Teller, the downtown stray dog. I will have more about him next week.
The kids and I just watched the Addams Family movie – it is so funny, such terrific wit and sarcasm. It might be described as just another dark movie, but I think it tells a much more important story about great families. On another night we watched Pride and Prejudice. Keira Knightley is so utterly perfect. “…you have bewitched me, body and soul, and I love… I love… I love you, and I never wish to be parted from you from this day on.” They just don’t make good love stories like this, often enough.
I am going to close with this note that I received from my sweet friend EJT. I think you will enjoy it.
Lisa, Thank you for The Source. I devour and quote! I have been quarantined since the middle of December with hands and feet that didn’t work…they were much improved by the time it became mandatory for everyone to stay home. Grrrr. I live alone and pushing on 88 years of life. A life I love. With all the talk on TV about multigenerational households I realized that while I literally live alone, I have one. When I wake in the morning I’m an able and responsible adult, midday I’m a child wondering where the person is that will tell me I’m a good girl and offer me lunch, and by evening I’m a grumpy old lady reminiscing and lonely. Keep on keeping on, my precious friend. (wasn’t that fun…obviously we are all living in multigenerational households) Have a great week.
Lisa
