By Karen
Day 48
Horoscopes Debunked & Where Tony Disappears Every Night
I must correct something I wrote the other day about Virginia Governor Ralph Northam saying Phase One partial reopening would last two years. Northam didn’t say that. It was State Health Commissioner Norman Oliver.
Gov. Northam is actually seeking ways Virginia can reopen much sooner. But I think any state doing this flirts with disaster, and I want no part of it. It presumes people don’t move around. Sure, go ahead and open one county in the sticks that’s had no infections. But as soon as an asymptomatic city boy makes a road trip to visit the folks, Grandma’s suddenly having a horrible death and you’re back to Square One.
It’s like they don’t remember how this stinking virus gets around: it travels. Unless they order anyone who might be infected (i.e., everyone) not to go anywhere, they risk starting another wave.
Short of a medical breakthrough (which would take months, if not years, to fully distribute even if it happened yesterday) I don’t see a quick and easy way out, no matter what Trump wishes. It’s getting pretty depressing.
If you read a newspaper, did you notice how it took a few weeks for the comics to catch up with current events? They probably had strips already in the pipeline, but now Dilbert’s in self-quarantine. One comic that seems oblivious to COVID is Marmaduke, probably because he’s a dog. But I worry about Garfield because his owner Jon is dumb enough to catch it.
Meanwhile, horoscope writers have been outed as fakes. Mine keeps going on about getting together with family and friends and taking trips. I stopped reading and I’ll never go back.
Somehow the Richmond Times-Dispatch sports section is still longest, most in-depth part of the paper EVERY DAY when almost no sports are being played. The world’s at near-standstill, economies are tanking, governments (all but ours) are frantic, yet the intrepid RTD staff keeps churning out reams of sports “news” like it matters. Why?
In cat news, Max graciously volunteered to stand morning watch in my office…
Tony contributes this factoid about himself today. Most nights after his dinner, he hangs around long enough to see if Max will command me to fetch treats, then he evaporates. I find him sacked out on my bed…
He wakes up raring to go at about 9 p.m….
But that’s when the rest of us are winding down, so he watches a little tube and then comes to bed again. An evening nap doesn’t give him insomnia.
Cats Working 
It would be crazy to open up anytime soon in the US – just look at the numbers! Some people are too stupid to realize how contagious Covid 19 is. You mentioned that as soon as an asymptomatic city boy makes a road trip to visit the folks, Grandma’s suddenly having a horrible death and you’re back to Square One. This is exactly what happened to an elderly mother in the US who had not been out since mid March. Her son had delivered groceries for her a few days before he himself tested positive, and a week later his mother tested positive, went in to ICU and two days later she sadly died.
In Denmark, we are slowly opening up… I personally think it’s too soon, but the numbers don’t rise and everyone can now get tested. Hospitals have lots of available beds, also in ICU, but not enough nurses know how to care for Covid 19 patients. Ikea opened Monday and politicians are discussing and fighting about that. Although they take precautions, some do not, and with the recent nice weather we have had, people were flocking to the parks and harbour fronts. There is now a ban to gather in these places and the police are handing out huge fines if they do.
Good to see Max keeping watch, so you don’t try to crawl out of the window. He he! And Tony seems to have a great time. 🙂
Randi, as states start opening up, we’ll see a spike in numbers, as if the U.S. having 1/3 of all cases worldwide just isn’t enough. Trump must now be aspiring to Hitler numbers in people he’s killed. He’s that sick and twisted. Hoping Pence sucked in a nice fresh batch of COVID at the Mayo Clinic yesterday and returns to the White House, where he tests a false negative and cozies up to Trump at the next lie session for the press and they can get deathly ill together.
I will never believe there’s any justice (or God) in this world again if we survive this long siege and no one in the Trump family catches the virus.
Over here, Ikea last week released its recipe for its famous meatballs. The nearest Ikea to me is outside Washington, DC, a good two-hour drive on a terribly packed highway. I think I’ve only been there once, and I’ve never had the meatballs. Are they delicious?
Ha ha, I had not heard about Pence at the Mayo Clinic, don’t even know what that is. But you’re right, any high number for tRump is better than a low number, whether it concerns deaths or other things. tRump and family are so protected that I doubt they will get infected, but if they did, I would not feel bad at all. tRump would probably not tell anyone, but I believe he secretly admire Hitler.
It has been many years since I visited Ikea, and I have never tried their meatballs (I make them myself… do you want a recipe?) However, I may go to Ikea in the next couple of months – I need one of those plastic mats to put under my office chair, so I don’t ruin the carpet.
Randi, the Mayo Clinic is perhaps THE most respected name in medicine here. They do a lot of research. I just looked it up and it’s apparently ranked the No. 1 hospital in the country.
https://www.mayoclinic.org/
Any American would have to be brain dead to have never heard of the Mayo Clinic. It’s in Minnesota, but has facilities in a few other states.
For Pence to walk in and flout ALL their regulations about protection right now, he might as well have walked into St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican and taken a shit on the altar in front of the Pope. I am VERY surprised the Mayo Clinic people let him get away with it. It just goes to show how totally beaten down EVERYBODY in the U.S. is. They’re afraid Trump will make a nasty tweet about them.
Trump is literally falling to pieces, but every time anyone kowtows to him, they prop him up a few minutes longer because he lives on worship. What he needs is relentless mockery and condemnation for every stupid, evil, murderous thing he says and does. You know, like how his parents must have treated him to have raised such a soulless vile monster.
Yes, if you’d like to share your meatball recipe with us, by all means do it. I think IKEA’s was in today’s paper. I’ll look it up so we can compare.
This is a classic recipe for Danish meatballs
500 gram minced veal and pork
1 egg
2 table spoons of flour
2 small onions, very finely chopped
1-2 deciliter milk (some use half fizzy water, it is supposed to make the meatballs more crisp)
1 tsp. salt
pepper
Place the meat in a big bowl, stir in the salt and mix well. Then add the flour, stir again and add onion, egg and pepper. Add milk/water last. Mix it all well. Let it rest in the fridge for half an hour.
Use a table spoon dipped in water and shape the each meatball by hand (I put them on a plate until there’s enough to fill the pan Fry them in butter/margarine or a mix of butter and oil on a fairly high temp. for approx. 2-3 minutes on each side, then turn the heat down and fry them until done – 3-4 more minutes.
Tip. One of the most important things about a good meatball is that you stir the meat thoroughly with salt. The salt dissolves some proteins in the meat, which makes it easier for you to bind it together. – The dissolved protein is a good emulsifier, which makes fat and water unite better as the protein lies in the interface between fat and water.
Oh, in the old days, people use to part the meat in the bowl in four and put one part on top of the rest, then add flour in the one quarter, to get the right amount. However, I use a little less flour.
Sometimes I make meatballs from minced lamb, and I put garlic in. I like to have it with cold potato salad. Enjoy! 🙂
I read about the Mayo Clinic, impressive! I don’t think that is where tRump should go if he gets sick 😉 There must be one more suited for him!
Randi, thank you for that recipe. Good information on the salt in the meat. The next time I make a meatloaf I’m going to try working salt into it, because my meatloaf has a tendency to fall apart.
The IKEA recipe I found is from the UK and they use
1 lb. beef, 8 oz. pork
1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed or minced
1/2 cup plain bread crumbs
1 large egg, lightly whisked
1/3 cup whole milk
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon vegetable oil (for frying)
Then there’s a sauce with butter, flour, beef broth, heavy cream, soy sauce, and Dijon mustard.
After the meatballs are fried, you pour the sauce over them, cover with foil and put them in the oven at 400 degrees for 30 minutes to cook the meatballs through.