Author Archives: Deborah Drucker

About Deborah Drucker

Native of California who lives in the Los Angeles area. I have a background in healthcare and in recent years I have acquired a teaching credential in Special Education Writing a blog and fiction is a new adventure for me.

Easing Up Slowly

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We have been on ‘stay at home’ status for how long? Time feels lost in another dimension. I don’t feel like I have been stuck in a cave, because I can go out in my yard or around the neighborhood without fear. And I don’t think our Governor or health officials should cave in on their rules for re-opening our state.

California starts to open up. Now we have to decide when we feel comfortable going back into society. We can now go out for curbside pick up at more businesses, and lower risk workplaces can re-open.  Los Angeles County does have the highest number of cases in the state. Closer to home we received an email from one of our local stores telling us one of their employees tested positive for coronavirus. Just in case we get lulled into a sense of false security, it is still out there. Dr. Barbara Ferrer ,the LA County Public Health Director, says ‘expect to see more cases as we open up.’ it is still out there.

To the protestors who do not want to follow any precautions in places that still have outbreaks I say, ” Do you live in a cave? Are you not watching the news about all the people dying, ( and not all are elderly with pre-existing conditions). Have you not seen the Nurses and Doctors and other healthcare workers on the news talking about the hell it is in their communities and hospitals? ”

I can tell you from personal experience that Nursing Homes are still being impacted right now. My brother resides in one and has contracted the virus. He has been holding his own. Communication with him has been difficult. We can talk by the facility portable phone for short periods and he has Skype on his computer but the wi-fi has been spotty. The Nursing Home has started to get a good system going for scheduling communication with family now.

We are advised not to get together with our families for Mother’s Day. We will all celebrate together when this is over.

 

 

For a little help relaxing from Santa Barbara Botanic Garden on You Tube:

Stream of Consciousness Saturday, #SOCS, is hosted by Linda G Hill. The prompt word for today is ‘cave,’ use it as a noun or verb.

Featured image ‘Joshua Tree National Park’ photo by Christopher Michel on Wikimedia.org

 

 

Where Are The Disinfectant Cleaners?

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I have not been able to get any more disinfectant wipes or spray/liquid cleaners for weeks. I went online to research and guess what? The reason we can’t get this stuff is:

“….90% of toilet paper is manufactured domestically, which is why it’s easier to find TP after weeks of empty shelves. But cleaning products, such as Lysol and Clorox disinfectant wipes, will take longer because manufacturers have to ship the chemicals in those items from China, a process that takes up to four weeks, and longer due to COVID-19 shutdowns in Chinese factories.”

USA Today reported we may not be able to get these supplies until this summer.

The good news is my brother is hanging in there with COVID-19! He says he is just ‘worn out,’ but each day he gets towards recovery is great.

Another highlight of my day yesterday, Instacart delivery is available from Costco.

What Day Is It Anyway?, #WDIIA, is hosted by Linda G Hill

Brother What’s Going On

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I skyped with my brother, who resides in a Nursing Home, on Saturday and Sunday. It was good to be able to see him.  We have to work on hearing him though. For some reason there is a lot of static from his end. I am going to work on getting that fixed because it is crazy I can hardly hear him. On the positive side he seems to be holding his own. Just let this continue and let him recover.

What Day Is It Anyway? #WDIIA, is hosted by Linda G Hill.

Music video of Marvin Gaye provided by Universal Music Group on You Tube

Directions For Life

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‘Apply product all over hands until dry’ and you will be protected from coronavirus. Maybe if you drink it you will be cured according to our President. ***Please don’t drink hand sanitizer or any other chemicals made for disinfecting your hands or surfaces.*** I do not feel like babbling on about how great I am doing during the pandemic and all the great home projects I have going like some people. I hate this pandemic. I hate that careless people allowed it to escape into the world and hurt so many people. Am I supposed to understand that people eat bats or whatever way this has been unleashed on us all. My brother tested positive for coronavirus. F**k coronavirus.

Stream of Consciousness Saturday, #SOCS, is hosted by Linda G Hill. Today’s prompt is  “directions.” Find a household cleaner/bottle of shampoo/something in the freezer/anything you can find with instructions on it, then copy down a single direction (just one) on how to use/cook/etc. your chosen thing, and make it the first line or word of your post. Then keep writing whatever comes out. 

Featured image, ‘Ocean storm near Cape Lookout’ by Dee Brausch. Oregon Dept. of Transportation on Flickr.com

Brother Watch-Some Good News

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I was able to Skype with my brother yesterday, Thursday, and it helped me be less anxious about him. I have written a couple of posts but if you haven’t been reading them I will explain briefly. My brother has MS and resides in a Nursing Home. I was recently notified that there are cases of coronavirus at his facility. My brother is on a 14 day quarantine because of possible exposure. He was recently tested but we do not have the results yet. Families were told via recorded message that there have been a couple more positive cases and that we need to communicate with the administrator by email if we want to know the status of our family members.

A little miracle did happen today. I received a call from one of the Social Workers at the facility. She had been meeting with my brother before this crisis started but now she can’t go into his part of the facility because they are in quarantine. She wants to meet with my brother over Skype to offer him support. I told her I felt like crying and I am crying thinking of it. It is so wonderful that he can have extra support right now.

What Day Is It Anyway? #WDIIA, is hosted by Linda G Hill.

Featured image ‘Forget me not flowers’ by Gurkan Sengun on Wikimedia.org

Z is for Zephyr

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Zephyr-‘a gentle breeze from the west.’ There can be gentle breezes here in the late afternoon when the sun get lower in the sky and the air is cooler. It is lovely to sit outside then and feel the sun on my skin.

There is another Zephyr than runs between Chicago and San Francisco, the California Zephyr. The video below by Trains 232 on You Tube is about 15 minutes and has some great shots of the train, tunnels, and a beautiful bridge near the end.

 

Blogging from A to Z April Challenge 2020

Featured image of painting: ‘Late Afternoon, California’ by Maude Kerns via photo by Jason Taellious on Flickr.com

Brother Watch Update

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Received a recorded message from my brother’s Nursing Home just now that there are currently 5 patients who have tested positive for COVID-19 and 2 additional staff members. Three patients are in the hospital with the virus and 2 are in isolation. They said we would be notified if our family member tested positive. I have been calling every day to get an update on my brother and ask to talk with him if possible on Skype. Today the Nurse thought he was stable. He was supposed to call me back, with their help, on Skype, but he did not call. In the recorded message today they mentioned that we should not call and expect to talk to the nurse. They provided an email for the administrator and they will answer as best they can. This reminds me of Kirkland Washington. I left a message for my brother’s MD to see if he has more information.

What Day Is It Anyway? #WDIIA, is hosted by Linda G Hill

Featured image of ‘Forget Me Not flowers’ by Gurkan Sengun on Wikimedia.org

 

Y is for Yeast

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One of my favorite foods is San Francisco Sourdough bread. Boudin bakery lays claim to the original sourdough bread and still has the mother dough cultivated from a goldminer’s sourdough starter. 

More history on San Francisco sourdough bread.

I have read that the flavor of this sourdough bread has to do with the bacteria that develops as part of the fermentation process and wild yeast in the air that helps create the sourdough starter.  All I know is San Francisco does have some of the best bread and I have not found bread here is Southern California that is as good. I have looked at the ingredients on some bread sold in stores and some just have flavoring and not the sourdough culture.

Blogging from A to Z April Challenge 2020

Brother Watch

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I was able to Skype with my brother this afternoon and it was very good to be able to see him. He feels tired, and looked tired, but he says he does not have a sore throat and is coughing less. He is on observation for 14 days. He told me the Nurses are offering him liquids. I spoke with the Charge Nurse and she says he is stable right now. So we are not out of the woods but it helps to see him looking fairly comfortable. His bed is by a window so he can look out.

#What Day Is It Anyway? #WDIIA, is hosted by Linda G Hill.

Featured image ‘Forget Me Not flowers’ by Gurkan Sengun on Wikimedia.org

X is for Xiphosura

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Horseshoe Crab family: Limulidae, Suborder: Xiphosurida, Order: Xiphosura

In America they are found on the Atlantic coast and Gulf of Mexico. Their blood is blue, not that they are aristocrats but warriors who have survived for over 300 million years.  This blood contains amebocytes and is drained by the pharmaceutical industry to produce limulus amebocyte lysate (LAL) which can detect baterial endotoxins. Horseshoe crabs are not really crabs but arthropods.

A video about the Horseshoe crabs and how they are used via You Tube:

Blogging from A to Z April Challenge 2020

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