That's a horse of a different color!

   OK, I admit it, I may have been a bit smug in preparing for a 3-4 week self-quarantine. Beginning with dog food I stocked the condo for that term. Suddenly the ante has been upped; 'prepare for 8 weeks of quarantine.'  That's a whole different ballgame, a horse of a different color, a......???
   Food is certainly one issue. Mental health is another. How does a person maintain sanity over that period?  This is going to get very interesting isn't it?  Perhaps if "a day at a time" is ever apropos this may be it. Facetime, IM, and all those other social media inventions of late could be lifelines.
    A few days into my own isolation I've learned that I need more movement. There is no "step counter" on my wrist but the confines of the condo, though as condos go it's quite spacious, leave me needing more movement. Trygve and I take a longish walk every morning. He's pleased that we've added another one to compensate for confinement. The skyway is not a good idea but walking outside is pleasant now that the ice has melted. Downtown offer myriad routes where I'm safely distant from others. Walking is a good boost for morale.

    Lars encouraged me to read Halldor Laxness, Independent People.  It's one of those books that's a bit of a challenge initially, which is probably why I hadn't read it though owning it since 1998. Now I'm delighted. It reminded me of a childhood experience.
    The setting of the book is a farm in Iceland circa. 1900? There is one milk cow on the farm that is confined inside through the long winter. When spring arrives it is allowed outside. The cow responds by running, jumping and cavorting like a calf.
    Calves, on our farm, that were born in the fall or winter, were penned inside while their mothers were milked. When the grass had greened in the spring the calves were let out into the pasture for the first time. Running, jumping, tails in the air they careened around the pasture, pictures of pure joy.

Seen through the eyes of others...
NORWAY COLLEGE: LEAVE 'UNDERDEVELOPED' U.S. Norway’s renowned University of Science and Technology has issued an alert urging students studying abroad to return home as a response to the coronavirus pandemic — singling out the U.S. The warning from the nation’s largest university, with some 40,000 students, applies “especially” to students staying in nations with “poorly developed health services,” as well as countries, “for example the USA,” with a “poorly developed collective infrastructure.” [HuffPost]

Takk for alt,

Al

The faculty.