Corona LOG - Nov. 30, 2020

Corona Log Entry- Nov. 30, 2020

         It is warm and muggy this morning in SW Florida. Rain is on the way, followed by a three-day cold front. Our Spring Run club house has been shut down for several days. It might reopen later this week. Two kitchen employees tested positive for Covid-19. Management awaits the all clear from tests on all other employees. The traditional Thanksgiving-day dinner was cancelled due to safety concerns. Two club members have also tested positive for Covid-19. Poe’s “Mask of Red Death” is among us.

        Nationally, the Corona pandemic rages on. We are at the 268,000-death toll level, from Corona complications, with over three million Covid-19 infections in America this year. Everyone is bracing for the toll to explode during the next week. Millions of people travelled to their homes, from across America, for Thanksgiving Day Dinner. The infection level should rise drastically as a result. You would think everyone has gotten the message about mask-wearing and other preventive measures, but evidence indicates the contrary. News stories point to secret gatherings, of hundreds of bar and party patrons, celebrating with no masks and wild abandon. Locally, most of our friends dined alone on Thanksgiving out of caution for the virus. We played golf that morning, with Nick and Pat Murphy,  and then, over the course of several hours, dined on a warm pear salad, broccoli-cheddar soup with croissants, and then followed up with shrimp and cocktail sauce. Finally,  a cold rhubarb and strawberry pie, topped with Vanilla ice cream, finished the lengthy and pleasant repast. Footballs games filled the television screen all day.

         Several college and NFL games have been cancelled due to Covid-19 infections of several tea members. The Denver Broncos played with all three quarterbacks out from illness. A wide receiver filled in and did the best that he could. Several College games will be postponed this coming week. These are different times, during the era of Corona.

       The financial markets are only marginally affected. The Dow-Jones Average dropped 300 pts. In that the exchange sits above the 29,000 pt. level, that is probably just a minor hiccup. Residential Real Estate sales are still red hot and mortgage rates are low. Commercial real estate in urban areas is not moving at all. The whole phenomena of “zoom Meetings” and teleconferences have businesses rethinking seminars and office settings in general. Society is adapting to environmental conditions as always.

       Speculation swirls around the new virus vaccines. The CDC is scheduled to vote on December 10^th, to allow distribution of the several proposed vaccines. Strategies are even now being drawn up to determine who will be first in line to receive the vaccinations. All parties seem to agree that Medical front-line workers, followed by seniors in nursing homes, will be the first recipients. After that, the ranking of priority groups  is still muddled. The delivery system is as yet undetermined. Still, it is a dim light at the end of a very long tunnel.

       The Presidential transition still commands the headlines. The new Biden/Harris Team is naming their principal assistants and trying to figure out how they will tackle the whole Corona Pandemic situation. In spite of all the public caterwauling, the transition appears to be going smoothly, like it has for the last 240 years.