How much can a President take? — Sunday, August 29, 2021 As our 78-year-old President woke up to yet another day in the White House, he might have thought about taking off to go for a bike ride or play golf, but no. He has responsibilities. COVID-19 is still raging throughout the country. Too many people aren’t heeding public health messages to wear masks indoors and get vaccinated…

It started in January. By the end of the year, 25% of the United States had been vaccinated for a mysterious virus that looked similar to the one that caused the catastrophic 1918 flu outbreak. — In 1976, President Gerald Ford was presiding over a depressed economy and a country trying to heal from the wounds of Watergate and the war in Viet Nam. Technically, he had never been elected in the first place. He was appointed Vice President and later President after Spiro Agnew and…

American selfishness feeds the virus — We can finally say goodbye to 2020, one of the worst years ever. As we contemplate our New Year’s resolutions, it may be useful to look back at this holiday season and see if we can finally turn the corner and look forward to a great 2021. Most of us…

Hard Decisions on Vaccine Priority — I was startled tonight to hear that “top people” in the lame duck Trump Administration will now get priority vaccinations for COVID-19. These are the same people who sponsor superspreader events, including maskless, massive rallies and 20 planned holiday parties this season for dozens, if not hundreds of people. …

We’ve turned the corner on COVID, just like you said! — You were so right! We were getting nervous and afraid as we watched friends and relatives succumb to the virus, but you kept saying we were turning a corner. We believed you and were heartened. And now we have really turned a corner. In November over 4 million people tested…

A Car Killed the Mother. Is the Baby Steenbok Doomed Also? The old man on the rusty bicycle showed up when the six volunteers were eating lunch on the patio of the Big House. …

Will COVID Make This the Deadliest Thanksgiving in American History? — Thanksgiving has never been entirely joyous. Think of the last few years arguing across the dinner table. A lot may have been about politics, but things just seemed more contentious than in previous years. Thanksgiving seems to always be associated with violence. George Washington declared it a holiday after the…

Rethinking Norms with COVID-19 — I hugged my friend goodbye. What was I thinking? Whatever it was, I wasn’ t thinking enough. The patterns of our normal lives have changed. As senior citizens, we no longer meet at restaurants for lunch or at each other’s houses for game nights or potlucks. I knew this. …

Living in the Time of COVID — I’ve never been a fan of stinging insects. I’ve had friends who are allergic and always carry epi-pens with them, just in case. This tells me these small, ugly annoying things can be deadly, so I go out of my way to avoid them. …