Friday Musings

Brief Covid-19 Stuff:

I worry about the development of a Covid-19 vaccine.  We have not heard much in any news lately about any progress in this development.  Most vaccines typically take from 12-18 months to be able to approvable for widespread use,  however, I suspect that if a vaccine can be produced quickly, the medical trials may be able to accelerated enough to be safe and also an option in as early as 8-9 months.  But... my biggest worry is that the Covid-19 virus may be mechanistically different in some fashion that will not allow the standard protocols to develop a vaccine successfully.  My fear is that Covid-19 may be a uniquely difficult pathogen to create a vaccine for.  I base this fear mostly on the way in which it currently appears the virus operates.... it causes quite different symptoms in different people.  Some have almost no noticable effect, others have respiratory collapse, and others have even more divergent symptoms.  This is NOT a typical pattern to see.  For most infectious agents, the symptoms induced tend to be fairly linear.  But this pathogen appears more multidimensional in effects and may be therefore more complex to develop a vaccine for. 

Other Stuff:

It has been Sunny yesterday and today.  This has been pleasant as we have had aggressively dense clouds most of this week.   The bright light is enjoyable. 

I am going to force myself to take a complete day away from work on Saturday.  Electronic teaching absorbs so much more time than face-to-face and I still find it a challenge to create a predictable order in my day that allows for work, but also allows balance for other things.... my family, my exercise, efforts to grow my creativity, etc. 

One of the things I damn well plan on accomplishing this weekend is to repot a large Christmas cactus plant that is roughly about 35 years old.  It has grown out of its current accommodations and needs some new "space".   This Christmas cactus was one that an Aunt of mine (one of my Mother's sisters) started for my Mom and Dad from a single leaf clipping of her own plant.  It grew and grew.  When my father passed away, my Aunt moved in with my Mother (my Aunt had become widowed about 2 years earlier) and they both continued to nurture this plant as well as many others.

I inherited the plant when my Mother passed away and have worked diligently to allow it continue to flourish.... even though I do not inherently have a green thumb.  

I am "ok" with plants, just not stellar.  

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