The Big Quarantine – Wednesday, April, 8, 2020
The Day in Tasks: I think a lot of us realize the things we were absolutely going to do while we were stuck at home aren’t exactly getting done. Today I got to one. I organized all my tax papers and made a shred pile. Exhausting!!! (Not really. I had most of it organized, I just am behind in my shredding…I’m sure my stuck-at-home-wall-neighbor will be thrilled to hear me fire up the shredder.)
Funny generational thing. I save tax return info for 10 years since it doesn’t take up much space. But I also save general receipts for one year. Being in charge of my Mom’s finances, I also save her receipts for one year. She pays almost every bill with a check. I hardly ever write a check. Her pile of paper receipts is significantly bulkier than mine. We certainly aren’t a paperless society as futurists once promised us, but some aspects of our lives are living up to that promise.
The Day in Aw!: In the mail today, I got an business sized, personally addressed envelope, that looked a lot like a letter. The envelope had three stamps and I thought, wow, my friend has a lot to say. As much as I was looking forward to reading a multi-page treatise on my friend’s life, I was just as happy to see the envelope contained a properly sewn facial mask.
On top of that, another friend had masks made for me and also my Mom and she texted me to say they are on the way. My Kroger trip this week for Cookie just got a less anxious. Thanks friends!!
The Day in Pantry Triggers: A lot has been written about why the country appears to be having a toilet paper shortage (we’re not, really, we’re not). The anxiety of running out of something you use every day is real, though. While I think I’m fine on toilet paper, I’m practically irrational on the amount of coffee, eggs, and flour I have on hand. One unopened bag of coffee is not enough. One untouched carton of eggs is not enough. Just one unopened bag of flour? What am I running here? A flop house? No. This is supposed to be a fully functioning abode. I won’t feel relaxed until I can have two of everything on reserve. What are your pantry triggers?
The Day in Smashing: I was looking for something summery and light to eat for dinner tonight and came across this no-recipe, recipe for Smashed Chickpea Salad. I really liked it.
Say, you’re like me and you bought a can of chickpeas and you forget you don’t have tahini paste to make hummus. Now what? Make this salad, that’s what.
Give a can of chickpeas a messy mash – chunky style. Then start adding the things:
- Something briny/acidic: The recipe says – capers, pepperoncini, half-sour pickles; when all else fails, a lot of lemon juice does the trick. I used some cut up house pickles that I bought from Boomtown Biscuits.*
- Something punchy/sharp: The recipe says – sliced scallions, grated garlic, flaked smoked trout, harissa, almost-too-many red pepper flakes—the goal is to add flavor! I used harissa, because I have it and every time I use it I feel like a full-fledged member of the culinary world. Also, If I had some green onions, I would have added some.
- Something creamy/rich: The recipe says – a good dollop of Greek yogurt, tahini, organic mayo, Dijon mustard, leftover green goddess or tahini ranch; add in a drizzle of olive oil or an additional spoonful of your chosen creamy condiment if things look dry. I used a couple dollops of plain regular yogurt.
Stir it around. Adjust the seasonings. Eat it. It can be stuffed in a pita or placed lovingly on crackers. This is a keeper.
*Hey, pickles. I haven’t mentioned pickles in like 24-hours.
The Day in Blue Skies: How about a metaphor for better times ahead? I sweated and cussed over the sky portion of this puzzle for the last 9 days. From here on out, this puzzle, and heck, this Corona confinement should be a breeze.
Here’s a link to Ella Fitzgerald singing a very jazzy version of Blue Skies which I encourage you to listen to as your feel good song of the day! (Oh, non-jazz fans…Here’s Frank Sinatra’s nice and a wee bit less jazzy version.)
The Day in Miniatures: Ducks in a row-ish. Don’t pressure the ducks during this tense time!
Covid 19 Info
If you want to help local bars and restaurant and their workers, please check out the links below:
Pleasantry OTR and Allez Bakery: Buy a meal for a healthcare worker
Restaurant Workers Relief Program: https://leeinitiative.org/
This organization needs funds and donations to keep feeding furloughed restaurant workers for the Restaurant Workers Relief Program. All donations go right back to the restaurants in your city that are feeding people in need.
We need supplies: diapers, baby food, tampons, toilet paper, canned food, and shelf stable food.
We can only buy in limited amounts so we need you to help us
Please order online at @amazon @target @walmart @instacart @meijerstores or any delivery service, buy supplies through your account and ship it to the local restaurant that is giving in your city.
𝗟𝗼𝘂𝗶𝘀𝘃𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗲- @610magnolia 610 W Magnolia Ave, Louisville KY 40208
𝗗𝗖 – @succotashrestaurant 915 F St NW, Washington DC, 20004
𝗟𝗼𝘀 𝗔𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗹𝗲𝘀 – @chispacca 6610 Melrose Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90038
𝗦𝗲𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗹𝗲 – @salareseattle 2404 NE 65th St, Seattle, WA 98115
𝗖𝗵𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗴𝗼 – @bigstarchicago 1531 N Damen Ave, Chicago, IL 60622
𝗗𝗲𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿 – @eatwithsafta 3330 Brighton Blvd #201, Denver, CO 80216
𝗕𝗿𝗼𝗼𝗸𝗹𝘆𝗻 – @olmstednyc 659 Vanderbilt Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11238
𝗕𝗿𝗼𝗼𝗸𝗹𝘆𝗻 – @gertienyc 357 Grand St, Brooklyn, NY 11211
𝗖𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶 – @mitascincy 501 Race St, Cincinnati, OH 45202
𝗔𝘁𝗹𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗮 – @restauranteugeneatl 2277 Peachtree Rd NE, Atlanta, GA 30309
𝗟𝗲𝘅𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘁𝗼𝗻, 𝗞𝗬 – @greatbagel’s 3650 Boston Rd #108, Lexington, KY 40514
𝗡𝗲𝘄 𝗢𝗿𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗻𝘀 – @cochon_nola 930 Tchoupitoulas St, New Orleans, LA 70130
CDC – Cases in the United States
Updated April 8, 2020
These numbers are updated regularly at noon Mondays through Fridays. Numbers close out at 4 p.m. the day before reporting.
- Total cases: 395,011
- Total deaths: 12,754
- Jurisdictions reporting cases: 54 (50 states, District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam, and US Virgin Islands)
* Data include both confirmed and presumptive positive cases of COVID-19 reported to CDC or tested at CDC since January 21, 2020, with the exception of testing results for persons repatriated to the United States from Wuhan, China and Japan. State and local public health departments are now testing and publicly reporting their cases. In the event of a discrepancy between CDC cases and cases reported by state and local public health officials, data reported by states should be considered the most up to date.
