san diego: dialed in: CoViD-19: US Surpasses 900,000 COVID Deaths | CDC Study: Masks Actually Work (Duh) | Disabled Shouldn't Mean Disposable | Oil at $100 A Barrel is 100% Intentional |

Nova's First Wood Shop Project, Modeled By Jacaranda (Taken 2.3.22)

I wasn't really gonna finish a post today, but Nova has a derby scrimmage on Saturday morning so everyone else is asleep and I am wide awake for two reasons: I drank a bottle of Mexican coke with our late dinner and I was pretty much in bed all day with miserable cramps. Nobody tells you that this is what happens in middle age: your periods suck worse than ever, you can't recover from anything as quick as you used to, and you become invisible to the world. I finally sucked it up and took some Advil so hopefully that was the worst of my week.

We actually did have a good night when I finally forced myself vertical. We've always wanted to go to Astronomy nights at Mission Trails but always have something else going on, poor visibility with our typical coastal cloud cover, or we forget. This time I set an alert on my phone, so we piled on layered of clothes and jackets and went to the Kumeyaay Campground day use parking lot, where about 15-20 astronomy enthusiasts set up telescopes. These guys (and they're all older, white men...this sort of hobby has a very expensive barrier to entry) had so much gear. Tables with laptops and scopes and laser pointers and screens and cameras and tablets and massive telescopes, some 4-5' long and a foot in diameter. And they all love their hobby and want to talk to everyone about everything they know. We saw the moon, but among them that is considered super basic, so most of them were focused on the Orion Nebula, the Flame Nebula, and one guy was obsessed with a cluster called Almach, or Gamma Andromedae - visible and bright to the naked eye, but actually made up of 4 stars that dance in a beautiful rotation, which he made 4 volunteers demonstrate, including Nova. We also learned about Betelgeuse, which they said is an enthusiast's touchstone because it could explode at any second and would be visible for two weeks, even in the day sky, though they assured us is no danger to us.

On our way to grab El Panson, Nova commented how it can all make you feel so insignificant as a blip on a blip in a blip of a moment in the expanse of space and time, and I guess that's what people love about astronomy -- getting out of your own little head for just a minute. It was super cool and I think we'd definitely go back again, or maybe join a similar gathering when they group up in Anza Borrego.

After dinner we helped my dad and these back and forths are killing us on gas, especially after two years of barely driving at all, so I thought about the cost of gas and had some thoughts below. Meanwhile, the US surpassed 900k known deaths, California surpassed 8M cases, and at the current pace, San Diego could hit 5000 deaths in the next 12 days or so.

Stay safe out there.

COVID-19:

900,000 Americans have died of COVID in 2 years of the global pandemic - npr/kpbs (2.4.22)
Video: In-Depth: Scientists push back on study claiming COVID lockdowns had no effect - ABC 10News (4.4.21)
Many Adults Who Thought They Had COVID-19 Actually Didn't — But of those with confirmed cases, SARS-CoV-2 antibodies still seen at a median 9 months - MedPage Today (2.9.22)
A Disabled Activist Speaks Out About Feeling ‘Disposable’ - KHN (2.4.22)
ACIP fully recommends Spikevax, as CDC expands wastewater surveillance - CIDRAP (2.4.22)

Joint Statement on the FDA’s Approval of the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine for Individuals 18 Years of Age and Older - CDPH (2.1.22)
CDC backs Moderna COVID-19 shots after full US approval - AP News (2.4.22)

Does Omicron hit kids harder? Scientists are trying to find out. Children are making up a larger proportion of patients hospitalized with COVID than in previous infection waves.- nature (2.4.22)
CDC Isolation Guidance for Public Fails Test in Study— Pre-print on hospital workers finds sizable proportion still positive 5 days after symptom onset - MedPage Today (2.4.22)

CDC MMWR:

Effectiveness of Face Mask or Respirator Use in Indoor Public Settings for Prevention of SARS-CoV-2 Infection — California, February–December 2021
Clinical Characteristics and Outcomes Among Adults Hospitalized with Laboratory-Confirmed SARS-CoV-2 Infection During Periods of B.1.617.2 (Delta) and B.1.1.529 (Omicron) Variant Predominance — One Hospital, California, July 15–September 23, 2021, and December 21, 2021–January 27, 2022

Politics:

Judge’s insistence on mask removal spurs complaint - AP News (2.4.22)
Governor Newsom Proclaims Black History Month 2022

News:

Oil $100 A Barrel: Economics is not my strong suit, but you're going to hear a lot (again) about the price of crude getting to $100 a barrel and what I can say is that this discussion happens all the time, this is very intentional, that OPEC+ countries are trying to "recover" perceived 2020 losses, and there's Russia is specifically dicking around the United States over the Ukraine situation. That doesn't make the price at the pump any less painful, but this shit always happens. Last spring, while news outlets on the one hand were panicking about lack of supply and cost increases of oil to consumers, on the other hand they were watching the money roll in on their investments and telling people to invest in fossil fuels, even as we're trying to get off a fossil fuel future. It's all bullshit, we all pay, but be careful to watch how this gets turned into a Biden problem, or a California taxes problem, especially as we move into an election year. I'm just posting a few old articles, but just Google "Brent $100 Barrel" and look closely at all the dates and stories you will find.

Oil hits seven-year highs as rally extends to a 7th week - Reuters (2.4.22)
How High Can Oil Prices Go In 2021? - Forbes (6.17.21)
Oil Price is predicted a quick rise to $100 per barrel - Schneider Electric (7.6.21)
Opec to pump more oil but keeps door open for cuts over Omicron risk. Oil cartel will put stop to planned increase if new Covid variant leads to further travel and trade restrictions - The Guardian (12.2.21)

I'm not trying to minimize deaths by suicide. My neighbor growing up jumped to his death off the Coronado Bridge. But this $100 Million Dollar price tag is outrageous for an average of 8 deaths a year when looked through the lens of bicycle and pedestrian deaths and protected bikeway projects that remain unfunded, incomplete, or a compromise to merely put paint on the roadways instead of true protected and safe infrastructure. The cooperation between CalTrans, SANDAG, and San Diego have gotten better, but there are still unfunded projects for these ideas which have been floating for decades. Not to mention the money that rolled in to Coronado for years after the toll was still being collected when it shouldn't have been is nowhere to be found. I understand we shouldn't pit one good cause against another, that there is government waste all over the place that could be better applied (just as people see bike lanes as a waste of money that should go to homelessness or housing), but when you see a $2M bikeway stall from lack of funding while we're talking $100M for essentially a tennis net across the bridge, I think we've lost the plot.

Caltrans wants to put barrier on Coronado Bridge in hopes of preventing deaths. Caltrans wants to install a $100 million barrier on either side of the Coronado Bridge, in hopes of preventing deaths from suicide. - cbs8 (2.4.22)
Caltrans is eyeing a vertical steel net as a suicide barrier on the Coronado bridge. A new report identifies the most feasible option for deterring jumpers - The San Diego Union Tribune (2.4.22)

Riding to 2050: San Diego Regional Bike Plan
San Diego Bicycle Safety Overview: Infrastructure and Crash Stats: In the city of San Diego, car crashes kill about five bicyclists and 20 pedestrians every year. However, San Diego sees about 500 collisions every year between cars and bicycles. All but about 25 of these bicycle collisions will result in an injury. - People Powered Movement
Data Release: 22 Pedestrians, 5 Bicyclists Killed in 2019 in City of San Diego - Circulate San Diego (1.22.20)
After Cyclist, Scooter Rider Deaths on Pershing Drive, San Diego Adds Separators. A scooter rider was struck and killed by a teen driver over the weekend. In July, a beloved cyclist was struck and killed by a car - NBC San Diego/City News Service (9.23.21): 2021 has brought a rash of cycling-related deaths to San Diego, San Diego Bike Coalition leaders said. There is now a total of 14 cyclists killed in crashes with vehicles in the county, the nonprofit claimed.