Respecting Our Journeys

"People take different roads.

Just because they're not on your road

doesn't mean they've gotten lost."

--H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

Copyright © 2020

by Ralph F. Couey

The pursuit of knowledge in defining the speed of light was primarily to try to define, in a universe where everything is in motion, an absolute standard for distance and velocity.  What was discovered was that light always travels at the same velocity, regardless if the object emitting or reflecting that light was closing, receding, or at a constant distance.  

There was also another search for a standard at that time, as to which society or culture would be held as the standard by which to measure others.  In a time of exploration and collision of cultures, this was deemed to be important.

That regrettable urge remains with us today.  Not only do we compare large-scale social, political, religious, or economic systems, we are always using the smaller picture of our own lives as a yardstick for measuring others.  The impulse for this lies in the often-fragile structure of the human ego.

Pride can be a valuable trait.  It is essential for our self respect that we should find value in who and what we are.  It is what gives us confidence to tackle difficult tasks, or willingly place ourselves in less than comfortable circumstances when we know we can do some good.  But like so many other things, the key to pride is in moderation.  None of us are as smart as we think (or wish) we are.  None of us are as skilled as we would like to be.  None of us have all the answers to the unanswerable questions.  Even though there are times when we can and should pitch into a situation, there are other times when it is wiser and better to stand back.  As Harry Callaghan once said, "A good (person) knows their limitations."

There is a part of us who always wants to the the source of wisdom, the "wise old sage" to whose door people will tramp to for lessons and wisdom.  All too often, however, the answer we have is irrelevant, ill-informed, or just plain wrong.  And thus advised, those who took our advice end up in an even deeper hole.  

The 65-Year Roller Coaster

Wayfair, Inc.

In the past I've always seen birthdays as a positive thing, particularly after a serious round of heart problems in the early 2000's.  After that, every year was a gift, always knowing what might have been.  But this year is a milestone. Or, perhaps, a millstone. 

Number 65.

It's always been a benchmark of sorts.  Once upon a time, it was the retirement age.  Now, thanks to the improved health of codgers like me, it's just one step forward to what is now the understood retirement age of 70.  But I'm old school.  And 65 just seems old.

I've thought about this over the past couple of weeks, and I think I've achieved a kind of rationalization in my attitude.  Actually, I'm healthier now than I've ever been.  I've shed the excess tonnage that did me so much harm over the years.  I exercise regularly, walking 15 to 20 miles per week.  My blood pressure is actually chronically low; my diabetes is under control without any use of insulin.  My heart is in such good shape that my cardiologist has given up on stress testing.  On the negative side of the ledger, my memory is slipping, muscles are stiff, and my balance is not good.  I won't bore you with the other, more personal issues, but when I look at my Dad when he was this age, I'm in way better condition.  And looking around at other men my age, I can see ways in that I'm better off than they.  No competitiveness here.

The Dark Cloud, and Making the Silver Lining

"Become a possibilitarian.

No matter how dark thing seem to be

or actually are, raise your sights;

 Always see possibilities

for they're always there."

--Norman Vincent Peale

Copyright © 2020

by Ralph F. Couey

There's a linguistic missive that's made the rounds for the past decade or so of how the Chinese character for "crisis" is the combination of two other characters, one meaning "danger" and the other "opportunity."  It's the kind of dualistic interpretation that abounds in Asian philosophy, one possibility readily apparent, the other more subtle.

Some people in history have guided decisions by that point of view, achieving in times of crisis.  Most people don't realize that millionaires were created during the Great Depression.  Charles Darrow created a board game which enabled players to at least pretend to be tycoons.  The game?  Monopoly.  It proved to be wildly popular, and made Darrow a fortune.  Michael Cullen in 1930 started a grocery chain that became a success, even during a time of economic disaster.  J. Paul Getty bought up depressed oil stocks that enabled him to create an empire.  Joseph Kennedy, Sr. made a pile from real estate speculation, and its rumored, successfully violated the Volstead Act.  More recently, during the Great Recession, WhatsApp, Venmo, Groupon, Instagram, Uber, Pinterest...all were startups between 2008 and 2010.  These are billion-dollar ventures today.

Now, this post is not about how to get rich.  I'll leave that to others.  But history has proved that even during the darkest of times there are those who find the light.

These days we are all suffering from cabin fever, or more accurately Quarantinitis.  We have plumbed the depths of home entertainment during this time when many have been required to stay home.  We are desperate to get out of the house, and even return to work.  But it won't be easy.  

Reading the news, a careful examination of reports will tell us that even when the economy starts to open up, it will still take a year or more before we see the robust level where we were just before the pandemic.  Small business, which is about 80% of the U.S. economy will take longer.  A lot of small companies will simply have ceased to exist in the past two months.  But entrepreneurs are by nature risk-takers, and it is likely that those same business owners will be back with something new for the market place.  But it will take time to attract attention and build clientele.  It's like turning on the shower and having to wait for the water to heat up.  

The Universe and a Mind Blown

A graphical representation of the expansion of the universe 

from the Big Bang to the present day, with the inflationary epoch 

represented as the dramatic expansion of the metric seen on the left. 

This visualization can be confusing because it appears as if 

the universe is expanding into a pre-existing empty space over time. 

Instead, the expansion created, and continues to create, 

all of known space and time. 

(Wikipedia)

Copyright © 2020

by Ralph F. Couey

Written content below only

I've been holding off on this post because I wanted to be able to explain the complexities of the science involved without losing you or confusing me.

As I said before, I've been a steady customer of the Science Channel's excellent program "How the Universe Works."  I've learned a ton, made easier by the eminent skill of the PhD presenters to make it simple enough to understand.  

About a month ago, there was an episode that dealt with the expansion of the universe.  Basically, since the Big Bang, everything has been expanding outward to form what we know as the observable universe.  Here's the first big idea.  I always thought that what was expanding was the component parts (galaxies, etc) expanding into pre-existing space.  Actually what is happening (see the image at the top of this post) is that space itself is expanding.  Outside the borders of the known universe, nothing -- nothing exists.  Not stars, not dust, not even space itself.  Mind blown.

Back in the late 1920's, A former mule team driver, Milton Humason, was working at the Mount Wilson observatory above, as Dr. Sagan put it, what was then the smog-free skies of Los Angeles.  He had been taking spectrograph images of distant galaxies.  Now, a spectrograph is a handy tool for determining the chemical makeup of distant objects by taking that light and focusing it through a prism.  The prism then breaks the light down into its component parts, identifying things like oxygen, calcium, and other elements, all which have distinct frequencies in light. But Humason discovered something more astonishing.  The telltale bands that identified those chemicals was shifted towards the red end of the spectrum.  

A Short History of Hawai'i, or Why Volcanoes Make Us Feel Small

Mauna Loa

Mauna Kea

Copyright © 2020

by Ralph F. Couey

Data from USGS

and Hawai'i Volcano Observatory

I thought it might be a good opportunity to take some time off from the current unhappiness and discuss something completely different.

Over the Holidays last year, we had most of our family in Hawai'i to help celebrate our son's retirement after 23 years in the Navy.  It was a joyous time, especially since the last time we all got together was for our granddaughters funeral.  

We spent the first week on the island of Hawai'i, locally called simply "the Big Island."  One of the things we did was to visit Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park.  Now, I've seen pictures of a volcano and it's usually a typical cone shape with steep sides and a caldera at the top.  I had seen two of them, Mammoth in California and Rainier outside of Seattle.  But I was never as impressed and awe-struck as the day we drove along the southeast coast of the Big Island.  We had stopped at an overlook to take some pictures of a beautiful deep blue and generously white-capped Pacific Ocean (the winds were really howling that day).  After a few minutes, I turned around and beheld an awesome sight.

There before me were three of the five volcanoes on the island.  Since the slopes are very clean, it was very easy to take in the incredible size of them.  Not that I was able to fully wrap my head around them, mind you.  It's one thing to think of a volcano, another to look at pictures, but to see them in person was mind-blowing.  To my left, Mauna Loa rose into a flawless blue sky, capped by snow.  To my right, further away, Mauna Kea poked it's similarly white cap above the immediate horizon.  We had just driven by Kilauea, south of the highway, a lower peak, but still massive in size.

Leaving the Vampire Life Behind

Copyright © 2020

by Ralph F. Couey

One afternoon, about eight months ago, I showed up at work and was told by my supervisor that I would be moving to the midnight shift.  This announcement caused me a lot of angst.  I was, and still am, the primary caregiver to my 93-year-old mother-in-law, who is a delightful person, very easy to love, but suffering the downward slide of dementia.  Working evenings, I was able to be home for her for most of the day, only leaving her alone for a couple of hours during a time of day when she was usually napping.  This meant a total re-ordering of my responsibilities, and not knowing at all how this was going to affect her care.

I've worked nights before, in the Navy and during any number of the jobs I've held over the years.  Never been my favorite shift, but I had signed a contract stating that I would be available for any and all shifts as assigned.  So, manfully shouldering my new schedule, I flipped my days.

Working nights means sleeping during the days, something I've always found difficult.  I get sleep after a fashion, but I never feel rested and alert, and that fatigue becomes cumulative over time.  My new supervisor has been on that shift for nearly 15 years, so its become second nature for her, a fact of which I was secretly envious.  The good news is that she was also a caregiver, so she knew how hard this dual life could be.

It took me a week or two to finally reach some kind of equilibrium, although I never really fully adjusted.  And I found that this new life did affect the care I could provide.  Now, having to retire by noon, she had to be left unattended for a lot longer time.  I worried constantly about what was happening with her while I was (trying to) sleep in the back bedroom.  

The Death of the Pub

©Timothy Gauger 2017

O'Toole's, on the south side of Chinatown

Copyright © 2020

by Ralph F. Couey

Written content only

Scattered across Honolulu are four Irish pubs, all very well known for live music, great atmosphere, and traditional Irish congeniality.  For over 20 years, the Irish Rose, Anna O'Brien's, Kelly O'Neil's, and my favorite hangout, O'Toole's have been instrumental in keeping Irish culture alive here in the tropics. In addition, for those in the Irish music community, they've been the places to perform, to watch and listen, and gather for informal music sessions.  Now, they may go away forever.

All four are owned by Bill Comerford, an entrepreneur who also is the driving force behind Honolulu's epic St. Patrick's Day celebration.  But like so many other small bars and restaurants, the Great Pandemic of 2020 has effectively killed them.

Honolulu's response to the growing pandemic was to issue shut down orders to a lot of businesses, including nearly all that were part of the hospitality industry.  Comerford had to close the doors of all four pubs, and recently said that despite the closures, that mortgage and tax bills kept coming.  He did qualify for government loans under two emergency programs, but at his age and financial situation, and with no indication when, or even if the government would allow the pubs to re-open, he pragmatically decided that taking on debt of that magnitude was foolish.  He intimated that he was rapidly approaching a situation where closing the pubs permanently was his only option.

Comerford represents millions of other owners of small bar and restaurants across the country who are facing similar critical decisions.  Of all the non-human casualties of the Pandemic, this might be one of the most serious.

I don't have to tell you that the economy is a mess.  With businesses closed and workers laid off, governments are feeling the loss of the sales, business, and property tax revenue that municipalities need so desperately to survive.  We were told that a national debt of $20 trillion was unsustainable even for an economy the size of the United States.  Now, it looks like that debt may soar to as much as $30 trillion. Some states and cities are re-opening, but cautiously and in very limited ways.  Everyone fears that the return of commerce will cause a spike in COVID-19 cases, and subsequent deaths.  It's the kind of choice that puts America in God's little acre -- east of the rock, and west of the hard place.  Either re-start commerce, or watch our economy go the way of Greece.

Those are the big issues.  But buried here are the smaller, more personal losses.

A pub is not just a place to drink.  You could do that in your basement.  It's a place, usually a small one, where people gather to share with each other pieces of their lives.  There is a treasured kind of intimacy that exists in these places, something that a larger chain operation just can't provide.  You understand that this is a place where a person has rolled the dice on an economic risk.  We feel a kinship with those brave souls, and I think that's what gives such places that sense of warmth and shared experience. 

Humans are social animals; interaction is necessary to our mental and emotional health.  Pubs provide those places to gather, where laughter is common and hearts are lifted.  Most offer live music on a regular basis.  For the Four Irishmen of Honolulu, it was almost every night.  For the musicians of Honolulu's Irish community, the loss of those performance opportunities threatens their livelihood.  They are professional musicians first and foremost, so these closures hurt.  None of them have gotten independently wealthy doing this.  After all, the love for the traditional music of Ireland is their primary motivation.

I don't drink, for reasons I won't go into here.  But I do love a good time, and I share a passion for Irish music.  For those reasons, and a weakness for Diet Coke, I went to those pubs.  I made friends, and out of those evenings, I collected a boatload of good memories.  I miss those times.  I miss those people.  I miss the music.  And I miss that sense of community.

When the Pandemic really hit its stride in late February, nobody expected it to last very long, or have the impact that it's had.  Now, two months later, the curves of infection and death are flattening, but nobody knows if this thing is close to being over.  People who need to work and earn money are becoming frustrated and agitated, a groundswell of emotion that nobody knows what to do with.  It is clear that we can't risk giving COVID-19 a new launching point now that we're finally beating it back.  More ominously, nobody knows whether this is a one-and-done thing, or if the corona virus has moved in to stay.  What is becoming clear is that life on the other side of this Pandemic will be very different. 

The loss of humans to COVID-19 is tragic in a way almost impossible to articulate.  I know this, and I am in no way minimizing those deaths.  But the shredding of our social fabric may result in equally tragic long-term consequences.

So, I know that life has changed, perhaps permanently and what may be gone forever are these small business operations that simply couldn't survive an extended shutdown.  Yes, there will be the large chain restaurants and bars that may survive, although I don't see how one can go to a bar or restaurant, wear a mask, and stay six feet away from everyone else.  But there's something endearing about that neighborhood watering hole where, as the phrase goes, "everybody knows your name."  To lose those places risks the loss of that sense of community so endemic to them.  That place where friends could meet, lower their barriers and shields and just enjoy each other may be fading away before our eyes. And our hearts.

For those lovers of traditional Irish music, including this writer, the resulting silence will be deafening.

Random Thoughts That Sprang From Cabin Fever

Waikiki shut down tight.

Copyright © 2020

by Ralph F. Couey

Image and written material

Well, we're a month into the shut down, and from what I see on the news, the natives are getting restless.  There was an outbreak of demonstrations last week by people who have had their fill of cabin fever.  Of course, each gathering produced a spike in COVID-19 cases, to no one's surprise.  There have been many great things done through the force of the indomitable human will throughout history, but against this virus, will is not enough.  I'm reminded of a story of a band of Sioux who had been exposed to Smallpox.  The people were dying and the surviving warriors dressed in their battle gear and paint and rode around the camp daring the disease to come out and fight like a man.  People in general and Americans in particular have only so much patience with regards to what they consider their rights.  The demonstrations last week may prove to be only the tip of the iceberg of the national mood.  

I miss sports, more than I realized.  I have over the past month watched every minute of the Chief's Super Bowl season at least twice.  This week, I turned to YouTube and watched the Royal's 2015 championship post season games.  Twice already.  I realize that any meaningful baseball season is a wash at this point, but I'll be crushed if there's no NFL this fall.  In those halcyon days before the pandemic, sports was considered a diversion, at best.  Now I think many are finding out just how vital that excitement has been, and how desperately it will be missed.  ESPN has fallen to televising old national spelling bee contests, if that's any indication of how badly we need competition, even the vicarious variety.

I've watched a lot of Science Channel programming, especially one show called "How the Universe Works."  I enjoy watching and learning from eminent scientists in the field as they "dumb down" the extremely complex information to a simpler form that someone like myself can attempt to comprehend.  There has been several mentions of the star Betelgeuse, the upper left star in Orion, and what an interesting object it is.  Betelgeuse is in it's death throes, and is expected to explode into a supernova event, one that will be clearly visible to us on this planet, even in broad daylight.  (Sometime in the next thousand years or so.)  It would be the first time in human history that such an event would be witnessed this close.  If one can call 642 light years close.  Dr. Michelle Thaller, a frequent commentator in that program, talked of standing in her back yard, gaze turned upward, and saying, "Come on....explode!"  It's nice to know that people so intelligent and accomplished in their fields share with little ol' me the simple pleasure of looking into the night sky.

The Joy and Beauty of a Morning Walk

Dawn over Pearl Harbor

"Walking is the perfect way of moving

if you want to see into the life of things.

It is the one way of freedom.

if you go to a place on anything

but your own two feet, you are taken there too fast

and miss a thousand delicate joys 

that were waiting for you by the wayside."

--Elizibeth von Arnim

Copyright © 2020

by Ralph F. Couey

I love to walk. It is such a peaceful way to spend time, even when the reason for the exercise is cardiac health.  At one point in time I was running nearly every day, usually about 5 miles or so.  Then one day my doctor told me that if I didn't want to be in a wheelchair before age 70 that I'd better take up something less harmful to my joints.  I took up hiking, and over some five years, did about 200 miles of the Appalachian Trail.  It was more than exercise.  It was my time away from the world.  When we moved here to Hawai'i in August of 2019, much of my extra time became committed to caring for my 93-year-old mother-in-law who, while in excellent health physically, is suffering a steady inexorable degradation of her cognitive faculties.  Hiking requires an commitment of at least half a day, so I had to be satisfied with tours around the concrete jungle.  

One of my most common walks starts at home and heads up a 300-foot ascent to the top of Waimano Home Road which ends at secured gate to the State Health Department facility draped across the top of Waimano Ridge.  From there, the view is breath-taking, looking out across Pearl Harbor and Ford Island and the endless Pacific beyond.  No matter how many times I've been up there, it never ceases to amaze.  

This morning I left very early, just before sunrise.  I have to work tonight, as my "weekend" will end.  Hopefully, I will have tired myself out enough to sleep this afternoon.

It was very quiet this morning, the traffic still limited by the current set of stay home orders.  I've noticed, being out walking almost every day, that a lot of people have taken up this recreation, no doubt because exercise is one of the few exemptions allowed.  I can hear the steady tread of my shoes on the sidewalk, something only heard when things are very quiet.  Occasionally, I stray into the street as I encounter someone coming down the hill.  We smile and wave at each other, each knowing the real why we are out doing this so early.  Walking up that long hill, I see many more of the feral chickens that populate this part of O'ahu.  While the hens are generally drab, the roosters have brilliant plumage, those colors even more vibrant in the early morning light.  

Going Forward to a New Normal

HuffPost.com

Life is some days a bed of thorns, 

a puddle of mud, 

a pothole on a highway 

and it might deny you happiness 

but life is going to respond to your attitude 

and happiness is always a choice.

--RightMessages.com

Copyright © 2020

by Ralph F. Couey

Written content only

except quoted and cited portions.

There's a lot of noise these days about how the government is going to somehow get the economy and our lives back on track.  But as long as new cases of COVID-19 are appearing, and the deaths continue to mount, there will be a lot of resistance.  At the same time, everybody is wishing for "things to get back to normal" and a state of being where the word "pandemic" is not part of our daily vernacular.  

It's a laudable and desirable goal, but I think there's one thing that needs to be recognized and accepted.

We're not going back to normal.  We're going forward into a new normal.

I've thought a lot about this the past few days as the impacts of the stay-at-home orders, mandatory quarantines, and the cancellation of those social and sporting events that we now know we so desperately need.  Major League Baseball is bandying about a number of possibilities for this year, including holding all the games in the spring training complexes in and around Phoenix, Arizona in empty stadiums.  But you'd have to sequester the players for at least four months, away from family, friends, and any recreational diversions, and I just don't see the MLBPA signing off on that.  Other proposals include starting an abbreviated season late, and doing the playoffs and World Series in a neutral site like Florida or Arizona.  MLB would lose ticket revenue and would have to make do with only television revenue.  The NFL still intends to hold it's full season, starting in late August, but now the schedule has been expanded to 17 games and the playoffs enlarged by two additional wild card teams, which adds one more week to the tournament.  So, if they have to delay the start of the season, we might not see the Superbowl until late March or April.  The NCAA, NBA, and NHL are not speaking of this yet, since they have time before their respective seasons start.  All of this hinges on a return to normalcy.

But what if "normal" no longer exists?

Together, All Alone

WRCB TV Chattanooga, TN

Copyright © 2020

by Ralph F. Couey

Written content only

It was an odd-feeling weekend, to be sure.  The City and County of Honolulu announced a curfew for the Easter weekend, running from 11 pm to 5 am, which meant that everyone except essential personnel had to be off the streets.  I was fortunate to be off for three nights, taking the Good Friday state holiday on my Sunday.  I have to tell you though, I kinda wish I had gone to work anyway.  Kinda.

We stayed in the house, honoring the standing stay-at-home order issued previously.  I was able to get out to do my exercise, which was remarkably refreshing.  Easter Sunday, we viewed two services, one put on by our international church headquarters, and the other done by one of our local congregations.  There are some that claim that this will be the new paradigm for churches, going online instead of gathering in brick-and-mortar congregations.  It was a noble effort, but to be honest, it really fell short in the one critical area of religious life, fellowship.  I really haven't realized how important that is to our religious life.  We are a small congregation so by nature we are involved in each other's lives.  In a good way.  While it was good to see everyone online, my heart ached for human contact; the handshakes, the hugs, the ministry of presence that the members of a church community provide to each other.  We check in by phone often, but I miss the hugs, I miss the conversations, I miss the shared affection we have for each other.

Cheryl and I love each other, and really enjoy each other's company. But we miss the part of us that exists with our friends, and the sense of adventure of going somewhere new.  I, for one, will never again underestimate the importance of that.  We have each other, and we need each other.  But we also need everyone else, because for us, that's where life exists in its most joyful forms.  

Life in This New World

Cleveland.com

Copyright © 2020

by Ralph F. Couey

Written content only

Some hopeful news today.  Rates of new infections of the novel corona virus in China, Italy, and Germany appear to have peaked and are decreasing.  People in Wuhan, where this all started, have begun to return to work.  New York Governor Cuomo in his daily presser, using some of the most careful, cautious, and circumspect language ever to come from a politician, seemed to suggest that the curve in New York state was about to flatten and perhaps to decrease.  Other areas in the world, including most of the United States are still seeing increases.  But still, it seems that we might be about to turn the corner on this pandemic.  To quote Winston Churchill, "Now, this is not the end.  It is not even the beginning of the end.  But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning."   Make no mistake, there are still rough days ahead.  But that distant glimmer of light at the far end of this tunnel is beginning to be discernible.

We celebrated Palm Sunday today, marking the day when Jesus Christ entered Jerusalem on a colt, heading towards His penultimate confrontation with the Sanhedrin and Rome.  Of course, we did it via teleconference.  I have to tell you, it felt a little weird at first.  But when folks started checking in, the conversations started, and the sheer joy of people finding each other again made me ache for their physical presence.  Yes, I miss the hugs.

This experience is one of those paradigm-changing events in history.  Pearl Harbor, the Cuban Missile Crisis, 9/11 were all moments that forever changed us and our way of life.  A few days ago, I pondered whether we could recover emotionally from this, and that question still floats in my mind.  But I spent some time today considering how our lives will be permanently changed by our passage through this particular crucible.

I Miss Hugs

Daily Mail UK

"All I ever wanted was to reach out and touch another

human being, not just with my hands,

but with my heart."

--Tahereh Mafi

Copyright © 2020

by Ralph F. Couey

For most of us, we are in the second or third week of lockdown.  It's been long enough that some actually miss going to work.  As much as we like time off, the pandemic takes all the fun out of it.

The thing is, the mandatory stay-at-home order doesn't seem to be having any effect.  The virus is still spreading, people are still getting sick, and some are still dying.  Some of us are actively ignoring the  quarantine.  Over the weekend, Virginia governor Ralph Northam was so frustrated at the crowds that gathered at the state's beaches, that he shut them all down.  In some cities, the police are beginning to cite and/or arrest people who are daring to go out and gather.  For the more compliant among us, the novelty of being home is wearing off, and the walls are beginning to close in.

Cheryl and I are fortunate in that we are both still working, although her hours have been cut back.  Where I work, the whole Coronavirus thing is up front and center, a crisis that has become all-consuming.  I get to interact with my colleagues on a daily basis, and I'm beginning to appreciate what a valuable thing  that is.

But even with that, I know now that there are certain human interactions that are necessary to our emotional well-being.  The more I thought about it, I realized how much I've missed the simple handshake.

Passing the Empty Hours

Copyright © 2020

by Ralph F. Couey

So, almost everyone is stuck at home these days, by now bored silly.  Hence the myriad videos hitting social media of folks doing silly things in the attempt to maintain sanity.  Ironically, we can all recall moments at work when stressors were piled upon stressors and we fervently hoped for some unscheduled time off.  Now that we have it, many of us are longing for a return to work.  

A big part of that wistful yearning is the fact that nothing fun is open.  Theaters, fun stores, parks, museums, gyms, etc, all those places we used to while away our spare time are closed.  So, we're left to our own devices to entertain ourselves.  Jigsaw puzzles have become really popular, and now people can start a Monopoly game and actually have time to finish it -- provided all the players are at least six feet apart.

We went to Costco last week, actually twice.  We showed up about an hour before opening to see a line running around two sides of that massive building.  We got gas at a station that was nearly empty, probably a reflection that most people are driving way less than normal.  We came back about 12:30 to see no lines at all.  We walked in and were able to move around quite easily in a store that had way fewer people than normal.  True, the hot items -- wipes, nitrile gloves, cleaning solutions, and of course toilet paper were sold out, but we are still well supplied with those items.  All the food we were looking for were there, except for Cheryl's favorite oatmeal, and my favorite bottled water -- Propel.  

Reliving a Memorable Day

The familiar white blaize of

an Appalachian Trail marker

Copyright © 2020

by Ralph F. Couey

These are difficult times, and the constant consideration of them can lead to a darkening of one's mood.  Having had my fill of such contemplations, I spent some time today thinking back beyond all the sadness and uncertainty to a day that just might be described as one of those truly perfect moments.

We were living in Virginia at the time and because of the schedule I was working with FBI, I had two weekdays off.  One of those naturally was used up for errands and other tasks associated with the requirements of life.  The other one was all mine.

I had taken up hiking on the suggestion of my doctor that if I didn't want to be in a wheelchair by age 70 (much closer now than it was then) I should cease my daily runs and take up something much less impactful to my joints.  Having done my research, I discovered that the legendary Appalachian Trail ran through Virginia not too far from our home.  The trail ran through the state for some 550 miles, and I would, over five years, end up hiking about 200 of those miles.  I have clear and distinct memories of nearly all of those hikes, undertaken in all seasons and in a variety of weather conditions.  Collectively they remain some of the most cherished of the recollections which lie stored in my mind.

I suppose that, in a desire to seek out pleasant thoughts in the current unpleasantness, it was only natural that I would find myself back on that trail.

It was a lovely spring day.  The snow was long gone and the cold, musty air of winter had been replaced by the invigorating aroma of new life spread by the warm, gentle breezes.  I was full of anticipation as I drove west on US 50 to a place called Ashby's Gap, where the Appalachian ridges sloped down to a saddle through which the road passed.  To the north lay 14 miles of the challenging trail section known as the "roller coaster."  To the south, the trail passed through a state park and a wildlife conservation area.  This was my favorite stretch of the trail, a frequent choice for me.

Viewing History from the Inside Out

The Johns Hopkins counter as of 3:50 AM HST, March 24

Copyright © 2020

by Ralph F. Couey

At one point a few years ago, I was doing research for a paper on the Black Death, the name given to the pandemic of Bubonic Plague that swept through Asia and Europe in the 14th century.  I had read Barbara Tuchman's "Distant Mirror" and also searched through most of the online sources.  As I dug, I developed a kind of morbid fascination for that period, mainly through the individual stories of those who lived through that time.  The viewpoint from within that rolling disaster is necessarily different than the historical one, and I wanted to know what it was like to be there, watching the deadly events unfold.

Fast-forward to 2020, and now I'm living through a pandemic of my own.  When I wrote about this nine days ago, I was considerably more optimistic than I am now.  I assumed that people would be acting responsibly, but the horde of dumb kids swarming to spring break hotspots dispelled that notion.  Now, its being reported that some of those kids are testing positive for the Corona virus, a result that surprises no one except them.  

Here in Hawai'i, there are now 72 reported cases across the state and now the first death.  What is most disturbing is that for that first fatality, the virus wasn't discovered until after the patient died.  One has to assume that there are dozens, if not hundreds more who are infected but don't know because they are either asymptomatic or not yet presenting symptoms.  Individual counties began instituting stay-at-home orders (each major island is a county, by the way) one at a time.  Governor David Ige seemed reluctant to impose a state-wide lockdown, but once Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell issued his own order, Ige was forced into issuing the statewide lockdown order.  There are a lot of exceptions, such as necessary trips to replenish supplies and food, joggers and walkers, and those who are considered emergency essential which includes both Cheryl (a nurse) and I (state EMA employee).  

Surfing the Wave of Panic and Fear

Copyright © 2020

by Ralph F. Couey

First off, I want to express my heartfelt gratitude to you folks who come here to read these postings.  Especially now, I know there are multitudes of items and events competing for your attention and I appreciate that you choose to spend what little extra time you have reading this blog.  From the bottom of this writer's heart, I thank you.

I won't rehash the sequence of events leading to the global situation that now exists.  Certainly you have been informed, perhaps over-informed of what has happened.  In the last two weeks in the U.S., the coronavirus and it's associated illness, COVID-19, has expanded rapidly.  As of right now (00:55 HST), as I look at the Johns Hopkins dashboard, the only really accurate accounting by the way, the number of active cases are now 2,952 and 57 people have died, 40 of which are associated with the cluster at an elder care home in Kirkland, Washington.  The only U.S. state still reporting zero infections is West Virginia.  Globally, it seems that the outbreak has peaked in China and South Korea, thanks in large part to the draconian measures enacted by those governments.  Now that Italy has put in place a nation-wide lockdown, it appears that the number of new cases is beginning to flatten out.  

Coronavirus occurs in several forms, and has been around since about 8000 BCE.  In recent years, this family of virus has been responsible for both SARS and MERS, as well as the current COVID-19.  Digging into the statistics from CDC, you can find that nearly all of the illnesses, perhaps as much as 80%, result in either mild or completely asymptomatic (without symptoms).  The high-risk demographics are the elderly with underlying medical issues, and those with compromised immune systems.  Nearly all the deaths in the U.S. fall into these two descriptions.  The youngest person to die from COVID-19 was a 22-year-old who was an addicted vaper.  For those outside those categories, the risk is still very low.

Random Thoughts....

Copyright © 2020

by Ralph F. Couey

February 2nd is about a month in the rearview, but the glow of the Chief's victory in Super Bowl LIV has only slightly dimmed.  I even had a fellow (a 49er's fan, naturally) suggest that I should fast celebrating the win for Lent.  Fat Tuesday chance, that.  It's hard for fans of other teams to understand the dynamic of a half-century of waiting, while enduring a long and excruciating string of  playoff losses that could only have been scripted by Stephen King.  This one was special, and felt earned.  So, yeah...I'm gonna continue to celebrate.  At least until the Chief's fumble away Chris Jones.  Anyway...

Like most other folks, I and my colleagues at Hawai'i Emergency Management Agency, are carefully monitoring the spread of the Corona virus, and its associated illness, COVID-19.  While there are a number of people self-quarantining here, there has yet to be identified a single case here in Hawai'i.  Still, the people of the Aloha State are managing to indulge in their well-known ability to panic.  On the mainland, grocery store managers note that panic buying prior to dangerous winter storms spark runs on mainly three items, eggs, bread, and milk.  One wag noted that perhaps a Winter Storm Warning should more properly identified as "French Toast Alert."  Here, and other places in the mainland, the top three items have been toilet paper, cleaning supplies, and disinfectant wipes.  The latter two I can understand.  But the first one has me baffled.  Shelves at warehouse stores and other big box retailers have been swept clear of toilet tissue.  At a local Sam's Club, a semi truck full of TP was sold out in 12 minutes.  Retailers here have instituted rationing policies.  But the runs continue (pun unintended).  

Media outlets have been accused of over-hyping news stories.  This one may qualify.  When you look at comparative numbers...

Flu                1 billion cases worldwide, 450,000 deaths.  32 million cases U.S.  18,000 deaths 

COVID-19    91,000 cases worldwide, 3,118 deaths.  105 cases U.S. 6 deaths.

Winter's Chill

Copyright © 2020

by Ralph F. Couey

This essay is likely to cause a lot of heartburn among those of you suffering through your mainland winters,  Having grown up in the midwest, and suffering in the 18-degree cold at last year's AFC Championship game in Kansas City, rest assured I do feel your pain.

Winter has come to Hawai'i.  Atop the world's largest volcano, Mauna Loa and its nearby sister Mauna Kea, about twelve inches of snow have fallen.  This makes for some unforgettable views, as most snow-capped mountains do.  Here in Honolulu, nighttime temperatures are falling through the low 60's.  Local people are going around in long pants, coats and hoodies, and have even eschewed the traditional flip-flop for actual shoes.  Now, before you all go into your eye-rolling, groaning, castigation of us islanders, allow me to explain.

Living in the tropics is an entirely different experience.  Because we are 1,600 miles closer to the equator, the sun's rays are far more direct than in the higher latitudes.  This means even on a day when the temperatures creep into the 90's, it can feel 10 or 15 degrees warmer.  And on those days when the trade winds shift or die completely, it is downright sweatily oppressive.  Living in such conditions, over time (at least a year), the pores of your skin open much wider, responding to the need for the body to cool itself.  I know it gets hot, humid, and oppressive in many places on the mainland, but there, those conditions last only three months, in some places maybe four.  Here, those kind of days persist for 9 to 10 months.  If you spend enough time here, you will lose all your tolerance for even moderately cool temperatures. 

Growing up in the midwest, my comfort zone, my wheelhouse was about 68 to 78 degrees.  For me, that was very comfortable, as long as the humidity was low as well.  But even in mid-January, I remember playing outdoors in shorts and t-shirt when the temperatures "soared" to 55 degrees.  My poor mother consistently upbraided me for under-dressing during the winter.

Victory!!! and Vindication

Damien Williams slams the door.

Fox Sports

Copyright © 2020

by Ralph F. Couey

There was a moment Sunday afternoon (here in Hawai'i) when realization struck with the force of the Chicxulub Impactor.  The Kansas City Chiefs, after 50 years of bitter disappointments were about to win the Super Bowl.  Just minutes before, it seemed that the game was virtually over.  Patrick Mahomes had just thrown his second interception.  The 49ers were up by 10 with about seven minutes left in the game.  With other teams in other times, that might have been the signal to turn off the television and go do something else.  But my wife and I just settled back on the couch, both of us wearing that smug little "I-know-something-you-don't-know" smile, and just waited for the magic to happen.  In five and a half minutes, Mahomes and the Chiefs put up three touchdowns and stopped the San Francisco offense.  What had been a 10 point deficit suddenly became a four point lead.  Then Damien Williams, following Anthony Sherman around the left side, broke loose for a 38-yard sprint that sealed the game.  Suddenly, the belief became reality.  With one final 60-yard heave by Mahomes, the clock ran out, the confetti erupted, and the Kansas City Chiefs became World Champions of Professional Football.

I've spent the past three days trying to collect my thoughts.  One part of me seems to be locked in a dream-like state, not completely trusting the truth of what has happened.  I find myself asking over and over, "Did that really happen?"

But now in the early hours of Wednesday, I can finally cast aside the clouds of dreams and fully embrace the bright and shiny truth.  

Waiting...And Hoping...And Agonizing

Copyright © 2020

by Ralph F. Couey

It's 3:10 on a Thursday morning and I'm at work.  Eating lunch, by the way.  The world is fairly quiet, although everyone here in Hawai'i is keeping a close eye on the progress of the Corona Virus.  In three days, I will be parked in front of my television nervously waiting to see how the first Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl in a half-century will play out.  

Sometime, somewhere on a battlefield, some grizzled old soldier opined, "The worst part of a battle is waiting for it to begin."  Anyone who has been in combat knows what that means. Once the battle is joined, you know what to do, and in a way, what to expect.  Waiting, however, is empty time when a person's mind is given free rein to entertain all the possibilities, both the good and bad.  I understand that this is just a football game (albeit a very important one) and nobody is going to die.  Nevertheless, as the days count down, I am nervously exploring all the outcomes that could happen.  You have to understand that, as Chiefs fans, we must prepare emotionally for the worst.  This team's playoff history is a long list of unbelievable ways to lose a football game.  Now we find ourselves on the brink of the biggest contest in 50 years, still haunted by those memories.

As the two teams have been compared by experts, it's amazing how the interplay of strengths and weaknesses render the 49ers and Chiefs remarkably even.  The Chiefs are favored, but only by a point-and-a-half, a razor-thin margin that reflects the universal analyses.  I won't go over those discussions here, but there is a wild card, the one player upon whom the final score will turn.

Patrick Mahomes II is...indescribably good at what he does.  He has a cannon for an arm that gives him the ability to put a ball on a dime 40 or 50 yards downfield.  And if all the receivers are covered, he turns to his feet.  In the last month, the world has watched as he brought his team back from a 24 point deficit with seven consecutive touchdowns. A week later, he brought them back from a 10 point lag to a decisive victory.  Clearly, no lead is safe.  It would be easy to assume that the magic will happen again, and after 60 minutes of hard, bruising football, the Chiefs will hoist the Lombardi Trophy into the warm Miami sky.  

Dreams and Destiny

Kansascity.com

Copyright © 2020

by Ralph F. Couey

Well, it's finally happened.  And as far as anybody knows, as cold as it was today at Arrowhead, Hell didn't freeze over.  The Kansas City Chiefs after 50 years of epically bitter disappointments are going to the Super Bowl.  I look at those words and I think back to this game, and what I feel is a patent sense of unreality, as if I could suddenly wake up and discover that it was all a dream.  But it wasn't a dream.  It actually happened. In two weeks, the Chiefs will climb into the ring with the San Francisco 49ers for a knock-down drag-out to decide which team will wear the crown.

In my last post, I wrote about how difficult its been to be a Chiefs fan over the years. There have been some pretty good teams, a few dominant ones, and several biblically horrible teams.  Along the way there have been playoff losses that simply defied rational explanation.  For the fans, it has been five decades of waiting.  Now the waiting is over.

I know that in a few days, the shock will wear off and I will embrace the reality.  I think we were all emotionally ready for the worst while hoping for the best.  Now comes the two weeks of building anticipation until the big day.  I haven't thought much about the Chiefs opponent except the feeling that given what has happened in the past two games, that even if behind, there's no safe lead against this team.  I know that Garoppolo and company are an excellent team with their own sets of assets and weapons.  But as foolish as the term may sound, I feel that this version of the Chiefs have a destiny.

And that destiny will be fulfilled.

The Mental Illness of Being a Chiefs Fan

© 2020 Yahoo Sports

Copyright © 2020

by Ralph F. Couey

I've resisted the temptation to write about my team, the Kansas City Chiefs, mainly because like the now-famous Chiefs fan Bad Luck Chuck (who fled Arrowhead with the Chiefs down 24-0 because he was convinced he had jinxed them) I'm reluctant to tweak the forces of fate.  Especially with a trip to the Super Bowl for the first time in 50 years on the line.  

I get that this sounds highly irrational.  And it probably is.  But you need to have experienced the unique heartbreak that is a part of every Chiefs fan.  One example of dark humor -- Do you know how a medical examiner knows that there's a Chiefs fan on their table?  Callous around the heart.  When your team loses after gaining a 28-point lead in one game, or loses another when the enemy quarterback throws a touchdown pass...to himself...well, you get the idea.  When you're balanced on the edge of a razor blade, you tend to not want to rock the boat.

The thing is, this is a different Chiefs team, one with no residual memory of the past.  Their epic comeback last week demonstrates clearly that they are unburdened by any other thought than the absolute certainty that whatever the game, whatever the situation, they can and will win.  While the million or so members of Chiefs Nation remain on tenterhooks, the 53 men who really matter in this equation reside comfortably in the beachhouse of absolute confidence.

There is no foolish arrogance here.  They know all about that human bulldozer the world knows as Derrick Henry.  They are also aware that the last time these teams met, the Chiefs came up short.  But they also know that six of their starters were sidelined with injuries.  Their quarterback, the reigning MVP, was in his first game back after a gruesome knee injury and was just a little bit tentative.  Now, everyone's healthy, except for Chris Jones (still unknown if he'll play) and Travis Kelce (tweaked hammy).  Oh yeah, and Juan Thornhill who's gone for the year.  But even with those deficits, this team is playing better than it has all year, and it can be argued, better even than last year.  The defense is now one of the best in the NFL, and suddenly the task of containing Henry seems less insurmountable.  If that happens, and the Chiefs offense races to an early big lead, than the Titans have to start throwing the ball, a task at which they are distinctly ordinary.  Vegas installed the Chiefs as a 7.5 point favorite, which in a playoff game is outrageously confident.  That in itself kind of bodes unwell, since the Chiefs have a regrettable tendency to shorten those odds on game day.  

We'll Always Have Tatooine

Poster from the first movie

© 1976 Lucasfilm

Copyright © 2020

by Ralph F. Couey

There had been nothing like it before, and a long time will pass before there'll be anything like it again.  Almost 44 years ago on May 25, 1977, a different kind of movie landed in theaters across the land.  It was called Star Wars, a space opera that took place "A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away."  The story had been brought to life by George Lucas, a bespectacled filmmaker whose claim to fame was the nostalgia-inducing "American Graffiti."  Foiled in trying to bring Flash Gordon to the big screen, he essentially created an entirely new universe, complete with heroes, villains, alien planetscapes and their indigenous creatures.  The special effects were spectacular in an age when most studios were still hanging cardboard models from wires.  

Mostly though, it was the story.  1977 was one of those years that filled a gap between other, more rambunctious times.  The year before had been the bicentennial. Before that were the years of Watergate and the final humiliating retreat from Vietnam.  1977 was the beginning of a wildly inflational economy that eventually led to the spiritual malaise of the Carter years, partially obscured by the glitzy disco era..  In some ways, Star Wars was the event that injected air back into the social, cultural, and political vacuum.  

To say that Star Wars captured the imagination is to wallow in understatement.  People not only went once to see the film, but multiple times.  Including your humble correspondent who is only a little embarrassed to admit seeing the movie (by count) some 23 times.  While it was in the theaters.  Most importantly, the film brought hope to a time mired in hopelessness.  It showed us that heroes could be anyone, even an orphaned boy on a remote desert planet.

Honoring Those Who Stood and Fought

Part of the role of honor,

USS Arizona Memorial

Copyright © 2020

by Ralph F. Couey

There are places in the world where great battles were fought and people died.  These places are visited by those who came after, seeking a connection to the past. Almost always in these places there exists an air of respectful silence, almost as if people were listening for the sounds of voices from the departed.  Gettysburg is such a place, as is the Flight 93 National Monument.  But the place where I've heard that loud silence clearest is aboard the USS Arizona Memorial in Pearl Harbor.

Arizona was the thirty-ninth battleship constructed for the U. S. Navy.  Her keel was laid down in March 2013 and the ship was launched about a year later.  Her main battery consisted of twelve 14-inch guns allotted to four triple turrets.  She weighed in at just under 30,000 tons and had a top speed of 21 knots.  Arizona was modified in 1929 and by 1941 was one of the most powerful ships afloat, a full member of the battleline of the U.S. Pacific Fleet.  Had she ever been called upon to perform her designed function, there is little doubt that she and her crew would have comported themselves admirably.  

Warships are designed to put to sea and stay there for extended periods of time.  There they are maneuverable and able to take the fight to whatever enemy presents itself.  But for Arizona and her steel-clad sisters, their first action caught them tied to a quay, boilers cold, guns silent.  

On a bright, sunny, and peaceful Sunday morning in early December 1941, 340 Japanese carrier aircraft broke the quiet of that morning.  At 7:55 AM, they swung into their attacks.  Within minutes, eight battleships and numerous other vessels were sinking and burning.  In those first few minutes, 10 Japanese bombers flew over Battleship 39.  They were carrying armor-piercing shells weighing some 1,800 pounds converted for air drops.  Arizona was hit by four bombs, the first three doing slight damage.  The fourth hit the ship on the starboard side beside turret number one.  What happened next is still open to conjecture.  The popular notion is that the bomb penetrated the armor deck near turret 2 and detonated in a space where black powder was stored, contrary to regulations.  There are other suppositions, but what was important was the result.  Seven seconds after the shell hit, Arizona erupted in an explosion that could only be called volcanic.  The ship rose in the water, broke in half, and sank immediately.  She burned for two days.

Two Weeks in the Grandchildren Zone

Copyright © 2019

by Ralph F. Couey

For someone neck-deep into the later years of life, there is usually a kind of mundane sameness to each day.  We have our routines, constructed around the things we have to do along with a little time for what we like to do.  Day after day, the calendar ticks along, the days passing all too quickly, like posts flashing past the windows of a speeding car.  There is a kind of grayness to that existence.  Then, one day grandchildren show up.

They burst into the house, bringing a most wonderful noise with them.  They smile big, and come at you with arms wide, ready for that first great big hug.  They're all full of news about where they've been, what they've been doing...little lives full of really big things.

The first thing you notice is that they grow.  Rapidly.  Too rapidly.  They're taller, their speech more sophisticated.  For the older ones, you begin to see the beginnings of that descent into madness we have come to know...and remember...as adolescence.  But it's all new stuff wrapped up into special lives that you know you can never live without.  One of the wonderful things that I've come to realize is to recognize that these are lives for whom the story has yet to be written.  I have to admit that there are days when I feel tired and used up.  But spending even a few minutes with my grandchildren, I realize that there is still so much life yet to be lived.  

You see, because of my long perspective, I see a world where people choose to divide themselves based on blind obeisance to party politics.  I see a world where violent crime and senseless acts become more common.  I see a world spiraling down into some kind of suicidal black hole.  But even a few minutes with grandchildren, and I realize that in these young lives hope survives.  In their presence, I believe that the world can survive; that things can be better if for no other reason than they can make it happen.

When Did I Get So Old???

"My face carries all my memories.

Why would I erase them?

--Diane Von Furstenberg

Copyright © 2019

by Ralph F. Couey

It's kind of funny that we can be so consumed by the requirements of each individual day that we can become blind to the larger passage of time.  When we finally recognize that particular albatross, it is a moment of shock, and at times, dismay.  Usually we confront that moment when we see people we once knew as children who are now full-grown adults.  Also for sports fans, when we attend an Old Timers Day and we see athletes we remember as young, strong, and graceful who now are gray, bent, and shuffling.  Of course, we never, ever think that such a deterioration is happening to us.

Last week, in anticipation of my grandson's birthday, I recorded a video in which I sang "Happy Birthday" (didn't pay the royalty) and wished him best wishes for the day.  I attached the video to a text message and prepared to send it to his parents.  (Ain't the 21st Century grand?)  Before sending, I reviewed the recording.  I was shocked.  The face that smiled back at me from my phone was....old!  The skin hung loosely off the cheeks and jowls. The eyes were almost lost in folds of wrinkles that I swear hadn't been there yesterday.  My smile turned my forehead into something which resembled a topographical map of the Appalachians.  Even my earlobes seemed to have gotten longer.  Atop it all was a roof of silver hair within which all traces of the original color had somehow vanished.  What had once been a youthful visage had now surrendered to Father Time.

Being Thankful

Copyright © 2019

by Ralph F. Couey

Written content only

Thanksgiving is one of those unique American holidays, and while the traditional foods and activities are firmly established, the origins of some of those traditions is shrouded in historical ambiguity.  That being said, as everyone gathers around the table today, none of that will matter.

The traditional first Thanksgiving was celebrated by the Pilgrims at Plymouth Colony in what would eventually be Massachusetts.  The colony had undergone a terrible trial in trying to establish their community in this new, but raw land.  When that first harvest came in, for really the first time, the colonists were able to eat a full meal.  This was something worth celebrating.

For a lot of our history, American was agrarian in nature.  Before industry took hold, it was the basis for the economy.  Anyone who's been a farmer or known one also knows how chancy that industry is.  There has to be a last frost early enough to allow the soil to be turned in time for planting.  There has to be sufficient rainfall, but a minimum of crop-destroying severe storms (hail, in particular).  There absolutely cannot be invasions of pests or locusts or grasshoppers, as farmers in the Dakotas would find out in the 19th century.  As summer wanes, there is the desperate race to get the harvest in and stored before the first plant-killing frost.  For the farmer, summer was four or five months of very long days, short nights, and constant worry about the immediate future.  Back then, if your crops were destroyed, there was no grocery store to back you up.  A successful harvest meant one thing:  Survival.