Living in coronavirusworod 48: Empire, power, ambition

5/9

Morningside egret

Colder. Especially in the shade.But the sun is out. In Morningside Park, we continue to be fascinated by nature in a way that we were not before. The egret, the turtles and the feral cat become characters in my daily drama as I check on their whereabouts and activities. I like the turtles and their prehistoric amphibian nature between the he world underwater and our own.  In Native American mythology the turtles’ upper shell is the vault of  heaven and the lower  shell the earth.  Two months ago, I would not have been writing about turtles.  My walking partner prefers the egret with its s curve neck and bathing ritual. 

Aa we walk our circuit around the Meer, through the Conservatory gardens and back, we talk about the DOE. 

Central Park starling

How it turned out the all the business about ZOOM's compromised security and checking out alternative platforms was just part of a tactic in the negotiations  between ZOOM and the DOE. ZOOM has now created a special platform just for New York City schools.  We can’t give more than a passing notice to the proliferating stories about “plandemic” suggesting it’s all a plot and statements that the death tolls are being inflated and the president essentially endorsing the wildest provocative speculation of the internet as reasons to “reopen” then economy. She is “confused” by her friend’s analysis that there is little difference between the Democrats and Republicans in handling’s the key economic issues exposed by the coronavirus. True enough.  BUT the fact is that Hilary, probably even McCaIn, would have left us with thousands fewer deaths in this crisis.  That counts  for something. We can’t think about these things too much. Just enough to be informed. Not so much as to fall into despair. 

Even small coughs are suspicious now and I try to stifle what I feel/hope is just spring allergies. 

My Saturday chores take to standing in one  line at the drug store and another  at the grocery store and carrying the grocers home over my shoulder n a Steeler bag. 

On Fredrick Douglass, an African-American motorcycle club fills the street with a pipes  roaring procession, one bike after the other.. Six feet? Well, I guess….

I watch the National Theatre of London’s production of Antony and Cleopatra starring Ralph Fiennes and Sophie Okenedo.  As always, I see relevance to our current situation. That’s what makes Shakespeare Shakespeare. It is among other things, a reflection on empire and ambition  and power.  I find myself thinking about living under occupation and realizing in many ways we are experiencing that reality. Every aspect of our lives is dominated by an alien force outside of our control. Freedom of movement and assembly curtailed. And the cost of ignoring orders can be death, either from the virus or other humans. Global lockdown. The sun never sets on the Covid19 empire.

And I listen  to a podcast that explains how diabolical this virus is, capable of mutation and self preservation. Only starving it stops it. And certainly our voracious unchecked consumption has open end the path for the virus to find us. 

And then the Saturday Night 45th Season Finale.  The "at home" show finished with a video called "Dreams". featuring Cecily Strong. (my favorite because she's ben in my audience a few times at Bar 9.) It's not perfect kind of quirky and even includes some clever "nightmares" as different cast members dream of their actual life in our city. All accompanied by DeBussy's Claire de Lune. By the time it finished, I was sobbing, missing what has always been and is not. That's what it is...imperfect, quirky, sometimes a bit nightmarish i ways we can laugh about....but ours. 

                                                              "Dreams"

It's time  for the day to end, knowing once again sleep will not come  easy.