It’s over, thank the gods (not!)

News blues

President Biden said in a 60 Minutes interview Sunday  that the COVID-19 pandemic is a thing of the past.
"The pandemic is over," he said. "We still have a problem with COVID. We're still doing a lot of work on it. But the pandemic is over. If you notice, no one's wearing masks. Everybody seems to be in pretty good shape, and so I think it's changing, and I think [the Detroit auto show resuming after three years] is a perfect example of it."
His remarks came as Biden's own administration seeks an additional $22.4 billion from Congress to keep funding the fight against COVID, and as the United States continues to see hundreds of related deaths every day.

“If you notice, no one's wearing masks.” That ain’t right. People in my town, including me, wear masks. But, if the Prez says it’s over, then I guess it’s over. Covid is dead, long live Covid!
Read more >> 

***

The Lincoln Project:
Martha’s Vineyard attorney  (1:12 mins) (Background story >> ) 
Kari Lake mimics Trump  (0:11 mins)
Last week in the Republican Party - September 13, 2022  (2:08 mins)

Healthy planet, anyone?

Dave Whamond | © 2022 Cagle Cartoons

Déjà vu all over again? Quelle horreur! “…big oil admits ‘gaslighting’ public over green aims…”

Criticism in the US of the oil industry’s obfuscation over the climate crisis is intensifying after internal documents showed companies attempted to distance themselves from agreed climate goals, admitted “gaslighting” the public over purported efforts to go green, and even wished critical activists be infested by bedbugs.

Read more >> 

That ‘big oil’, ‘big pharma’, ‘big plastic’, Amazon, etc., obfuscate the truth in the name of profit and power should be a surprise to no one.
I wrote this article back in 2011 under the pseudonym Supa Strika  (explained in the piece) and I was a Janey-come-lately to the reality of ‘oil company gaslighting’.
Back then, one of my roles was to research and write a competitive analysis of the big oil companies – ExxonMobile, BP, Shell, Chevron – to learn (and better?) their greenwashing efforts. Naturally, we did not call it greenwashing.
Another cliché: the more things change, the more they stay the same.
Alas.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch…

Day 3 after Mary’s first (of 4) chemo sessions. She did well on Friday but Saturday was not a good day: nausea throughout the day. This, despite the acupuncture session. We agree she’ll continue with acupuncture. I’m thinking a session or two of massage might be in order, too. She’s very tense in neck and shoulders, no doubt stress related.
Mary insisted on continuing with her exercise regimen as closely as possible and we walked along the beach and under the park’s trees. It was hard work for her. Nevertheless, she did it and I’m proud of her.

She reports feeling slightly better today, some nausea but feeling weak, especially in her legs. 

We'll try for a walk later, depending on her ability.  

***

Bay Area residents were warned for days about an impending rainstorm with “up to 1.5 inches of rain”… What did we get? Very little. Not enough rain to make mud of the dry holes dotting lawns and grass.
Yes, rain fell north and south of the Bay but nothing significant for us.
SF Bay Area:
Sunrise: 6:55am
Sunset: 7:10pm

KZN, South Africa:
Sunrise: 5:52am
Sunset: 5:54pm

Show on the road

Worldwide (Map) 
September 15, 2022 – 610,350,100 confirmed infections; 6.520,350 deaths
September 9, 2021 – 223,101,000 confirmed infections; 4,604,450 deaths
September 17, 2020 – 29,902,200 confirmed infections; 941,400 deaths

US (Map) 
September 15, 2022 – 95,490,500 confirmed infections; 1.052,300 deaths
September 9, 2021 – 40,601,000 confirmed infections; 654,,600 deaths
September 17, 2020 – 6,630,100 confirmed infections; 196,831 deaths

SA (Coronavirus portal) 
September 15, 2022 – 4.014,725 confirmed infections; 102,150 deaths
September 9, 2021 – 2,843,100 confirmed infections; 84,327 deathsv
September 17, 2020 – 653,445 confirmed infections; 15,705 deaths

Post from:
September 9, 2021, “Category of critter” 
September 17, 2020, “Alas” 

News blues

Official Covid-19 response has been, let’s say, confusing. And that continues. Just as We the People learn Covid boosters will likely become an annual event, we also learn to titrate this news with reality.

As the promotional push to get people vaccinated with one of the updated, bivalent Covid vaccines heats up, federal health authorities are urging Americans to consider getting their Covid shot and their flu shot at the same time. And with concern about a fall wave of Covid paramount in this effort, the messaging is stressing the importance of doing this sooner rather than later.

But…
It’s still early to get a flu shot.

The protection generated by influenza vaccines erodes pretty quickly over the course of a flu season. A vaccine dose given in early September may offer limited protection if the flu season doesn’t peak until February or even March, as it did during the unusually late 2021-2022 season.

On the other hand, should we be talking about vaccines that offer "mucosal immunity"? A growing chorus of experts say it's a mistake not to focus on treatments that boost immunity through mucous membranes.
Read more >>

Brain fog, a misunderstood symptom of Covid 19 >> 

And, “the end is in sight.”

The World Health Organization head said the end of the COVID-19 pandemic “is in sight,” saying reported global deaths last week reached their lowest point since March 2020.
For the week starting on Sept. 5, the agency recorded over 11,000 deaths worldwide, a 22% decrease from the week before. Global case numbers also fell by 28% from the previous week.
As of Sept. 13, the U.S. had the world’s highest number of reported deaths in the previous seven days, and the second-highest number of reported cases. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention projected that COVID deaths in the U.S. “will remain stable or have an uncertain trend” over the next four weeks.

Read more >> 

***

On war and the culture war
Escaped chimpanzee returns to Kharkiv zoo on keeper’s bicycle 

***

The Lincoln Project:
Rematch  (0:56 mins)
Rick Reacts: Trump’s Meltdown  (2:08 mins) (Warning: Use of “strong” language, aka American.)
DJ Trump  (1:00 mins>

Healthy planet, anyone?

Christopher Weyant | (c) 2022 Cagle Cartoons 

OMG: The city of Oakland plans to return five acres of Joaquin Miller Park to permanent Indigenous control, in what’s thought to be the first case of a city giving land back to Native people.

Under the proposed “cultural conservation easement,” Oakland would retain ownership of the designated area, but the Sogorea Te’ Land Trust would have nearly full control over the use of the land, for cultural, environmental, and educational uses, in perpetuity.

Read more >> 

Meanwhile, back at the ranch…

The intense heat of the past week has cooled. Now the 7+ million residents of the San Francisco Bay face smoke contaminated air  from the Mosquito Fire 

***

Blog wasn’t accessible for a few days due to lost password and Google’s 48-hour timeline to secure another. Grrrr.
On the other hand, Meso Mary and I had enough to do to prepare for her first chemo session today.
Yes, we fret about what’s to come but doing something, even chemo, helps to tackle what comes next.
Statistics show two percent of patients receiving cisplatin and pemetrexed chemo die from it. I have an image of Mary accepting the infusion then keeling out of her oncology clinic BarcaLounger. Horrible!
Last Friday, Mary did the first of a series of acupuncture sessions that, we hope, will help alleviate chemo-related nausea. She’ll do a second acupuncture session the Saturday following the chemo session. If all goes well, Mary will continue this acupuncture pattern – one session before, one after - for all four chemo sessions.
Last Saturday, Mary visited the dentist for her regular 6-month cleaning and checkup. This is also advised by the chemo team – to ensure no infections in the mouth or gums prior to chemo. One’s mouth is liable to infection during and after chemo and Mary has been directed on infection prevention.
Today, Mary and I baked up a storm: spanakopita filling (spinach, onion, garlic, parsley, feta cheese – I use plain yogurt too – eggs…) wrapped in hand-sized pastry crescents. Pretty tasty; next time less pastry and more filling.
Homemade lemon curd apple crisp. Yum!
For once, Mary was eating well. She said planned to force as much natural nutrition into her body before chemo as she may resort to picky eating habits after chemo. (After surgery, she lost her appetite for some weeks, dropped weight, and wants to avoid that scenario this time around.)
She and I participated in the monthly online mesothelioma support group, too. It was a good session, made more so by one member ending the session with a positive, upbeat, forward-looking summary of his experience with the disease. Very helpful to us as he has the same version of meso - pleural eptheliod - and is only 6 months ahead of us in similiar tretment: surgery, recovery, chemo, and some acupuncture. 

Mary's chemo treatment was streamline and the staff friendly, knowledgeable, and patient with their patient.
After the shot of vitamin B, and a dose of drugs, including Zyprexa, an anti-nausea agent that also makes recipient sleepy, the IV line was installed into a vein and saline  and pemetrexed (aka Altima) infused. Following that, almost of liter of cisplatin (nurse donned a protective gown and gloves) was infused, then the second liter of saline. Two liters of saline over 4 hours to wash out the strong cisplatin in an attempt to lessen it's impact on the body that can include side effects such as tinittus and kidney damage. 

Mary was sleepy when I drove home. Indeed, she napped for more than an hour, usual for her to nap during the day.
So far, so good.
May this continue.

***

Weather person promise of heavy rain coming our way in a couple of days. We'll see. Meanwhile days are noticeable cooler in the Bay Area with shorter daylights hours:
SF Bay Area:
Sunrise: 6:51am
Sunset: 7:16pm

KZN, South Africa:
Sunrise: 5:56am
Sunset: 5:52pm