Resurgence of Covid

If you have been reading the Apocalypse Papers recently, you realize that I am keeping up with the coronavirus news. Not in the Johns Hopkins fashion. But in the “what in the hell is wrong with people” fashion. What bothers me the most about the surge in cases is that people are becoming numb to this virus.

 

So here what I feel will happen.

 

Another national lockdown is coming. The economy will take a massive hit. And supply lines will become disrupted. Which will cause shortages, prices to spike, and people to panic worse than they did in March. Why. Because there is a lack of scientific respect that involves wearing a mask, practicing social distancing,                                                                                     and washing your hands.

 

It is inevitable.

 

Yet. There is so much fake news out there that people are confused as to which conspiracy theory to follow. There is a "liberal agenda" theory. The Covid “isn’t real” theory. The "Flu is worse " theory. The “Mask won’t help” theory. The “If I get the Rona, I get the Rona” theory. And with Houston, Arizona, Florida, and Mississippi finding out that ICU beds don’t grow on trees, there has to be someone chronicling what happened. Or those theories will permeate through our future history and people will repeat more of the same.

 

I just hope that while we slowly cruise through this portion of history on Willy Wonka’s SS Wonkatania someone is taking notes. Enough notes to point out that people were coughing on each other on purpose. Laying out on the beach as if the virus wasn’t affected by the heat. Having secret parties or family gatherings against common sense. People were walking around without their masks. People making fun of the safety precautions.  And when it is all said and done that the hundreds of thousands that are destined to die will be  a result of poor information, scientific mismanagement, and the lack of sound governance. 

Wash your hands, wear your mask, and practice social distancing. 

Vale ~H~

 

Shaking the Coexistence Tree

And racist fall out. For years Black folks like myself, have screamed that there was an undercurrent of racism that kept us trapped in certain positions or conditions. And for those who were not affected by the undercurrent those complaints were met with “You cannot pull the black card” it was a disarming and dismissive statement intended to make a complaint of race solely a personal one.

However

Once people rioted, protested, and looted, it was as if a secret portal opened up showing that racist undercurrent. It is the restaurant owner who stops a child from eating in Baltimore. It is an apartment dweller who stops another apartment dweller from swimming in a communal pool. It is CEO’s making racist statements, it is Instagram models who are clueless that racism exists. It is Fox news. Oh Ogun, is it Fox news. It is a department head who thinks that all Black People are lazy and the folks who feel that Confederate statues are a symbol of freedom. The fuck? It’s all the people who want to challenge protestors to a fight. Or murder a protestor. Or throw a protestor in jail. Or tear up a sign that says, “Black Lives Matter.” Its Karen. It’s definitely Karen.

And why are racist falling out of the tree?

Because people should stay in their places and not complain at all. Don’t complain about being ridiculed or murdered. Just let that happen. Be good citizens and stay at home and mumble quietly and peacefully. Let the racism happen like a forced conjugation in a prison shower. And if you say anything about that racism, you are being a rabble-rouser destined to upset the entire tree. Just ignore it and it will go away. After all the Blacks are free right? There should be no complaint that is worthy of inspection. Right? And anything that disturbs that tree of coexistence causes problems. Big problems.

If anything I’ve learned you have the right to say what you want but you are responsible for those words.

And, common sense says that people protest when there is a severe problem to be addressed. And not because they are off on a Tuesday and have nothing to do. And these protests are happening in the middle of a Pan damn demic. Mind you that if Crispus Attucks minded his own business American would have a king. Or if Susan B Anthony hadn’t spoken her peace women wouldn’t’ have the right to vote. And if there wasn’t the Stonewall Riots, we wouldn’t have an LBGTQ community and a pride month. Pointing out with each of those protests there was that minority that did not want people to change. And watching these trying times shake the coexistence tree lets the entire world know who is against change just that as they tumble out into the open.

Vale ~H~

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Spies in Mississippi

 

Born in sixty-nine, I grew up surrounded by older Black family members who were affected by Jim Crow, told stories of lynching, commented on how things, “used to be.” And told stories of how they survived the harshness of the land. Segregated water fountains, segregated movie theaters, segregated funeral homes, and segregated churches. Stories of unfair civil practices, unscrupulous business tactics, and a legal system that was not in any way in their favor.  

 

Not all the stories were bad, however. Many of them recounted tales of family and belonging to a group that suffered together. Survived together and died together. Prospering through prayer. And praying for the strength to bear that leaden cross with murdering their transgressors. It was survival through cunning and strategy and how they survived in the face of tremendous odds. It was tales of great food, family values, and psychological endurance. Long days of cotton picking and months to scrimp and save to leave the Deep South, in search of better days up north.

 

Weaved in between those tales were the whispers of how they had to organize in secret, the bombings, the beatings, the riots, the fires, and the lynching. And still, they managed to push past all of that to achieve their dream of equality. Only when I was older did I understand that there was a price to pay for that tremendous sacrifice. And many of those people who marched and sat down in the streets, suffering wounds so African Americans could have the right to vote are still alive. So that means that many of those people who bombed homes and beat Civil Rights workers are still alive also.  

 

Watching Spies in Mississippi last night, and I won’t give away spoilers, taught me that there are undercurrents to the civil rights movement that we are still discovering. This documentary was an exposition of what systemic racism looks like. And how there is an educated approach to removing someone’s civil rights through defamation of character, misdirection of the topic, and by controlling the message. To be perfectly honest, I sat through the entire documentary with my mouth wide open remembering what my father told me about perceptions. And how you should never take anything at face value. And this documentary proved that very valid point. I would suggest anyone reading this post to watch Spies in Mississippi.

 

 

Vale

Privilege Immunity

Healthcare is a fluid science that is based upon evidence. As one learns how disease manifests itself the disease is studied, and the best approach is used to treat patients.

 

We have social determinants of health. Or factors that cause you to be more or less susceptible to illness, injury, or disease. We have known risk factors that predispose a patient to chronic illnesses. We understand the factors that improve your health. Simply put. Healthcare understands the human body and its response to disease.

 

There are known pathways to sudden death and known pathways to a long arduous death. Either way, healthcare is aware of the things that make people sick. However. Knowing that are social determinates, comorbidities, risk factors, and an entire profession dedicated to improving health.

 

 I have never heard of “Privilege Immunity.”

 

Let me explain.

 

Standing in the middle of an emergency room with Covid-19 patients surrounding us. A coworker opened their mouth and uttered that they will not get coronavirus because they not in that “group.”

 

I dare not open that can of worms but hey how does one fish for information. So, I asked through my mask,

 

“What group is that?”

 

Their response was, “Preexisting conditions. You see that this virus only affects certain populations of people.”

 

If I wasn’t wearing a mask, my mouth would have fallen wide open. I don’t react to much but that by far was the most idiotic statement of the year. After all, we had patients who were very much in my coworker's age group, social background, gender, income level, and race. And many of those patients tested positive for the coronavirus. Some of those patients were admitted and some were not. But the fact remains they were not immune. And according to research, there is no current immunity to this virus. And being a dick doesn’t make you immune either.

 

I consider this coworker a super spreader of toxic information. If they believe that their privilege and income prevent them from getting the Rona. I’m sure they’ve spread this crap on Facebook or some other social media site. Where people are like “Yeah, this nurse is right. I’m too important to catch this bug.” And decide not to wear a mask in public, stand too close in stores, tongue kiss random people on the street, and rub their eyes with unwashed hands. And boom we are all under stay at home orders again.

 

 

 

And I hate f*cking staying at home.

 

Vale

War Body

Ogun African God of War

This is a topic that is covered a thousand times across the internet. But I think that the aim of men’s health is completely off. The message is one of more hair, a six-pack, larger arms, a bigger d*ck, a longer stroke, and muscles everywhere. What I am getting at is that the message that is being promoted to men at this time is one of a war body. And for those of us that have been to war know that a six-pack and biker arms are no match for NATO rounds. 

I don’t disagree with those aforementioned themes, but I do disagree with not including every component of men’s health. Like prostate health, urinary flow control, sexual exercise (didn’t know that existed) cardiac improvement. Stamina and Endurance.  Mental exercising and stress management. Skin, hair, and nail health, and flexibility. Water intake. Water intake. And Water intake. 

As a Man and a Nurse, I am in constant contact with men who are in reasonable external physical shape and have poor internal health. Being a Nurse and Paramedic has led me to believe that health maintenance is not promoted heavily enough to men. After all how many guys will admit that they cannot touch their toes or have trouble with their stream? Or how many guys go to the gym every day to keep the Dad bod away only to have poor endurance or limited sexual performance. 

Heart attacks, strokes, diabetes, cancer, and now coronavirus increases the chances of early death. There is no choice but to strike back by developing a strategy against those maladies. A strategy that promotes survival and quality of life over external appearances. So, I have personally decided to improve my health maintenance, change my body type, improve my diet, and when I am done, write a book about my new and improved War Body. I would enjoy looking like Ogun the African God of War. But. I'll pass. That's a 24/7 job. Yet, I don’t know how long this process will take. But I am sure that I will get there.  

Vale 

Ten Rules of Business

Having run a multimillion-dollar Ambulance service and a practicing serial entrepreneur over the last thirty years. There is a couple of things, I have learned about business and the business environment. I know that you can overthink things. I know that millions will not just magically fall out of the sky. I know that all sizzle and no snack will set you back. And I learned these business concepts and principals over time. I also know that if you want to learn the business you have to have a business. Business is an active verb. Yet, running into people who are often ready to take the plunge and lean towards financial independence. I realize that many people are confused as to what business is, how business works, and what is sheer fuckery.

 

My Ten Rules 

 

Rule #1 Business is a service. You are serving a need and this need does not need to be invented.

 

Rule#2 Business is not your face on a business card so your mamma can brag, “Look at my baby,” Customers are bias, judgmental, and skittish as an antelope at a lion party.

 

Rule#3 Business is fickle and a cruel mistress who will change on you in a heartbeat. Always have backup plans 2-26 to make sure you can stay afloat.

 

Rule# 4 Business is not your bank account so you can purchase a used premium car, buy high-end clothes, and flex on the gram.

 

Rule #5 Business has a set of rules and laws that create millionaires over time. Don’t give up if you don’t meet your expectations quickly.

 

Rule #6 A business plan can be one page long.

 

Rule #7 Business is started in the smallest of ways. Note: Pablo Escobar started his empire by selling used bicycle parts.

 

Rule#8 You don’t have the next best thing. Just offer something someone else wants. See rule one

Rule#9 People who are not business-minded will sway you from your business goals.

 

Rule#10 Educate but don’t hesitate. Learn about your business but learn by doing. That is the way you become successful.

 

Vale~H~

 

Covid to Economics

Let’s recap. The Coronavirus virus showed up in the United States somewhere around early February 2020. However, Nurses were reporting weird multifocal pneumonia early as October and November 2019. I remember my first patient from China with a form of ARDS Advanced Respiratory Distress Syndrome around July 2019.

 

The World Health Organization stated the entire world is in the grips of a Pandemic March 11th. Causing a cascading effect of countries, states, and cities to slowly lockdown around March 26th. We were asked to quarantine in place, wear a mask, practice social distancing, wash our hands as toilet paper and bleach flew off of the shelves. Businesses shuddered. People lost their jobs. Covid killed unmercifully the young the old, the healthy, and the infirmed. The stock market crumped. Stimulus checks were mailed out. Unemployment soared. Oil was in negative territory. And people began to telecommute.

 

So, what has changed from that March 11th to this very day?

 

Nothing. Or as we say in the South, “Not a goddamn thing.”

 

The virus is still active. And still on a murderous rampage across the world. There still isn’t a vaccine. Doctors are still confused about how to treat Covid patients. Because some patients present with a headache and are Covid positive. And some Covid patients present drowning in their secretions. Covid is so elusive that it is hard to fathom that a healthy adult could sit on the couch have a stroke. Or that a runner with perfect lungs would be placed on a vent. Or some people are completely symptom-free Covid positive and highly infectious.

 

To me, Covid-19 is a mystery wrapped in a riddle inside of an enigma protected by blockchains designed by Elon Musk himself.

 

And Yet. Stores are opening. Bars are doing business. People are out and about. And I’m sure if Covid had a voice it would say,

 

“Y'all gonna learn today.”

 

I’m sure that economics plays an important role in reopening our economy. And I hope that with the structured reopening to preserve what economic provenance we have left is worth it.

Americans are resilient and have the biggest swagger on the planet. After all, we are Americans. But as Americans we not immune to death and destruction.

 

I too long to walk through the mall buying yet another pair of cargo pants and a tall coffee from Starbucks. I too want gaze upon the most awesome artwork Baltimore has to offer. I’m excited to see my first Orioles baseball game. I want to go to Torrid and watch my spouse decimate a credit card. But I know what the coronavirus can do each time I wear all the protective gear to take care of a patient. With each ventilator, with each Comfort Flow, and with each time a patient cannot breathe. I resign myself to an Amazon purchase, Hulu, and YouTube. At least this way I know I am doing my part to prevent the spread

 

Vale

Eight Minutes and Forty-Six Seconds

There is no right side of the equation with the George Floyd murder. On the left side of the plus sign is a Black man who was subdued murdered on camera for the entire world to see. On the right side of the plus sign is four law enforcement officers who stood by and watched. As if they had done it before.

And the sum equates of those six individuals meeting up on that fateful Monday for eight minutes and forty-six seconds. Would result in riots, shootings, car accidents, looting, and politicians who are mute. Along with Verbose politicians. The alt-right who is inciting violence during some protests. And Trucks that are trying to bogard themselves through a sea of people. People are firing arrows into the protestors. People are firing at the protestors. Gangs protecting their neighborhoods. And a whole lot of fires.

Yet It only took eight minutes and forty-six seconds to ignite a riot in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic.

And across the new cycles, pundits and cynics alike, there is a sense of Karen-like entitlement that these protestors are thugs, thieves, and malcontents bucking the rule of law. That the riots and protests are just a phase by people wanting new shoes, or televisions, home goods, or just have a thirst for violence. Mind you that a majority of these same protestors were either working, sitting at home, or trying to self-isolate. I’m sure that none of the protestors awoke on May 24 with the intent of marching down their respective streets enraged the following week.

Some move to say George Floyd was a criminal. Be that as it may, even IF he was a criminal, there is a thing called due process afforded to people in police custody. Not death by asphyxiation.  

Yet this my America. Because young people are out in the hundreds of thousands, demanding better treatment, better civil liberties, police protection without summary execution or they will burn your shit to the ground.

This is America after all. Land of revolution. Land of freedom of speech and right to protest unjust laws. A land where taking a knee is criticized. A land where marching in peace is ridiculed. A land where a Black Man can’t birdwatch (he's the first birdwatching Black dude I've ever heard of) without 911 being called and his life being placed in potential jeopardy. And the land of Crispus Attucks for without his sacrifice would America even exist? So, as the riots roar on the question remains, “What do they seek from this?” And my answer would be freedom from death by assumption. Death because it is assumed that all Black Men are violent, rage-filled, hyper-sexed, brutes bent on destroying the social fabric of America and need to be put down like animals.

Vale