A Covid Christmas in California

December 23, 2020

Woke up to distressing news. Again. What else is new this year? Trump dominating the news with his heartless disapproval of the Covid Relief Bill that his party painstakingly tailored to suit his desires. Now he's faking concern and demanding $2000 individual stimulus checks. "Call his bluff!" yell the Democrats. "It's what we wanted in the first place!" Congress has left for winter vacation. All the bill needs is Trump's signature! 

We still have an entire month of this incendiary White House occupant. He delivered a flood of pardons to his corrupt cronies yesterday. How much more harm is he going to inflict on his way out?

Another disturbing news item is the discovery of the South African mutated variant of the virus in the UK. Scientists declare it's even more transmissible, with more genomic changes than the UK variant. What does this all mean? Are there other undiscovered dangerous mutants in countries with less sophisticated sequencing apparatus? In the US, I understand, there isn't a rigorous practice of sequencing the SARS-COV2 virus in new patients.

December 28

Rain at last! Went to bed with the splendid sound of a downpour, the first storm of the season. Waking up to the sight of water outside was a thrill. Anticipating a full day of rain fills us with joy. A brief hailstorm this morning - white pellets bouncing on our garden furniture - surprised us. After 7 dry months, a scalding fall, and a mild entry into winter, we are immensely relieved that our withering bushes and hedges will come back to life.

Trump has finally signed the Covid Relief bill so that's good news, though the delay did have some negative consequences. Three more weeks to inauguration day!

Another bit of good news is that the AstraZeneca Oxford vaccine will soon be authorized for use in the UK. The scientists working on this vaccine claim to have arrived at the formula that will make it at least 90% effective against the virus. Phew! Other countries will no doubt follow the UK and a month from now we may be looking at a much rosier scenario than currently.

We are in the darkest period of the pandemic and Dr. Fauci warns that the worst is yet to come. Festive celebrations and gatherings which involved plane travel will translate to increased spread. Worldwide over 81 million people have tested positive for the Covid virus since the outbreak. Over 20 million cases have been recorded in the USA, with over 341,000 deaths. Daily new infections in the UK are now between 30,000 and 40,000. South Africa's numbers are soaring. They reached the worrisome milestone of 1 million cases yesterday and are recording 10,000 new daily infections. Medical experts are sounding alarm bells over the new variants which have now been detected in other countries. The president today announced a return to Tier 3 restrictions and mandated mask wearing.

California's Covid situation remains dire. We are currently recording between 30,000 and 40,000 daily new cases. LA can't seem to rein in the situation despite lockdown. The mayor and his team of health experts are speculating that the UK variant might be the culprit. Genome sequencing is in progress. LA is currently the world's epicenter of the pandemic.

Obviously, we'll never forget this festive season. We managed to make Christmas somewhat remarkable.

Our Attempt at Festive Ambience

On Christmas Eve, a mild, sunny day, we prepared a traditional meal centered around a Trader Joe's festive tofu turkey. Premi and Sri joined us and provided atmosphere and justification for our elaborate meal. I mulled a bottle of wine for the first time ever, thinking we'd need a hot drink to keep us warm outdoors. The heavily spiced hot beverage required some adjustment, but as it aired it mellowed out beautifully.

For dessert we had Christmas cake which I made a week earlier. Brandied fruit and more brandy after it left the oven kept it nicely preserved and moist. Served with créme fraiche it was a hit. We also had mince pies that Daryl labored over the day before Christmas Eve (and more on Christmas morning). I didn't realize how much I'd stuffed myself until later when my stomach felt like a lump of lead.

After lunch I had a video chat with Julia and Fabian in Germany. They were about to dive into their big festive meal all by themselves. Then I chatted with Max in Sydney and Pam in Perth. On Christmas morning - gloriously sunny - we took a walk in our neighborhood to deliver mince pies to dear friends. 

Then, relieved of pressure to cook a big meal, we chatted via Skype to the Ladysmith family. Daryl played Backgammon and chess via Zoom with UK family members. In the afternoon Bruce and Janette joined us for tea and desserts out on our patio. They brought along an exquisite pumpkin pie and sampled for the first time our very traditional Christmas cake and mince pies. We had energetic conversation, shared some laughs and avoided the current heavy topics. 

After they left we took a stroll in our neighborhood, which allowed us to admire the horizon at sunset. Yard signs are still around - comforting to know that we share our neighborhood with our tribe.

We ended the day with the final 2 episodes of an Acorn series we've thoroughly enjoyed - an Italian drama called "Sisters". Ideal winter holiday entertainment!

The next evening we discovered the Netflix series "Mismatched" which hooked us instantly. Avant Garde Indian movie makers exposing us to an unfamiliar, 21st century India where the youth are nothing at all like their parents and forebears. 

And so our sanity remains intact thanks to modern technology and scientists.