Yeah. Let’s all agree that some days in the Now-Times… are a challenge in one way or another. And for some, they are simply devastating. I hope you and yours stay in the “challenging” phase.
For some, though, what’s happening hasn’t really hit home yet or is just starting to. I woke up to the news that my home city of Melbourne, Australia, is going back into lock-down for 6 weeks. My feelings about that are mixed. It hurts. You could have pwned* the virus, Melb. Time to take a note, get wise, mask up, and band together for the greater good. Lest you become a raging shit-show. Like it is here in much of the USA.
One of the biggest problems we face, apart from feeble, inept, or psychopathic leadership, is misinformation. Used to be that people got their news from a small number of trusted sources. These days, anyone can post something on the Internet, and anyone can find something that suits their narrative, no matter how… removed from objective reality or anti-science or anti-logic. Thank YouTube!
If you’re interested in these topics and where we find ourselves, here a couple of podcasts I’ve found illuminating.
THE RABBIT HOLE: NYT deep dive into what the Internet is doing to society.
And for COVID-19, LADIES & GENTLEMAN, THIS IS THE PLAGUE, a discussion with Pulitzer Prize-winning science writer Laurie Garrett. This won’t be an easy listen, but it is worth it. (I truly believe I was preparing and sounding the alarm back in January only because I read Garrett’s book The Coming Plague in 1994 when it was first released.) If you want the latest daily info through a measured and scientific lens, I highly recommend following her on twitter.
Garrett suggests we get together like-minded friends and envision what we can do to make a COVID/post-COVID world a better place. This is what will help us through, psychologically and practically. For me, it is absolutely what’s carrying me…
…that and growing a suburban meadow for the bees, butterflies, birds, and other wildlife. But the best thing is working on various projects with trusted collaborators. I can’t say much about any of these projects yet, but they are all Climate Change related and range from science graphics to informative animations to a passion book project, all designed to help society in one way or another in a COVID or post-COVID world.
Some days are tough. I hope we can each find a way through by acting as a team, thinking of others. We wash our hands, socially distance, wear a mask, and support our local businesses in whatever ways we can because each of these things, working together, can make a difference. Is it an adjustment. Yes. Does it suck? At times. Can we do it? Of course!
Also helpful: making or sticking to a healthy routine and creating.
Stay well.
Thanks to those who told me this is a typo. It is not.