A New Vocabulary

It feels as if we are living in a horror movie of sorts. At least that is the way I see it. If you are at all connected, either via television, radio, or social media, you would think that our world was coming to an end, wouldn't you? Nancy left this morning, but not before she insisted that I document this insane time for posterity because if it was not written in real time, in the future, it will seem so outlandish that one would think I was making it up! Or, will it?

One thing I know for sure is that the sun will come up tomorrow,

and the next day and the day after that. So, what is a girl to do when seemingly everything is being shut down? Photograph nature is the answer to that question. On my way to pick up a few things at Wal Mart, and no, toilet paper was not on my shopping list, I drove through the peacock neighborhood which at first seemed nearly deserted of those beautiful birds, however, before long I heard the loud call, and looking up. I saw a tree full of them.

Is that tail length unbelievable, or what? Our world is so full of intricacies that it boggles the mind.

The fellow above seems as if he could not decide, should I go up, or stay down.

As I type, Bruce is at church doing something that no one could have ever imagined, even in their wildest dreams. What is that, you wonder? Helping John put up a big banner stating that the church is closed for the foreseeable future. I think they are using one of the new buzzwords, or terms in this instance......"out of an abundance of caution", which is part of the new vocabulary.

When last I wrote, Matt and Tom were on their flight to Denver from London for their ten day road trip, which is going very well, btw. I suspect there is no better place to be than in the great wide open right now with little to no media connection. Posting one photo of the two of them in Utah with the caption, "call it social distancing of the scenic sort." Where do these terms come from?

And then there is "self isolation", not to be confused with "self quarantine".  Or are they one and the same? The birds are not heeding this advice as we have had another influx of Cormorants, first a few days ago on Lake Pineloch, and more recently in my backyard! Yup, I was out searching the trees after hearing a bird call, when I heard a huge splash caused by about forty Cormorants landing in the water. Yeah, life does go on even in troubled times!

I'd walked down to Lake Pineloch to see what I could see, and on that day I saw a bunch of birds.

All those black specks are Cormorants. I watched a Brown Pelican fly in, landing amongst them. Furthermore there were quite a few Osprey circling overhead waiting for just the right moment to swoop down and catch lunch.

We had a young Wood Stork visitor earlier in the week, and the only way I think I know that is because, instead of the scaly head, it was kind of fluffy, something I'd yet to see before.

In order to stay calm amongst the madness, I've done my fair share of roaming the property and have not been disappointed. I was standing by one of the many Loquat trees to photograph the visiting Cedar Waxwings,

when a fellow, parking his car, asked if there was a cat in the tree? No sir, but there is a Cat bird!

The weather has been very warm, and for the most part sunny. After a few weeks of rain in Atlanta, Nancy was loving that. We didn't do much of anything, however, she did read two novels while she was here, relaxing from the challenges of her job. Call it "sheltering in place" if you will.

So with all these new phrases, and everyone seemingly an expert on what the government should do, these are unprecedented times. Frankly, I don't think everyone is an expert by a long shot, and it is darn annoying watching people act as if they are. It kind of reminds me of 9/11 when folks were getting all over GW, more commonly known as President Bush. How are they to know what to do when nothing of the sort has ever happened before? Enough already!

So, Publix was out of a bunch of stuff, but they are still open. The Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive, on the other hand, is not. Here's their reasoning.....with so many places closed, people will want something to do such as be out in nature. Just messing with you....what they really say is that the drive will be overwhelmed, so they are closing. That, my friends is how crazy it is right now. Every single day, another domino falls. College athletics, the NBA, the NHL, the PGA, all museums in New York, schools closing all over the country, and in our neck of the woods, Disney and Universal have closed.

 A National State of Emergency, for crying out loud!!

For unknown reasons, folks are stock piling toilet paper. And groceries. Do they know something I don't? When I wrote my last post, (here if you did not see it,) I wondered what we were to make of things. Little did I know six days ago that it would come to this. They are now banning visitors at nursing homes, so Maureen, who rarely answers her phone, will be lonely, as will Susan's mother who is in a facility downtown as well.

As if living through a divisive election year weren't bad enough!

There's always nature to soothe our souls.

Or, a good walk. The other day Bruce and I did just that, walking over to Boone High school as he had heard they were having a closing ceremony for the gym. It had been years and years since last I visited the gym that stood there for more than fifty years. Come to think of it, Bill would have been playing volleyball for Boone the last time I was inside.

Thinking of it brings back fond memories of sitting on the bleachers shifting my body back and forth as the ball did the same. Volleyball is a fun sport to watch. Turns out that the event followed a volleyball game, so we did not see it because Bruce had a meeting to attend. So long to a place that served the community well for many years.

Soon this will be torn down as they have built a new one for the upcoming generations.

Oh yeah, Days for Girls is canceled too. Soon the question will be, what hasn't been canceled?

Earlier I wrote that it was like a horror movie, but maybe it is more like science fiction? Everyone knows the old saying that "truth is stranger than fiction" , and our current scenario most definitely fits that description. Instead of hanging that banner this morning, Bruce was meant to go with a group of church men for a weekend doing projects at Boggy Creek Camp. Yup--canceled.

My heart goes out to folks who cannot afford to miss work. Heck, my heart goes out to everyone during this madness. While camping seems like the ideal thing to do, the State Parks, while not closed, are no longer offering ranger programs until this has passed.

At least I have a new orchid in bloom.

And we are not sick, so there is that to be thankful for. The funny thing is that while there is general hysteria happening everywhere, most of us don't really know what to be afraid of in plain language. Plus the directive to wash your hands to which I want to know, when? Every hour? Before eating? After going to a store?

When next I write, it is hard to imagine what I will have to say. As for now, we are not self isolating, or sheltering in place, or in self quarantine, or for that matter social distancing, but who knows what lies ahead?

One thing I do know is that it is good to have blog written in real time and that's a fact!

your friend,

Gail