This Week
I hope you all have managed to maintain some shred of normalcy this week. This has been a challenging one for me. My father injured himself (thankfully he’s a fast healer) and is having complications as a result of his Alzheimer’s. I was planning on flying down to Ohio to spend some time with him in March but had to postpone this due to the Coronavirus. I’m considering a road trip and we’ll see how this pans out in the next few weeks. It’s a fifteen hour drive from Saint Paul to Columbus, Ohio. I used to be able to drive it in one day when I was younger but I’m thinking I’ll have to break that drive up into two days now.
Economic Tsunami
The economic impact of the state-mandated stay at home provision is really starting to surface here in the Twin Cities, as I’m sure they are around the world. We’re beginning to see the ripples of the coming economic tsunami --- local restaurants, some of them staples on the Minneapolis/Saint Paul food scene, announcing permanent closures. We’ve just seen two in the past few days. I’m also seeing individuals on social media starting to panic because their stimulus checks are almost gone and their bank accounts are emptying out fast without a steady source of income.
Doing What We Can, Where We Are
I decided yesterday that I would go searching for a way to offer help on a local level. I found a local charity Hope Breakfast Bar. Once the State ordered the restaurant to close in March, owner Brian Ingram, decided he would use his restaurant and culinary skills to help the community. Hope Breakfast Bar is now serving meals to 1,000-2,000 people per day to families in need, first responders, and medical staff working on the front lines during the pandemic. 10,000 meals per week! The positive impact of this blew my mind. Brian's act of tremendous kindness is creating a ripple effect that will likely help millions, directly and indirectly, in the process.
After hearing his story I began thinking about how I could best use my own platform to help. I decided to donate 100% of the proceeds from my book sales of The Perfect Pause and Alarm Clock Dawn during the month of May to this local charity. You can also donate to the charity directly via the link below.
Donate directly to Hope Breakfast Bar
Link to purchase The Perfect Pause
Link to purchase Alarm Clock Dawn
"“The simplest acts of kindness are by far more powerful than a thousand heads bowing in prayer." ― Mahatma Gandhi
Lending A Hand
If you are in a position to help I encourage you to donate directly, purchase a book, or seek a way to use your own platform/skillset to help your local community. A lot of people will need this kind of assistance in the coming months.
An amazing byproduct of getting this initiative started yesterday was the fact it turned my mood around a full 180 degrees. Thank you all in advance for your consideration and generosity!
Things I’m Grateful For
I’m going to end this, and every future Pandemic Diary entry with a list of things I’m grateful for.
- Charity;
- Compassion;
- The Scrabble Go app (my wife and I are becoming addicted); and
- Cryptocurrency.
I wish you all a wonderful weekend!
With Gratitude,
Eric Vance Walton
*I am an American novelist, poet, traveler, and crypto-enthusiast. If you’ve enjoyed my work please sign up for my author newsletter at my website. Newsletter subscribers will receive exclusive updates and special offers and your information will never be sold or shared.
Alarm Clock Dawn, one of the first full length novels published on the blockchain, and the book that started it all for me can be found HERE. Or Click Here to read it for free on the blockchain
My book on meditation, The Perfect Pause, is priced at $12.99 (paperback) and $4.99 (eBook). Buy the paperback and receive the eBook for free!
Really saddened to hear about your father but very glad to hear he's recovering well.
Your generosity and that of Brian Ingram are to be admired. Quite ironic though that in Brian's case they forced him to close from selling his sandwiches but as long he is giving them away there doesn't seem to be any problem... I guess money is the "real virus" carrier... so I might have to apologize to the management of my local Panera Bread who refused to take "cash" for products sold over the last few weeks.
In my normal course of work I stay at a lot of hotels and have become friends with those folks in different cities. I have spoken to some of them over the last two months and can assure you that, at least the Wyndham, hotels completely sanitize each room after a guest checks out. The ladies at the Wyndham in San Antonio told me that all the furniture comes out of each room and it is all treated and cleaned from top to bottom. They said that is company policy.
Plus there hasn't been much demand for hotel rooms so they have systematically made sure that no room is rented until it has been vacant for at least ten days. That hotel has over 400 rooms and last week they rented out a total of 30 rooms. It is by the airport and the only guests were airline pilots and flight attendants. So chances are you'll get a room that has been empty for quite a while.
The other thing is you might not be getting the "free breakfast" because it will depend on local ordinances or "orders" on "dine in" eating during this covid19 situation.
So go make the trip and be with your father, it will be the best thing you can do.
Until next time,
Sult
Thank you, my friend! It's been a tough couple of weeks to be almost a thousand miles away. He was injured then was put on an antibiotic that has the side effects of mental confusion and muscle weakness so as a result he had six falls in two days. These doctors are something else. Giving something that causes mental confusion to an Alzheimer's patent sounds like a great plan!
Yeah, it's crazy how many people and businesses are being completely wiped out financially and are receiving just a small fraction (or nothing at all) of the support they need from our government. People here in Minnesota are beginning to protest the shut-down in earnest. There was an entire convoy of vehicles that surrounded our State House today in protest. Karma seems to be working in Brian's favor, however. He just announced that his landlord as waived his rent for April and May and a lot of the food they're serving has been donated.
Have you heard what's transpiring in the South China Sea? Supposedly, China is making a ploy to take back Taiwan. I just heard about it today on a Joe Rogan podcast (Ep #1465/Tim Pool). I haven't heard one thing about it in the mainstream media. We have a couple of ships in the vicinity but a lot of the crew on those ships have been stricken with the virus so they're disabled. The U.S. is sending more aircraft carriers to back them up and these are probably in place by now. With our economy teetering on the brink of collapse, government in disarray, and threat of the food chain being disrupted this could very quickly go from bad to worse.
That's great to know about the hotels! Thanks for the information. I had been Googling "Prius Camping". The way the seats are configured you can recline them flat and sleep in the car with an air mattress. You can also leave the engine on for heat or AC and it will only consume about half a gallon of gas in eight hours of idling. I'd much prefer a hotel though, "Prius camping" would be a last resort. Lol.
I appreciate the comment and support as always @sultnpapper!
I wasn't aware of that China sea situation, I'll have to look into it. Since the mainstream media isn't covering it that should be a "tip off" that it could be serious. Not that I pay any attention to the mainstream news, but my wife does and I let her fill me in on things she hears then if it interests me I check it out on my own.
Between poker and work I am very limited on "free time". It has taken me three days to build the ducks roost for the duck pen, a job that should have taken about five or six hours tops. All we have left to do on the roost is seal the wood with polyurethane sealer and it will be done. Hopefully Tuesday night they can finally spend the night outside.
Amazing that the doctors would prescribe that type of medicine to your father!!!! A letter to the state of Ohio medical board might be in order to have them look into that one.
Travel safe and I think if it were me I wouldn't consider "Prius Camping" of course, I wouldn't even consider driving a Prius so that would exclude me right away.
Sound like the natives are getting restless up there and rightfully so. Also good to hear that Brian's landlord is treating him fairly and others are donating food for him to serve, says a lot about the people in your community.
You are most welcome for the comments and support, just wish my upvote power was worth more. Just look at my comments as old Sult giving his "two cents" worth.
Take care,
Sult
I haven't delved too deeply into the South China Sea situation yet either. I'm finding research sometimes muddy's the water even further since there are so many different angles out there. I heard tRump is planning on demanding that China hand over a hundred billion dollars in reparations for COVID-19. I'm sure they'll be quick to agree to that. Lol.
I'm finding it's taking me a long time to get side projects done too. I've been planning on rebuilding the wheels for my old Raleigh bike. I've had the parts for weeks but they're just gathering dust. I've never spoked a wheel and was planning on doing it myself until I watched a YouTube video on how it's done. You need a lot of specialized machinery and skill to do it right. My Dad likes to tell a story of how he was riding his bike home from his machine shop one day. He had just crested a freeway overpass and was coming down the other side at about 20mph. Suddenly he heard, "Ping...ping, ping!" The spokes on the rear wheel started breaking one by one and the wheel collapsed in on itself and sent him to the pavement nursing a bad case of road rash. That ordeal was just caused by over tightening the spokes. I don't want to follow in his footsteps so I'd better leave that job to the professionals.
Yes, our medical system is out-of-control. I'm pretty much speechless. Contacting the Ohio Medical Board is a good idea. He takes an insane amount of prescriptions every day and they all interact with one another. We recently took inventory of what he was taking on our own and found the doctors weren't keeping track and, over the years, doctors had him taking two different drugs at the same time for the same conditions. We were able to eliminate four medications just from that one audit. I wonder how many people they kill each year?
The Prius Camping probably wouldn't me a good idea at my age anyway. My back would be wrecked for about a week after sleeping like that. I like the car though. That thing is averaging 60mpg in the city, not that it matters much with gas prices where they are but they're sure to go back up eventually. Still, I can't wait until the day I can trade it in for my Tesla. Soon.
I hope you have a great week, my friend. Take care!
Wishing your dad a quick recovery.Stay safe & splendid weekend to you too xo
Thank you! He's healing up amazingly well for an 80 year old. I hope you have a great weekend!
Well, we get to finally be outside for an hour max after 7 weeks of state of alarm lock-down here in Madrid so it's certainly better, great even😄
xo
Wow, it sounds like the lock-down was severe there! We've had no limits on the amount of time we can be outside but have to practice social distancing. I'm glad you have a chance to feel the sun!
I have a pretty large garden so the sun hasn't been much of a problem , just the ability to go to the shop without fear of being fined heavily was. Yeah, it was rather severe here, granted, they had every reason for it. They loosen the lock-down from coming week :)
Stay Safe. xoxo
I miss my garden! We moved into a condo a few years ago and sold the house so we could do more traveling. I can't imagine being under that strict of a lockdown and I'm glad they're relaxing the restrictions for you!
I am very sorry to read about your father dear friend @ericvancewalton, if you consider traveling on the road you should take many precautions, maybe you should get some permission to travel freely.
The economy is everywhere the same, I think it is a common denominator in people.
Hopefully this soon improves.
I appreciate that! Thankfully there are no restrictions on road travel here in the US. It makes me a little nervous staying in a hotel though. Yes, economic times will be tough globally. I hope this ordeal makes more people wake up to the power of decentralized cryptocurrency. Enjoy the weekend and stay well!
Awwww I was just about to comment and say its been a very long time until I read the post. So sorry to hear this.
I pray for quick recovery. Please do well to stay safe. One love
Thank you very much!
That is awesome that you are doing what you can to support the charity. I heard they might be going through another round of stimulus money, but I will believe it when I see it. I am not holding my breath. Like I have said, my wife and I got really lucky that school employees are still getting paid. Otherwise we would probably be in trouble. When I saw this coming I paid off some big bills so that if we just had to live off my check we could.
Thanks, I'm happy to do what I can to help. I had heard they were distributing another $1,200 per adult in May but I've heard that may have changed. Trump wants to, instead, lower payroll taxes vs. doing another cash distribution. I'm very glad you two have been allowed to keep working. I feel for those who have completely lost their incomes, there are many out there who have. I hope you enjoy your weekend! It's hard to believe Saturday is rolling around again.
I know, it looks like it is going to be a beautiful weekend weather wise too. I had heard $2000 per person per month for a couple of months, but I think it was more of a pipe dream. We all know even if that is what was proposed the final bill would be much different. I hope you are able to make it to Columbus sometime soon. We are hoping to get down there ourselves.
Now that Spring has finally sprung here I feel like I'm getting more exercise than before the quarantine. I've been getting out on the bike at least once a day and have been doing lots of walks. I saw the Dems were proposing the $2k per month. That kind of regular payment would help a lot more than another $1,200. Those people who've lost their income and small businesses should really be targeted this time around. Have you ever been to Columbus? It's really a different city than when I left in it 1995. When I left the Brewery District was the up-and-coming area in the city and now everything has shifted to the Arena District further down High Street. I almost bought a condo very close to that part of town in the early 1990's for $40k and my Mom just told me the same property was listed for almost a million dollars! If I had only had a crystal ball back then. Lol. I hope you're enjoying the weekend!
Yeah, as much as I hated buckeye fans, it is a really cool town. We go there about once a month because my inlaws live there. We went to the jazz and ribs fest downtown one year and that was really cool. We also used to do the race for a cure thing every year. Definitely lots to do there. We were supposed to go to the buckeye country superfest again this year but it got cancelled.
Lol, ahh, the old rivalry! I miss Columbus and my family so much. Which part of town do your inlaws live in? We grew up on the eastside and it's nearly the worst part of town now but was a solid middle class neighborhood until the late-eighties.
They live in the North West side. It is a pretty nice area. I actually had an interview down in one of the areas many years ago. Got rear ended on Sawmill road and ended up being late for the interview! Needless to say I didn't get the job. I always enjoy getting some City BBQ when I head down there.
Hello, is your book available in France? Thank you
Hi @knowrem! Yes, both books are available on the Amazon platform in France:
https://www.amazon.fr/Alarm-Clock-Dawn-Vance-Walton/dp/150851335X
https://www.amazon.fr/gp/aw/d/154708295X/ref=tmm_pap_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1588371208&sr=8-1
Ok thank you. Are there any delivery delays with the coronavirus?
You're welcome. I'm not sure about that. You'd have to contact Amazon.fr about their delivery times.
Ok thanks ;)
this month has been rough for me generally but i believe the month of may will be better than this
Sorry to hear that @rockor! I hope things get better for you!
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