Fire, Friends, Wine

 

Chris at the Fire Pit
Elkridge, MD
March 9, 2020

Spring is only a a short 10 days away. 

Last evening we celebrated the return of warm weather by hosting a fire pit evening for friends in the neighborhood.

The evening was beautiful and most importantly, warm.

The fire in the pit was crackling and hot--it kept the inevitable chill that announced the arrival of nightfall from driving us inside. We enjoyed stories, conversation, and wine around the fire and dreamed of coming out the other side of the pandemic unscathed. There remains a long way to go, but as more and more of our friends and family are vaccinated, we can begin to resume more normal relationships.

Last evening was the beginning of what we hope are many more evenings around a roaring fire reflecting on life and planning for the future. 

Thanks to our friends who joined us last evening. We are looking forward to enjoying more evenings together.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Art on the Windshield

Sunday night there was a heavy frost. 

Ice Crystals on the Windshield
Elkridge, MD
March 8, 2021

The ice laid heavy across the grass and on the cars. It was especially evident on my windshield.

Given that the morning was clear, bright, and cold I could not help but notice the pattern of the ice crystals on my windshield as I crawled up into the driver's seat of my truck. The crystals were intricate and beautiful.

I attempted to capture an image of them before the defroster melted and then evaporated them back into the moist air from whence they came. 

The pattern on the windshield almost looks as if the ice crystals were ornaments prepared to adorn a Christmas tree, although against the bare trees in the background they added depth to the scene.

All of the transient beauty and then, in a moment, they were gone as I hit the sprayer to clear the scene so that I could safely navigate the truck out of the drive.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Monday Musings - March 8, 2021

 

1. Well, here it is--the second Monday of five in March. The month is cruising by.

2. Hard to believe, but the weather is getting better. We may even see 70's this week. I wish I was cleared to play golf--but I am only just over three weeks post-surgery and still recovering.

3. Baseball is back. The Orioles are currently a dismal 2-4 in Spring Training games, but at least the sport is being played. 

4. Why are Republicans apparently devoted to limiting the ability of voters to express their preferences?

5. Apparently there is some thawing in the trade war with Europe. The tariffs on wine are being paused. Yay.

6. The blue skies of the past few days have lifted my spirits and Chris and I prepared the pool area yesterday by setting up the tables and chairs. Pool opening day is still two months off--but it will soon be here.

7. I am beginning to dream about traveling again. Maybe I am hoping the COVID pandemic is beginning to abate. 

8. Today in History. March 8, 1917, in Russia, the February Revolution (known as such because of Russia’s use of the Julian calendar) begins when riots and strikes over the scarcity of food erupt in Petrograd. One week later, centuries of czarist rule in Russia ended with the abdication of Nicholas II, and Russia took a dramatic step closer toward communist revolution.

Russians Mount Campaign Against Vaccines, U.S. Says - The Wall Street Journal

Xi Jinping’s Eager-to-Please Bureaucrats Snarl His China Plans - The Wall Street Journal

Amid the Rubble of Mosul, Pope Francis Offers a Salve for Iraq’s Wounds - The New York Times

At Least 15 Feared Dead After Blast Hit Military Base in Equatorial Guinea - The New York Times

Biden signs executive order promoting voting rights on 56th anniversary of ‘Bloody Sunday’ - The Washington Post

Houthis strike Saudi oil giant’s facilities in the kingdom’s east - The Washington Post

South Korea to boost funding for U.S. troops under new accord: State Department - Reuters

Australia halts defence ties with Myanmar, redirects aid - Reuters

Ronald Reagan Quote for the Week

What is true for families in America is true for America in the family of free nations. History is no captive of some inevitable force. History is made by men and women of vision and courage. Tonight freedom is on the march. The United States is the economic miracle, the model to which the world once again turns. We stand for an idea whose time is now: Only by lifting the weights from the shoulders of all can people truly prosper and can peace among all nations be secure. Teddy Roosevelt said that a nation that does great work lives forever. We have done well, but we cannot stop at the foothills when Everest beckons. It's time for America to be all that we can be.

Address Before a Joint Session of Congress on the State of the Union - February 4, 1986

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Confusing? Yes

Directional signs that make no sense are the bane of my existence. Well, not really, but they do make for freakishly exciting moments when trying to travel along the highways. 

I ran across one the other day that made me just want to stop and take a picture of it--but I was in traffic and could not either stop or grab my cell phone camera. 

But think of it--there you are, in an unfamiliar place cruising at 65 MPH trying to divine the correct path and a series of roadsigns appears. Moving in traffic you have maybe three seconds to read all of the signs and determine the correct path. Good luck.

And then of course there us the all too often sign combination that makes no sense at all. 

Good luck when you run into situations like this. My view is that when it happens and you can't make a decision, just keep going and if you have to turn around and make a do-over, that is better than causing an accident.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Celebration

Jax Turns 13 with his Brother
Odenton, MD
March 5, 2021

Despite the COVID pandemic, there are still reasons to celebrate. 

Yesterday provided one of those reasons for partying.

Jax transitioned from childhood into the world of being a teenager as he turned 13. 

It was a low-key celebration with family and close friends, but--it was a celebration of his life nonetheless. A great evening was enjoyed. I noted that Jax's birthday was the last one celebrated before the onset of the COVID pandemic last year. It has been that long since a sense of normalcy was enjoyed. Now, with vaccinations underway and many in my family being vaccinated, perhaps we can soon again begin to enjoy life without fear. 

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Workweek in the Books

 Another workweek is almost in the books. The arrival of Friday is celebrated and the beginning of the awaited weekend in upon us. 

From The Wall Street Journal

Sadly, it has been an abysmal week for the stock market and investments. It seems the bottom has fallen out and the optimism which once was pervasive is evaporating and the bears have come out of their winter slumber. It is weird when I look at the markets and say to myself, "Oh, I only lost that much?" And the outlook is not much better for today based upon comments by the Fed chairman regarding interest rates.

In a foreboding piece of news, it was reported that the 30-year home mortgage rate topped 3 percent for the first time since July. I was really enjoying the hot house selling market. Being a sellers market was really driving up prices. I knew it couldn't last, but I had hoped that it would. 

Well, the weekend cannot come too quickly to give everyone a breather. 

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Fire Pit

First Fire of the Year
Elkridge, MD
March 3, 2021

The afternoon was bright and warm, well warmer. Temperatures almost made 60 degrees, but Chris and I determined it was time for the first fire of the new year.

We had been waiting for a nice afternoon to light a fire and enjoy some wine outdoors celebrating the end of a beautiful day. 

It would have been even more idyllic, had not the dogs been so demanding. But, still, as a harbinger of springtime, the first fire of the new year was a great start. 

I hope there are many more before the season ends. 

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Optimism? Finally?

It seems like the Hunger Games for vaccines at times. Trying to get vaccinated for COVID seems to be a difficult task for some, but hopefully that will soon be a thing of the past.

I was encouraged by the announcement yesterday that by the end of May all adults in America will be able to be vaccinated. If only the states and local communities can figure out how to distribute the vaccines. 

With the increase in vaccinations--as of yesterday I saw that 8 percent of Americans were fully vaccinated, the news is reporting that the CDC will be coming out with new guidance soon--maybe even tomorrow. 

Could it be? Are we beginning to turn the corner on the COVID pandemic? 

It is clear that during the past two months the mood of the country has gone from hopeless to hopeful. Where before there was no coherent plan the transformation has occurred resulting in action and results. The focus has changed from concern about one person into concern for all persons. We are beginning to become optimistic about defeating the coronavirus!

Maybe the Winter of our Discontent will blossom into the Spring of Deliverance?

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

The Road to Recovery

The rain finally stopped after about 36 hours. At least it did not persist for 40 days and 40 nights. 

The world is a soggy mess right now. The lawn is so wet that I cannot even walk on it. I yearn to get outside and do something--anything.

I am weary of being a COVID refugee. Perhaps the world will begin to open soon. I saw something yesterday on my journey to work that I have not seen in almost one full year--a school bus. 

The big yellow bus was one of the few that were circulating through the neighborhood, much like they used to do, collecting children for school when life was normal. 

Normal--we are living in a world that is inherently not normal anymore. It is something we are striving for, but that so far is eluding our outstretched hands. 

But, even seeing a school bus represents the next step on the road to recovering our lives. 

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Monday Musings - March 1, 2021

 

1. Unbelievably, it is the first Monday in March. There are five Mondays this month and we are 1/6 (16.7%) through the year. 

2. Spring may actually arriving here early despite the prediction by the Pennsylvania rodent at the beginning of last month.

3. The rains of the past two days have cleared the landscape of snow and are beginning to transform the scenery from brown and gray to green. 

4. Rainy weekends are good for recharging. But it has rained for over 24 hours straight. That is a bit much.

5. The Orioles played and lost their first Spring Training game 4-6 to the Pirates. It was good to have baseball back.

6. I am guessing that I am now fully COVID vaccinated since my second inoculation was over a week ago. How will that change my daily activities and masking? It won't, but I feel better about the situation. 

7. Today in History. On March 1, 1932, in a crime that captured the attention of the entire nation, Charles Lindbergh, Jr., the 20-month-old son of aviation hero Charles Lindbergh, is kidnapped from the family’s new mansion in Hopewell, New Jersey. Lindbergh, who became an international celebrity when he flew the first solo flight across the Atlantic Ocean in 1927, and his wife Anne discovered a ransom note demanding $50,000 in their son’s empty room. The kidnapper used a ladder to climb up to the open second-floor window and left muddy footprints in the room.

Vaccines Yield Breakthroughs in Long-Term Fight Against Disease - The Wall Street Journal

N.Y. Gov. Cuomo Apologizes Over Some Interactions With Staffers - The Wall Street Journal

Johnson & Johnson Vaccine Supplies Will Be Limited at First, Officials Warn - The New York Times

Trump’s Republican Hit List at CPAC Is a Warning Shot to His Party - The New York Times

The power is back, but millions of Texans wonder what it will take to fully recover — and who will help them - The Washington Post

Supreme Court to again consider protections for minority voters - The Washington Post

Asian stocks rally, battered bond market tries to steady - Reuters

Oil prices climb after progress on huge U.S. stimulus bill - Reuters

Ronald Reagan Quote for the Week

Now we know that deficits are a cause for worry. But there's a difference of opinion as to whether taxes should be increased, spending cut, or some of both. Fear is expressed that government borrowing to fund the deficit could inhibit the economic recovery by taking capital needed for business and industrial expansion. Well, I think that debate is missing an important point. Whether government borrows or increases taxes, it will be taking the same amount of money from the private sector, and, either way, that's too much. Simple fairness dictates that government must not raise taxes on families struggling to pay their bills. The root of the problem is that government's share is more than we can afford if we're to have a sound economy.

We must bring down the deficits to ensure continued. economic growth. In the budget that I will submit on February 1st, I will recommend measures that will reduce the deficit over the next 5 years. Many of these will be unfinished business from last year's budget.

Address Before a Joint Session of the Congress on the State of the Union - January 25, 1984

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD