Quiz #68. "tay Stron"
Four months into the coronavirus, why does a mangled mylar message make me think of Eliza Hamilton? Steve's Stay-at-Home Coronavirus Quiz for July 12, 2020.
It’s been four months since I started writing Steve’s Stay-at-Home Coronavirus Quiz—and if you’re looking for a sign of where we stand on this Sunday, July 12, 2020, this may be it.
This sign is posted on a fence facing a well-traveled street in our New Jersey town. I don’t know how long it’s been up there and I don’t know whether it’s inspired anyone. I’m rarely out of the house in the mini-van and only passed it because I took a socially-distant trip to the town dump to get rid of some yard refuse from last weekend when Sara and I did some heavy weeding.
At first, I thought the sign was a birthday greeting. Maybe a graduation sign. It was made of mylar balloons and it took me a second look to realize that it had once said “Stay Strong.”
Without the first wayward “S” and the deflated last “G,” the mylar message of strength seems, like all of us, more than just a little worn out.
I try to take a news break on the weekend and turn off many of the notifications I usually get during the week on my iPhone. Still, this weekend there were three news items of note (and a few funny things from Twitter).
The first news item was some breaking news which was so big that I even received it as an alert on my personal email. On Saturday, July 11th, the President wore a mask in public for the first time. Four months since the first lockdowns in March It was big breaking news.
The second was milestone news here in the New York area. Numbers from Saturday, July 11th show NYC health officials reported no coronavirus deaths four months after the state's first official death was recorded on March 11. According to the NYC Department of Health, there hasn't been a day without a coronavirus-related death since March 13.
The third thing of note--for me--came in a post on Twitter from Yahoo baseball writer Hannah Keyser. On Saturday, Cam Gallagher, a back-up catcher for the Kansas City Royals, got results from a recent coronavirus test. He tested positive but had not shown any symptoms and played in an intrasquad game with his teammates the day before on Friday. Beyond his bravado about feeling fine and looking forward to rejoining his teammates, Keyser highlighted the central problem. Asymptomatic, he may well have infected his teammates.
Keyser highlighted the line in blue.
Keyser’s right. This could be huge--and it certainly caught my eye. All the assurances about regular testing for athletes will mean nothing if results are even slightly delayed and there is any lag between infection and detection. I know that I am a broken record at this point, but as I noted in previous quizzes (Quiz #55. No Spitting on May18th, Quiz # 62. Football Fantasy on June 28th and Quiz #66. Pluck It on July 7th), I do not see how major sports can pull off a return to anything resembling a normal “season” with a highly contagious virus still raging across the country.
It’s magical thinking to pretend otherwise. Here’s what I wrote in Quiz #66. Pluck It:
Even without fans, with a virus this contagious, I just don’t see how you can have groups of people in sustained close physical contact on—and off—the field, all while maintaining health and safety plus keeping to a structured schedule of fair competition that’s essential in any sports league.
At Disney World, some NBA players are already complaining about life in their bubble.
Lebron James, the NBA’s biggest star, making a joke on Twitter that going into the bubble feels like serving time in prison.
Another player, Montrezl Harrell, complained about the bad food being served to players at Disney World, “This ain’t it.”
Despite the fact that Florida is the new epicenter for the coronavirus, Disney World still reopened to guests this weekend. I got a chuckle out of this post from comedian Jared Logan on Twitter--with its own dark humor about the food at Disney World.
As for Sara and me, it’s been a quiet weekend. We enjoy each other. A few chores, but mostly relaxing. Sara’s done a lot of reading and gave herself another at-home pedicure which I described in Quiz 59. Foot Notes. (I’m passing on the pedicure because of an infection in my left big toe.)
This stay-at-home time is good for one thing. I’ve spent this weekend scanning photos. The latest batch this morning was from a 2001 2-family trip with college friends Bill and Leslie to Disney World. 246 images of good times gone by, now digitally preserved for generations to come.
Lots of great memories, but I just can’t imagine why anyone would want to go to Disney World right now.
Cases surging--especially in Florida.
Deaths on the rise in the South and West.
If you’re like me, you probably feel burnt out.
Tired. Ready to move on--and yet knowing that you can’t.
Stay at home, wash your hands, wear a mask.
Stay alive.
This weekend, I’m reminded of the haunting words from Lin-Manuel Miranda and Hamilton’s wife Eliza, “That Would Be Enough.”
Take a listen--and sorry for the ad.
Look around, look around at how lucky we are
To be alive right now
Look around, look around….
Look at where you are
Look at where you started
The fact that you're alive is a miracle
Just stay alive, that would be enough
Maybe “Tay Stron” is all you can muster.
Maybe that could be enough.
What did NOT happen?
A. I wore a mask at the recycling center. The guy working there did not. He almost got too close to me when he unexpectedly came nearby to open the container where you recycle styrofoam;
B. I did not have my phone when I went to the recycling center and when I first passed the sign, I thought it read “Tay Rong.” When I went back home, I got my phone to get a picture of the sign. When I got out of the mini-van to take the picture, I realized it read “Tay Stron.” The “S” was hanging down near the ground, the “G” ;
C. Will went to visit friends from college this weekend. They all got tested for the coronavirus before they got together and they did not go out. Will will now isolate from Sara and me in his garden apartment in the basement for the next two weeks;
D. The washer and dryer are in the basement so Sara’s brought up a drying rack in case we need to do any emergency clothes-cleaning in the next two weeks;
E. I’ve moved the desk-top and printer from the basement to the dining room table in case we need hard copies of anything in the next two weeks.
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Want more?
Here’s the next quiz in the series: Quiz #69. After the Dog Days.
Here’s the previous quiz in the series: Quiz #67. Twitter+.
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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