Category Archives: Blogging

Z is for Zephyr

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

Notes Tied On The Sagebrush now has 1001 followers. Thank You.

Waiting For News

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I think the Nurses at my brother’s Nursing Home are trying to answer my questions in good faith but I feel I am not getting a full picture of how he is doing. They read off his vital signs that indicate no fever, but they tell me he does not want to Skype because he feels too sick, he has a cough, and a sore throat. I see these as possible symptoms of cornonavirus. A patient was sent to the hospital from this facility a few days ago and was found to test positive for coronavirus. That patient’s room was near my brother’s room. A staff member also tested positive for coronavirus. My brother is in isolation with his roommates. I was told this was a precaution to protect him. I am concerned my brother could get dehydrated because it is hard for him to swallow. He can only get fluids when the staff gives him fluids. He is unable to reach for a glass and drink by himself because of the MS. So I asked that he be offered fluids frequently, every time the staff goes in the room. The Nurse today told me he has instructed the aides to offer my brother fluids. I asked that the staff check on him so he does not feel alone. I emphasized how helpless he is and that he needs them to check in with him. I called his MD today and his doctor thinks he should be tested for coronavirus and is ordering other labs as well. I mentioned the possible need for intravenous fluids. I feel better that I made sure the doctor is evaluating my brother now. I thank the Nurses every time I talk to them and I can’t help crying sometimes.

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

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

Wonder

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Important not to lose our capacity for wonder. During our visit to the Monterey Bay Aquarium last year our grandson saw the penguins for the first time. One swam down and looked like it was nose to nose with him, almost like a kiss. Very magical.

My grandson visits with the penguins

Some undersea creatures near Monterey are glowing in the dark:

Pearls of the Planet/ Pacific Ocean by Explore.org via You Tube:

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

Blogging from A to Z April Challenge 2020

Brother Worry

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The Los Angeles Times Editorial Opinion page today:

The Brutality of Coronavirus Triage; Assigning a different value to different individual’s lives is immoral.

“Disability rights organization have filed complaints with the federal government against Alabama, Tennessee, Utah, Pennsylvania, and Kansas over the crisis care triage protocols..” California has stepped back it’s guidelines and is calling it a draft.

I posted on the California Department of Public Health triage guidelines the other day. They struck me as descriminatory.

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In my own life, I am doing ok. My brother is battling something which could be coronavirus. He has not been tested as far as I know. I felt better today because the staffing is better at his Nursing Home and I know he had care this morning. He was too tired to Skype with me. I made sure the Charge Nurse was aware of what my brother was reporting to the family yesterday about how he was feeling. He seems to be holding his own right now.

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

Value Each Person

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My younger brother has Multiple Sclerosis and has resided in a Nursing Home for many years because he needs care. His is intelligent and his mind is unaffected. I have been worried that he could be vulnerable to infection but so far no one at his facility had signs of COVID-19 until yesterday. One of the residents was transferred to the hospital and tested positive for Coronavirus. Pretty early in the outbreak here in California his Nursing Home closed to any visitors. I understood and accepted this precaution but I was concerned about my brother feeling more isolated and frightened. I was able to set up Skype between our computers with the help of the Social Worker there. I have been able to talk with him over Skype and we can see each other. Of course I am more worried now for him. I thanked the Charge Nurse today for being there. I received a call later in the day that they were moving him closer to the Nursing station so they could keep him under closer observation. I asked that they help him get signed onto the internet so he could watch programs or listen to music.

I wrote a post for Friday about the possible rationing of ventilators and ICU beds if our hospitals have a surge of patients. Remember that all these patients are individuals of value and probably have families who care about them. They are not just a statistic that fits into an age category or medical diagnosis. They might be someone with a pre-existing condition but that does not mean we can easily write them off and not care.

Stream of Consciousness Saturday, #SOCS, is hosted by Linda G Hill Prompt for today is a word that starts with or contains ‘val.’

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

Blogging from A to Z April Challenge 2020

Featured image ‘Sunrise’ by angelac72 on Pixabay.com

Los Angeles Unified School District Feeding The Community

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When the Los Angeles Unified School District had to close due to the coronavirus pandemic many worried about what would happen to all the students who depended on the schools not just for their education but for their food. LAUSD provided free meals for students who qualified from low income families in the district. Where would the children get food now? So the Governor of California and Mayor of Los Angeles announced that the schools would continue to provide meals for the students. The school meal preparation would continue and the families could pick up the food.

This expanded to giving food to anyone in need that shows up. In partnership with the Red Cross and the regional food bank the LAUSD has provided 10 million ‘grab and go’ meals since March 18 from 63 campuses across the district. (reported in the LA Times).

Featured image of LAUSD seal via Wikimedia.org, Los Angeles Regional Food Bank image from Walmart on Flickr.com

We Are The World Blogfest, #WATWB, “seeks to promote positive news. There are many an oasis of love and light out there, stories that show compassion and the resilience of the human spirit. Sharing these stories increases our awareness of hope in our increasingly dark world.”

The cohosts are: Eric Lahti, Susan Scott, Dan Antion, Damyanti Biswas, Inderpreet Kaur Uppal.