?

Well this is a potpourri of topics, but here goes.

1.? The Groups.io site was down this morning, just presenting a log in page, but it wouldn't accept my login.? I decided to attempt to log in with my gmail account, which I don't use often.? Because it's a different email addy from my usual sewgood5 email, it treated me as a applicant for membership.? I then went back to my gmail and it was "down for maintenance" which was the message I received on groups.io last night.

Went to io. to have them send me a link to log in.? Unsuccessful again.? Went back to their link to log in and it magically worked.? All my groups in place, no problem.? So, Jaya, if you see a member request from me with an easley gmail account, just forget it.? I think it's all de-bugged at this point.

2.? Bread Flour:? I found the discussion of shortage of bread flour and sourcing really interesting.? I no longer bake bread much, but we certainly do crank out the pizza dough for every Friday night's pizza extravaganza.? Out of curiosity,? I decided to see if my Lowe's Foods in Southport had bread flour and it is sold out. In fact I almost mistook the entire flour section as the section for disinfectants b/c it was so bare. Today I'm in Raleigh to fulfill some appointments and I thought I'd check Wegman's:? No Bread Flour.? None.?

A nationwide shortage of bread flour. I am amazed.? Are Americans really baking that much bread?? Certainly more brean than the customary 40-50 hour work week plus commute time would allow, but enough to cause a shortage?? It's impressive.

No shortage of meats in Raleigh, not even the lamb or veals.? NC has lots of pork and chicken processors in rural counties and I read today that some of the pork producers have been hit hard with the virus.? That's frightening.

I'm heading back to Southport tomorrow, but it was like a tonic to lay eyes upon my son and daughter.? I've missed them so much.? It just felt so good to be able to talk and laugh with them.? We humans are not wired to be without live human interaction.? This is so shallow in light of the gravity of the times, but I was amazed to find that my son had actually kept all of my plants alive.? I wasn't expecting that.

Our infection curve is still rising, but flattening out, yet we are slowly opening back up, and I am very nervous about it.? I'll be the old fogey staying home.? However, it is reassuring that most everyone is wearing masks.?
The outliers tend to get the "stink eye" from those wearing masks and are given a wide berth as they pass.? It makes me think of this funny, simple, but crude way of explaining just why masks work:?

?1.? Two men face each other a few feet apart. Neither is wearing pants. Both pee. Each is peed on by the other.

?3. Two men face each other a few feet apart. Both are wearing pants. Both pee. Neither is peed on by the other.

A very direct analogy indeed.

One of my girlfriends lives in Oakwood, a downtown Raleigh neighborhood near the Gov's Mansion.? Last week the neighborhood had all of these men in army gear with machine guns (AR 15?) and side arms rolling through their neighborhoods in trucks, shouting and honking horns.?? My friend said it really put her on edge and was scary. No police anywhere. The same day,? one of the OpenNC people led a group to crash through the SW gate of the Gov's Mansion.? That's pretty unbelievable.? Strange times.

Mary


Mary.

?

Well this is a potpourri of topics, but here goes.

1.? The Groups.io site was down this morning, just presenting a log in page, but it wouldn't accept my login.? I decided to attempt to log in with my gmail account, which I don't use often.? Because it's a different email addy from my usual sewgood5 email, it treated me as a applicant for membership.? I then went back to my gmail and it was "down for maintenance" which was the message I received on groups.io last night.

Went to io. to have them send me a link to log in.? Unsuccessful again.? Went back to their link to log in and it magically worked.? All my groups in place, no problem.? So, Jaya, if you see a member request from me with an easley gmail account, just forget it.? I think it's all de-bugged at this point.

2.? Bread Flour:? I found the discussion of shortage of bread flour and sourcing really interesting.? I no longer bake bread much, but we certainly do crank out the pizza dough for every Friday night's pizza extravaganza.? Out of curiosity,? I decided to see if my Lowe's Foods in Southport had bread flour and it is sold out. In fact I almost mistook the entire flour section as the section for disinfectants b/c it was so bare. Today I'm in Raleigh to fulfill some appointments and I thought I'd check Wegman's:? No Bread Flour.? None.?

A nationwide shortage of bread flour. I am amazed.? Are Americans really baking that much bread?? Certainly more brean than the customary 40-50 hour work week plus commute time would allow, but enough to cause a shortage?? It's impressive.

No shortage of meats in Raleigh, not even the lamb or veals.? NC has lots of pork and chicken processors in rural counties and I read today that some of the pork producers have been hit hard with the virus.? That's frightening.

I'm heading back to Southport tomorrow, but it was like a tonic to lay eyes upon my son and daughter.? I've missed them so much.? It just felt so good to be able to talk and laugh with them.? We humans are not wired to be without live human interaction.? This is so shallow in light of the gravity of the times, but I was amazed to find that my son had actually kept all of my plants alive.? I wasn't expecting that.

Our infection curve is still rising, but flattening out, yet we are slowly opening back up, and I am very nervous about it.? I'll be the old fogey staying home.? However, it is reassuring that most everyone is wearing masks.?
The outliers tend to get the "stink eye" from those wearing masks and are given a wide berth as they pass.? It makes me think of this funny, simple, but crude way of explaining just why masks work:?

?1.? Two men face each other a few feet apart. Neither is wearing pants. Both pee. Each is peed on by the other.

?3. Two men face each other a few feet apart. Both are wearing pants. Both pee. Neither is peed on by the other.

A very direct analogy indeed.

One of my girlfriends lives in Oakwood, a downtown Raleigh neighborhood near the Gov's Mansion.? Last week the neighborhood had all of these men in army gear with machine guns (AR 15?) and side arms rolling through their neighborhoods in trucks, shouting and honking horns.?? My friend said it really put her on edge and was scary. No police anywhere. The same day,? one of the OpenNC people led a group to crash through the SW gate of the Gov's Mansion.? That's pretty unbelievable.? Strange times.

Mary


Mary.

?

[trimmed a bit]

?

Though as my DH and I were saying at breakfast, when it’s a choice of risk possibly catching something which might not make you individually very ill, or starve and see your kids starve, there’s no doubt what almost anyone would choose. People just hope they as individuals won’t be part of the higher price which will be paid overall. Africa and India are going to get caught the same way.

?

Hoping everyone is staying safe and well

Jenny

On May 6, 2020, at 12:39 PM, Melisande R. Wolf via <melisanderwolf@...> wrote:

I’m just about to break into my 50 lb bag of flour but will confess I haven’t looked at grocery store shelves for flour or yeast for weeks since I found it elsewhere.? I’m going to need more white sugar soon (down to the last 5 lb bag) so I’ll report back. ?Won’t have any opinion or knowledge about meat because we don’t eat it.