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You are here: Home / Moving to the Philippines / Is Everybody In My Life Bananas Or What?

Is Everybody In My Life Bananas Or What?

2020-06-11 by Dave Starr 5 Comments

Is Everybody In My Life Bananas Or What?

Well, here I am sitting around in the rain, wondering if I am going crazy or is most of the people in the USA are going crazy instead.

I’ve been thinking about a trip to the USA, i=on relatively short notice.  If it was not the year of the “Big Virus”, I might already be in Florida where several members of our family live and where I even have a lovely two or three-bedroom house at my disposal (it’s owned by another family member who lives far away, up in the northeast, and she and her husband don’t get to go to Florida nearly as often as they want to.

Contents

  • 1 Should I Ride To The Rescue?
  • 2 Why The Rescue Question?
  • 3 So what are You Wating On, Dave, What’s Making You Hesitate?
  • 4 Because I’m Scared, That’s Why.
  • 5 Does this look safe to you?
  • 6 Here’s how things look in Florida. where I would be going.
  • 7 If you were an Infantry officer, would you want to march your troops into that?
  • 8 Want to guess what the current Philippine COVID 19 death toll is?
  • 9 Look At The Numbers.  It worked And It Saves Lives

Should I Ride To The Rescue?

If it were a normal year, as I said, I might already be in Florida, escaping the constant rain and depression which always bothers me a lot during the rainy season here in Luzon.

But of course, it isn’t a “normal” year is tt?  In fact, I only just got released from a very strict lockdown, and things are slowly starting to trend back to normal here.  But I could travel, permission-wise that is.

Why The Rescue Question?

Well just yesterday I just got word that there’s a minor problem with the house I would be staying at.  It’s nothing major structurally or anything like that.  It’s a small problem I could deal with easily in a couple of days if I were there, and I’d feel like less of a “mooch”, “borrowing someone’s house” just because they are stuck more than a thousand miles away and can’t get there to deal with it themselves.

So what are You Wating On, Dave, What’s Making You Hesitate?

I looked up flights last month.  There’s no problem, a number of choices available, all reasonably (for the current situation) priced.  Every day is a day off for me, and my income flows directly to my US credit union account, so there isn’t much difference at all in my life wherever I choose to live.  Why not just get on a plane tonight and fly to Florida and deal with that minor problem?

Because I’m Scared, That’s Why.

As my hero and mentor, Tony Soprano was once heard to mutter … amazed by a bunch of things going on which mystified him … “Is everyone in my life bananas or what”?

Does this look safe to you?

Is Everybody In My Life Bananas Or What?

This is the nation-wide rate of growth of new COVID 19 cases every day.  Scary.  As of the time I am writing this, the total US deaths stand at just 6 unfortunate souls less than 113,000.  Think about that for a moment.  Way more than twice the death toll of the Vietnam War.  And climbing, climbing, climbing every day like an investor wishes the stock market would do.

That’s the part that really scares me … the deaths that have already happened,well, sad and unfortunate but they’ve happened.  But more and more new deaths every day with no end in sight?  Isane.  Bananas, as Tony would say.

Here’s how things look in Florida. where I would be going.

Is everybody in my life Bananas, or what?

If you were an Infantry officer, would you want to march your troops into that?

I’m happily sitting here in a “third-world” country.  The sort of country Mr. Trump refers to as a “shithole” country. (because it’s not run by white people, I suppose).

The Philippines has about 32% of the US population (a bit over 1 million people). One might expect then that the Philippine death toll would be somewhat close to one-third of the US death toll.  Maybe even more since so many things here are not up to “Western” standards.

Want to guess what the current Philippine COVID 19 death toll is?

Mathematically it ought to come out around 36,000 or so.  Actually, at the same time the US is only a few deaths away from 113,000, the Philippines stands at 1027!

Why so low?  Mainly because the government has taken the pandemic seriously here.  People stay home when told to (not “asked” to).  People wear masks in public because it is proven to save lives.  When someone tests positive, their house and the two on each side plus the three neighbors across the street are roped off, and no one goes in and out.

Local government employees do food shopping for those under quarantine and leave the food on a table at the perimeter.  No contact with the outside world and thus no spreading.

Look At The Numbers.  It worked And It Saves Lives

I look at videos from the USA every day.  Thousands of protestors in the streets no masks.  People going to the beach, or to garage sales and the like, no masks, no hand sanitizers.  Thousands of people attending funerals where the deceased has tested positive for CVID 19.

Contagion, people.  Danger.  Most of you reading this have at least graduated from high school.  Many have advanced degrees.  Did you not learn ANYTHING?”

Sorry, America, my heart hurts because I want to go but I just can’t.  It’s just too bananas for me.  Too many total idiots taking no precautions at all, while the curve just climbs and climbs.

I’ll pray for you all.  Enjoy your “right” to get infected and to infect others.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Is Everybody In My Life Bananas Or What?

Filed Under: Moving to the Philippines

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. CLAUDETTE says

    2020-06-11 at 16:50

    Me and my household are at home almost everyday now. Robby has been at home for awhile ever since the Covid-19 and Bobby of course is retired like you.

    I was supposed to go to NY this year and I am kind of bummed that I can’t because of the Covid-19. But health is still more important than anything else, and I just came off treatment this year.

    God Bless to you and Mita! Stay safe and stay home. 🙂

    Reply
  2. Kevin says

    2020-06-13 at 13:56

    Hi Dave,
    Here in Kazakhstan, they are very serious about the virus. It is starting to open up a bit, but most people follow the rules to stay quarantined and wear a mask when going out. Our flight to Davao has been canceled so we are staying here in Almaty. My school is giving me a stipend to stay here for the summer because if we could get to the Philippines it would be extremely difficult trying to get back in by August when school starts.
    I’ll be taking some online workshops for the AP classes I teach so that will keep me busy. Actually I don’t mind hanging around the house, it gives me time to get caught up on reading and my hobbies. This year will be the first time in the last eight years that I won’t be making it to Mindanao, but hopefully, we’ll be back next summer or maybe Christmas if the virus is under controll.

    Reply
    • Dave Starr says

      2020-06-14 at 00:55

      Hi Kevin,

      Nice to hear from you. Yes, indeed it’s really amazing how many smaller, less-developed nations are taking the whole Pandemic so much more seriously. The daily rate of new cases is climbing very rapidly in 15 or 20 US states … mainly the ones who opened up all the restrictions with no monitoring or plan and gave every citizen a “get out of jail free” card. With huge political rallies and then the major party conventions still to come I feel very apprehensive for our county’s near-term future.

      Something which will interest you as a teacher with the Philippines … my two highschooler nephews who live with us have, of course, been off school since the schools closed in early March. Their mom is adamant that they aren’t going back to regular school until there is a vaccine available here in the Phils.

      Well, we just found out a few days ago that their school (a private Jesuit K through bachelor’s degree institution) will be opening the new school year first week in July. All classes will be online through some international school outfit I am not familiar with). The way things are going Corona virus-wise, these boys might never see the inside of their school again.

      Wasn’t it the Chinese who coined the blessing “May You Live In Interesting Times”?

      Reply
  3. Kevin says

    2020-06-18 at 06:44

    My school will be doing some mix of online and in-school, depending on the government’s regulations and requirements. We have pushed our opening back to September 1st, we usually start in mid-August. Hopefully by this time next year, thinks will be back to almost normal.

    I am also concerned about teaching in a classroom and what precautions I will need to take. Fun times!

    Reply
    • Dave Starr says

      2020-06-20 at 22:12

      Yes, interesting times indeed. Stay as healthy as you can, Kevin. My nephews school here in the Philippines is planning to open full-time on-line in the beginning of August … we’ll just have to see how well organized they are able to get it between now and then.

      Reply

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