"Hallelujah"

Have the new jab  (4:20 mins)

News blues…

South Africa officially shows a decreasing rate of Covid infection: 2,548 cases in 24 hours, the lowest in two months. 
California’s number of people in the hospital with COVID-19 slipped below 14,850 statewide, a drop of more than 25% in two weeks, according to the state Department of Public Health. 

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Meanwhile, the (US) Republican Party just gets weirder and weirder. It’s not really a surprise that that Party is anti-democracy – they’ve been fiddling with elections for years via gerrymandering, limiting voting rights, etc. Now, however, they’re going for broke:

Radicalized by four years of Trump’s presidency, angry over his loss, and emboldened by their own success in fending off Democratic dreams of flipping even a single state legislative chamber last fall, the GOP is ready to subvert democracy in state capitals nationwide. If Pennsylvania is any indication, Republicans could use their majorities to take a jackhammer to voting rights while curtailing the power of Democratic governors and legislators. They may even attempt to overhaul courts in a way that bends the justice system to their liking. 
The Republicans who hold total control of 29 state legislatures are making clear that the authoritarian tendencies of the 45th president were a symptom of something deeper within the GOP.

Imagine living under unfettered Republicanism! The horror, the horror.
Even some stalwart Republicans are trying to address this radical Republican direction: Anti-Trump Republican Group Spearheads Campaign Against Pushers Of The “Big Lie”  (5:00 mins)

Healthy planet, anyone?

Human activity is fundamentally altering the distances the world’s animals need to move to live, hunt and forage, according to a study that examined the impact on more than 160 species across six continents. 
All activities changed the behaviour of animals, but the study found destructive activities such as urbanisation and logging affected the movement of animals less than sporadic endeavours such as using aircraft, hunting and recreation.
As well as having a profound impact on the animals – like reducing their ability to feed and breed – the changes “point to a global restructuring of animal movement” that could have profound knock-on effects, says the study published today in the Nature Ecology and Evolution.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch…

I made a mistake today that could have cost my life! I crossed the road when the pedestrian light signaled it was safe for pedestrians!
I pressed the button for the pedestrian signal and, when it changed to green, like a well-trained pedestrian, I stepped into the painted walkway.
I quickly discovered the pedestrian right-of-way part of driver training doesn’t exist in of South Africa.
Vehicles, small and large, drove right at me. I shouted, waved my arms, pointed at the light. Alas, I may have been invisible. Drivers acted as my temerity to step into the road was an insult to their busy schedules.
By the time I reached the center median, my heart was thumping; my rapid breathing working my mask like a bellows.
Never again.
I learned my lesson. I choose life: Pedestrian walks are anathema! I’ll avoid them like, well, I avoid coronavirus.

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Today also marks a new chapter in the property selling proposition. Since the sole mandate period is over, I met with a new realtor and showed her around the property. Tomorrow, I’ll do the same for another realtor.
Here’s hopin’…

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My brother visits our mother today. Since only one visitor per day is allowed due to the Care Center’s stringent Covid Lockdown Level 3 protocols, I’m off the hook.
Having visited every day since they eased restrictions two weeks ago, I’m emotionally drained. I look forward to a day off. Naturally, this does not mean I plan to curtail future visits, only that I’m happy to step aside if someone else plans to visit her. I’m determined that she’ll have at least one outside visitor a day. 

How awful if, after my mother passes, I’m faced with wishing I’d visited more during her last days.