Bleh in the City: The One Year Covid-Versary

 Happy SPD, All :)

I have a confession to make. I am not happy today. I mean, I am...but I am feeling very discouraged. Not a lot of money right now; we thought some money was coming, but we haven't received it yet. No job prospects. Yes, I am looking every few days. I am missing my family. I am just...bleh. Anker isn't doing very well, either. His liver has been acting up. His PBC is back, so he is back on meds. It has been nice outside, so that is good. I am trying to walk every other day (or more). I am actually scared that I won't find anything soon. I know I shouldn't worry, but I do. It's hard not to. I am even thinking of looking for work out of town. I am also thinking of starting a small business, but even that seems like too much work. I miss people. I miss church. I miss sitting ANYWHERE inside without a mask. I miss girls' get togethers. I miss family get togethers. I even missing Ladies Bible Study! I miss hugging my people. It's not to say that I haven't done these things for a full year; when things relaxed a bit, we did see my family, we had get togethers outside, and I do go on walks with friends sometimes. I don't know what is going to happen this year. I know no one does, but I hate not even having a bit of a plan. What happens if things get bad again? If I get a job, what happens if I don't like it? What if my coworkers don't like me? What if I can't do said job? What happens if I can't find ANY job soon? Sigh...there are so many unknowns, and I hate unknowns!

                                                          My 3 yr old nephew took this!!

It has been one year since "Covid" and "corona" (and not the beer!) became a house hold words. We started learning words like "quarantine", "social distancing", "(self) isolation", and "flatten the curve". Masks are now a part of our fashion industry. Zoom and Google Meet probably didn't know what hit them this time last year. Virtual events have been at 10000% more than last year. Sourdough bread, Dolgona Coffee, TikTok, virtual field trips, travel, concerts shows, and even those "Master Class" classes are more popular than ever. Curbside pickup (online shopping) has been at an all time high. Services like Skip the Dishes, Door Dash, have been crazy busy. People working from home, kids/adults learning from home. Drive by birthday parties, virtual meals and holidays with family, YouTube tutorials are most likely in the millions of views right now. Meal prep kits have probably been at an all-time high in sales, along with disinfectant wipes, hand sanitizer, and who knows what else. Streaming services I know have probably quadrupled their sales. "Binge-watching" is no longer a seemed a guilty pleasure, but now an acceptable activity. Living in sweats and PJs is ok! Business on top, and PJs on the bottom are seen (or not seen!) as ok! Family (dog, kids, etc) interruptions during meetings are no longer a huge embarrassment. Although I am sure most people are back to work by now, it is certainly a different feeling than it was last year. No Christmas get together, no baking brought to the office. Let's face it; our world has changed. Some of it not all bad, either. But some of it. has been stressful; mental illness, loneliness, domestic violence, and drug (including opioid use) is at an all time high, alcohol consumption is WAY higher than it was this time last year (among other negative effects, I know). Hate crimes (and crimes in general) have gone up. #stopasianhate And hello, Quarantine 15!! I miss concerts, and plays. I miss the summer events that this town had. I miss the vibe that this town had. Even if I didn't go to well, ANY events, it was fun to see, hear and read about them. I am thankful that our city did do their annual spring/summer/fall Farmers' Market, for which I only went to twice :)

I know there have been wonderful and kind stories that have come out from all of this. We have all seen and heard of them. So, it hasn't all been bad :) But, life without human contact has been hard on the best of us. I do have a VERY small bubble of who I hang out with. When I meet with friends, it is usually out in the park or in a coffee shop (why we can do that, and not have friends over at a distance in our home is beyond me!), or on their deck or outside, if the weather allows. I have gone to my parents' a few times, but I mostly stay in their B&B cabin and have minimal meals with them, and I/we haven't been there since January. When things "relaxed" a bit, we did have "Fakesgiving" (one week early) at my parents', with my brother and his wife coming from VI. I pretty much only have been hanging out with my brother and his family (regarding going to people's houses).

I started on this on March 17th, and I did the last 3rd today, March 29th :) I have actually been feeling a bit better, as is Anker, so that is a real plus :) As far as looking for work, well, I am doing it slowly, but I have a few ideas of doing things independently, so I am not rushing right now. I am thankful for everything in my life. It isn't easy, but I know that God is watching over us, and He is taking care of us :) Also, spring has sprung, so who can be mad/sad about that?

No Words

 I will be honest. I am a bit of a hyprocrit. I LOVE my Hollywood mags, and will follow things online, but when it comes to Award shows, I rarely watch them. I try to watch the Oscars every year. I used to watch all the award show, but now that we have access to them online, as they happen, I mostly just tend to follow them via IG, etc. Half the time, I forget that they are on until after I see something online or on tv the next day.

Last night, my aunt and I chatted for a few minutes; she said that she was watching the Grammy's (shocker..she RARELY watches award shows!), so we talked about that for awhile; she said that a "horrible woman and song came on, and I had to turn it off".  I wasn't surprised, as I thought it might have been a bit too much for my aunt's eyes. I pegged it to a lady or two, and then decided to peruse IG for who it might have been. I saw a couple of posts on a few Hollywood IG pages, and the comments were eluding to (along with the picture) that it was an R-rated performance. I decided to record it again, since I saw that it was coming on at 8 (the West Coast, I guess). Well, I watched it today. Umm...I am not going to name names...but oh.my.word. I couldn't even watch it. I.cannot.unsee.that. What I saw was the most horrendous thing I have ever seen. My aunt was NOT exaggerating! I think it was even worse than last years Super Bowl (maybe on a different level). It was basically a stripping show. No freaking lie.

I am shocked that they a) (the ladies) even had the gall to do such a thing, and b) that the tv network had the gall to show it. It was even pre-recorded, so it is not as if they couldn't have omitted anything, due it to being live. This is entertainment, folks. Our children watch this. One of these ladies even has a daughter! What are they teaching their children????? I am not a prude. I am (mostly) of the thought, "if you have the body and the confidence to show off your body IN A DECENT MANNER, then go ahead", but this was toooooo much! 

As adults (people of faith or not), what are teaching our kids (mainly girls, but boys, too) when we a) allow them to listen to their music, and b) allow them to watch their concerts, or on awards shows? I can tell you right now, that 100% of girls (and boys, as well) look up to these young ladies (and young men) in the entertainment industry. I would no more allow my 10 yr old to go to ANY of these ladies' concerts than fly in the air. Ok, there are a few that I would probably allow them to see...but not many, at all. It isn't just about their "fashion" and how they carry themselves; it is about their words in the songs. Most of what the singers are sining is for adults; let's face it...what 10 year old knows half of what they are listening to, anyway? But, even if they do like listening to Swift, Grande, etc...these young ladies need to be a MODEL for them. That means not taking off their clothes and dancing around like they are at a strip club (to be fair, Taylor was adorable, and I actually don't mind her clothes choice most of the time). Girls need to know that they don't need to act like that to get attention. Boys need to know that they need to respect a girl; that she demands respect. Girls need to be respected, but they need to act respectful. To themselves, to others, and to their bodies. I am just so sad to see this at all. It is one thing to go to concert (mostly) knowing that what you will see may or not be R-rated; you kind of know what you are getting yourself into (this stuff shouldn't happen at all, but that is a whole other blog post). But to see that stuff on primetime TV? Say whaaat?? 

My aunt said that she thought they must feel terrible about themselves if they dress and dance like that, and I don't think she is entirely wrong. They probably don't feel that they can express themselves fully unless they have no clothes on and are dancing like, well..you know!

Anyway, those are my two cents about the Grammy's! I WILL say that Trevor Noah did a great job noting, and a lot of the ladies had beautiful dresses on (Lizzo, Taylor)! I loved that they had it outside of the Staples Center (re), and it was done up very nicely! So, the Grammy's weren't a total right off, and at least they had the WAP dance towards the end of the show and not at the beginning, so I guess that is something, at least. I also shudder to think of how much human trafficking happened last weekend. Super scary!!