You are most welcome! My pleasure, and I'm glad I could help.

So, I wrote the "Yeah, we're not coming up for Christmas..." text to my sister & fam yesterday, which sucked, but they totally get it. They are still sending us our matching pjs, and we will Zoom on Christmas Day. Now I have to get my ordering and sending gifts mojo going strong. I'm used to shopping in persona and usually rather close-ish to Christmas Day. Blergh.

That sounds amazing, Consuela. Sorry for the lost knife.

There's a Files & Records joke in there somewhere, Jesse, but it's not coming to me.

I talked to my sister yesterday and apparently our mother had already said "screw it I'm just giving you money this year", and she and I agreed to just give each others' pets gifts. Because shopping is too hard. I think I still have to get something for mom and dad, but may just order them a nice fruit tray or something.

Timelies all!

Gary's Birthday and Hanukkah are next week, so I have ordered some things for him. Otherwise, I dunno. I guess I could send e-gift cards to the nieblings.

Although her fiance broke one of my knifes shucking the oysters.

I bet they could fix it at The Repair Shop.

Gov. Newsom has announced new lockdown orders and standards in place. Basically the state is divided into five regions, and if the region gets down under 15% available ICU beds, then that region will be locked down as it was in the spring: No salons, no indoor eating, only takeout, 20% capacity in retail.

It's necessary but it's going to drive so many businesses under if they're shut in the run up to xmas.

No regions are closed yet, but SoCal and Central Valley could be locked down by this weekend.

Bay Area probably won't need to lockdown for a couple more weeks at least.

Today the state of Ohio included Ohio on their list of states they recommend avoiding travel to, and quarantining if you do. Based on test positivity rates (15%.)

Meanwhile my mother and her 87 year old husband drove to Virginia this week and are attending a family memorial gathering tomorrow, and then I guess driving home. On the plus side, at least two of the other family members attending have already survived Covid? Including the 93 year old.

Today the state of Ohio included Ohio on their list of states they recommend avoiding travel to,

I try not to travel to Ohio, but I fail every dang time.

DH finished setting up the pool table again, which has been in storage for a very long time. This will help him with his social isolation. His brother shoots with him and he has already had Covid, along with his wife and MIL. The MIL is in long term care now and although she recovered she is not doing well as it seems to have accelerated her dementia quote profoundly. Anyway, it will be nice to have him coming by often to visit and play.

DH finished setting up the pool table again, which has been in storage for a very long time. This will help him with his social isolation. His brother shoots with him and he has already had Covid, along with his wife and MIL.

That sounds like a great work-around to get through the winter.

It's necessary but it's going to drive so many businesses under if they're shut in the run up to xmas.

At this point so many small businesses in impacted industries are running on fumes. Christmas isn't going to save them it might just delay it by a few weeks. The gov't needs to not ignore the need for fiscal support for small business. The lack of support needed to keep businesses closed for public health is criminal. It's directly responsible for Covid spread and death. Congress is culpable in this.

Yes, I might be angry. I'm also just worn out. Running a small business through this is hell.

Oatmeal: it's just the morning stress and dread (hiya 2020!), but a friend's cousin got terrible health news yesterday night after an emergency open heart op (she's only 20), and I got little left in me after spending too much time at home this week without a break for nice/relaxing things on the one hand, but also have a deadline in 8 hours so I can't go for a long walk and do everything I need to do today. (Deadline itself won't take long to write, I just need to figure out what to write about first. Lovely prof. who read my first topic suggestion went "yeah, you can write on that topic, but you're smarter than this. Wait till class X, get familiar with more economic theories, and we'll circle back to get you something more challenging to write about". Class X was this week, so now I need to come up with something smart and challenging).

There will be nice/relaxing things tomorrow, coz weekend. Maybe even a nice relaxing thing today. But I need to get through today first, and I don't want to yell at housemate who did nothing to deserve a housemate with too many deadlines.

/venting

Well, let's get to work.

{{Buffistas}}