The View from the Hermitage, Day 346

What could knock the pandemic and politics off the front page? Tiger Woods. CNN's New Day this morning led with the Woods story in a feature that lasted a nontrivial amount of time. Perhaps it was their way of fighting pandemic fatigue or political overload. The accident was certainly a newsworthy event, but I think they may have overdone it a bit. I have to say that his career as a professional golfer may well be over. Yes, he came back from playing 18 holes on a broken leg (two stress fractures) as well as from various back issues, but this may be too much for him at age 45 or thereabouts to overcome. He does have mental strength going for him. He, as most athletes of his caliber, knows his body intimately and what it is capable of doing. Will he push himself too hard? Probably at least once, but that's to be expected. I wonder if it will be the lead story again tomorrow. 

The governor is relaxing some of the restrictions he imposed to deal with the post-holiday surges in covid case numbers. He's getting rid of the midnight to 5:00 am stay-at-home curfew and letting bars and restaurants sell alcohol until midnight, when they must close. Outdoor gatherings can now have up to 25 people; indoor gatherings will stay at 10. Outdoor venues can now have 1,000 people or 30 percent of the capacity, whichever is less. These are go into effect March 1 and will stay in effect for a month. If things have continued to improve, they'll be lessened even more. 

The FDA says that the Johnson & Johnson one-shot vaccine was safe and effective  in trials; the drug may be approved for use as early as next week. Its percent effectiveness is a bit lower than the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines currently being given, but it is 85 percent effective at preventing severe cases of covid-19. Perhaps just as important if not more, it can be stored under common refrigeration. It will not require a freezer of any kind. 

The local university is not having its usual week-long spring break; it is instead giving four single-day breaks spread throughout the semester. I know of several other universities doing the same. Still, there is concern over spring break and whether beaches could turn out to be super-spreaders. I would say that there is no wondering needed; if young people gather in the numbers they usually do, there will be super-spreading going on. Apart from spring break, there is concern that variants could lead to another surge in the coming weeks. We're not out of the covid woods yet and won't be for some time, especially not if don't start getting vaccines to developing countries. I don't even want to think about the US turning into a fortress to keep the unvaccinated masses at  bay. 

Other randomosities I found interesting. Someone is marketing a Ted Cruz pinata. (I'm sure someone can comment on how to type a n with a tilde.) The University of Michigan shut down a campus library for two days after discovering venomous Mediterranean recluse spiders in the basement. These spiders are cousins of the brown recluse spiders we have around here but even more reclusive. The university now says it over-reacted and closing the building was not necessary. The Perseverance rover's parachute contained a secret message written in binary code: Dare mighty things. A Czech free diver set a new record by swimming 266 feet under ice, holding his breath for 2 minutes and 42 seconds. He did this wearing only swim trunks and goggles. Since I know you're wondering, the water was 37F.

Finally, I found another pandemic recipe to add to the regular rotation. I made Oven-Roasted Asparagus last night to go with broiled salmon and rice. The link will take you to the recipe. If you like asparagus and are not allergic to garlic, you'll probably like this recipe. (It could easily be made without garlic.)