Pandemic
1:37 p.m. - 2009-04-30


Lots of stories on TV and in the paper with every little incidence of flu noted for maximum panic potential. Doesn't hurt to be prepared, so I have masks and medicine and a face steamer, etc., and I have enough food in the house to last until the fall, probably. But I have a feeling that the whole thing will not amount to much. Before he died more than 30 years ago, my grandfather made some audio tapes, talking about his life history. One of the things he talked about was the time right after the War (WWI)in 1918 when he was in a demob camp in France waiting for the boat home and the flu struck the camp. His descriptions of his friends dying around him and his surprise at escaping infection make the current hysteria seem a trifle overblown. So I will just wait and see what happens.

My plants see to be coming along OK except for the packet of beet seed. The rate of germination is low and the seeds are smaller than usual, so something must have happened to the crop. I'd like to get a patch of chives going, since I like their flavor, and snipping them up is fun. I am also going to try some collards, because we like that pot liquor (or likker). I did mix up the starts of the eenies and the winter squash, so that could be a problem.

Got an invitation to Amanda's graduation, at least I think it is an invitation and not just an announcement. We would like to go to it if the entire city isn't locked down in the midst of the deadly plague, but hopefully, by the time of the festivities the worst will have passed. The girl is now an RN, and that is worth celebrating.

Jason called me to ask if I thought that the Late Great Affliction suffered by the spouse and I was not in reality the swine flu. I told him that the thought had crossed my mind, but we will never know.