March | 2020 | Open Space Practice, (AKA: A Thousand Shades of Gray)

I tried to find the original source of this sketch, but failed, and yet still wanted to share it because it made me laugh and we can all use as much of that as we can get right now

1. The paradox of selfishness from Seth Godin.

2. A Post About The Thing With Feathers from Rita’s Notebook.

3. Tapestry@25: life advice from Rabbi Harold Kushner, the author of When Bad Things Happen to Good People. “Kushner’s philosophy? ‘In an aphorism: Life is painful if you do it right. Life will inevitably hurt you and the quality you need is not to lead a charmed life so that you’ll never be tested. The quality you need is the resilience to get over that. The answer is: live bravely. Live bravely in an unreliable world.'”

4. Noom – Nothing New, Everything Harmful from Dances with Fat.

5. “This is my baby, Bleu! She plays the wind chimes and sings to me every day!” (video)

6. The Afternoon the World Health Organization Declared the Pandemic, a poem by Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer.

7. A History Book That Isn’t: Finding A Way To Teach Racism To A New Generation.

8. Harvey Weinstein has been sentenced to 23 years in prison.

9. The Dollhouses of Instagram from The New York Times. “Instagram-inspired enthusiasts are making their interior-design dreams real — only 12 times smaller.”

10. Dirty Car Owners Find Their Cars “Vandalized” With Amazing Drawings, And Your Car May Be Next!

11. Artist Creates Posters Of US National Parks Based On Bad Internet Reviews, And They’re Amazing.

12. The Good Life Project: Morgan Harper Nichols | The Ultimate Love Letter. (podcast)

13. Becoming Light by Laurie Wagner.

The rest of this list is dedicated exclusively and directly to the central theme of the day: COVID-19. I’ve tried my best to find things that are useful, helpful without adding too much to the already existing panic and confusion you might be feeling. Skip it for now if you are feeling overwhelmed with information and need a break, (although, if that’s the case, the “Support” and “Better News” sections might still be of benefit).

Support

14. Yoga with Adriene, if you are looking for an opportunity for your home practice.

15. Dealing with the Immense Uncertainty of the World from Zen Habits.

16. 6 Science-Backed Tips to Stop Bottling Up Your Emotions.

17. COVID-19 Resource Guide for Yoga Teachers & Movement Educators.

18. Coronoavirus: How to Stay Calm in a Crisis.

19. Advice for Putting Your Class Online, a video from my smart, kind husband.

20. Stuck at home? These 12 famous museums offer virtual tours you can take on your couch.

21. 150+ Enrichment Activities for Children While Parents are Working Remotely.

22. How to hide your messy room for a Zoom video conference.

23. 51 TV Comedies To Help Calm Your Coronavirus Panic.

24. 450 Ivy League courses you can take online right now for free.

Information

25. Cancel Everything. “Social distancing is the only way to stop the coronavirus. We must start immediately.” In related news, The Dos and Don’ts of ‘Social Distancing’, and Social Distancing: This is Not a Snow Day, and What are the rules of social distancing?.

26. Why outbreaks like coronavirus spread exponentially, and how to “flatten the curve”. In related news, Flatten the Curve.

27. How soap absolutely annihilates the coronavirus. “You’re not just washing viruses down the drain. Soap destroys the coronavirus, a chemistry professor explains.”

28. Disney Parks and Cruise Line Will Close in Response to Coronavirus from The New York Times. In related news, Coronavirus Cancellations: Here’s the List.

29. Coronavirus Cost to Businesses and Workers: ‘It Has All Gone to Hell’ from The New York Times.

30. A COVID-19 coronavirus update from concerned physicians. In related news, Self-care Tips if you become sick with COVID-19 from an activist nurse.

31. ‘There Is Plenty of Food in the Country’ from The New York Times.

32. Anti-inflammatories may aggravate Covid-19, France advises. This is the only place I’ve seen this information, so take it with a grain of salt.

People Behaving Badly

33. Fact check: A list of 28 ways Trump and his team have been dishonest about the coronavirus.

34. He Has 17,700 Bottles of Hand Sanitizer and Nowhere to Sell Them from The New York Times. In related news, The Man With 17,700 Bottles of Hand Sanitizer Just Donated Them from The New York Times.

35. Far-right hucksters are selling phony coronavirus ‘cures’. (video)

Better News

36. Boston Area Residents Stockpile Marijuana In Case Of Coronavirus Quarantine. Toilet paper and weed.

37. A planeful of Chinese COVID-19 experts and 30 tons of medical supplies has arrived in Italy.

38. Satellite Images Reveal A Dramatic Drop In Pollution During The Coronavirus Quarantine. In related news, Empty Cities and Stalled Industrial Production, New Analysis Shows Coronavirus Has Cut China’s Carbon Emissions by 100 Million Metric Tons.

39. More than half of coronavirus patients globally have recovered.

40. Gym Trainer Leads Fitness Class For People On Their Balconies In Spain.

41. Portland distillery turns their alcohol waste into free hand sanitizer.

1. Morning walks. We went by the river and around the ponds this week, but because of the time change, it was too dark to take any pictures. I keep my headlamp on the whole time, and the sun is only just coming up as we are almost home. Sam is back up to being able to walk four miles in the morning and that makes me so happy.

2. Sam came to live with us 10 years ago this week. We had planned on going to Lifeline Puppy Rescue over the weekend to get a new dog, the same place we got Obi and Dexter, but I was home sick midweek and looking on Craigslist, where I saw a listing for Sam from the woman fostering him and his brother for another local rescue. I emailed Eric and we agreed I’d email the foster mom. As soon as she emailed back, I knew we’d found our new puppy, and Dexter agreed, so we brought him home. They guessed he was about 12 weeks old, but he was probably closer to 8 or 9 and looked like a baby bear.

3. Spring is coming. It seems appropriate that I took this picture of the first crocuses in the dark, using the light of my headlamp. Things are getting so weird, but the birds have returned and flowers are blooming. Life is like that — tender and terrible, beautiful and brutal. Wash your hands and keep your heart open.

4. Practice. More than ever, it’s helping to keep me strong, stable, and sane.

5. My tiny family. There’s no one I’d rather be “stuck at home” with, and I’m so thankful that dogs and seemingly children won’t be seriously impacted by COVID-19.

Bonus joy: a safe and comfortable home to hunker down in, the rational and reasonable approach Colorado is taking to this pandemic, the ability to stay home for long stretches of time, the resources that make staying home for long stretches of time workable, that if/when we do get sick there won’t be much I need to cancel, the internet, good books, good podcasts, good TV, limes, clementines, sweet potatoes, a big glass of cold clean water, getting all the laundry done before lunchtime, hanging out on Zoom with friends, all those working so hard to keep people safe and healthy.