Alan Skeoch

Year: 2020

  • Day 7 COVID 19 PANDEMIC MARCH 19, 2020

    Day 7   COVID 19  PANDEMIC    MARCH 19, 2020


    alan skeoch

    1 ) Borders closing all around he world.  American government said “Stay home” .  If you decide
    to travel after today then you cannot expect help to get back. Same message applies to us I imagine.

    2) Italian deaths from COVID 19 now higher than deaths in  China.   Iran also in terrible shape asking
    UN for help.  

    3) Some Cruise ships still cannot find  ports to disembark passengers.  Reminds me of descriptions
    of Europe during the Balck Death Plague long ago.

    4)  Please take a close look at Trump.  I feel he has  lost control.  Seems stunned.
    Comments are hard  to understand.  Turns to VP Pence often  (and VP Pence blathered in a cover up manner today).
    This is hard for me to say BUT WHO IS IN CONTROL?   I hope I am wrong. 

    5)  Also The blame game has started…
    China and USA…lies and  counter lies.  Obvious the virus
    came from that wild foods market in Hunan…but whisper campaign
    blames the US Army…imagine that…lies and counter lies. A terrible situation.
    I only became aware of the virus when the Chinese gov’t began construction of those instant hospitals.  Someone
    must have known a disaster was unfolding.

    6)  THERE are only 2.8 hospital beds  for every thousand people in the United States. Not nearly enough.
    One solution that makes sense is the conversion of big hotels into temporary hospitals…that
    idea may sound obvious but no doubt there are big problems.  Then the big cruise ship owners offered
    their ships as hospitals.  Not a bad idea, providing there is a port city.


    8) Did I really correctly read that Trump is placing responsibilities for recovery from COVID 19 on the American States?  i.e. “I am not a clerk”

    9) Apparently the federal government knew the USA could not handle a pandemic in a report received more
    than a year ago.  Did Trump eviscerate America?

    10)   Now,what you have been waiting for…
    LOST in Paradise…Patricia and Dave
    (for new recipients of this journal, Patricia and Dave are two Canadians currently stranded on tip of Florida…i.e.Lost in Paradise)

    “Look at that Dave.”
    “Yep, birds have wings but we do not.”
    “Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden.”
    “That comment is pushing it a bit.”


    (Patricia and Dave hope to catch the last flight to Canada at the end of March.  Their backup plan
    is to buy a wreck and drive it to Canada….a flight like was done in Grapes of Wrath.
    (This is the new owner of their boat which will be left behind)

    FLASHBACK:  OTHER DARK TIMES

    7)  THE closest similar event that Marjorie and I faced was years ago
    when the Soviet Union collapsed and our son Kevin was teaching in Slovakia at a teachers wage
    of $125 per month and initially lodged in a jail cell in  Bratislava.  The Slovaks had been hit hard
    with a double whammy…the fall of  the Soviet Union…and the split of the Czechoslovak Republic.
    Slovakia was in a state of near economic collapse which became apparent when Marjorie and I
    paid a visit on our March break in Canada.  Perhaps best described in first person.



    Now Imagine it is  dark,  mid-March …no leaves, no grass…bleak….with an unmarked winery beyond the church…cobbled street…suspicious faces.

    “Dad, we  have arranged a party in a Slovak winery outside of town.”
    “Who is ‘we’?”
    “All of the American School volunteers.”
    (Actually all were getting $125 per month to cover living expenses but nothing else…and even
    that amount was tough on the Slovaks.)
    “We have hired drivers to get us there.”
    “No street signs…no bill boards…no street lights…night time…not many people
    around.  These villages seem deserted.  Ancient villages with front doors right
    at the roadways.  Everything is rather gloomy, Marjorie.  Dark”
    “Here  we are dad.”
    “Nothing here…just a couple of barns and some houses.”
    “The barn is the winery…you’ll see.”
    “Pssst. Alan, this does not look good.”
    “Why?”
    “No sign…no light…a bit run down…scary.”
    “Mom,  I know what you are thinking, don’t worry,  Slovakia has adjusted to communism. Their ways.”
    ( And we descended into a vaulted cellar lined with wine casks and people)
    “Welcome, welcome,  your dinner is ready…bottles of wine at each table…more if you want.”
    “Dad, in your honour, they have brought in musicians in traditional  dress.”
    (Our group of about 12 or 13 young people and Marjorie and me were fed  traditional food…meat, 
    potatoes, beets, bread…while the music  played.)
    THEN THE MUSIC  STOPPED…THE WAITERS FACES HAD TURNED TO STONE…SOMETHING WAS WRONG.
    “Kevin,Why suddenly so quiet…why are they so subdued suddenly?
    “They do not think we can pay for all this…they think they have made a big mistake.”
    “Kevin, tell the boss man that I will pay for it all…food, wine, music…everything.”
    (that decision, I feared would wipe out all our cash…but I had  to do it .. no alternative_
    “How much, Kevin?”
    “They want $140.”
    “Is that all?  Give them this…$150”  (I had figured three or four times that price)
    “And Kevin, pay them quietly…no big presentation…slip the money to the boss guy…now.”
    THEN THINGS CHANGED AND THE BAND PLAYED ON
    (The little band started to play with gusto and more wine was put on each table.  Wine bottles
    with no labels I noted, and desserts arrived.  We sang and maybe danced the night away.
    And when we got ready to leave we were all given a bottle of  wine to take away with us.  No one
    really knew who had paid the bill.  May have suspected.  But I did not have to play the awful role of
    the big spender.
    That was an evening I will never forget.)

    Why tell you this story?  Because we are now at that stoney moment in our lives. A moment when something
    big is wrong.  A moment when we cannot pay for everything that is needed…a moment when many of us
    fear for our jobs, most fear for their health.  Many fear for America…

    OR, put another way, We are standing in a small Slovak village with no lights and a pot holed  road cobbling its way past houses
    with dour faces.  In front of us is a winery but we cannot see it. There are no signs.  We hope that behind
    those ancient doors there will be light, food, music and revelry.

    There was another bright moment on that trip.  Kevin asked me to teach a lesson in the high school where students
    longed  to learn English.  I thought that would be difficult.  Not so.  The moment I entered the room everyone
    stood up at attention and said “Welcome, Mr. Skeoch”.   A sunny moment as Justin Trudeau would say. (Sunny Ways)

    Let’s hope. ‘We can but hope that somehow good will be the final goal of ill,” as someone said in a book I read  long ago.

    yours,  alan
    (claustrophobic feeling tonight)

  • DAY 6 COVID 19 PANDEMIC MARCH 18, 2020

    DAY 6   COVID  19 PANDEMIC    MARCH 18, 2020


    alan skeoch

    1) One week ago our curling team celebrated a victory with
    our opposition team.   We bought the beer for them and
    then laughed and horsed  around amicably as always.
    Now a week later our season has ended…  And we are
    alone.  And  everything around us is suddenly different. 

    2) Today PM Trudeau held a conference with the press on his doorstep
    in which he mentioned a long list of steps taken to prevent  a) the COVID 19 virus
    from spreading.  Most significant was THE CLOSING OF THE US/CANADIAN BORDER
    …except for trade…we depend on trade for much of our food chain so trucks will
    keep rolling.   b)  supports for people in distress financially…even homeless
    c) supports for businesses facing bankruptcy

    Trudeau spoke clearly and firmly with lots of specifics.  A real confidence builder.
    The government is prepared to inject billions of dollars.  The term ‘billion’ is now
    used often.   In the USA some similar supports are occurring only the term being
    used  is ‘trillion’ .  This situation is grim.  

    3)  USA IS  facing 20% unemployment … same as the Great Depression of 1930’s
     
    4)  One very sobering fact  … we are dependent on
    the USA for much of our food supply chain.  Where did the asparagus Marjorie served originate…
    and the oranges…and the lettuce…ad infinitum.   I believe our rolled oats are made
    here in Canada but am unsure.    Where does the Kellogg company manufacture bran
    flakes, corn flakes, etc.?  The big factory in Ontario was closed down a couple of
    years ago.   So what?  So closing the American border …total closing … is not an option.

    5)  Marjorie went to bed at 1 p.m. today….cold symptoms,  She got up at around 8 am.,
    looked after Woody our dog, peeled apples and made an apple pie and then, around noon
    she had  a bath and went to bed, sniffles and maybe a slight temperature.  Me?  I took a
    drink of Nyquill (sp.) and another pill of some kind. Did not wake up until 10 a.m.  Sun
    blasting light through the window.
    Marjorie gave me a nice lemon drink about 1 a.m.  I slept like a baby.  She did not.

    6)  Disquieting to learn that hospital ships have been moved into position in New  York and
    on the west coast . The American infected population rises above 6,000…not enough hospital
    beds.  Some  terrible choices may happen…i.e.who gets the ventilator?

    7) Deputy PM Freeland “I want to make t his absolutely clear, we have had very
    positive and collaborative discussions with the US government”  “full agreement”
    “we are in this together” “long history of good relations”.  Very positive news conference
    in Canada.   Similar news conference in US is getting much better.  Dr. Dryx (sp.) spoke
    well.   I was also  pleased with VP,s comments … he seems to be rising to the occasion.
    Trump seems very tired …big responsibility under a lot of criticism…turning to his experts
    more often which is good….but still needs to create more confidence.   Gap between
    what he says and what is real…i.e. respirators supply in US.   I really wish I could believe
    what he says.   Maybe he will help resolve things.

    8) LOST IN PARADISE’

    “Are you awake?”
    “yes, What’s the matter?”
    “We have to get out of here…the kids are worried:”
    “Go back to sleep, I have booked seats on Air Canada for March 30.”
    “Risky.  Hope they don’t cancel like West jet did.”
    “Me too…Let’s go boating.”
    “Look, a manatee…and those big jumping manta rays…right out of the water.”
    “Tough choice to leave.”
    “Tougher to stay…suppose you miss the anchor post with that hammer…hit your knee…need a  hospital.
    “We will try to fly.”

     Advice to Patricia and Dave while Lost in Paradise

    My good friend Russ was reading about your Lost in Paradise entry and advised
    you should stay put.   

    Not sure what I would do.  But I send this comment for
    your amusement.  Our son Andy and friend KeithM. took off to tour the world years ago.
    They were 17 or 18 and  like Voltaire’s Candide wanted to understand the world around them.
    They bought wrecked cars in the US…$100 cars that would go.  One of them had no
    side windows.  Police stopped them of  course in Arizona…”best you guys get out 
    of this state fast.”.  They drove the wreck to California where a friend of mine installed
    wooden windows…did not help much.  How can you see if a police car is behind you
    with no side windows.  Now here is a thought.   Dave is very handy I know so I have asked 
    Andy where he dumped that car and will advise when I know.  If found in a California 
    wrecking yard I have offered $50 which you can pay me later.

    No joke:
    My brother Eric has a good friend and  his wife stuck in Costa Rica. Their dream holiday
    turned into a nightmare.  No flights right now. No joke.  How can they get back home…look
    at a map.  

    So many others. One Canadian girl in Spain, alone it seemed, could not complete her
    interview without bursting into tears.  

    I guess I should not make light of the crisis.

    9) Canadian dollar has dropped to below 69 cents.

    10)  Bill P. sent me an amusing video titled  “On a street in Kelowna”….convincing, startling, professional, amusing

    11)  Closed borders means  that officers on the Mexican/USA border will have the task of escorting refugees back across
    to an uncertain future.  Could it happen here?  Borders are closing all around the world. A fact.  
    the border

  • COVID 19 DAY 5: MARCH 16, 2020

    Day 5,  COVID 19 PANDEMIC  

    March 17, 2020

    Canada…this morning 444 infected…now 7 p.m., 598 infected in Canada
    as expected…are we flattening the curve?
    Social Distancing … now a good thing  … a month ago the term had a negative ring.
    today it is  a term of hope.


    1)  We are not hoarders really but Marjorie did buy two gigantic  sacks of
    Quaker rolled oats a couple of months ago.  Great.  Years ago when I was
    a prospector rolled oats were a staple.  Initially we used  oats to make porridge…but
    that took time and work…so we then began to eat them raw with milk and brown sugar…then
    we ran out of canned and powdered milk so began to eat them raw with water and sugar.
    Sugar ran out.  So we ate taw rolled oats.  No problem. 

     Then, years later, I noticed a Skeoch recipe
    from my Aunt Greta’s old cook book dating back to the 1840’s which mentioned farm hands
    drinking something called  “Broze”

    “What is Broze, Aunt Greta?”
    “That was a  drink for the boys cutting hay and grain”
    A drink?”
    Yes.
    “How do you make it?”
    “Just put some raw rolled oats in with drinking water, maybe a little sugar…sometimes
    we cooked  it and let it cool.”

    Bottom line:  Seems  we can live on these two sacks  of rolled oats for a long time.

    2)  What a difference.   Today our Canadian cabinet led by deputy PM Freyland held a
    news  conference that was confidence building…serious, positive, personal, fact laden…
    Yesterday I  watched  the same kind of thing from Trump but his performance was the 
    reverse.   I was very unsettled after Trump spoke   I scanned the faces of those behind
    him and my opinion the faces evasive, troubled, scattered, unsure.  Our deputy PM
    has taken the reins with confidence … willing to share the stage with all.  Could Trump’s 
    vice President do the same?  Not too sure about that but maybe if thrust into first place…
    VP of US might be less adoring of Trump and more willing to see the real world.  Right now we
    just have Trump, a narcissist who cannot even read a teleprompter.  I noticed today that
    our leaders used their written scripts accurately and  were not afraid to look at their notes.
    These are tough times…not times in which to ‘wing it’.

    3)  Emergency Measures  Act  could be used if  need arises.   A very serious matter but 
    TO  be used carefully lest crisis clash with provinces.  Federal government has the power though
    I am confident that Quebec will  support such.  Not so confident about Alberta.  Ontario under
    Ford seems to going into line but i fear his use of politics.

    4)  Lost in Paradise:  A friend of ours, who I will only call Pat, is trapped at the south end
    of Florida where the beaches are warm and inviting…beaches where I would love to wander
    picking up flotsam and jetsam (and maybe a pair of  skates from Federal Express*) 
    *Movie titled CASTAWAY with
    Tom Hanks as a lonely survivor
    Hopefully Pat will send  me (us) notes from the beaches under the title Lost in Paradise.


    pictures sent by Patricia and Dave today, March 17, 2020   Lost in Paradise

    Patricia and Dave: Lost in Paradise
    Paraphrasing: “Wel, Dave, our flight home just went up in smoke…all flights cancelled.  Here
    we are Lost in Paradise..loving the sandy ‘no person’s land’ of South Florida.  Look, there is
    dolphin nosing around as the tide comes in.”
    “I guess we have to think about getting home sometime soon.  The boat is gassed up
    for storage.  The marina is in full operation right now but maybe not for long. What do
    you think of buying a used car and making a run for the Canadian border?”
    “Let’s not just yet.  right now we are in paradise.”

    3)  Today I broke a tooth.  Small thing in normal times.  Big thing now.  Dentists are in a dangerous 
    profession and have been advised to close shops.   My tooth break is minor but it focuses things.
    I have now been hived in the house for only 5 straight days but it seems like an eternity.  Marjorie
    has done a little shopping and  says Port Credit seems  deserted…shops closed.  But food not an issue…
    had half  a dozen Easter buns this morning..,,with honey from Russ V’s bees.  Why significant?  Because the bakers are baking.

    4) Andrew:”We went for dinner last night and were the only people in the restaurant, then
    we went to see the movie  ‘1917′ and  were alone except for one other couple.”
    “Are you working?” (outdoor job)
    “yes,, we have seven jobs on.”
    “Dangerous…touch people?”
    “No one around.”

    next    Day 6,   March 18, 2020     

  • alan…day 4 correction

    CORRECTION…THE FIGURE WAS 313 NOT 3133…WITE AN ERROR…BLAME DAMN SMALL BIFOCALS WHICH MAKE PROOFING DIFFICULT
    ALAN

  • Day 4 covid-19 March 16, 2020

    Hi,


    COVID  19 VIRUS REPORT
    Day 4:  March 16, 2020

    alan skeoch


    1)  MacLean’s Insider reports Canada now has 3133 confirmed cases of Cod -19
    which seems to me to be expected but MacLean’s says “has not slowed down”.
    The plan is to slow down infections and thereby lower the statistical curve … hence
    reduce pressure on health care system.  A big spike in the curve will overpower 
    our ability to handle the epidemic and increase the death toll.   All death toll is among
    seniors with many in their eighties … Marjorie and I are in this category so we
    are taking things seriously.

    2) Airports are receiving panic flights of Canadians from abroad. That will soon end.
    Those who fail to get home will just have to “hunker down” in a foreign land.

    3) Justin Trudeau closed the Canadian border today…exceptions 1) Canadians returning
    “Come home right now, no guarantee if later.”  2) U.S citizens  (open border at present but
    that may change.


    4) Donald Trump finally admitted the situation is dire in the US.  He asked ALL Americans
    to isolate themselves in there homes except, of course, for hospital and vitapservices.
    Trump seemed shaken on TV…like he was not really in charge…seemed weak and evasive
    the political cartoon on the editorial page of the Star shows three images  of Trump
    “hear no evil, speak no evil, see no evil”



    5) Our street is empty…and it is rush hour.

    6) Garbage and Leaf collection normal.  Marjorie outside rakkng rotten leaves…getting ready for spring.
    Water supply is not threatened it seems.  We was our hands 10 to 20 times a day…that’s a lot of water
    Sam phoned
    to say that Metro grocery chain store is now rationing certain things to prevent hoarding.

    7) What happens to our pensions?  the stock market has plummeted. The value of our pension
    depends on investment profits.  No profits now.  So what does that mean for our pensions?

    This is our street, Glenburnie Road, picture taken at 6 p.m.  No traffic…yet it is  rush hour.

    8)  We do not know one single person who has got Covid 19.   Yet everyone is in a state of subdued panic.

    9) Apparently my next  visit to the doctor will not be face to face.  It will be a virtual kind of thing…perhaps telephone or video.   Effort
    to keep Covid 19 from spreading.   Amazing how fast we have distanced ourselves from each other.  Brave New World.