What I'm Hearing,,,WBTV 7:00 pm Prime Time Newscast

76 people in North Carolina have confirmed cases of the Coronavirus

Low-risk inmates are being released from prison

Several outlet malls in Charlotte closing…currently set to reopen on March 29th at the earliest

Lots of local businesses offering delivery options….restaurants are only able to offer carry-out or delivery of their products…many service workers will be losing their jobs

Price gouging and scams are on the increase, including trying to sell test kits by telling the people they cannot leave their homes until they are tested

Unemployment rates may double due to the virus

Daily Card Reading for Wednesday, March 18th

DOG SPIRIT

Be loyal to what you love

Protection Message: Loyalty to people and situations can turn into attachment that results in stagnation, enmeshment, and loss of integrity. Do you fear what will happen if you let a relationship evolve? Are you afraid that asking for a situation to change will make others see you as disloyal? Trust that when Dog Spirit appears, you are meant to accept the turning of the wheel of life and the changing of fortunes.

If you feel you are being betrayed or are growing apart from someone, let Dog Spirit reconnect you with your commitment to love in all its forms. Perhaps a relationship is meant to evolve; perhaps you are meant to evolve too, so that you can experience the growth for which your soul yearns. Your greatest loyalty is to love, so be open to all its many guises, including self-love. You deserve the best, and that is what Spirit wants for you.

What if? – The internet goes down

With an increasing number of folks using technology for communication during the outbreak of the Coronavirus, I’m sure the internet is being tested with peak usage. As I plan lessons for my students to receive online, I’ve noticed the time it’s taking to load each page is a bit slow. I’m assuming that internet usage is at an all time high.

My “what if” question is, “What will happen if the internet crashes during this pandemic crisis?” We as a society have become so dependent on it for all forms of communication and entertainment, I shutter at the thought of what effect that might have. Without knowing a lot about the inner workings of how the internet works, I’m just saying it’s going to be tested as never before.

The same goes for telephone networks as well. I know during the 9-11 crisis, it reached points at which people in that area couldn’t get calls to go through. While that’s been nearly twenty years ago and I’m sure a lot of advancements have been made, I would still think the number of people using cellphone technology is at an all-time high.

Just some random thoughts on this day and hoping it certainly doesn’t come to pass.

David Lee

Thoughts on whether or not to continue social media hiatus

Little did I realize when I began my hiatus from all social media three weeks ago today that we would be in the midst of a worldwide pandemic during that break. Things have escalated quickly and I’ve gone from being at work most every day to working from home beginning tomorrow. All this has me thinking along the lines of ending my hiatus from social media.

I know the original intent of the sabbatical was and is to “do without” something in your life. If this outbreak hadn’t occurred, I’m most certain I would continue to abstain from Facebook and the like until Easter Sunday. But with the fact I live on my own, will not be seeing students and fellow teachers each day, and that we’ve suspended family gatherings, I am seriously contemplating ending the break early.

There are still parts of me that figure there’s divine timing in all of this and that’s why it’s not going to be an easy decision. I know I examined both the pros and cons of such a break without taking all this into consideration. While I do miss the contact and finding out what’s going on in other people’s lives, I also realize the craziness that occur on social media in even the best of times.

So as of right now, nearly 12 noon on March 18th, my hiatus from social media is still in full effect. And just like everyone else, I’m taking it day-by-day and taking in what each day brings before moving forward.

David Lee

Bonus Word of the Day for Wednesday, March 18th – dystopian

dys·to·pi·an /disˈtōpēənadjective

  1. relating to or denoting an imagined state or society where there is great suffering or injustice.”the dystopian future of a society bereft of reason”

A dystopia (from Ancient Greek δυσ- “bad” and τόπος “place”; alternatively, cacotopia,[1] kakotopia, or simply anti-utopia) is a community or society that is undesirable or frightening.[2][3] It is translated as “bad place” and is an antonym of utopia, a term that was coined by Sir Thomas More and figures as the title of his best known work, published 1516, a blueprint for an ideal society with minimal crime, violence and poverty.

Word of the Day for Wednesday, March 18th: draconian

draconian

adjective, often capitalized

dra·​co·​ni·​an | \ drā-ˈkō-nē-ən  , drə- \

Definition of draconian

1law : of, relating to, or characteristic of Draco or the severe code of laws held to have been framed by him2: CRUELalso: SEVERE

I’ve heard this word several times over the past week in reference to the Coronavirus outbreak and knew nothing of what it meant. So I decided it was time to do some research.

Draconian is an adjective meaning great severity, that derives from Draco, an Athenian law 

draconian (adj.)

1759, “of or pertaining to Draco,” the ancient Greek statesman; 1777, in reference to laws, “rigorous, extremely severe or harsh” (earlier Draconic, which is implied from 1640s). Draco is the Latinized form of Greek Drakon, name of the archon of Athens who laid down a code of laws for Athens c. 621 B.C.E. that mandated death as punishment for minor crimes. His name seems to mean literally “sharp-sighted”