Day 67 - Governor Newsom imposes new restrictions

Very disturbing book…

1/21/21. Thursday.

My Dean from College No. 2 emailed our department to let us know that instructors were moved into Phase 1B, Tier 1, and included with the K-12 teachers.  Vaccinations for people in my category will start in February.  Although B. and I are technically in the same category – he’s “65 or older” – he has priority. It’s unclear if L. is also in this category as she teaches at an art studio.  Tier 1 also covers food service, so maybe R., as a barista, is covered?

An email from College No. 1 says that vaccinations for people in Phase 1B, Tier 1, won’t start until March. All of this is so confusing and nobody know what’s going on.  How are people in rural, poorer areas notified?  If I wasn’t an adjunct instructor, I would have no clue where I fit in LA County’s phases.

At the same time, the nation logged the highest death count since the pandemic started – over 400,000 Americans died from Covid-19 today. “Uncle Joe” says it will get worse before it gets better and informed the country that it’s likely 500,000 Americans will die next month. At least he’s telling the truth.  Finally, a president who is taking the pandemic seriously instead of pretending that it doesn’t exist. Uncle Joe signed an Executive Order mandating masks in federal jurisdictions, like the Post Office, and all transportation. Thank God.

***The UK has made the decision to give their citizens ONE dose instead of the prerequisite TWO doses. Their Covid-19 cases are out of control.

6:30-I wake up, suddenly, coughing. Uh-oh.  I have some water and go back to sleep.

9:30 – Up again, so I listen to What a Day and fall asleep.

11:00 – 12:30 - Downstairs and I say good morning to the dog.  No accidents today!  She’s in a good mood and the weather is great.  After two days of windstorms, it’s nice and calm.  Outside and she goes potty, then back inside for cheese.  I heat up my coffee and go upstairs.  Then, I smell my coffee before I start drinking it.  I have not lost my sense of smell; I don’t have Covid-19. I eat one piece of chocolate.

I finish Sex and Lies.  I hardly ever underline and annotate when I read for pleasure, but I did so with this book. Before I read Sex and Lies, I thought Morocco and Casablanca were glamorous, chic tourist traps.  I probably got this impression from the movie Casablanca. God, I was so stupid!  Morocco is a Muslim country and is no better than Capetown, South Africa – it’s probably worse. The laws state that nobody is allowed to have sex unless they’re married, so couples who are not married are forced to have sex in the woods, cars, public restrooms, beaches. If you check into a hotel as a couple, be prepared to produce your marriage certificate.

Public displays of affection are forbidden in Morroco – even married couples abide by this. The poorest women are  punished the most severely for these sex laws because they can’t afford to pay off the cops. Women are not allowed to have any agency or autonomy and living alone is frowned upon in this society so almost all women either live with their parents or marry as soon as possible so they can move out of their parents’ home and into their husband’s home, where most cook, clean, and wear the hijab. Although pre-marital sex is outlawed, boys are expected to experiment in their early teens.  Of course, you need a female to do this (unless you’re gay), but FEMALES are expected to be virgins at time of marriage.  As a result of this hyprocrisy, women will do anything to preserve their hymens and eschew penetration, resorting to anal sex and fellatio instead.  Hymen repair is a huge industry in Morocco and women have to produce a virginity certificate to their prospective husbands.

Throughout this entire fucked up society is the constant drumbeat from the Imans re-enforcing this propaganda.  It’s so obvious that that this is a mechanism for patriarchal power…if half a society (women) are oppressed and unable to participate economically, the men need only compete with each other.  Laws and justice are meted out in favor of men.  Women are powerless because men control the marketplace – if they speak out, they’re jailed or sentenced to prison for a few years where their voices cannot be heard because if too many people agree with the “dissidents” (women), the men will lose their power. Women are kept down in the name of “virtuosity.” Don’t do this, don’t do that - you’re not “virtuous” if you do. Men are almost never admonished.

What is so interesting is that female scholars, who extensively study the Koran, can find no indication that Mohammad  [the “Prophet”] prized virginity above anything else.  There is nothing about virginity in the Muslim’s version of the bible – this was a device and double-standard created and perpetuated entirely by modern men!  There is nothing at all religious about an intact hymen!  A male scholar notes: “If a man has sex before marriage, that’s bad but he’s allowed. But if a young girl does it, she is irreversibly condemned.”  A statistic from the book:  the Gulf countries are the biggest consumers of porn in the world.

A  female scholars notes: “Misogyny is common to all humankind.”  I never thought of it that way – surely some countries are exempt? – but, no…she’s right.  “ALL humankind.”

I love this quote from the book: “Religion is a tool of social control, particularly over women and young people.” An examination of every religion reveals this to be true. Karl Marx thought the same thing.

12:30-1:30 – Blog post. I listen to The Daily and What a Day.

1:30-2:00 – Dress in Covid-19 uniform.  Wash face.  Brush teeth.

2:00-2:45 – I take the dog for a walk. I listen to the Political Gabfest.

-L. goes to work. She shows me one of her recent art projects, an assignment from her art class. She had to create a collage from trash and that’s exactly what it looks like…a collage of trash. It has to remain on our kitchen counter - gross - because L. has to “draw” the collage for Part 2 of the assignment.

2:45 – 3:30- Yard work.  I pressure spray the Astroturf and water all of my plants.

3:30-4:30 – I have lunch outside, at my patio table.  Leftover pizza from B.’s house and a salad that I made. I listen to PBS Newshour Segments.

4:30 – 6:00 – Class starts at 6:00 so I check emails from College No. 1 and respond to a few students.  I queue up the Iraq War video and work on the rest of the video quiz while I wait for class to begin.

-At 5:45, I check the links in Canvas to make sure everything is ready to post.  With horror, I discover that the 12-minute PSA that I created cuts off after 40 seconds.  I will have to run the PSA from last semester – the times/dates of the class are off and this is very unprofessional.

-6:00 – 9:00 - Students sign in and follow the instructions.  We have lecture and a 40-minute documentary today.  Virtually nobody emails me throughout the duration, so I pull my Chapter 3 lecture notes from Specialty Class 1A and prepare a script for the lecture I’m going to record.  Then, I select music clips. Class ends at 9:00 and I’m ready to record, but decide I’ll do it tomorrow when I have more energy.

-R. comes over and L. and R. watch a movie in her room.

9:00-10:00 – Check email from College No. 2 and see that the Administrator for the high school where I’ll be teaching forwarded me the school schedule…I review it, but can’t understand it, so I ask for clarification.

-My homework assignment for my Distance Education course was graded so I’m cleared for Module 3 and can move forward.

- I finally finish creating the Iraq War video quiz.  What a boring documentary.

10:30-11:30 – I have leftover mushroom fettucine and parmesan chicken for dinner. For dessert, I have a fruit tart from Portos that L. bought for me the other day.

11:30-1:00 – I decide to check out The Haunting of Bly Manor.  I’m not a fan.  Next.

1:00-1:45 – Kitchen duty.  I fill the dog’s water and prepare my coffee for tomorrow.  Empty the trash. Take the dog out.

1:45 – 2:00 – The dog vomited on the throw that L. and I. placed across the couch!  I start the washing machine.

2:00-3:00 – Fall down the Netflix rabbit hole and watch an excellent documentary How to Fix a Drug Scandal.  I’m not done yet, but highly recommend.

3:00-3:30 – Night time routine. Bed.