Viral Vicissitudes

"Going to Pot!" Skunked, Debunked. "The weaker goeth to the potte" - John Heywood, 1546 Hazy origins: While "this country's going to pot" has a contemporary connotation of the rapid pace of legalization of marijuana throughout the United States of  America, signaling in part that the "War on Drugs" no longer includes "cannabis" (the botanical name assigned in the mid-18th C., referring to the entire cannabis plant and all its uses), depending on the generation with which you have been assigned, it has many more iterations, connotations. In our house, for example, it was strongly associated with my father, especially in the morning, when his irritation was growing in the midst of burning eggs or oatmeal, simultaneously listening to the news on the radio: "...this government is going to sell us down the river to the commies; its going to pot!" was a common early morning utterance (it remains an occasional topic of debate whe...

And let the Games...Sh-h-h...(X 10K) Sights, Sounds of '2020' Tokyo Olympic Games: The Olympics, assuming they are still held in Tokyo in less than 30 days as (re)scheduled (IOC says "Yes!" and majority of Japanese citizens say "No Thank You!"), are certain to look and sound much different than any of those any of us have witnessed up close or at a distance, as either an athlete or spectator. That is, if the IOC and the volunteers who haven't vanished are able to pull it off... Trials and Tribulations: As I have mentioned in this space before, one of my favorite times of this every four year period, is the Olympic Trials , for it is the Trials  that ultimately determines who gets on the long flight to Tokyo. For every athlete that "I made it mom and dad!" there's dozens who have worked and sweated along with their families all these years, but who "I came up this 🖖short!" But don't mistake those tears as simply of sorrow, as ...

Look, Don't Look Now...COV-ID, unCOV-ID Bodies.   COVID, Undercovered: COVID as a topic was certainly covered, perhaps overly so, for many of you out there. Concurrently, there were many who found themselves under covers more...literally. That is, especially early in the pandemic, we saw a steep increase in reports of people whose circadian rhythms got out of whack 'overnight', who found themselves sleeping, at least lounging more, all the while not reporting an increase in stamina. Otherwise, not just in the northern climates throughout winter, many people also remained more at home, under 'semi-cover' and finally, most of us were not shedding clothing in public as much, whether it was to go to the beach, the gym, or...? Thus, why fuss? Why go to the trouble to look good, to continue working on our 'beach bodies' or whatever term appeals to you... Zoom Gloom - Body Double, Trouble:  At least it seemed  like it, that after a period of retreating from good ha...

Voyagers, Voyeurs, Vicariously...Now we're getting somewhere...by going nowhere...surfing! Off Road: Fresh off the road (see June 18th and make your way back here), it's already obvious to all of us that, while we have been on an 'adventure' not of our making the past year, we have not actually been voyaging very far from home as a group. Now opportunities once again are starting to beckon us beyond the thresholds and porticos of our respective abodes, I thought I would touch on the strong trend over the past few decades of how we all  have been traveling more, 'internally', with all the comforts of... Home - 'Armourus' to CERFing: While the ability, tendency, and opportunity for people to get their kicks or "...taking pleasure in observing something private, sordid, or scandalous..." (the 'G' version of voyeurism  in case the underage crowd finds their way here) has been around for 'e-ons' and the more internalized, socially ac...

Fathers, A Reaffirmation To All: A simple wish and hope that those who are already fathers are able to hear from your children, and those who are aspiring to be future dads will be compelled by the awesome responsibilities as well as privileges that come with this role(s). When I entered the field of psychology, the first book I purchased (not Online yet, as it was about forty years ago) was Michael Lamb's summary of research on fathers and their roles, historically, cross culturally, sociologically, and psychologically -- "The Role of the Father in Child Development" (first edition 1976). He served as the editor for several leading researchers and the book has evolved through five editions, with titles of chapters reflecting the different times in which we live, highlighting cultural and role changes. But what remains constant throughout the five editions is the emphasis on why  and how  fathers matter to their children and families. Assuming the attention span of the me...

Road Worthy...Weary...Back on the Road Again! Treading Lightly: This particular post, while wide ranging in its metaphorical applications, was actually prompted by light treads, literally! That is, I found myself getting five new tires in one week, while second hand witness to a major blow-out -- four new tires on one car due to more than one person questioning my "executive functioning" (a major topic in psychology, while not formally presented here yet, as far as I remember), given my decision to take chances on tires, treads way beyond their lifespan...and on the another car one tire being replaced at the dealer's expense, apparently due to the misfortune of enough drivers' blow-outs that promoted a recall, trying to forestall drivers coming and 'blowing up' on their car lot, I guess. And the vivid account of a cyclist training for a triathlon, an inner tube splitting apart on a brand new bike, ("ass over tea kettle!" was his account), an inner tu...

Tarnished, Varnished, Vanished...Reputations Years in the making, gone in 60 seconds: Not only during these past pandemic months but throughout history we have witnessed previously stellar reputations go up in smoke at almost a moments notice, in a 'New York Minute' (just ask Eliot Spitzer, Anthony Weiner et al.), almost always due to some ill-advised act ('acts of commission'), although examples of gross negligence (including 'acts of omission') also get equal coverage here. Take the early weeks and months of the COVID coverage, for example, where we heard many world leaders and experts say and do what turned out to be pretty ridiculous things, at least in retrospect. Some leaders, we felt, acted too aggressively and/or hastily, whereas others too laggardly. The former may have cost us contact, opportunity, and economic woes, whereas the latter in some cases resulted in calamity, the actual loss of life. Both categories bruised the reputations of some of the re...

Animal House, A House Divided...Poppy (pea) cock!  Pets Supplied, Plus, (Zoo)m calls: As I have shared with many on and off screen, I have met more dogs and cats in the last several months than all my years prior combined. It is more the exception than the rule that I don't meet one of these furry species during a Zoom call, Facetime, and other platforms. I find myself talking as much to the pets as the their owners, that I have started feeling like Doctor Dolittle. Regardless of who I start with on the screen, inevitably we will take at least a brief intermission to let the pet in or out of the room, stop a fight between pets, or respond to a "woof" or "meow"...it's as if they're actually jealous, want attention, or just need to be in control...like many of our children ! Early in the pandemic, along with PPE's and various sporting equipment to keep us distracted, pets to either adopt or purchase from breeders became scarce. My own 'scents' ...

From Awe Inspiring to Jaw Tiring (Cringe Worthy)...Speaking of Commencement, Speakers "The eyes of the world are upon you. The hopes and prayers of liberty-loving people everywhere march with you" - 6-6-44 Seated, in good company, look who's talking now... Yep, it's that time of year again, when college students, their classmates, and families, assemble to celebrate their achievement, their anticipated graduation, and their formal entry into the world of work (many of them have never held a real job based on my time on campus, the stories my classmates shared at the end of summer), a stage many of them will wonder "Is this what I wished for the last several years, I want to go back to college!" Of course, this year's 'assembly' will still be a bit different from those in years past, as well as those we hope for in the future, after the vicissitudes of the pandemic are done visiting. I'm not going to comment much more on that, as it's stat...

...and breathin' and breathing...Air in our Pollen Nation... Sneezin'...Weezin'...Oh Geezin'... Caught your breath? Gave you a few days to catch your breath between posts. Thought you were in the clear after listening to Arian Grande, did you? Well, I thought so too until I came across some additional information that I felt was important as an attachment to June 6th, as well as some additional thoughts on this whole issue of oxygen and breathing that at least a few of you might find of interest...PLUS I'm trying to make up for my neglect of May being Asthma and Allergy Awareness Month... Obstructionists on the rise - allergies, asthma: Anyone who has their air intake obstructed by either of these two breathing conditions are more acutely aware than others, that there has been a rise in asthma and allergies over the past few decades -- the CDC (sure getting familiar with these folks, eh?) reports that 1 in 12 has asthma, which reflects a 28% increase from 2001 to 20...

A Breath of Fresh Air...Taking a Breather Fresh Air... and other things we took for granted before  the arrival of the S evere A cute R espiratory S yndrome coronavirus 2....not now ...perhaps never   again , at least no time soon. Among other things we've grown accustomed to, like direct human contact, freedom of movement, sufficient supply of TP, and...OXYGEN! Yes, it's all around us, apparently in abundant supply, free, and readily available...until it's NOT. Whether you read accounts of health care workers having to don space suits with a special breathing apparatus, utilizing ventilators to assist a patient with COVID who could not breathe on their own, or having your own breathing at least slightly obstructed by mask wearing, we have all become more aware of just how fragile we are when it comes to having sufficient oxygen, fresh/clean air to breathe.  A Breather: What I hope this blog has provided -- whether I have written to you and managed to prod you outside int...

What's in a Name? Frats Gone Viral! Escape blame, change the name: "Ladies and gentlemen: the story you about to hear is true. Only the names have been changed to protect the innocent" One of the quotes that are indelibly associated with the show "Dragnet" (original ran from 1951-59; revival from 1967-70, with a few name changes...). Updated version: "To the World Community from guess WHO (more specifically the VEWG arm, which stands for "Virus Evolution Working Group") -- the name game for COVID variants just got a bit easier...we are changing the way we have been naming them to protect the innocent, to prevent stigmatizing..."  All Greek to Me: Starting on May 31st, instead of the variant SARS-CoV-2 virus initially known as B.1.1.7, associated with the UK, or British, or Kent, will now be known as Alpha, while the B.1.351, the variant first spotted in South Africa, will be Beta, and so on....on to Omega. And, when the letters of the Greek a...