Day 72 of Governor Newsom’s “Blueprint for a Safer Economy”

Saturday. 11/8/20.

7:00 - 8:30 - Up and it’s raining. Downstairs and the dog pooped in front of the patio door. We go outside and it’s pouring - my patio pillows are saturated. The dog goes potty and we go inside - cheese for her and I start making my coffee. While it brews, I return outside and bring in my 8 patio pillows, 4 of which are saturated, into the garage. What a mess!! I can see that one of my plants is miserable so I move the pot under the canopy and try to dry out its tendrils. I’m wet and the bottom of my sweats are soggy.

-I drink my coffee while I do the dishes and listen to PBS Newshour segments. Then, I pack the last of the interior Halloween decorations into the boxes and dust the surfaces. All that’s left is to store the boxes. I send a couple of quick emails to L. about the election.

-I prepare apple slices and the last of my Greek nacho topping for breakfast and lunch and pack everything into my insulated lunch bag.

8:30-9:30 - Shower. Jeans and a sweater. Light make-up. I take out my braids.

9:30 - 2:30 - B. arrives and we leave for the Bowers Museum.

Upon reviewing Governor Newsom’s “Blueprint for Economy”, LA County’s museums are still closed since we remain in “purple, widespread”; however, Orange County has moved into “red, severe” so some of their museums are open. This makes no sense to me - it’s not like Orange County is in a bubble. I think the risk for cross-contamination is likely, as there is nothing preventing LA County residents from crossing county lines to attend functions that are closed to them in LA, which is what B. and I did. Nevertheless, this is the first museum I’ve been to since February and it was wonderful! We stayed for 4 hours and I loved it.

I did wonder, throughout, at the possible rate of contagion. Based on the El Paiz article that ran last week, researchers from Spain stated that if one individual is infected with Covid-19 and there is NO ventilation in the area, within 2 to 4 hours the majority of individuals in the surrounding area will also become infected, even when masking and social distancing is practiced. This is largely due to inadequate ventilation - if air conditioning is running or doors and windows are open, the rate of contagion is mitigated.

So, B. and I were in the museum for 4 hours. Windows and doors were closed, but B. and I were constantly moving, from room to room. Does constant movement reduce the chances of infection in a contained area? It’s unclear. Ultimately, all patrons are housed in the same space…so I really don’t know. This was the longest I’ve been in an interior space since February - even when grocery shopping, I’m typically in and out within 15 minutes, especially since I shop right before closing, and I only go to Whole Foods once a month - L. does all the grocery shopping.

But, these lingering questions weren’t enough to make me leave the museum. I thoroughly enjoyed it and was glad we came.

3:00-4:45 - Return to Valencia

4:45-6:00 - Dinner at ChiChis, outside in the parking lot, under a tent with heat lamps. This is also my first time eating dinner in a parking lot, but I liked it. I was warm enough under the heat lamps and I’ve always preferred eating outside to inside anyway. I had the chicken ravioli and B. had something??? Quite tasty. It was pretty empty, although customers picking up their food were off-the-hook crowded as they waited in line, in their cars, for their take out.

6:00-6:30 - Return to B.’s

7:00-11:00 - We watch episodes 3 and 4 of Tehran and the first two episodes of The Undoing, with Nicole Kidman. I have champagne throughout. I don’t have Apple TV or HBO and do not have access to these shows. Both series are great!!! Maybe I should consider signing up for HBO. Not sure.

11:30-12:00 - B. takes me home and I have the rest of my ravioli.

12:00-1:00 - Night time routine. Bed. A great day!