Quiz #65. Dog Days
The "River Monster," Jason Isbell's "Dreamsicle" and why is Happy jealous? Steve's Stay-at-Home Coronavirus Quiz for July 5, 2020
July 4th is over. Summer’s here. The dog days approach.
Back in March, in Quiz #1. Stella and Social Distancing, I started Steve’s Stay-at-Home Coronavirus Quiz with an observation about Stella, one of our 2 dogs. Stella was recovering from January knee surgery and we’d moved a broken living room chair (with no legs) to the kitchen so Stella, isolated in the kitchen from the other dogs during her recovery, would have a low and comfortable place to sit. She took it as her throne and the chair remained in the middle of the kitchen throughout those first months of the pandemic--an in-home reminder of just how strange these times were.
Stella, the queen on her throne, a broken living room chair in the middle of the kitchen.
On May 31st, Sara had enough. With Stella healed and no longer isolated, Sara moved the chair out of the kitchen. Stay-at-home life is now normal--and broken living room chairs shouldn’t have a place in the kitchen.
The dogs, Stella and Happy, are very happy in our stay-at-home routine. They follow us from room to room and have made their claim on each of us. Stella has Sara and Happy has me. It’s become a joke between Sara and me to watch the dogs fight for our individual affection. Stella’s not happy if Sara pays too much attention to me (or Happy)--and Happy moves in when she thinks Sara’s too close to me.
Happy and me, taking a break from work in my stay-at-home office.
Saturday, July 4th, Sara cut my hair. In the kitchen. Where Stella’s chair once stood--or sat. My second in-home haircut of the pandemic. It felt (and looks) great--but it freaked out Happy. What was Sara doing to me?
A jealous Happy.
Before.
After.
In June, hair salons opened for business in New Jersey. Sara got her hair cut for the first time since March, getting the first appointment on a weekday morning with the woman who has cut her hair for decades.
In late June, Sara also had a socially distant backyard visit on a weekday night with 2 friends, Phyllis and Lori. My job was to stay inside with the dogs--which I did though Stella was not happy about being separated from Sara.
Lori, Sara and Phyllis.
Photo by Phyllis.
Our house backs up to a very small river. Most days, it just looks like a small creek, 15 feet wide at the back of our yard and no more than 2 feet deep. That evening, with Adirondack chairs set up 6 feet apart in a triangle, some flowers and a few candles on a small table in the middle, Sara, Lori and Phyllis sat talking and laughing in the backyard for hours. The visit ended when they all got freaked out by the night noises from the river. Wildlife scurrying and splashing in the dark. There are hawks, herons and ducks on the river and we’ve seen deer, groundhogs, racoons and foxes on the bank over the years. Two giant splashes at 11:30pm ended their get-together and Sara and I joked that it was “the river monster.”
Was this the “River Monster?” I sent this Google image to Sara, Lori and Phyllis the morning after their backyard get-together.
That river has been a blessing as our backyard is green, vibrant and full of life. If we did not have the river, backyard and our back deck these last few months would have been a lot harder.
As noted in Quiz # 45. “Strange Condition,” my college friend Brook suggested that I add music to the quiz to capture and express the mood of the day. Here’s one. “Dreamsicle” off the new album, “Reunion” from Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit. It’s a perfect song for summer--especially this summer.
My friend Ryan is a huge Isbell fan--and Ryan posted Isbell’s take on “Dreamsicle” to Instagram. Beauty and wonder--and yet sadness and sorrow.
Ryan introduced me to Isbell a few years ago. I am old world and ordered the actual CD of “Reunion” from Amazon. (When the CD arrived last month, there were also two big bags of prunes inside the box from Amazon’s fulfillment center, a true picture of my quarantine life.)
Steve’s Amazon fulfillment center.
Because I ordered the CD from Amazon, I was alerted that it was also available to me through the new Amazon Music app. I downloaded the app--and because I had ordered the CD, I could listen to it on the app. The app comes with closed captioning which is a perfect addition for me because, as outlined in Quiz #45. “Strange Condition,” I have a hard time listening to music and hearing the lyrics at the same time.
The Amazon Music app comes with closed captioning.
(Sadly--or maybe wonderfully--my Amazon Music account also has “free” online copies of every CD Sara and I have ever ordered from Amazon. We are leaving digital footprints wherever we go--and if you want to throw them off, I remind you to check out, “My Data Doesn’t Matta,” Steve’s life lesson #53 in Quiz #50. 63.)
On “Dreamsicle,” I only read the lyrics once. I really didn’t need to read them. What amazes me about this song is its ability--even without words, especially without words--to capture the dream-like quality of summer. Delightful dog days--even in a sea of sorrow.
What did NOT happen?
A. On July 4th, we did not have a barbeque, but I did make chocolate chip cookies---and I ate several with a glass of chocolate milk;
B. For dinner, Will made cheeseburgers, cooked in a frying pan;
C. On the back deck after dinner, I had a whiskey sour with fresh squeezed lemon juice and Sara had a screwdriver with grapefruit juice;
D. Instead of going to see fireworks, on the night of July 4th, Sara and I watched “Good Trouble,” the documentary on John Lewis;
E. Freaked out by the at-home fireworks from neighbors, Happy jumped on top of me, seeking July 4th comfort. Dog days--and dog nights.
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Want more?
Here’s the next quiz in the series: Quiz #66. Pluck It.
Here’s the previous quiz in the series: Quiz #64. My Data Does Matter.
Here’s the first quiz in the series: Quiz #1. Stella and Social Distancing, March 13, 2020
Here is an archive of all the quizzes.
The quiz is explained here: Steve’s Stay-at-Home Coronavirus Quiz.
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