Mother's Day Meant Too Close for Comfort

It was Mother's Day but getting gifts for mom and grandma was tough. With the gardening centre closed, the two little girls had to settle for gift cards. A bit impersonal but it was the best they could do.

Kisses and hugs for grandma were out. Masks were in. Just getting close enough to hand grandma an envelope seemed wrong. Social distancing demands 2 full metres.

The visit  didn't last long -- if you can call what occurred a visit. How we recover from the tension and the fear of our Covid-19 response is an open question. The self-isolation may end, but Grandma will still worry about the young girls and the girls will still worry about grandma. When will hugs return?

Another self-isolation dinner

Finding pictures is tough when one is self-isolating. The big moment of the day is often dinner. Since restaurants are off our menu, unless we want take out, my wife let's me play "Is this restaurant fare?"

I try my best but the dinners are rarely great. I grumble a lot about my failures. She tells me to lighten up; I'm too harsh a critic of my cooking, she says. Well tonight, thanks to a New York Times recipe, I hit the jackpot. Dinner tonight was restaurant fare. Now, my wife is telling me to stop gloating. She's never happy. Well, not quite true, she was happy with my oh-so-fine dinner and I'm gloating again.

A truly compact car spotted on the court today

A truly compact car was spotted on the court today. It was bright and warm and not weather than encouraged a family to stay indoors or at the least remain on their property. This little boy jumped in his little electric car and, with dad watching from the sidelines, he headed off for some laps on the court.

Rabbits are picky eaters; who'd have thought.

My wife has some flowers blooming in her garden. What a wonderful surprise. Nothing kept the rabbits away from the tulips but apparently primula doesn't need protection from the little furry cuties. Rabbits, we have learned, are not attracted to primula. What a delightful surprise.

Photo of German Cars Recalls French Flag. Oops!

It was time for the winter tires to be switched for the the warm weather rubber. But, because of covid-19, it had to be put off until the first of May.

Today was the day. I drove down to the dealer and found the door closed, locked. A note on the door. Knock, it said.

My service advisor came to the door, I backed up and he came out, arm out-stretched. I tossed him my keys and he took them, told me to come back in an hour and turned and walked away. No customers allowed inside.

I killed the hour looking at cars, new cars, used cars, VWs and Audis. The Audi R8 convertible at $254,000 looked nice but a bit too much car for me. I'd feel guilty behind the wheel. I'd also feel tinges of guilt when I stiffed VW for the car payments.

When the hour was up, I picked up my aging Jetta. Its black paint sparkled. The service department washes every car passing through. I'm not sure everyone can see it but when I look at that car I see a pleasing patina of affordability and I like that look.

A road not taken

 

There's a famous poem by Robert Frost, The Road Not Taken. It starts "Two roads diverged . . . "

There's a bend in Hyde Park Road where, if one pays attention, there is the hint of long forgotten "Y".

Go right, through the curb cut and almost immediately encounter a couple of posts with a length of chain suspended between them

This the Hyde Park Road not taken, and for good reason. This is the old, closed, former Hyde Park Road. It was once a rather attractive stretch of highway. No more. Today, even Robert Frost would likely decide to stay on the well-traveled path.

This also came from China.

One. There is just one little brightly coloured bud on our entire magnolia tree. Tomorrow there will be more and then more and then one morning we will get up, look out the kitchen window, and see our entire magnolia tree in bloom.

I always thought magnolia trees were had large pink and white flowers. When I bought our tree it was small and sported only green leaves. When spring arrived, red-purple flowers appeared. Flowers with long droopy petals. It looked nothing like the magnolia trees with which I was familiar.

After a visit to the gardening centre I knew what I had was either a Japanese or Chinese flowering magnolia. A species of magnolia that was not found in Southwest Ontario in the past.

Cooped up inside, waiting out the quarantine, my wife and I will delighted when the tree is heavy with blooming flowers. Heck, we were excited just to see a little, rain-wet bud.

With the parks closed, kids play in the court

With the parks all closed, neighbourhood kids are getting antsy. The large, paved circle that gives our short street its designation as a court, is now very well used. Today it was bikes, the other day it was road hockey and tomorrow I'm sure it will be anther group and another activity.

I understand that residential streets that lack sidewalks and force the sharing of the paved street space among pedestrians, playing children and cars are called woonerfs in Holland. In London these types of residential spaces are often courts.

I couldn't get too close when taking the picture. One doesn't want to threaten the social distancing that the kids are being so careful to maintain. The little boys are actually quite delightful and I would not have wanted to risk upsetting them.

If the grandkids were here, this groundhog would be named.

The groundhog stays mostly out of sight. We know he's been around by all the tulips and other spring plants that are no longer in our garden. Between the rabbits and the groundhogs we may not have many spring flowers.

My wife is upset. Me? I enjoy watching the wildlife. But shusssh. Don't tell my wife.

Found Art_Sorta

 

Years ago I took my granddaughters to an art-in-the-park event. We saw this piece of art done in glass. It was a decoration for one's garden. It is simply old, discarded glass objects glued together. I bought it and it still stands today in the garden beside our front door.

Line-ups continue

Needing a few food items, I had to go to the grocery store. The line-up stretched a long way but there are not that many in line. Note the large gaps between waiting customers. Although I am well back in the parking lot, there are only about half a dozen folk ahead of me.

A note about No Frills. It is a discount grocery store. The plain white colour with big splashes of bright yellow convey the impression of cheap and the yellow is reminiscent of some of the least expensive products in the store. These  products, made especially for No Frills, come in plain yellow containers with simply black lettering.

Cars are not being driven. Result? An oil glut.

Yesterday the price of a barrel of U.S. crude fell into negative territory for the first time in history. Stockpiles of oil have overwhelmed storage facilities. Buyers were being offered something like $38 U.S. to take the oil off the hands of the sellers. Totally weird.

Take a look at parking lots. Compared to how they looked a couple of months ago, they are empty. People are not driving, planes are not flying, and oil is not being used. But the air is cleaner.

Rabbits have invaded

This self-isolation means no granddaughters keeping eyes peeled for rabbits in the yard eating budding tulips. And that translates into no blooming tulips this spring. None. Nada. Nothing. Zero.

Oh well, without the girls yelling "Rabbit Stew" and running outside hands waving, the little monsters have taken up residence at our kitchen dining-nook window. No point on doing any yelling after the blooms have been eaten.

The rabbits seem to be having as much fun watching us as we do watching them.

Front line workers go to work for us; we stay home for them.

There are no crowds out protesting social distancing and the temporary shutting down of many businesses in London. And to many of us, the workers who are still going to work are not lucky but brave.

The sentiment expressed on this sign, thank you to all the front line workers, is one commonly encountered. This is a tough moment and it seems everyone is trying to get onboard, cooperate and successfully see this pandemic through.

A comment reprinted from the group FB page

I joined this group because I love cities. Always have. To see what this new virus, the coronavirus, has done to our cities, to our way of life, amazes me. It has put so much under the microscope, so to speak, and what I believe we are finding is not good. 

This is an awful virus but it could be a lot worse. We, the world, is actually getting off rather lightly. We have to learn from this. We have to tighten up; we have to improve a lot of our systems. The next pandemic may be the bad one, the one that attacks everyone and just the old(er) and frail. 

I cannot believe, that there are people who don't understand that social distancing is not just for their protection, especially if they are younger, but one practises it for the protection of the seniors in their lives. Protest social distancing, gather in a big, tightly packed group, pick up the virus and take it home to mom and dad, to grandma and grandpa. 

Talk about the complete antithesis to how to run a proper urban civilization. I shake my head. (But I am proud of those who have given this their full support despite the difficulties, and the great unkowns - many people, and companies, are to be commended. There are a lot of fine citizens out there.

The comment above was a follow-up to my comments that accompanied the above charts which I posted to the Daily Photo FB page. These are but part of the information released and updated daily by the Australian government. Note the amount of illness spread out through the population and then not the deaths. The deaths are all among seniors, those from about 55 up. The peak for deaths is among those in their 80s. Just talking about the death without attaching sex and age group information is almost meaningless.

More comes from around the world than just the corona virus

 

I smiled as I put out tonight's dinner. More than just the coronavirus comes to us from around the world, I thought. The basmati rice came from India, the garlic from California, the lemon came also from the States, the yellow sweet pepper and asparagus from Mexico and the rainbow trout came from Chile. Only the tomatoes were local, grown in a hot house an hour southwest of London.

Why even the plate came from outside the country: Portugal. Thankfully the coronavirus has not made an appearance in our home and we hope it never does.

Kids now doing school work online

I was on Facebook when I heard a computer beep and a flashing light on my computer monitor indicated I had a message. Before I knew it I had my granddaughter on the screen, a little image in the bottom right corner showing the image that I was transmitting and I was having an online chat with my youngest granddaughter.

The little girl and her older sister are now doing their school work online. They are using a program called BlueStacks. BlueStacks works with Facebook and so with her school work done, the kid tried calling Judy and me. It wasn't perfect but it worked well enough. I now have BlueStacks loaded and I'll see how our online chats go in the future.

Social Distancing at the grocery store

I finally got out of the house. I made a quick trip to Costco with a stop at the small, family market on the way home. Tuesdays and Thursdays Costco opens an hour early for seniors. I was done in less than an hour and so had time to stop at Remark which opened at nine a.m.

The early morning shoppers were lined up right around the store waiting for the doors to open. Line-ups seemingly go forever today. When people are frightened and leaving eight and ten feet between themselves and others in line, lines grow fast. And when the doors open, the lines move fast.

I feel like I'm living in a bad, made-for-television movie. This simply does not feel real. And yet, not only is this real, but it will continue in some form until a vaccine is available and herd immunity kicks in.

Raccoons have always practised social distancing

 

It's definitely spring. The raccoons are back. It's too bad our granddaughters are not back. They are missing seeing all the wild visitors enjoying our backyard.

I'm not sure what this raccoon was enjoying but it sat on the top of our wall and quietly dined. Sometimes I'm tempted to put out carrots and train the wildlife to stop by for a quick dinner. Seems wrong but then is eating old cookies from someone's garbage an improvement?

Aren't kissing booths just a cartoonist joke?

 

With my wife and I are practising self-isolation, Getting out and about to take pictures is hard. So, I spent the afternoon tidying my basement storage room. I found some photos taken during my career as a staff photographer at the daily paper.

I have always found this image, taken about 1980, a very strange photo. The Board of Education was holding a park activities event for all the city's public schools. One event was a kissing booth. I had never seen such a thing. I had thought kissing booths were a joke. A figment of the imaginations of slightly off-kilter cartoonists. 

This young girl was selling kisses for 3-cents a kiss! Yuck! And dozens and dozens of young boys were crowded around the booth with one of the boys waving a dollar bill. I took the picture and I thought I had something, something weird, something that should never be but was. The picture made the paper but the editor thought it was very ho-hum'.

I entered it in photo contests sponsored by photojournalist organizations; it went nowhere. I entered it in a photo competition at the fair; it collected no votes. Maybe today, some four decades later, someone will be shocked that this was ever allowed to happen, let alone encouraged. I feel it makes a clear statement as to the state of thinking back then -- or the lack of thinking.

Kissing booth. Disgusting.

 

Remembering the days before COVID-19

As my wife and I sat alone in our home self-isolating, we recalled the days before COVID-19 and, forgive me, before Donald Trump. The border between Canada and the U.S. was a friendly border back then. I can recall when a driver's licence was all one needed to cross into the States.

We would leave London for the U.S. in our aging roadster with a body that was aging more gracefully than our own. We'd visit friends in the Detroit area, we'd lunch in a wonderful small-town diner, we'd cruise the backcountry roads and enjoy the hospitality.

Those days may be over for awhile. Social distancing may become the norm. And crossing the border now takes a passport. It is not so easy anymore. The border restrictions have tightened on both sides. Just the other day Prime Minister Trudeau announced asylum seekers attempting to enter Canada from any entry point along the Canada-U.S. border will be returned to the States.

According to the Globe and Mail, possibly the most influential paper in Canada, "More than 57,000 asylum seekers have entered Canada through unauthorized border crossings since 2017, when U.S. President Donald Trump announced a crackdown on illegal immigration."

"Most of the asylum seekers have been able to remain in Canada through a loophole in the Safe Third Country Agreement (a loophole the U.S. under Trump has not honoured) . . . . refugee advocacy groups have encouraged the government to make it easier for people fleeing the U.S. to seek asylum in Canada, and are disappointed with the decision. Alex Neve, secretary general of Amnesty International Canada, called the move 'beyond disappointing and disgraceful.' "

Some have called Prime Minister Trudeau's move downright un-Canadian.

You know, somedays being isolated isn't so bad.

Healthcare from a COVID-19 safe distance

 

With COVID-19 making visiting a hospital a questionable thing to do, even if normally you'd jump in your car, or call an ambulance, today you think twice, pick up the phone and make a call. I called.

I was asked if MyCareLink Patient Monitor was indicating a problem? An out-of-control arrhythmia or tachycardia event? Nope. I'm jsut a little dizzy, I said. My blood pressure is 62 over 41 with a pulse rate of 50.

With a reading like that, there is no surprise that you're dizzy, I was told. It should pass, If not, call us again. Your pacemaker won't let your pulse drop below 50 bpm and your blood pressure should slowly comeback up. 

Take comfort in the fact that your low blood pressure won't kill you. I smiled and hung-up Healthcare in London in the year 2020.

Snow: nothing surprises us

 
It's early April. The days are longer, warmer and snowier. Snowier? Don't ask. It is a strange world in which we are living. Last night we were kept awake by numerous bright bolts of lightning followed by oh-so-loud cracks of thunder. Earlier in the evening, hail the size of golf ball hit North London, punching holes in plastic siding.

So, when does the plague of frogs arrive?

Joy

 

It rained yesterday. It stormed last night. This morning it was too wet to work in the garden. But come mid-afternoon, it was warm and beckoning. My wife's garden has little flowers beginning to bloom but the petals are spotted with mud splatter thanks to the heavy rain.

Then I noticed the little rock with the word Joy etched on one side. My granddaughters saw the rock in a craft shop and immediately wanted it for the garden. My wife looked at my picture and smiled. "We all need a little Joy today." 

Clearly, buying the little rock was a good idea.

It's not the way we saw it.

The picture on the left was linked to a Twitter tweet. It raised a lot of concern and anger. These people were clearly not practising social distancing. Complaints were lodged going all the way to the Prime Minister having angry tweets addressed to him

The local paper went out and soon realize the image was an example of photographic foreshortening. The shoppers appear much closer together than they really are. It is an illusion and not reality. (Not quite true, but an in depth discussion takes awhile. When I taught photography I had to take a student to the physics department to get him to understand. Let's not go there.)

The line may not have been as long when the news shooter arrived but he took two images that nicely illustrate how the same line can look quite different depending upon the angle.

Kudos to our local newspaper for nipping this brouhaha in the bud.

A blister beetle or so I believe

It was a big, attractive, dark blue beetle. I took its picture but I didn't touch it. I'm self-isolating and if I can't get close to my grandkids, I'll be damned if I'm going to get close to a bug. Turns out, the expression rather fits when used here. The bug is a blister beetle. Touch it and, you guessed it, you may get a damn blister or two. Ouch!

Seems the little fella excretes a toxic body fluid through its leg joints. Colourless and ordourless, the fatty fluid can cause blisters upon contact with the skin. Be alert as these are often found on flowering plants right across North American. Relatives that look similar but are coloured differently can be found in various places right around the globe.

I'm proud of how good Londoners are at following orders

Last night my wife and I picked up seven bags of groceries without entering the store or making contact with anyone. As we left the lot, we noticed a very loose line-up of people patiently waiting to get into the LCBO (Liquor Board of Ontaro) store. The line wrapped right around the store.

My wife  and I are both amazed at how willing Londoners are to follow the social distancing guidelines. (My picture is not from the LCBO. Unfortunately, I neglected to bring my camera with me to the grocery store. Oops.)

Call in your grocery order and pick up later

A car sits with its rear hatch door open as the owner waits to have his groceries brought from the store to his car. With the fear of catching COVID-19 growing daily, more and more Londoners are taking advantage of the Express service offered at some area grocery stores.

Call the store, give them your order, when your order is ready the store staff will call, pay with your credit or debit card and then drive to the store for pick up. There are reserved parking spots at the front of the store. Use your cell phone to tell the store staff you are there and within minutes your groceries a have been brought out and placed in your trunk.

I wonder if the service will be as popular once the coronavirus has been brought under control.

Coronavirus or not, life goes on

As more and more stuff comes to a grinding halt, it's nice to see something, if only a little flower, popping up out of the winter-damp leaves, opening its petals and blooming for all to see.

The little flower is, of course, a crocus, one of the first flowers to make an appearance each spring. As the cold eases its months-long grip, the cheerful little blossoms begin to erupt -- sometimes while there is still snow lingering on the ground.


In the past, strollers stopped without thought to enjoy these little harbingers of spring but this year folk look for others first. No stopping in groups. Keep six-feet or more of social distancing. 

Sadly, the crocuses will be gone long before the coronavirus has packed its bags and departed.

Won't be back for awhile; self-isolating

The Costco store looks almost empty and it was. Only so many customers are allowed in side at one time. Someone must leave before another person is allowed to enter. Products, like toilet paper, are being carefully rationed.

Note the yellow tape on the floor at the check-out. Shoppers lining up to make their purchases must stop their cart on a yellow line. People are being forced to practise a little social distancing.

My wife and I won't be going back for some time. Probably weeks. Our daughter has agreed to do all our shopping. We are no longer taking our granddaughter daily. We are self-isolating. The biggest wave of infections and death from covid-19 are expected to roll over the province in days. No more than two weeks at most and the viral toll should be hitting its peak. We have our finger crossed.

School is out; hopscotch is in.

School is out and when it will go back in is anyone's guess. The COVID-19 pandemic has changed life in London and around the world. This is the biggest hopscotch grid I have ever encountered. But my guess is it is only used by two kids, a brother and sister, living nearby.

Self-isolation is the rule and family units may mix but everyone else is shunned. I'm sure this hopscotch grid would attract lots of children normally but today it attracts next to no one.

Go for a walk and as folk find themselves appearing to be about to come face to face with other walkers, everyone leaves the sidewalk to walk on the grass on either side of the concrete. Oddly enough, people seem to be smiling at strangers more and hellos are passed between strollers regularly. I don't think openly shunning others is a comfortable reaction for most of us but the coronavirus is not about feeling comfortable.

Walkways between homes can lead to a distant street

 

The concrete sidewalk visible in the lower left corner leads to a cascading sidewalk of dozens of steps leading down a long, steep hill to a street well below. These walkways make getting around the neighbourhood on foot much easier. No need to take the long route that cars must follow.

There are a number of homes in the neighbourhood in this style -- large chimney at front. I've always wondered what the livingroom looks like -- assuming the fireplace is in the downstairs livingroom.

Parks are posted

I walked by the neighbourhood park and noticed that it was now posted. Closed until further notice because of COVID-19. How many children would have contacted the coronavirus from the playground equipment. Any? And if one or two had, would they have become sick? Is this really protecting children? (I'm just asking.)

I worked for years at two newspapers and a television station. Once a story like this one gets good, strong legs, one doesn't ask questions. I wondered out loud about the legitimacy of the liberation therapy cure for multiple sclerosis (MS). I was verbally attacked. (People died after having stents put into the veins in their necks, a dangerous, off-label use.) -- I hesitate to ask any pointed questions about the COVID-19 response. I don't need to endure the attacks.

Sweden has taken a different tack and tack is a perfect word. The goals are the same worldwide but the direction taken can be a bit different. Personally, as a 70 something who is a prime candidate for a full-tilt bout with the virus if encountered, I find myself siding with the Swedes.

Protect the aged and those at great risk for whatever reason. This will keep the deaths down and keep hospital rooms available for those who need them. It will also free up much needed equipment like ventilators. And this, of course, will also work to minimize deaths. At least, that is the Swedish approach.

They are also advocating social distancing and other emergency measures. The Swedes are claiming their approach is science-based and not politically-driven. Time will tell.

Social distancing keeps cousin at home

 

Isla and Fiona have been looking forward to the annual week-long visit ot their cousin Victoria. But this year, thanks to COVID-19, there will be no visit. Like so many kids around he province, my granddaughters are trapped spending days with one set of grandparents. Their other grandparents just returned to Canada from a vaction and so are under self-quarantine for 14 days.

The two little girls could not stop thinking about their missing cousin. And so, the other day they talked grandma into making some gluten-free scones in preparation of her visit after the end of the virus-inspired social distancing. Victoria must have gluten-free.

London Gallery once sold interesting art

My wife and I got this piece at the London Art Gallery from a little store run by volunteers. It was a cool store and note I use the past tense.

The volunteers and the administration at the gallery got into an argument and the outcome was the disbanding of the volunteer group and the closing of the shop.

A new shop now occupies the space. It is run by the art gallery administration. The stuff is nowhere near as interesting as the stuff gathered for sale by the volunteers and the new stuff costs a lot more.

We no longer shop at the gallery. A loss for us and for the city.

Shoppers must line up to enter Costco

Shopping at Costco has an extra wrinkle. Shoppers must line up in two well separated rows before being allowed into Costco to shop. And the shoppers must keep about six feet between each other. And carts are all wiped down before putting back into rotation. Only a set number of customers are allowed into the store at one time. A fellow holding a counter keeps track of the number of shoppers entering and exiting the store.
It was very efficient. It didn't take long to gain admittance. The next time I go will be Tuesday morning before nine a.m. Between eight and nine only seniors are allowed into the store to shop. Maybe, just maybe, we'll be able to buy some toilet paper. It was all gone today.

Neighbourhood play equipment now off limits

At this time of year, the neighbourhood play equipment is usually teeming with kids. Not this year.

Coronavirus fears are forcing the kids to keep their distance. Bare metal may become contaminated and this would contaminate the children. The kids might touch their faces and beome infected or they might just bring the virus home on their hands.

Playgrounds are still open but the equipment is off limits. There are no children in the park the serves my neighbourhood. The equipment, the swings, the monkey bar and the other stuff, is the whole reason kids go to the park.

Everyone is wondering how long this will continue.

Interaction without interaction

School has been canceled to slow the transmission of COVID-19. The goal is to keep the kids apart. No interaction, no transmission. Our ten-year-old granddaughter showed me how to interact without physically interacting. She plays a computer game called Animal Jam with other children. She found her cousin was online this morning. Lot's of giggles as two little girls played together but were miles apart.

Children can win trophies for answering questions about animals based on online booklets. Read a page, click on the image and the "page" turns. Finish the booklet, answer the questions and if one gets them all correct, the player wins a trophy.

I wish I knew more but I don't. It seems like innocent fun. One mother spent some time checking it out and it passed her inspection. Me? I do try to keep an eye.

Deer hunting during school suspension

School is suspended during this COVID-19 pandemic and grandparents are taking in grandchildren. It is difficult to break the links to society when one has to babysit. Both our daughters are still working and there is no sign this will stop.

Our granddaughter had a list of things to do today. Near the top of her list was deer hunting. The last time we visited Woodland Cemetery we didn't see even one deer. My wife and I thought possibly the deer had been removed to prevent more damage to the trees and other growth come spring.

But, we were wrong. We counted more than two dozen deer in the cemetery today. We didn't bring anything to feed the deer as the cemetery has posted a sign saying that this is not a good idea. Vistors to the cemetery are requested to refrain from feeding the deer.

As I said is a prior post, Woodland Cemetery is a multi-faith cemetery owned and operated by St. Paul Cathedral, the Anglican cathedral in the downtown core of London. Founded in 1879 on the banks of the Thames River, today the grounds have expanded to almost 100 acres and hold more than 50,000 burials.

It took three families to make this dinner.

It looks like a simple bowl of rotini. Rotini, yes. Simple, no. Pasta is sold-out in every store in the neighbourhood. The shelves are totally bare. Hoarders have bought it all. And vegetables are getting  hard to find as well.

But friendly, supportive neighbours are abundant. The ingredients for tonight's dinner would have been difficult to find at a store but our neighbourhood has pulled together.

I'm proud of them. Good people.

Who needs to hoard when you have Costco?

My toothpaste tube was empty. I had to go to the closet for another. I got down my unopened package from Costco. It had five family size tubes of toothpaste in one package. My granddaughter thought I looked like a hoarder. I'm not. I'm just a Costco member. Now, did I tell you about our toilet paper?

A project to fight social distancing boredom

With three little granddaughters to care for everyday, their parents are all still working, my wife and I are not just fighting the threat presented by coronavirus, we are also fighting the threat of boredom. And with three little girls, 6, 8 and 10, we take both threats seriously.

The photo shows something called Cake Pops. Make a chocolate cake, break the cake into small crumbs and then mix the crumbs with chocolate icing. Roll the mixture into balls and place in the fridge overnight. Thanks to the icing and the cold, the balls hold their shapes quite nicely.

Have the kids slide the chocolate balls onto rolled-paper, lollipop sticks and decorate. They will enjoy doing it and, if done right, it will kill a lot of time. Remember, the kids had to make the balls the first day and then finish the project the second day. That's a fine, time-consuming activity.

Cheers! Stay healthy!

With schools closed, grandparents have kids

Spring-break plus the coronavirus closures means that many grandparents in Ontario are taking care of grandchildren. The kids are getting antsy and spring-break had just started. There is nowhere to go. Essentially, everything is closed.

Oh well, there is still the backyard for entertainment. Hiding behind a chair back and watching the rabbits is always a fun way to spend a little time.

Some folk do not spread COVID-19; no contact with others.

COVID-19 is quickly turning London, Ontario, into a bit of a ghost town. Cinemas have closed as have libraries. Many shops tried operating at reduced hours but found their customers were operating on reduced hours around the clock. The shops have now closed.

But, some people have jobs that do not spread the COVID-19 virus. This city worker works most of the day almost alone. Well, at least at quite distance from other people. But, eventually the city's outside workers will be told to stay home. All workers. There will be almost no exceptions.

Coronavirus forces ski hill to close for season

I have never seen anything like the reaction by government, business and the general population to  the growing coronavirus pandemic.

Tomorrow is the start of springbreak. It is usually one of the biggest, most profitable weeks of the season for the local ski hill. Not this year. One day before the beginning of spring break the ski closed for the season. Why? COVID-19.

The virus is still a question mark. People are concerned and responding with caution.

And speaking of springbreak. It has been lengthened by an additional two weeks by order  of the provincial government.

String, the curse of the kites.

 

No breeze; no worry. Throw the kite in the air and start running. The kite will soar. Of course, it will come down as soon as one stops running. That's the theory. Now, about this string . . . 

Signs of spring

Forget the first robin as the first sign of spring. Try the appearance of bikes and scooters replacing snow shovels and snow blowers. Tonight I took two of my granddaughters to the park. It was cold, it was windy but to them it was spring. Why? No snow.