Is this thing over yet?

I think that I have hit the wall regarding this coronavirus-induced isolation because Monday I woke up in a crabby mood, which lasted all damn day. I kind of miss having physical, personal connections with folks . . . even with those whom I do not like that much. 😉

I find that coffee and whiskey sometimes helps.

Injury: 

I have been trying to bike the outer loops of Central Park, which really helped out my hip a bit. Now, I just have to worry about the pain in my lower leg. I think the hip and leg pain were caused by my WFH crappy chair; however, my new office chair arrived the other day. Hopefully, my leg will get a little better because I would really like to get back to running very soon. I have a feeling that legs are important when trying to run. In order to keep up with my 2020 resolution of running a half-marathon every month, I have to run 13.1 miles at some point in April. 

Speaking of running. I have a feeling that I will be extra bummed out in a few days because I was supposed to running Madrid’s marathon in a couple of weeks. It looks like  the EDP RNR Madrid’s mascot, Runerto, is still keeping active en casa. 

I’m still a bit confused: why would a mascot from Spain have the name Runerto? Since the spanish word for run is correr, shouldn’t the bear’s name be something like Correrto or Correblo? 

WFH: 

Ok, I small WFH rant. I am becoming tired of the following question: what is the protocol for situation X

The following responses that go through my head: 

• The protocol is we have no protocol. 
• Why would you think we have a protocol, how many worldwide pandemics have we experienced in the past few years. Worldwide pandemics that have shut down our normal way of life.
• Que sera, sera. 
• Please do not speak to (or email) me for at least another 24 hours days. 

WFH II

During this time, I have been devoting some time to take some online professional development courses through LinkedIn Learning and general networking by having informal interviews. Well . . . I plan to schedule those interviews. 

COVID-19 annoyance with New York Sports Club (NYSC)

Ok, New York State has shut down all gyms in the state and in the city. Could someone tell me why NYSC is still charging membership fees? The Gothamist just published this piece a couple of days ago.

Courtesy of The Gothamist

Here’s my annoyance with this situation: 

• NYSC agreed to ‘upgrade’ everyone’s membership to elite status, which means you can use any gym in the area including some of the more fancy NYSC locations and  have access to online content. If all of the gyms are closed, then why would anyone be interested in having the option to visit a fancy NYSC location? Also, I do not think that anyone is interested in paying 59 – 99 bucks a month to access online workouts, many of which can be found for free. 
• Word on the street is that NYSC has laid off a huge chunk of its staff . . . except for the execs making 6+ figure salaries. If the majority of the corporation’s workforce has been laid off, then what are membership fees for? If folks were still being paid, I do not think I would mind that much if we still had to pay a fraction of our membership fees. I have a feeling that NYSC will be involved in a couple of class action suits in the near future. 
• Only means of contacting NYSC is through their online questions page. It’s damn near impossible to contact anyone at NYSC . . . unless you bitch and moan on Twitter. For example, Grubhub is doing things right. The other day, I ordered some BBQ, but I was charged even though I did not receive my order. Although the restaurant was listed as open on Grubhub; in reality, it was closed. I contacted Grubhub through its chat feature and the charges were reversed immediately. 

Speaking of ordering food online, this is a valid question

This question could and should be applied to Olive Garden’s and Red Lobster’s never-ending breadsticks and cheezy bread. 

TFH (Teaching from Home)

I know that we have to do it, but I am not really feeling online teaching. Well, I do appreciate being able to teach in shorts and a T-shirt. This semester, I am teaching a hands-on biology laboratory course. However, we cannot do any of the experiments because you know . . . corona. Instead, the dept has seen all the instructors Youtube videos of the laboratory experiments. The issue I’m having with TFH is the lack of engagement from my students; it’s like pulling teeth to get some of them to participate. Honestly, I’m not 100% sure if my students are watching Netflix or Hulu while I’m teaching.  To be honest, I probably would be watching Law & Order: SVU in the background too. When I started side-gigging as an adjunct professor, I always told myself that I would never be that professor who assigns participation grades, but COVID-19 has changed this. Oh well . . . it is what it is. 

Have you hit your COVID-19 limit yet?

How do you manage not flipping over a bookcase?

I would not knock over a bookcase because I think that I am more of a flip over a table type of guy.