Scarlet Pimpernel

Very true, and I'm sure they don't really care and think this is all a sham, even if that's wrong. Doesn't change the fact that they present a potential hazard...

Yeah, I agree. I don't really "support" what they're standing for (and it sure looks to be a lot more than just a simple dislike of being forced to stay inside! Guns and racist signs...really?). And in a normal circumstance I wouldn't much care about them protesting as such even if I don't like what they stand for. If a virus or other significant health issue weren't involved, I'd just roll my eyes at them and shake my head. Because they wouldn't be harming anyone else just by being there spouting off whatever their message is. That's really the significant difference here...they could potentially harm anyone else around them.

Nice day for a good walk and to take photos. Here's a red-copper Japanese maple, against a brilliant blue sky.

Hmmmm, that may just work, if you have sufficient extra next year! Give it a whirl! Oh, and I'm sure you have plenty of bespectacled legal minds ready to assist you in the event of such frivolous lawsuits! Maybe some will do some...errr...pro bono work for you?

Gonna need a bigger...ahhhh, nevermind!

I kinda like his expression near the end when he's totally out of control...like he's saying "ohhhh, shiiiit, I'm about to crash a Barbie car!!"

Dayum!! I didn't know whether to post the "haha" icon, or the "sad" one! I think both are needed!!

Man, you really need to salt the driveway area leading into the Panic Room suites...you're opening yourself up to lawsuits!!

Thanks for all your updates on all this, I really appreciate it (as I'm sure others do too). Yeah, I think they're pushing the date incrementally to come up with whatever kind of plan on how to handle the end of the school year. Whether that's the best or not, I don't know...I kind of fully expect there won't be school the remainder of this year. What's interesting is I've heard some places had closed schools for the remainder of this year some time ago with no hesitation. Friend of mine in Atlanta told me back in March that they did just that, and at the time it surprised me (at that time, I think MD had set the closure date through March 27). At any rate, I don't mind the caution and not going back this academic year...though I have to imagine for seniors graduating this year with likely no ceremony, it will suck (high school, but also colleges and universities). Can't imagine they'll hold back diplomas. But I do wonder how anyone taking things like AP exams, SAT, etc. will work that out. Guess that will be up to the testing agencies, as that's done nation-wide. I've heard they may allow it to be done remotely at home, somehow.

A bit late responding here, but nahhh, you didn't kill this area's snowfall! We just plain suck, hahaha! But seriously, stick around long enough and we'll get something memorable, even if it's one discrete storm in one winter. Wish you could have been here in 2009-10 or 2013-14, you would have had a blast! When even @Bob Chill is saying he was exhausted from tracking after 2013-14 (through late March!), you know we got a lot of events! And I'm so sorry to hear your family has disowned you, that is awful! I can only imagine what that must be like for you. But I'm glad to hear you have been able to "move on" to whatever extent possible and keep your life going...and that you're looking at things that are brighter in your world! That's about all we can do, right?!

I sense there are a lot of "stout" hearts in here, going by some of the beer conversation!!!

I know that, I was responding to what PhineasC said about paying salaries indefinitely.

Agree. Like I said, I don't want to get into the ugly weeds of politics here, but there's been way too much of a push (in my humble opinion) over the past few decades to make people automatically distrust anything the government does (a sarcastic "thank you" to Ronnie!). Some of that is warranted, sure. There's also the issue that I don't think as many people now are willing to just make the necessary sacrifice, whether it's inconvenience or whatever. I mean...does the stay at home stuff suck? Yeah, it does. Is it a pain to wear a face covering at the supermarket? Sure. Or not be able to go to many places like we used to for awhile? Absolutely. And I don't even want to hear that I don't understand that people have lost or will lose their jobs because of this...that's where support is supposed to come in, in whatever measure is necessary. But seriously, this won't be permanent, or I don't see it being so. It's a sacrifice, and by all indications by those who are experts in the medical fields, it's a necessary one. It's not overblown panic and hype. God, I swear, I wonder what some people who complain soooo much right now would have done during the Depression, or WW-II, when sacrifice was not only mandated but required to survive and get through it. Sorry for the mini-rant!!

And I'm also completely fine with giving the liquor establishments plenty of my business!!! As much as my liver will afford!

From what I understand and heard, the region in Italy that got so badly hit by this in terms of cases and number of deaths has a much larger elderly population. So sure, the most affected are those who are older; same was true in China and elsewhere. That said, I heard there were some studies that show younger people are perhaps not so little affected as originally thought. Maybe that's changed, I don't know. There's also the issue of asymptomatic people being able to (inadvertently) spread it, including to those who are more vulnerable. Is anyone talking about paying salaries indefinitely? I'm far from an economic expert (nor do I play one on TV!), but giving people something to survive on during the worst of this pandemic or holding off debt payments and the like for some amount of time, until things (hopefully) go down, is not out of order. How best to do that, I don't know myself and don't claim to know it all. I'm sure we'll need to re-think our ideas of economics in these kinds of situations, much like we had to do during the Great Depression. Similarly for how health care should be administered. A lot of that is political, sure, and I won't get into that stuff in here. But you can be sure we'll be changing our views on how we handle something like this. It's not always necessarily the "big bad gov-mint" trying to take away your freedoms. Not saying we shouldn't be vigilant of unscrupulous leaders, but I don't like when I hear the knee-jerk reaction that everything is the government trying to hold everyone down.

However and whenever things begin to open up again (and I don't think it would or should be "all at once, come on in!!")...I admit I'll be a bit uncertain about going in to certain places, especially if they're big and crowded (say, going to a game or a large, busy restaurant kind of thing). Traveling? Maybe, if it's like visiting family or a close friend that's in driving distance (family in Philly and Ohio, not bad drives). On a related subject, I still "patronize" (if that's the right word here) various local eating establishments that I like via ordering and picking up...and will continue to do so how I can. It may not be much from one person, but I just want to help out to keep them afloat and keep people there employed (and I like the food, of course!).

If it's that chair...better off just getting a new one!! (That "never forget" pic was hilarious!!)

Haha, you absolutely should do that!! At the same time, you can hand out flyers advertising your new, snazzy suites for those interested the next winter. C'mon man...think of the marketing opportunities, and in-person too!!

Very cool, and thanks for sharing that information. And (trite as this may sound), I'm glad that you're now happy with who you are and who *you* want to be. In the end, that's really all that should matter. You're right, it's a lot easier now than it was in Louisiana (or anywhere for that matter) some 20+ years ago. But like many things, it sure was a long, hard road to get this country to change its attitudes even a little bit (and it still seems people have to fight the same battles time and time again). (ETA: Hopefully we can still get a good HECS-level snow event for you while you're in the area!!)

Oh, that's terrible...so sorry you all had to go through that! But I'm glad to hear your dad came through it OK, and hope that your mom did manage to avoid symptoms despite being exposed to it. Those are exactly the kinds of complications that make this so scary.

All good...I knew it was in humor, and I thought it was funny...surely pretty well everyone else took it the same!

LOL! OK, I admit to thinking the same about @supernovasky. In fact, I always thought the pronunciation was like an eastern European/Russian type of name, like "Super-novAski" (imagine Gru from "Despicable Me" saying that...). Then I realized, maybe it's actually "Supernova Sky"!!

OK, now that is just harsh... . . . But still damn funny and I did get a good laugh!!!

Those are some good memories, and similar to mine in fact! I recall going sledding with several people on this golf course, hopping the fence to get there, at night! Ahhhh, Cedar Point...the roller-coaster heaven!! I went there a few times. Did the old "Gemini" coaster, where 2 of them sort of "race" each other...it was easy to get right back on, because the lines went fast (with 2 roller coasters). I vaguely recall doing the double-loop or corkscrew ride they had once...only once! Closed my eyes through the part where you go upside down, haha! I never could get myself to do the demon drop (I think that's what it was called?), where it would drop you straight down from whatever ridiculous height! (ETA... Now I may be mixing up some of those rides with the old Geauga Lake amusement park, but you get the idea! )

I hear you and feel for you the situation you're in (having been there myself not that many years ago!). It is a concern in terms of whether daycare places open at the same time anyone's office does; I'd guess probably not at the same time. One would *hope*, really, that coming out of this at some point, work places that are allowing remote/teleworking would extend that to those who must still be at home to care for a child whose daycare or school is not yet open. That would be reasonable, I'd think. I mean, if they have no problem with you remote working now, why would they have a problem even if the office is "open"? But you're right...how understanding will some of these corporate entities be? I know as a gov't employee, I'm extremely fortunate that they've become far more flexible in the past decade concerning teleworking. Heck, some people TW a few days a week regularly, even if they're right here in town (DC area).