Capable Helpers and Flyover

I am engaged in a number of projects but my energy is zilch.  Fortunately I have resources available in the form of Adam, Ralph, Lelia, Alden, and possibly Calvin.  Although I somehow summoned the energy yesterday to install my wall feeder, I couldn't summon the energy to fill it today.  I have decided to dismantle one of the planters I made along the back of my yard in order to use the materials in my hanging swing which recently suffered breakage of an important plank.  I have purchased some grass seed online and will need to pick it up from Lowes.  Adam can't quite handle the cultivator by Calvin does a good job.  I'm hoping to enlarge the patch of grass in the center of the back yard and plant some nice perennial wild flowers in the former attempts at growing vegetables.  I have yet to encounter the hardware to put together my 'bug out' shed.  Today I drove over to the road above the church and watched the flyover of the military planes.  They appeared right on the dot and were past in a flash.

Done

I surprised myself by successfully installing the chicken feeding wall today.  I also added an additional nipple to the waterer.  I had to climb into the chicken coop to install the acrylic panel but other than cutting off a little from the sides of the bottom bin of the feeder, everything fit rather well.  The chickens wanted to peck at me but everything worked out in the end.  I made some clip on earrings from the hook earrings that matched my pink pearl necklace that I rarely wear and gave the set to Jing for her birthday since her love of pink is well known.  Today is her birthday.  Completing the earring and necklace set and wrapping them was the first thing I did this morning which started out rather late.  I published another art lesson, leaving only one to finish, but Eliza and her children hadn't prepared to do the lesson today.  At least I have almost finished posting the lessons online.  I believe I am suffering from dehydration.  At least my stomach troubles don't feel as bad.  I am very like I was when I was just about ready for my cancer operation.  I would like to fill the feeding wall with chicken feed now that it is finished but first I want to put top soil in my planters and plant the flower seeds for color in the summer.

Bank, soil and plastic

This morning I asked Adam to come with me when I went to the bank to deposit my support check.  I deposited the check and drew out $50 in cash.  I then drove to Lowe's and had Adam go in with some money to purchase some top soil for my planters.  I also checked out the water situation.  The good news is that the faucet is not the problem.  The bad news is that the long silver hose seems to have suffered some kind of internal kink.  I will see if it can be straightened out.  I then used my Dremel to make the base of the wall feeder and later used the Dremel ultra saw to shorten the plastic panel.  It took some time to remove the paper covering the acrylic panel.  My final act of the evening after watching Galaxy Quest was to take out the garbage.  I feel I made some progress today.

Project essentially finished

I worked on my laptop hood today and essentially finished it.  It meets two criteria: it folds and it does the job.  I am planning to add a flexible 'skirt' of either leather or fabric along the bottom of the wings to better obscure light.  I just barely had enough flat black paint to finish covering it.  I recovered leather from old boots to make the skirt and it seems to fill the bill.  It took me about three days to complete this project.  Today the President went ahead with a press conference and although some of the questions from the reporters were snide, it turned out well.  I think he is wise to cut the length.

Now if I only find the energy

I have several projects I am ready to put in place, first of all my viewing shield to more easily enjoy movie watching.  That should involve only spray painting the shield and putting on magnet fasteners that don't compromise folding it up when not in use.  I have found an old refrigerator box that I had used in my aquaponics system but which will be suitable after being cut down to use as the feeder box at the bottom of my wall mounted feeder.  It is my aim to finish both projects tomorrow.

Shield

Today I went to sleep several times after waking up.  I did my morning routine at last then let the chickens out and began to watch the final segments of 'Hunger Games'.  Glare from the windows made viewing difficult so I began to consider making a shield that would provide a better viewing experience.  I had some fairly sturdy foam board bought at Regional Supply but not enough of the black to make a good shield.  I ended up making it of white foam board.  I still have to apply black paint or fabric to make it suitably dark but I made it foldable.  I had a fairly varied diet today but I may have pushed the limit on my Nancy Pelosi indulgence.  I did have a nice lamb chop with tziki. 

Indulgences and Avoidance

I got up early this morning and did my morning routine before driving to Smith's for groceries during the 'elderly' hour from 7 AM to 8 AM.  I got there a few minutes early when there were only a few people in line.  I had a list and purchased most of the items listed including ice cream bars, Delizza treats, a couple of cans of beans, cucumbers, bananas, lamb, cream, and half and half, which was on a special sale, and The Greek Gods' yogurt.  I ate a banana first off after returning to the car and later ate a HD vanilla almond bar.  I had a few Delizza treats before trying to eat a rather rich combination of beans, ground lamb, sour cream and cheese. 
My main activity today has been watching movies.  So far I have watched a couple of Jane Austen movies, Harry Potter except for the Chamber of Secrets which had damage to the DVD, Twilight, and now I'm watching Hunger Games.  All of the movies from the last few days have had a similar theme of a young person being confronted with evil.  The manifestation of the evil is remarkably consistent with what is taking place in our world now, domination, displacement of responsibility, and falsehood.  I had soured very thoroughly on the narrative that is taking place in our country.  The latest entry in the game of subterfuge appeared yesterday after the daily press briefing.  It saddens me that so many that I love are blinded to the deceit and disdain displayed by those who are willing to wrench the truth to push their political agenda.  It was refreshing to watch the briefing today and see the President shut down the press and leave the podium after brief announcements.

Sunshine

Today one of the scientists at the President's briefing said that heat, humidity and sunlight were effective at diminishing the life of Covid virus.  This means the press and the democrats and those in their spell will begin to dis activities that take people outside.  It is a stupid game for power at the expense of life and freedom of others.  Today I saved myself some time by deciding to settle on the panel of siding already cut for the coop.  Otherwise I have mostly relaxed and watched movies from the Twilight Saga.

Design Revision

Today I realized my plans for the wall feeder wouldn't work, mostly because I lack the right size of hole cutter.  But I came up with an alternate design which should work well enough.  I impulsively suggested it might be a good idea to move the remaining portions of the air cooler that hasn't worked in several years.  Ralph and Adam got it most of the way to the trailer but Alden added his efforts and before long we had both the cooler case and the cupboard on which it had rested into the trailer and over to the dumpster at 7 Peaks.  I still have several projects in my back yard to finish as well as finishing my stained glass project.  My fatigue continues.  I am just about as tired as everybody else about the virus and the political shenanigans that have ensued.  I conducted a brief art lesson with Eliza and her older children via Messenger.

Considering Covid

When one is engaged in any interaction whether with a person or a force it is important to define the nature of the interaction, either positive or negative, the true nature of the other, the wisdom of taking action versus letting things precede as they have been.  I recognize for a number of reasons that those things and persons which restrict responsibility are negative.  Evil usually tries to assume control and restrict responsibility.  When it comes to parents, bad parents subdue their children and subject them to authoritarian oversight long past the time that the children should be assuming more stewardship over their choices.  They supervise them long after they should assume their adult roles. 
Our society encourages the institutionalization of people of all ages and puts 'experts' and authorities in charge of choices, leaving little but folly to the option of the young.  This persists throughout the life span with the elderly facing the demeaning warehousing in 'senior centers' and nursing homes where they must divest themselves of most of their decision making. 
As our world, nation, states and cities we are facing a sickness that seems to merit supervision by experts.  Unfortunately there is apparently a lack of information.  Point of view and prognostication based on scanty evidence and the rise of choruses of contradicting experts are manipulated by those who want to frighten us into following their agenda.  In many cases the agenda is purportedly beneficial, life saving etc.  but much of it is manipulation into achieving secondary aims. There are several potential long term solutions for the virus and they all show promise, but naysayers are quick to say they won't work, particularly the remedy put forth by the President, and that mostly because of  his dedicated enemies.  They apparently would rather see people die than accept a potential remedy that Trump recommended.  There is also the question of a failure of natural immunity, meaning the virus would not have a very effective vaccine. 

Plans

Today was mostly a day of thinking and planning.  I finally went out to the chicken coop and made measurements for the new piece of siding.  I did it mostly sitting down.  I have not felt unwell, but I have felt rather weak.  Fortunately we got the rear area cleaned off and I have plans to repair my picnic table.  I ordered some good long shanked phillips bits, some plant seeds and some tights.  It will probably take a while for them to be delivered.  Tomorrow I hope to complete the feeding wall.

Shopping and Junking

Today I got up earlier than usual these days so I could go to Smith's for and pickup.  I got there earlier enough to get some testing treats, cucumbers and lamb.  As I had feared. the leg of lamb I ordered was not in stock.  It was also out at Walmart.  I ordered a delivery from Sprouts and while I waited for it I supervised Adam, Lelia, Ralph and Diana in cleaning up the work area in my back yard.  They did a good job and shortly after my groceries were delivered I took Alden and Adam with me.  First we went to Rock Canyon Park parking lot but the dump had moved over to the Seven Peaks parking lot.  Meanwhile I experimented with the HD treats.  I wondered if a sweet treat would trigger the agony I suffered the other night, but today I ate a lamb chop with Tziki, several Delizza treats and several HD treats and so far I have not had any extraordinary gassiness or aching organs like I had the other night.  I have been watching Harry Potter movies. 

Return to Normal?

It will be interesting to see the results of this social experiment in a few years.  There is a very different agenda operating on behalf of the two political ideologies.  On the left there is the urge to generalize and 'protect'.  Harsh rules are imposed in an almost random manner and the perception is that it is the job of the federal government to micro-manage every aspect of life from child care to social distancing.  On the right there is the perception that people should take responsibility for their own choices.  The desire to 'do it myself' is strong.  I predict that most people will see their own self interest in rejecting the harsher measures of the 'nanny states'.  The sorting will continue with people moving away from states where the government continues to impose punishment on behaviors that seem defiant of the sanctions put in place.  But I believe that there will be hold overs of behaviors that foster social distancing.  Once I had experienced the convenience of ordering in groceries and other items shopping on the open market appealed to me far less.  Some items are best shopped for in person, but I would happily abandon in-store shopping if the items I wanted were available for pick-up or delivery. 

Lamb and tziki

After my really painful abdominal problems the other night I have been trying to hew a line that keeps me relatively comfortable.  My stew meat from Nancy and the yogurt and cucumbers she brought me were my recourse this morning.  So far I detect no evil results from eating quite a bit of the tziki made from the cucumbers and yogurt plus spices and garlic served on top of the braised stew meat.  I kind of overcooked the lamb which made it difficult to eat, but I ate about half of it.  I am tempted to expand my diet today to include some other items but my memory of the awful pain keeps me cautious.  It is interesting to be worried about losing too much weight.  Fortunately I have not lost rapidly.  Tomorrow I will eat the second half of the lamb and tziki.  I hope my online pickup order from Smith's is fully filled.

Heeding Leading

Getting a $1.38 off of each of three bags of mulch may not seem like much, but I needed mulch and I needed some new sprinklers and this morning I woke up at 5 AM and decided to do my morning routine and go to Lowes.  I found the mulch was on sale for 45% off and was one of the few shoppers in the store at the early hour I arrived.  A store worker loaded the mulch on a cart and took it to my car where he transferred it into the trunk.  I'm leaving it and the other package in the car until Adam unloads it on Saturday, giving it time to air out.  I left a package from Walmart on the porch with the same intent.  Now and then I have a sense that it is time to make a purchase and the manager of the checkout area seemed to think the sale on the mulch had expired a couple of days ago.  However the scanner gave the same results and what I had seen on the internet.  I ate some eggs today and over corrected the cutout of the siding that goes around the window of my chicken coop so I plan to remeasure and re-cut tomorrow.  I'm grateful the close down of the country is being eased.  It is possible that there will be some recovery before elections are due. 

What Do I Think Should Be Done

Because the plague called Covid-19 has caused fewer deaths and there are several remedies aside from the vaccine that would take more than a year, I believe the various states should relax their rules according to the path the infection is taking.  I believe that random interactions with strangers in crowded conditions including mass transit is a primary vector of the disease.  Since the target population is generally well known as being people with underlying conditions, particularly overweight and immune compromised, particularly the elderly, they can be advised to continue taking care.  I am in that category and have not felt overly constrained, although I acknowledge that I am somewhat anti-social.  The actual death and injury toll seems consistent with varieties of influenza. 
Therefore I feel that restrictions should be tailored to the actual problem. 

Inventory

It is a chilly morning in April.  Although deer ate at the tulip foliage in the strip along my front yard they did not destroy the  plants.  Blooms are forming.  Spring is coming in slowly with occasional lapses into really cold weather.  I went out to check on my propane generator this morning since I hadn't really noticed it for some time.  It is stowed at the bottom of a pile of other items.  The good aspect of this is that a thief might well overlook it.  It shouldn't take too long to get up and going if the need presents.  We had a minor earthquake last month and in the past few days there have been two major aftershocks, around 4.2, which is not much, but still worried those in the area concerned.
Since I regularly listen to the Book of Mormon with its account of famines, wars, storms, earthquakes and probable volcanoes as the wickedness of the people brought the wrath they earned I find our current level of panic rather excessive.  People seem mainly concerned with a threat to a lifestyle that is excessive and largely quite wicked.  So much of our economy depends on self-indulgence, in games, social mingling with strangers, entertainment of a wide variety from sports to concerts. 
I had been  prepared for danger and threat of starvation and thirst.  Instead we have to worry about whether or not people can continue to willfully associate with crowds of random strangers.  The worst crimes and abuses of human life continue virtually unabated.

Burning bands of hot acid.

I was miserable most of last night.  I think it is because I made some cookies with brown sugar and ground almonds.  I had eaten roast beef with gravy and diced tomatoes earlier.  I assume the brown sugar was the main villain, although the ground almonds could also be implicated.  I tried to take various remedies but ultimately fasting and taking salted water today has improved my situation.  Tomorrow I will probably eat salmon with lemon on it.

Another day of divesting

We got started removing things from the carport at around 11 AM today and eventually made two trips to the dump and one to the storage space David rents.  I recovered the elements of my bug out cooler and some other items.  It was doing something.  I hope we get some more divestiture done tomorrow.

Trailer back in Action

I made a couple of runs today.  I drove my car pulling the trailer we built last year and David brought along Alden and Adam to load and unload.  We took a refrigerator and a few other items to the transfer station in Springville then took a load of trash to the temporary dump at Rock Canyon Park.  I managed to turn up onto the trail around the water storage and a nice man volunteered to back my trailer up the trail back onto the road.  I wiped down with disinfectant afterward.  In the afternoon we took some items over to the house David owns on 800 West and then took stuff from there to the Rock Canyon dump site.  I knew it was going to get really cold tonight so instead of letting the chickens out I plugged in their water heater.  I made some warm cream of mushroom soup with a few beans and some mushrooms.  I added cheese and sour cream.  Later I made some pita, broiled lamb chops and tziki.  The lamb, pita and tziki that I made yesterday worked well for me.  Tomorrow as soon as it warms we will take more things to the dump.

Good Easter

.I have been really low energy today but I managed to open the chicken coop and refresh their water.  I made an Easter meal of lamb, unleavened bread and taziki and Richard and I ate while we joined the family on a Zoom meeting.  We then had the sacrament, following our sacrament by viewing a short talk on video by the Bishop.  I spent the remainder of the day relaxing and listening mostly to Tabernacle choir presentations, although I also included a video of Andre Bocelli.  I still need to close the chicken coop for the night.  I have been moving slow but I was able to eat my meal, although I did it in two attempts. 

Easter Food

Yesterday I remembered that I usually celebrate Easter with a special meal.  I texted Nancy who I expected to come down today to take care of her car, and asked her to shop for a few items including cucumbers, plain Greek yogurt, and lamb, and whipping cream.  She did so.  I hope her car passes inspection.  At least it was an outing for her and Miranda.

Offering

I had planned to fast for at least 24 hours, but I hadn't considered making a Fast Offering until I got an e-mail from my bishop.  I thought it through and made my normal fast offering amount.  I am very fortunate to be able to do so.
I had several plans for today, the most important was putting a barrier of blocks along the long side wall under the coop.  I blocked the chickens out of the space this morning but my plans have proceeded slowly, at first because of weakness from a 24 hour water fast followed by a 25 hour dry fast.  I decided to wait until after I did a zoom meeting with Rudy and Hannah at 3:00 PM.  I finished the job as twilight began to fall.  It was tougher than I had anticipated and more necessary.  The chickens have been undermining the foundations of the posts that hold up the coop, at the same time making incursions by raccoons and other pests easier.  The blocks I used were heavy and I was still quite weak.  I also fastened up the siding under the window.  I left my phone in the back yard but the chickens are still out so I'll retrieve it when I go down to close the flock in for the night.  I didn't do much but I exerted quite a bit of effort.  I left the drill downstairs with the intention of doing other things tomorrow.  I would like to put the slide in place.

Heeding the Holy Days

Tomorrow will mark 'Good' Friday which traditionally marks the day of my Savior's crucifixion.  Because of the fast called by President Nelson I fasted today until about 1:30 PM on water and have continued a true fast since then.  I fast for those who are sick and dying, for those who have been afflicted with financial problems because of the shutdown, for those who are caring for the sick and for all of us as they distribute food and do other tasks as nurses, as doctors, as clerks, as truck drivers.  I fast for the restoration of health to our economy and the opening of churches and temples.  I fast that those who have led heedless lives devoted to folly and pleasure will turn their hearts to God. 
I abstained from social media including news broadcasts today.  I have spent time talking to friends and family.  I dropped by Lucinda's house to get rice and exchange 'air hugs' with my family.  I met online with Eliza and some of her children for art lessons.  I called Marge Lewis.  It has been a relief to remove myself from the loop of political intrigue, although I did talk to Richard about it. 
We are ripe for destruction, but we have been for a while.  The time of the harvest is near, but it will come in the due time of the Lord. 

Eggs

I purchased 100 lbs. of chicken feed a couple of weeks ago, one of my last purchases after I mostly became quarantined.  Now April and warmer weather has arrived and my chickens seem to have hit their stride, producing several eggs a day.  I believe one of them just joined the other two as a layer if the much paler color of one of the eggs I just gathered is an indication.  Having a couple of fresh eggs daily is a nice backup to our food supplies.  Of the six items I pre-ordered to be picked up at Smith's on Monday, three were not available.  Although I have plenty of supplies on hand because I purchased a lot of food that was vacuum packed several years ago and already had other staples, knowing that there is something fresh available is good.
I had a fairly knarly night last night, dreaming of schemes about the plague that intersected with pains in my back that might have been my kidneys but could have been gas. 
Today I worked on another page of my online art lessons, made some cheese waffles, took care of my chickens and did a lot of somewhat obsessive internet browsing.  I'm doing fine with being quarantined.  My home is pleasant and has a lot of opportunities to be creative, but I am still a little worried about my lack of appetite.  Tomorrow starts the Good Friday fast.  I believe it will be best to do a water fast throughout the day and begin a dry fast in the evening until Friday evening.  Although there is a call to fast on Friday, I haven't noticed any particular notice of the time to start and end.

Banking, Creating Online Content and Visiting Hannah and Rudy

I was able to eat a serving of liver today as well as some bean thread noodles with egg.  I also received my support check in the mail and took it out to be deposited.  I posted two new episodes of my on-line art course to the web in addition to adding content to the color section.  In the afternoon I visited Rudy and Hannah via Zoom.  I am currently waiting for my laundry to dry.  I am very grateful that I was prompted to try Magnesium glycinate the other night when I began to fear that I might have a bowel obstruction and worried in my half awake state that I would have to die a very painful death fairly soon.  I'm grateful to Father in Heaven and his Son Jesus Christ and to the Holy Ghost for all I have been given.

A Day of Miracles

Today General Conference was very different in some ways and in other ways very similar.  Instead of the Tabernacle Choir and other choirs acting backup to the General Authorities and other speakers on the stand, a recording of various performances of hymns was played from the impressive library of songs recorded through the years.  The speakers practiced 'social distancing' as they sat at least 6 feet from one another on the area near the podium.  But the inspiration and instruction were generally the same degree and quality.  The Hallelujah Shout was surely voiced from far more throats as people in quarantine or isolation all around the world joined in.  A new Proclamation was added to the small number that has been issued, and it was fitting.  The variety of people who are now general authorities was somewhat increased, and as a final touch, in addition to a new logo, feature the Christus, President Nelson announced 8 new temples near the very end of the last meeting.  They will be in many places, but the greatest surprises were DuBai and Shanghai.

Surprise Reaction to Post

Over time I have made a number of relatively popular posts on Facebook but nothing like a relatively mild comment today.  I said I felt my change of way of life and way of eating had probably given me a margin in the current pandemic because most, if not all of those who die have been overweight or had high blood sugar.  It resulted in a lot of comments and quite a few likes.  There are a lot of varying opinions on the subject, although most feel that working for better health is beneficial.  I think what happened is that I tapped into the common 'zeitgeist' and many people felt the need to express their feelings. 
I finished the watercolor instruction page for my online art course and got it posted.  I made a call to Eliza and reviewed the drawings the children made.  I made a point that they would make little progress if they didn't practice.  I'm looking forward to Conference tomorrow.  I don't feel there will be a major announcement.  We are at the will of our Father in Heaven and he has run out this current time far longer than I would have anticipated. 

Summing up the day

I didn't let the chickens out today because it was cold and snowy.  I found a fairly high resolution photo of the painting of my dad and posted it on Facebook in response to an inquiry from my niece.  It was widely appreciated.  I woke up and did my daily routine early so I could do a zoom meeting with Eliza and her children.  As it turned out, she was just getting the children into doing the sketch associated with my lesson.  I arranged to talk to her again tomorrow after they had done some sketches we could mutually critique. 

Disappearing Posts

One thing I particularly dislike about this platform is the way I will often write a paragraph or more, only to have it disappear.  I wrote a post last night and before I could hit the 'publish' button the program shut down and I lost what I had written. 
It has been an interesting time for me.  Although I am under self-imposed isolation, I have Richard here to share it with me which is a great blessing.  Not only are we able to share the sacrament because he has the priesthood, but he is an interesting and intelligent conversationalist although he does tend to go off on a rant now and then, or to put it more mildly, he gives a lecture on a side topic when I am interested in conveying something tangentially related.  Neither of us is dependent on the other for food or other needs. 
I have more than enough projects to fill my time.  I still need to complete the stained glass project of the burial of Job Welling, I am still somewhat short of completing my chicken coop and although I woke this morning to snow, April has brought burgeoning growth to the yard.  Adam and Ralph will have plenty to do.  The girls have chosen to avoid coming to do housework.  My alarm is now set to 8 AM instead of six.  With seminary and the temples closed I see no particular reason to get up early.  I have done my morning and evening routine daily and my house is generally in order.  I have several different projects to motivate me enough to keep me from spending the day on movies or novels, although I do spend too much time examining the political situation.
The current conflict in ideas seems to be the difference of opinion on whether or not the virtual shutdown to the economy is in order.  Some have argued that is would have been better to require those particularly at risk, people in my general demographic, to stay isolated for their own protection and let those less at risk to carry on as normal.  However, although the worst effects of the virus tend to affect the elderly, many younger people have died and even where restrictions have been put in place for the population in general, there is sickness and death enough to strain the system. re
I take comfort in the guidance of the Prophet and other leaders of the Church.  They made the decision to take radical action in shutting down public meetings and had long since created programs and altered practices to make the transition to home based church quite easy.  For the immediate future I am relatively well off.  I have food supplies, cleaning supplies etc.  I had worried that my weight was dropping too low, but when I weighed this morning it was stable.