The Mental Enema Theory of Vacations

The number of unfinished journals I have is depressing. The best I ever did was a daily blog of the first (?) 1,000 days of the COVID-19 pandemic. The journals I try to keep in ink tend to dwindle after a week or two. Part of that is not wanting Spouse to inquire as to what I am writing. He tends not to ask about anything I'm typing, likely figuring it to be an email to someone or, just maybe, a blog post that he likely won't read (I'm not sure he even knows how to get to my blog let alone that I've started it up again). Just as I never wanted Older Brother to read my youthful diaries, I'd rather not share personal journals with Spouse. Anything I type here I recognize will be public.

Lengthy explanation aside, I recently came across a page dated May 14, 2014. If there were subsequent pages, they ended up filed elsewhere. This post was from the day on which Spouse and I set out for a gathering of what I call my Internet Quilt Guild. At that time, we tried to gather every two years, and the 2014 gathering was in Perth, Western Australia. In the post in question, I noted that I had obtained a copy of People magazine "to provide the mental enema I need to empty my mind of everyday routine and (get) ready to enjoy vacation." This is a reference to the Mental Enema Theory of Vacations I developed over several trips to scuba diving vacations in the Bahamas. On those trips, I took books such as Rock Hudson: His Story by Rock Hudson and Sara Davidson, Larry Hagman: A Biography by Leon Adams, Nancy Reagan: The Unauthorized Biography by Kitty Kelley, Vanna Speaks by Vanna White and Patricia Romanowski, and Mr. T: The Man with the Gold: An Autobiography by (who else?) Mr. T. (To this day, I admire Mr. T for working two colons into one title.)

I limited such books to one per trip, and had to start them on the outbound trip. I seem to remember finishing each of them before we arrived in the Bahamas, though the Nancy Reagan one may have taken longer. When asked by colleagues and friends why I read such books, I explained my Mental Enema Theory of Vacations. To enjoy a vacation fully, it should be entered with a mind bereft of work or home concerns, things one should have done before leaving, or things one should do on returning. Reading a book such as those listed above empties the mind of anything remotely serious, preparing it to be filled with vacation joy. 

After 2014, I evidently forgot about all this, though I don't think it had too detrimental an impact on any of the trips we took. That suggests further research into this theory is needed. Stay tuned for a more complete report. 

The Road goes ever on and on ... Day 214 (714)

The Road goes ever on and on, as does the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Negotiations are beginning, though I'm not sure they will be successful. It appears that Russia will not treat negotiations as a cease-fire. Pandemic news continues to take a backseat, though there is usually less out there on weekends in the first place. 

Emergency room visits for eating disorders among girls ages 12 through 17 have doubled during the pandemic. As might be expected, covid was the cause of most emergency visits by children, though emergency room visits in general have gone down for children. Visits in 2020 were 21 percent down from 2019; visits in 2021 were also down relative to 2019 but only by eight percent. The reasons for emergency visits changed a lot over the years of the pandemic. Mental health was cited as the reason 24 percent more often for children ages five through 11 and 31 percent more for those ages 12 through 17. Besides eating disorders depression and obsessive-compulsive disorder also accounted for a large share of visits by teenage girls. 

Two new studies, not yet peer-reviewed, report that the coronavirus was likely present in live mammals sold in Hunan Seafood Wholesale Market in Wuhan in late 2019. Some outside scientists remain unconvinced, though. They say there is no direct evidence in support of the market claim, saying the quality of data was insufficient to have confidence in the market-origin theory.

South Korea just had its deadliest pandemic day yet. There are 634 patients hospitalized in severe or critical condition, up from 408 one week earlier. Eighty-six percent of people are vaccinated, but there was still a 201 percent increase in the average number of daily cases over the past two weeks. Hong Kong was taking children, even toddlers, who tested positive away from their parents and put in isolation. The are now allowing some children to stay with their parents. 

March looms and, with it, the second anniversary of WHO's declaration of a global pandemic. It's been a helluva two years. In that time, while I have eaten restaurant food, I have not done so inside a restaurant. While I have visited drugstores for vaccinations (flu and shingles), I have not been inside a grocery or department store. I walked through an indoor shopping mall but only to the storefront being used for covid shots. I have taken care of doctor and dentist visits in the time since my second dose of vaccine. In the same time period, I have gone back to getting my hair trimmed regularly--both my stylist and I wear masks--but have not gotten a pedicure or manicure. Makes me wonder what the next two years will be like.