Quarantine OVER! Have been wanting to post but did not want to jinx anything/tempt any of the Gods. We got back from Egypt 14 days and 12 hours ago...when we got home, everything was cool with that origin, but within a few hours, shit hit the fan, Egypt was raised from "no concern" to full blown level 3 quarantine and so Betty and I were on lockdown. Taiwan is amazing in its reporting of new cases. When we returned, there were about 50 total, and over the last two weeks, the count went up by about 15 a day with all of the new cases stemming from people returning from overseas. Not only that, but many of cases were from Turkey and Egypt and so I was properly freaked out. Every sniffle felt like that was it. Was taking my temperature 3 times a day and obsessing over the daily new case reports. Apparently, while we were in Egypt there was a Taiwanese tour group that we were shadowing and didn't know it, but they had an outbreak and about 20 of that group came down with it. Each day there would be a couple more reported and they were referring to that group as "ill-fated" We left Egypt on a day where they had a storm of biblical proportions. OK, maybe not biblical, but their worst reported storm since 1994, so close. Our plane out was delayed and so we missed our connector in Turkey and had to stay over a night there. Will relate that day in a future travelogue, but what it meant was that we did not get on the same plane as the "ill-fated" tour group. Talk about luck.
Currently, our personal quarantine being over means that we can go outside. We are not on a country wide lockdown but rather it is a be smart edict where people are working, schools are open, just don't congregate and stay home as much as you can. Probably said it before, but if you could be anywhere on the planet during this thing, cannot find a better place than here. I have a ton of news sites bookmarked and have moved Taiwan News to the top of my favorites. Every afternoon they have an article on the new cases and suggest you take a look at the most recent one here. You can see that they identify all the new cases and where they originated from. People are getting worried that the total is rising but think the country hopes that it's gonna go lower once two weeks since they closed the border passes this week so all the foreign cases can be identified.
For all the people arriving in the last two weeks, they are required to be under quarantine for 14 days regardless of origin. These folks are given cell phones that the government calls multiple times a day. If the people don't answer, or if the tracking has the phone straying from their quarantine site, they get fined and possibly arrested. One guys phone ran out of power and the cops came knocking on his door at 6am. The juiciest story of foreigners being quarantined came from the BBC. An English woman and her travel partner were doing the 'no money roaming of Asian thing' and got hung up here when everything shut down. That kind of tour means they had almost no money so they couldn't afford a hotel to quarantine in and the government put them up in less than luxurious accomodations. The woman must have bitched to her mom in the UK about the shitty food and lack of whatever, and the mom then bitched to the BBC that her daughter was being "incarcerated". The crack staff at the BBC then chucked some gas on the story and it became an international incident. If you read that link, the couple were in a modest accomodation but it had a decent bed, sofa, internet, etc., and for free it was really good. All a misunderstanding that got blown out of proportion by justifiably concerned parents, and ultimately the woman apologized and the BBC took down the story. There was one sliver of info in that story that did make me think that the girl was being tortured, and that was the government was brining three local meals to the couple every day. Eating three meals of local cuisine a day is cruel and unusual punishment.
With all the new cases being reported as being imported, suspicion of foreigners is rampant. Mentioned last time I had to sneak out of the house as the guy replacing our washing machine wouldn't come as we were foreigners. Betty however impersonated a Chinese person well enough for him to believe she was from here. Since then, reports from all over the country of Westerners being avoided on the streets and Metro, and prohibited from entering certain establishments are rampant. No one has gotten physical like we have read about in the States against Asian people, but in a country where we have always felt welcome, shows how fast that shit breaks down. And the white folk aren't even the ones carrying the virus as the people arriving with the bug are almost all returning Taiwanese. Am used to getting looks from folks as they aren't used to seeing foreigners all the time, but the looks now feel way different.
I am a privileged white boy from the valley who was raised in the 70's, and I am not proud of a lot of the things I said/thought about people that were different from me. I have always thought that I've evolved over the years, and as an enlightened white guy from the valley, I appreciate and celebrate different cultures, races, and lifestyle choices and bristle when I hear racist shit. I believe women when they say they are demeaned or blacks when they say they can't go anywhere without feeling the eyes of people staring at and suspecting them, but have never personally felt it until now. And I know that the feelings I get now are nowhere near those that minorities feel all day/every day in places all over the planet. Look...we all have racist moments to some degree and that includes yours truly. All I am saying here is that I can do better and vow to do so.
Pulling back the curtain a little, I typically go to this space when I have time and spit out whatever for a while. I try to never hit post and usually come back to edit, add a gag, or delete something that is too spicy for public consumption.. Usually, the pace of the world doesn't crash over top of these thoughts, but now every hour seems like a day and a day seems like... Started the below thoughts last week and as there is nothing but virus talk to consume, have seen all of the below recommendations tossed out there in various degree. Gonna keep them in this post anyway and take from it what you will.
As someone who had been under a quasi-quarantine since 2012, thought I'd share a couple of tips on how to keep yourself busy and productive. Obviously not quarantined, but coming here I did not have a job after working my whole life, so was thrust into a life of having to find stuff to do without having to go to work everyday.
Priorities first. Taking care of the kids is job one. B-doll was 9 at the time so she didn't need constant baby-time attention. I think about if then was now and would be trying to figure out home schooling. That has to be a thing that people struggle with the most cause they certainly aren't prepared for it from a technical standpoint, and I know for sure that many/most are not geared for it temperamentally. The worst are probably the ones that think they are.
So assuming your kids are not of that age and are independant like mine became, the first thing that I started to do was to volunteer. Things like whatever the school needed a hand with or at the community center. Volunteering here is kinda weird as they don't allow foreigners to do a ton and wish there was more to do. If I was in the States right now, I was thinking it would be a great time to help out with food banks to help prepare and deliver food to those that can't get out. My mom is in a fancy old folks place and the food there is still borderline inedible. What must the swill taste like at the lower end ones or for people that are shut in and their caregivers can't attend to them and such. Taiwan closed its borders the other day as we were talking with the Boy about trying to fly him here, and now he can't. He still has on-line school but c'mon, we all know that doesn't fill a day. I suggested he look into the food bank thing and did a quick search in his area and they would love the help. That has to be true in any community. Am sure there are dozens of places that need help taking care of folks right now and that kind of work is just good for your soul/karma and figure most of us need some points.
OK then, so you don't have kids, your on-line work is not taking up the full day (cause let's face it, you're farting around on your computer for a good hour or four at work as it is), and you have done a bunch of volunteer work. There is still a ton of time to fill. What to do.
First, make sure you exercise every day, or at least every other day at minimum. You've seen me and I am not Crossfit Johnson. I am not talking to the workout freaks here, just us normal pudgy types. A brisk walk and some sit-ups are enough. I throw in some push-ups too. Start with an amount that you're comfortable with and do another 5 every day until you get to 100. Then add from there. Walk for a mile and then try to extend that. I do this exact thing every day...some days will shorten the walk or if I'm really busy will miss it entirely, but no lazy ass excuses. Every day. Some folks get bored with the same thing every day but if you walk with friends or like to listen to music, then that should do it. I am a podcast guy and the walks are when I save my favorite ones as I can tune out everything else and focus in on them. Pretty sure that even the most strict of quarantines still allow walks in open spaces as long as you keep your distance, so this works in any scenario. Plus it is keeping you away from your screen. If you workout more than this, good on ya, but this is the minimum.
All the above is just basic life stuff and my advice for humanity. Falling into bad habits is really easy. I tried to think back when I first had all day alone and remember watching TV during the day and even having a drink or two some days. That is not gonna end up well. Tip # 1...get your shit together. As a Virgo that was raised with parents that were hyper-organized, putting everything in its place is like breathing. This is the most amazing time for you to open a closet or drawer and go through that bad boy. Marie Kondo is ubiquitous at this point and while I love what she is all about, I have offered my services to people to help them reduce the clutter. Obviously not a Japanese pixie, my style is more confrontational. While she would ask "does it bring you joy?", my tag line is "why are you keeping this piece of shit?" While I felt our place was organized before, in the last few days have found a couple of places that needed some TLC. The pantry is the best place to start cause you get to quantify what you have on hand and use some of it for lockdown meals. I found an embarrassingly large amount of things that expired, some dating back to 2013.
Tip # 2 is to write stuff down. This is a constant recommendation from me and I don't know many people that do any writing. Writing helps with memory (good for us aging types that have taken many blows to the head) so keeping to do lists or listing what you did that day helps lock in memories. That is scientifically proven. In this current situation, write down a thought, or a joke or something personal, and send it to a friend. If you are a friend of mine and read this space, I must have reached out to you last couple of weeks and if I haven't, reach out to me. Would love to hear how you and yours are doing or some funny observation, and I promise to send you a funny back. Send anything but doomsday freak out please. I tend to turn that shit off when I hear it and some folks are getting pretty gloomy. I don't mind some bitching, but as I told my 93 year old mother, who started to go into a pity party on the phone today, remember what Tommy Lasorda said...never talk about your complaints to people cause 98% of them don't care, and the other 2% are glad you have them.
If you aren't a great writer like me, then post or send a goofy picture of yourself. I don't post a ton on Facebook but was inspired to add the below photo of my quarantine hairdo the other day and I have never received more comments or "likes" on anything ever. Let us see you at your worst...we can all relate.
Last thing...due to some update, the platform I post this on eliminated the spell check function, which seems stupid but there you go. Pardon the mess.
Shower periodically my friends.
