#Arbor Day 2020

[nikkidiary-orangecatty]

꧁༺ Nikki’s Diary ༻꧂

꧁༺ Nikki’s Diary ༻꧂

P.1 :: [ Arbor Day 2020 ] 🌱🌱🌳🌴

I just planted a Haloxylon tree in the ant forest🌱, I really hope to visit it one day

P.2-3 :: 🐈😸🐱🎶🎼🎵🎤

Letting myself go in a corner where no one is around, I didn't expect to have a special audience .

Thank you for joining us 🐱

P.1 :: [ วันปลูกต้นไม้สากล 2563 • 植树节 • Zhíshù jié ] 🌱🌱🌳🌴

ฉันเพิ่งปลูกต้น Haloxylon ในป่า 🌱

ฉันหวังเป็นอย่างยิ่งว่าจะได้ไปเยี่ยมชมมันสักวันหนึ่ง

[ 12.03.2020 ]

P.2-3 :: 🐈😸🐱🎶🎼🎵🎤

ปล่อยให้ตัวเองอยู่ในมุมที่ไม่มีใครอยู่ ไม่คิดว่าจะมีคนพิเศษมาเยือน

ขอบคุณที่มาร่วมงานนะ 🐱

[ 12.03.2020 ]

[all-hallows-street]

All Saints Street Profile Pictures

Phew. Okay I am sure this is the complete collection of all the avatar/profile pictures that have been released so far.

It includes:

2017 Paper Cups Set (Abu, Damao, Ira, Lily, Luis, Lynn, Momo, Nick)

2019 Flower Crown Set (Ira, Abu, Damao, Neil, Nick, Lily, Lynn)

2019 Year of the pig (Axel, Crystal, Damao, Ira, Lily, Lynn, Momo, Neil, Nick)

2019 Goodnight! Set (Abu, Crystal, Damao, Ira, Lily, Lynn, Momo, Neil, Nick)

2020 Christmas Set (Abu, Damao, Ira, Lily, Lynn, Neil, Nick, +2)

2020 Campus/School Set for Team Battle (Abi/Arm, Abu, Crystal, Damao, Ira, Lily, Lynn, Momo, Neil, Nick)

2020 Workers Day Set (Abi/Arm, Abu, Damao, Ira, Lily, Lynn, Momo, Neil, Nick)

2021 Arbor Day Dumplings Set (Lily, Lynn, Neil, Nick)

2021 Sailor Set for Team Battle (Axel, Crystal, Damao, Ira, Lynn, Momo, Neil, Nick, Will)

2022 Box Set (Lily, Lynn, Neil, Nick)

2022 Year of the Tiger (Ira, Damao, Neil, Nick, Lily, Lynn)

2023 Year of the Rabbit (Abu, Crystal, Damao, Evan, Ira, Lily, Luis, Lynn, Momo, Neil, Nick)

Here is the google Drive link with all of them:

Oh, by the way: Team Battle was a popularity contest event for all FRZ comics (Fei Ren Zai, There Are Beast and All Saints Street) characters. I'll talk about the WSJ character rankings another time. Right now, I am exhausted and will sign off.

Edit: Well, goddamit. This is why you don't work exhausted. I missed the first set of avatar/profile pictures made by Lingzi. You might recognize it from the eng twitter account using the Neil one. Uploaded them to the drive so it should be all of them for real now.

[liontalon1]

Welcome to the first IUCN Wednesday! Today we’re going to be talking about one of my favorite cats the clouded leopard

(Image description: a clouded leopard sitting on a branch looking in the direction of the camera)

They are a small cat only weighing up to 51 lbs, they are mainly arboreal (the best climbers among cats) and hunt macaque, hog deer, slow loris, and other small vertebrates.

A fun fact about these guys are that they are often referred to as “modern-day sabertooth cats” and you can see why

(Image description: clouded leopard yawning, showing off their teeth)

Their canine teeth unusually long for their body size (the upper canines being about 3x longer than the basal width of its socket).

Unfortunately life hasn’t been kind to these guys, most of their subspecies are classified as vulnerable, with the Sumatran and Bornean classified as endangered. The Formosan subspecies has actually been classified as extinct since 2012 though in 20-8 there were two alleged sightings but these can’t be confirmed.

(Image description 1: a map of the current and past geographical range of the clouded leopard. Image description 2: a key to the previous map listing extant, possibly extant, possibly extinct, extinct)

(All subspecies are being included here)

This is the IUCNs most recent geographical range based off of the last species assessment from November 2020. The estimated number of mature individuals ranges from 3700-5580 and the population is decreasing.

Their biggest threats are of course people from human development to agriculture to transportation (roads and railways) to how we modify the environment (dams). That doesn’t even include the international pet trade or being killed for their pelts or body parts for medicine. Or because they’re seen as a threat (just look at how people over reacted when Nova was let out at the Dallas zoo).

These guys are really amazing (more so than i can say in a single post) so i encourage you to do your own research and hopefully fall in love with them like i have.

[grandmaster-anne]

My Week: In this neck of the woods

By Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence | Published 29 July 2020

Country Life Guest-Edited by HRH The Princess Royal

I DON the protective gear—toughened boots, strengthened trousers, leather gauntlets, helmet and visor. Grasping the handle firmly, I release the two safety catches and press the trigger. There is no kickback, no smell of petrol and only a low whirr as the chain turns. My new battery-powered chainsaw (a birthday present to myself) is up and running.

It’s easier to use than my faithful friend of so many years—the petrol version—quieter and better for the environment, as long as the electricity comes from a suitable source. Yes, it’s twice the cost when you include the batteries and charger, but it’s ideal for cutting up fallen branches, light thinning, pruning and tidying. The faithful friend sits in the shed like an elderly labrador, wondering if it will ever be taken out again.

Covid-19 has held the human race in its grip these past months, but ash dieback is the most influential disease in the woods here. Some 25% to 35% of our mature ash is infected and great areas of natural regeneration look to be headed the same way.

Our approach is to cut trees down once we are certain they are infected, but not a moment before that. It would be mad to fell all the ash and find later that the few that were genetically immune to the disease have been sacrificed unnecessarily. Fortunately, we have 30 or so other tree species here, which will happily expand to fill the gaps. Every arboreal cloud has a silver lining.

For someone who was brought up in woods, taught forestry by my father and who has lovingly helped manage 250 acres of the most beautiful mixed English woodland these past 30 years, it may seem strange to say I have reservations about huge targets being set for tree planting in the UK.

The intent is worthy, but what about the practicalities? Will the right trees be planted in the right places or will large grant-farming companies send swathes of dense conifer, with little biodiversity value, across our hills? Will areas of permanent pasture or wetland, which may in the long run be better at capturing carbon, be sacrificed? Who will look after the planted trees? I hope someone is addressing such issues.

I have the privilege occasionally to fly low level by helicopter across the British countryside and I marvel at how much of it is still a patchwork quilt of fields, hedges, small copses, woods, moorlands, wetlands and rough grass. That combination—so beautiful and so uniquely British —is a perfect recipe for both biodiversity and carbon capture. It would be a tragedy to smother it with impenetrable forest.

Many years ago, we set aside an area of lawn at Gatcombe to leave uncut, other than a couple of winding paths. We have been rewarded by an annual profusion of wildflowers among the long grass, all self-seeded and different each year, depending on what the weather has suited. Orchids have appeared in steadily increasing numbers; however, this year, most have eschewed the uncut areas and have mainly grown up in the paths. This either shows orchids have a sense of humour or, perhaps more likely, that they find it easier to push through where we have reduced the competition. Now, of course, we cannot mow the paths and I am shouted at if I try to walk along them.

One of the most distinctive features of the Cotswolds is the dry-stone walls. With their varying shades of yellow and grey and their different styles, they frame the landscape and somehow keep it at a human, almost intimate, scale.

Each morning, if it’s dry, I catch up with the man who has rebuilt more than 4,000 yards of our walls over 25 years. He doesn’t work on wet days. I sometimes help with unskilled bits, but my main role is encouragement, exhortation (seldom needed) and gossip.

Living alone, supported by his family, driving alone to the wall, working alone and then returning directly home, he has been able to continue working safely. We chat, at least 6ft apart, letting the wind blow any virus thingies away into the distance between us. He has just finished some 140 yards of wall in a field we rent from the Landmark Trust, which borders the golf club. Heritage, golf and sheep—a fine combination.

Through lockdown, in that wonderful dry April and May, he has been at his task six mornings a week. Impressive dedication—but he is only 89 years old.

[homerstroystory]

URGENT: University of Michigan Classics graduate student instructors are on strike and need your help

see below cut for information on UM's actions to sabotage its graduate students, the Department of Classics' complacency, and a signable letter of solidarity.

Dear [Colleagues],

I am reaching out on behalf of the graduate students in the Department of Classics at the University of Michigan to ask if you might consider signing and circulating within your departmental or Classics-adjacent listservs a letter calling for Michigan faculty to refrain from submitting Graduate Student Instructors' grades while we are on strike for a fair contract.

Our graduate student union (GEO) has been in contract negotiations with Academic HR for the majority of this past academic year, but AHR has not bargained in good faith. Notably, they have refused to grant graduate student instructors a living wage, despite a skyrocketing cost-of-living in Ann Arbor. Our current contract from 2020 stipulates a 10.1% wage increase over three years, whereas the inflation rate from 2020–2023 exceeded 15%, according to the US government’s standard index. AHR’s most recent pre-strike offer of an 11.5% wage increase over the next three years would not bring graduate students to even the inflation-adjusted baseline of our 2020 contract. The raise would include a 5% raise in the first year, an effective pay cut (as current inflation rates are an estimated 6-7%). The proposed contract's raise is even lower for our colleagues on Detroit and Dearborn campuses, despite a similar cost of living, with a 2% raise in the first year.

When GEO went on strike on March 29, the University immediately took legal action by filing an injunction against the union rather than attempting first to resolve matters at the bargaining table. GEO defeated the injunction on April 10, but the University has continued to refuse good-faith bargaining and instead has called upon faculty to submit final grades in the place of their striking Graduate Student Instructors. On April 20, GSIs noticed in their accounts that wages for the pay period of April 1–30 would be withheld on the basis of attestation forms, leaving us with a total of $100 for the month of April, even though 10 days of the pay period remained outstanding. On that same day, President Santa Ono called the police to detain two graduate students who were protesting outside of the restaurant in which he was having dinner (the two students were later released).

Unfortunately, the Classics department has adhered to the University’s line every step of the way. Our faculty have not only taught classes in our stead, undermining the power of graduate students to withhold our labor in pursuit of a fair contract, but they have taken on immense grading loads which would be entirely impossible to complete without a considerable cut to pedagogical quality. In certain cases, faculty who had no prior affiliation with a course have stepped in to submit incorrect grades for students while knowing that graduate student instructors were withholding components of those students’ grades. The graduate students in this department have attempted to communicate with and educate our faculty on the importance of respecting our strike throughout the last month, but we have received minimal engagement from the majority of professors. We have no choice but to turn to the wider academic community as a last resort, in the hopes that our faculty will listen to you when they won’t listen to us.

Please consider signing this letter and passing it onto your networks—not just for the wellbeing of graduate students here at the University of Michigan, but for the wellbeing of our undergraduate students as well.

 

Kindly,

[Graduate Student at UM Classics]

signable letter of solidarity

[superbellaxstuff-blog]

#TeamTrees Từ tấm ảnh meme trên Reddit đến thử thách gây quỹ lớn nhất trên nền tảng Youtube!

Jimmy Donaldson “Mr. Beast” là một cái tên không còn xa lạ trong giới Youtubers. Ở tuổi 25, anh chàng người Mỹ này sở hữu hơn 200 triệu lượt người đăng ký trên Youtube nhờ những video thử thách mạo hiểm và gây quỹ từ thiện. Ngược dòng thời gian về 4 năm trước, khi kênh Youtube của anh cán mốc 20 triệu người theo dõi, một fan hâm mộ đã đăng tải một tấm ảnh meme (ảnh chế) trên Reddit gợi ý rằng anh nên làm gì đó để vừa kỉ niệm cột mốc, vừa “tự tay cứu lấy Trái đất” với nội dung: “Kiến nghị MrBeast trồng 20 triệu cây dành tặng 20 triệu người theo dõi”.

Yêu cầu tưởng chừng như điên rồ này đã ngay lập tức được Mr Beast để ý, và không lâu sau đó, anh đã chính thức bắt tay vào hiện thực hóa nó. Bạn có tò mò Mr Beast đã làm thế nào để trồng được đến 20 triệu cây xanh không?

Quy trình phủ xanh trái đất của chàng Youtuber

Thử nghiệm đầu tiên

Vào thời gian đầu, Mr Beast đã cùng những người bạn youtubers khác thử tự mình trồng được bao nhiêu cây xanh, nhưng rốt cuộc chỉ đạt con số 300 mỗi ngày mà thôi. Nhận thấy cột mốc 20 triệu là quá xa, Mr Beast đã nhanh chóng đổi phương án hành động. 

Team up! Cần sự giúp đỡ

Mr Beast đã nghĩ đến việc tranh thủ sự giúp đỡ của Arbor Day -  tổ chức bảo tồn cây xanh phi lợi nhuận lớn nhất thế giới. Anh và những người bạn quyết định tạo ra dự án #TeamTrees với mục tiêu gây quỹ được 20 triệu USD cho đến hết năm 2019 - mỗi đóng góp 1 đô la sẽ trồng một cây. Tất cả số tiền kêu gọi được sẽ được gửi trực tiếp vào quỹ trồng cây  Arbor Day Foundation’s. Đồng thời, Arbor Day sẽ sử dụng mạng lưới của mình để cùng với những người có ảnh hưởng trồng cây “trong những cánh rừng thiếu màu xanh trên toàn Trái Đất”.

Dự án bắt đầu, phải làm việc chăm chỉ thôi

Sau khi lên ý tưởng, vào ngày 26/10/2019, Mr Beast cùng những người bạn chính thức ra mắt một video trên Youtube dài hơn 7 phút để kêu gọi crowdfunder (những người gọi vốn cộng đồng) quyên góp tiền quỹ trực tiếp qua Youtube hoặc qua đường link teamtrees.org. Chỉ trong vỏn vẹn 48h, họ đã huy động được 5 triệu USD với 1,75 triệu đô la chỉ đến từ YouTube, mà nhóm Youtuber tuyên bố đây là một kỷ lục gây quỹ mới cho trang web của họ.

Nhiều sự giúp đỡ hơn nữa!

Ngoài số tiền quyên góp trực tiếp từ người xem, bản thân Mr Beast đã đóng góp $100.000 cho quỹ Arbor Day Foundation’s. Bên cạnh đó, hơn 600 người sản xuất nội dung và những người có sức ảnh hưởng trên mạng xã hội đã tham gia vào dự án. Họ đã sử dụng những phương thức sáng tạo để tự quyên góp cũng như kêu gọi thêm trong cộng đồng fan hâm mộ của mình. Jacksepticeye, một trong những YouTubers nổi tiếng nhất Ireland với gần 23 triệu người theo dõi tại thời điểm đó đã tổ chức một buổi livestream kéo dài suốt 8 tiếng. Trong buổi livestream, với mỗi lần người xem quyên góp, anh sẽ trồng cây ảo trong trò chơi Minecraft, thu về tổng cộng $153,000 tiền quỹ. Một game thủ khác trên Youtube cũng đã sáng tạo ra phương thức quyên góp $10 cho mỗi lần tiêu diệt được kẻ địch trên giải đấu điện tử Fortnite. Tất cả những sự giúp đỡ này từ cộng đồng người có sức ảnh hưởng đều góp phần lan tỏa chiến dịch của Mr Beast đi xa hơn.

Quả ngọt và bài học.

Vào ngày 19/12/2019, dự án đã hoàn thành được mục tiêu đề ra với số tiền gây quỹ tổng cộng đạt 20 triệu USD. Tuy nhiên, #TeamTrees vẫn được tất cả các thành viên tham gia nỗ lực kéo dài cho đến hết ngày 1/1/2020. Sau đó, một kênh YouTube riêng đã được lập ra để ghi lại quá trình trồng cây của Arbor Day trên khắp thế giới. Ông Woody Nelson, phó Chủ tịch Quỹ cho biết, #TeamTrees đã huy động những đóng góp nhỏ từ một lượng khán giả khổng lồ. Đây là chiến dịch đạt được mốc 8 triệu USD nhanh nhất từ trước đến nay từ các cá nhân mà Arbor Day từng ghi nhận. Nelson cho rằng thành công của chiến dịch chính là nhờ ảnh hưởng từ các Youtuber. Ông ví đội ngũ Youtuber bao gồm MrBeast và các đồng nghiệp như biệt đội Avengers trồng cây.

Mặc dù chiến dịch #TeamTrees có thể không 'giải quyết được vấn đề biến đổi khí hậu' (như một số người hâm mộ và người dùng internet phấn khích tuyên bố), tuy nhiên đây chắc chắn là một cách hay để nâng cao nhận thức về vấn đề biến đổi khí hậu và cho thấy cách một người bình thường có thể làm cho cuộc sống của mình xanh hơn. Mr Beast cũng đã đồng ý với tuyên bố này trong một tweet vào năm 2020. Anh nói rằng: “Tất cả chúng ta đều nhận ra rằng 20 triệu cây xanh sẽ không khắc phục được vấn đề biến đổi khí hậu. Nhưng suy cho cùng thì 20 triệu vẫn hơn là 0! Chúng tôi muốn hành động không vì lí do gì cả. Đó chính là lý do chúng tôi làm được như bây giờ!”

[oh-he-grows]

I was about to donate to my local University Master Gardener extension and the Arbor Day Foundation, but turns out the charitable tax deduction for Standard Deductions (which 95%+ of Americans take) was only for 2020 and 2021 as part of covid relief.

Now the only way to get any tax-advantaged benefit to charitable donations is to file with Itemized deductions.

In 2016, 35% of Americans filed itemized deductions.

In 2021, various sources say between 5% and 13% of households file itemized.

Republicans and Democrats have both been submitting proposals to allow charitable donations to apply regardless of standard/itemized deduction since 2017, but even after it was included for 2020 and 2021 it was allowed to expire and is now back to normal.

I can't even imagine the kind of impact this has had on revenue for charities and nonprofits, eliminating any kind of incentive for the average American to donate their already-dwindling paycheck. The American public and both political parties want to be able to donate, but the incentive is not there anymore. Fucking sort it out.

[dustedmagazine]

Fred Thomas — Those Days Are Dust (Dagoretti)

Those Days Are Dust, Dream Erosion Pt. II by Fred Thomas

Fred Thomas is a busy fellow, so busy that it can prove difficult to keep up with all the projects he’s involved in. Just recently, his new band Winged Wheel put out their excellent debut album, No Island (Jennifer Kelly reviewed it for Dusted). He releases music under his own name, including 2015’s fantastic All Are Saved; he plays in various other bands, including Idle Ray, Failed Flowers and Hydropark; plus, he has recently narrated a podcast about the history of Polyvinyl Records. Basically, if there are any interesting musical projects underway in Ann Arbor, Michigan, it’s highly likely that Fred Thomas is involved.

Those Days Are Dust is the latest entry in Thomas’s sprawling and varied discography. An instrumental solo album, it’s thematically a successor to 2020’s Dream Erosion. During 2021, Thomas experimented with synthesizers and tape delay, crafting atmospheric loops and minimal compositions. The best points of comparison are probably Tim Hecker and Christian Fennesz, with emphasis on immersive textures and slowly shifting layers, such as the static-flecked tapestry of “Boat Cloak.”

Album opener “January Redux” pairs a wrenching backwards melody with plenty of tape hiss, immediately establishing an emotionally engaging atmosphere. The slowly unfurling “Crisis Days cont.” has a muted majesty that evokes the rain-soaked dystopia of Vangelis’s Blade Runner soundtrack. “Repeating” is a dreamy waltz at the heart of the track list, segueing beautifully into the droning, aquatic sounds of “Composition of the Whale.” At nearly six minutes, “Post-Flood Edits” is the longest piece, making the most of some extremely juicy synth tones across its runtime. The album’s outlier is “Unfit,” which features drums from Quin Kirchner and bass from Jason Lymangrover. It arrives early in the album, injecting a welcome burst of energy and a strident melody that really brighten the mood.

For the most part, Those Days Are Dust explores a muted, reflective palette that demonstrates an enviable lightness of touch. Thomas appears as adept at exploring the compositional possibilities of synths as he is at writing guitar-based songs or bashing away on the drums.

Tim Clarke

[nwbeerguide]

Released the second week in May, Von Ebert Brewing shares their next expression, Arboreal Light. A blended ale, aged with Centennialquats, Mandarinquats, Hallertau Mittlefrui hops, & Azacca hops.

Press Release

Today Von Ebert Brewing, the award-winning and locally owned Portland-based brewing company, is releasing its latest Heritage Beer, Arboreal Light.

The 5.1% ABV beer is a blend of foudre and puncheon-aged mixed cultures beers, further aged on Centennialquats and Mandarinquats from Pearson Ranch in California. Then it was dry-hopped with a touch of Hallertau Mittlefruh and Azacca.

The beer has characteristics of orange blossoms on a sunny day, moderate oak and tannin and vanillin, clean acidity, and subtle Brett funk.

Arboreal Light was blended in collaboration with fellow 2020 GABF Specialty Saison medalists Alesong Brewing & Blending and Coldfire Brewing. Both came down to Von Ebert Glendoveer to taste through a bunch of oak, and the three breweries settled on a bright blend with lots of citrus notes that was a perfect base for further citrus additions. A subtle dose of dry-hopping added some background herbal grassiness and stone fruit pungency.

Arboreal Light is available today in bottles at Von Ebert Glendoveer and Von Ebert Pearl.

About Von Ebert Brewing

Von Ebert Brewing, winner of Brewery of the Year, Medium Size, at the 2021 Oregon Beer Awards, sits at the crossroads where storied traditions meet bold new ideas in brewing. Independently owned and operated, the Portland, OR-based brewery produces award-winning beers in a variety of styles. Von Ebert beers have received medals at numerous competitions, world-class ratings from top blind tasting panels, and recognition as one of the top 20 beers in the world over the past year. In addition to modern IPAs and crisp lagers, the oak-aged, bottle-conditioned Heritage beer program sets the brewery apart. All of the beers pair perfectly with the elevated American pub cuisine served at both brewpub locations. For more information, please visit www.vonebertbrewing.com. 

from Northwest Beer Guide - News - The Northwest Beer Guide https://bit.ly/3lhjobV

[brookston]

Holidays 4.26

Holidays

Activity Advisor Appreciation Day

Alien Day

Arbor Day (Germany)

Audubon Day

Australian Appreciation Day

Beatrix Asteroid Day

Cape Henry Day (Virginia)

Chuvash Language Day (Russia)

Common Columbine Day (French Republic)

Confederate Memorial Day (Florida)

Day of Remembrance of the Chernobyl Tragedy (Belarus)

Festival of Individual Sovereignty

Football Day (Kazakhstan)

426 Day

General Prayer Day (Denmark)

Get Organized Day

Help a Horse Day

High School Radio Day

Hug a Friend Day

Hug An Australian Day

Hug a Prom Sponsor

Huntingdonshire Day (England)

Internal Medicine Research Day

International Chernobyl Disaster Remembrance Day (UN)

International Choerm Day

International Day of Humor

International Day of the Penis

International Flamingo Day

International Seeds Day

International Shared Parenting Day

Lesbian Visibility Day

Lily of the Valley Day (French Republic)

Memorial Day of Radiation Accidents and Catastrophes (Russia)

National Ai Day

National Audubon Day

National Dissertation Day

National Drug Take Back Day

National Gabriel Day

National Garage Day

National Hand Holding Day

National Help a Horse Day

National Hit It From the Back Day

National Jason Day

National Kids and Pets Day

National No Makeup Day

National Ranboo Day

National South Dakota Day

Old Permic Alphabet Day

Parental Alienation Awareness Day

Poetry and the Creative Mind Day

Prayer Day (Faroe Islands; Greenland)

Read Me Day

Regional Autonomy Day (Indonesia)

Remember Your First Kiss Day

Resistance Day (Day of the Uprising Against the Occupying Forces; Slovenia) [26th Unless a Sunday, then 27th]

Richter Scale Day

Secretaries’ Day (Colombia)

Self-Aware Universe Day

Shared Parenting Day (Kentucky)

Shuffleboard Day

Static Cling Day

Studio 54 Day

Sultan’s Day (Malaysia)

Tartar Language Day

Underground Nuclear Test Day

Union Day (Tanzania)

Vallenato Legend Festival begins (Colombia)

Venus Day

Visakhabousa Day (Laos)

Wallabee Day

World Burlesque Day

World Intellectual Freedom Day

World Intellectual Property Day (UN)

World Pilots’ Day

YMCA Healthy Kids Day

Food & Drink Celebrations

Beer Autism Hope Day

International Macaroni Day

National Pretzel Day

4th & Last Friday in April

Arbor Day [Last Friday]

Arbrewday [Last Friday]

Childcare Professionals Day [Last Friday]

Children’s Memorial Flag Day [Last Friday]

Day of Dialogue [Last Friday]

Flashback Friday [Every Friday]

Friendship Friday [Last Friday]

Fry Day (Pastafarian; Fritism) [Every Friday]

Hairball Awareness Day [Last Friday]

Hooky Day (Argentina) [Last Friday]

International Viognier Day [Last Friday]

National Historic Marker Day [Last Friday]

National Skipping Day (UK) [4th Friday]

Swiss Beer Day (Switzerland) [Last Friday]

Undiagnosed Children’s Day (UK) [Last Friday]

World Meningitis Day [4th Friday]

World Women’s Wellness Day [Last Friday]

Weekly Holidays beginning April 26 (4th Week)

Global Youth Service Days [Last Weekend] (thru 4.28)

Interstate Mullet Toss [Last Weekend] (thru 4.28)

National Dream Hotline [Last Weekend] (thru 4.28)

National Pie Championships [Last Weekend] (thru 4.28)

Independence & Related Days

Aetosia (Declared; 2019) [unrecognized]

Karisradd (Declared; 2013) [unrecognized]

Kotland (Declared; 2020) [unrecognized]

Republic of Alba (Declared; 1796) [lasted 2 days]

Roskya (Declared; 2020) [unrecognized]

Tanzania (Union Day; Created by Zanzibar and Tanganyika merger; 1964)

New Year’s Days

New Year’s Seed Sowing Ceremony (Goddess of Fertility; Sierra Leone)

Festivals Beginning April 26, 2024

Asheville Spring Herb Festival (Asheville, North Carolina) [thru 4.28]

Astoria-Warrenton Crab, Seafood & Wine Festival (Astoria, Oregon) [thru 4.28]

Big Island Chocolate Festival (Hapuna Beach Prince Hotel; Hawaii) [thru 4.27]

Brewgaloo (Raleigh, North Carolina)) [thru 4.27]

Chicago Comic & Entertainment Expo (Chicago, Illinois) [thru 4.28]

Chicken Fried Steak Festival (Lamesa, Texas) [thru 4.28]

Clinton-Hickman County Spring Chicken Festival (Clinton, Kentucky) [thru 4.27]

Colleton County Rice Festival (Walterboro, South Carolina) [thru 4.27]

Fiddler’s Frolic [thru 4.28]

Georgia State Fair, Spring (Metro Atlanta, Hampton, Georgia) [thru 5.5]

Glen Lake Restaurant Week (Glen Arbor Area, Michigan) [thru 5.4]

Interstate Mullet Toss and Gulf Coast’s Greatest Beach Party (Orange Beach, Alabama) [thru 4.27]

Pensacola Crawfish Festival (Pensacola, Florida) [thru 4.28]

Procession of the Species (Olympia, Washington) [thru 4.27]

Sacramento Beer Week (Sacramento, California) [thru 5.5]

Sacred Heart Garden City Festival (Augusta, Georgia) [thru 4.27]

Santa Barbara Restaurent Week (Santa Barbara, California) [thru 5.5]

Shenandoah Apple Blossom Festival (Winchester, Virginia) [thru 5.5]

Striped Bass Festival (Manning, South Carolina) [thru 4.27]

Vermontville Maple Syrup Festival (St. Albans, Michigan) [thru 4.28]

Wakarusa Maple Syrup Festival (Wakarusa, Indiana) [thru 4.28]

Feast Days

Aldobrandesca (a.k.a. Alda; Christian; Saint)

Anacletus, Pope (a.k.a. Cletius) and Marcellinus (Christian; Martyrs)

Basil (Christian; Saint)

Bernard Malamud (Writerism)

The Birthday Cake (Muppetism)

Cimon (Positivist; Saint)

Cletus and Marcellinus (Christian; Martyrs)

Delphinia (Festival of Apollo; Ancient Greece)

Edward Charles Tarbell (Artology)

Eugène Delacroix (Artology)

Fairy Laughter Convention (Shamanism)

Festival of Renenutet (Ancient Egypt)

The Fixer, by Bernard Malamud (Novel; 1966)

Franca Visalta (Christian; Saint)

Get Organized Day (Pastafarian)

Giamonios (Celtic Book of Days)

Gian Paolo Lomazzo (Artology)

Hug An Australian Day (Pastafarian)

Jethro Tull Day (Church of the SubGenius; Saint)

John James Audubon (Artology)

Lucidius of Verona (Christian; Saint)

Mayan Rain Festival (Ancient Mayan)

Memorial of Our Lady of Good Counsel (Christian)

Moon Magick Day (Starza Pagan Book of Days)

Our Lady of Good Counsel (Christian; Saint)

Paschasius Radbertus (Christian; Saint)

Peter of Rates (or of Braga; Christian; Saint)

Rafael Arnaiz (Christian; Saint) [Diabetes]

Riquier (a.k.a. Ricardius; Christian; Saint)

Robert Hunt (Episcopal Church (USA))

Sacrifice to Zeus Epacrios (Ancient Greece)

Stephen of Perm (Christian; Saint)

Trudpert (Christian; Saint)

Visakh Bochea Day (Buddha Day; Cambodia)

Walpurgisnacht, Day IV (Pagan)

Lucky & Unlucky Days

Lucky Day (Philippines) [22 of 71]

Tomobiki (友引 Japan) [Good luck all day, except at noon.]

Uncyclopedia Bad to Be Born Today (because the Chernobyl meltdown began.)

Premieres

American Recordings, by Johnny Cash (Album; 1994)

Avengers: Endgame (Film; 2019)

Bear De Guerre (The Inspector Cartoon; 1968)

Belfagor, by Ottorino Respighi (Opera; 1923)

The Bridge at Andau, by James A. Michener (History Book; 1957)

The Cat Concerto (Tom & Jerry Cartoon; 1947)

Devils & Dust, by Bruce Springsteen (Album; 2005)

Dogtown and Z-Boys (Documentary Film; 2002)

Dragon Ball Z (Anime TV Series; 1989)

The Enchanted Wood, by Enid Blyton (Children’s Book; 1939)

Farewell, My Lovely, by Raymond Chandler (Novel; 1940)

4th Symphony, by Charles Ives (Symphony; 1965)

The Goose Goes South (MGM Cartoon; 1941)

Gunsmoke (Radio Series; 1952)

The Handmaid’s Tale (TV Series; 2017)

The Hip-Nut-Tist (Fleischer Popeye Cartoon; 1935)

Just One of the Guys (Film; 1985)

The Last Waltz, by The Band (Live Album & Concert Film; 1978)

Moosylvania Wish Mash or A State of Confusion (Rocky & Bullwinkle Cartoon, S6, Ep. 366; 1965)

Moosylvania Saved, Part 3 (Rocky & Bullwinkle Cartoon, S6, Ep. 365; 1965)

The Muppet Musicians of Bremen (Muppet TV Special; 1972)

Neverland, by Jim Steinman (Musical Play; 1977)

Pink Posies (Pink Panther Cartoon; 1967)

The Reluctant Recruit (Woody Woodpecker Cartoon; 1971)

Seven Samurai (Film; 1954)

The Ship Who Sang, by Anne McCaffrey (Novel; 1969)

Swing Your Partner (Swing Symphony Cartoon; 1943)

Those Were Wonderful Days (WB MM Cartoon; 1934)

Throwing Copper, by Live (Album; 1994)

The Trial, by Franz Kafka (Novel; 1925)

The Truth About Cats & Dogs (Film; 1996)

Tugboat Mickey (Disney Cartoon; 1940)

Ups ’n Downs (WB LT Cartoon; 1931)

A Waggily Tale (WB LT Cartoon; 1958)

”Weird Al” Yankovic, by Weird Al Yankovic (Album; 1983)

Today’s Name Days

Helene, Trudpert (Austria)

Kleto, Maksima, Montan, Stanislav, Višnja (Croatia)

Oto (Czech Republic)

Cletus (Denmark)

Eesi, Reesi, Teesi, Teisi, Tereese (Estonia)

Teresa, Terttu, Tessa (Finland)

Alida (France)

Consuela, Helene (Germany)

Glafyra (Greece)

Ervin (Hungary)

Alida, Bianca, Cleto, Marcellino (Italy)

Alīna, Geraldine, Rusins, Sandris (Latvia)

Dargailė, Gailenis, Klaudijus (Lithuania)

Tea, Terese (Norway)

Artemon, Klaudiusz, Klet, Marcelin, Marcelina, Maria, Marzena, Spycimir (Poland)

Chindeu, Chiril, Tasie, Vasile (Romania)

Jaroslava (Slovakia)

Isidoro (Spain)

Terese, Teresia (Sweden)

Clarence, DeMarco, Demarcus, Demario (USA)

Today is Also…

Day of Year: Day 117 of 2024; 249 days remaining in the year

ISO: Day 5 of week 17 of 2024

Celtic Tree Calendar: Saille (Willow) [Day 13 of 28]

Chinese: Month 3 (Wu-Chen), Day 18 (Geng-Shen)

Chinese Year of the: Dragon 4722 (until January 29, 2025) [Wu-Chen]

Hebrew: 18 Nisan 5784

Islamic: 17 Shawwal 1445

J Cal: 27 Cyan; Sixday [27 of 30]

Julian: 13 April 2024

Moon: 92%: Waning Gibbous

Positivist: 5 Caesar (5th Month) [Xenophon]

Runic Half Month: Lagu (Flowing Water) [Day 2 of 15]

Season: Spring (Day 39 of 92)

Week: 4th Week of April

Zodiac: Taurus (Day 7 of 31)

[brookstonalmanac]

Holidays 4.26

Holidays

Activity Advisor Appreciation Day

Alien Day

Arbor Day (Germany)

Audubon Day

Australian Appreciation Day

Beatrix Asteroid Day

Cape Henry Day (Virginia)

Chuvash Language Day (Russia)

Common Columbine Day (French Republic)

Confederate Memorial Day (Florida)

Day of Remembrance of the Chernobyl Tragedy (Belarus)

Festival of Individual Sovereignty

Football Day (Kazakhstan)

426 Day

General Prayer Day (Denmark)

Get Organized Day

Help a Horse Day

High School Radio Day

Hug a Friend Day

Hug An Australian Day

Hug a Prom Sponsor

Huntingdonshire Day (England)

Internal Medicine Research Day

International Chernobyl Disaster Remembrance Day (UN)

International Choerm Day

International Day of Humor

International Day of the Penis

International Flamingo Day

International Seeds Day

International Shared Parenting Day

Lesbian Visibility Day

Lily of the Valley Day (French Republic)

Memorial Day of Radiation Accidents and Catastrophes (Russia)

National Ai Day

National Audubon Day

National Dissertation Day

National Drug Take Back Day

National Gabriel Day

National Garage Day

National Hand Holding Day

National Help a Horse Day

National Hit It From the Back Day

National Jason Day

National Kids and Pets Day

National No Makeup Day

National Ranboo Day

National South Dakota Day

Old Permic Alphabet Day

Parental Alienation Awareness Day

Poetry and the Creative Mind Day

Prayer Day (Faroe Islands; Greenland)

Read Me Day

Regional Autonomy Day (Indonesia)

Remember Your First Kiss Day

Resistance Day (Day of the Uprising Against the Occupying Forces; Slovenia) [26th Unless a Sunday, then 27th]

Richter Scale Day

Secretaries’ Day (Colombia)

Self-Aware Universe Day

Shared Parenting Day (Kentucky)

Shuffleboard Day

Static Cling Day

Studio 54 Day

Sultan’s Day (Malaysia)

Tartar Language Day

Underground Nuclear Test Day

Union Day (Tanzania)

Vallenato Legend Festival begins (Colombia)

Venus Day

Visakhabousa Day (Laos)

Wallabee Day

World Burlesque Day

World Intellectual Freedom Day

World Intellectual Property Day (UN)

World Pilots’ Day

YMCA Healthy Kids Day

Food & Drink Celebrations

Beer Autism Hope Day

International Macaroni Day

National Pretzel Day

4th & Last Friday in April

Arbor Day [Last Friday]

Arbrewday [Last Friday]

Childcare Professionals Day [Last Friday]

Children’s Memorial Flag Day [Last Friday]

Day of Dialogue [Last Friday]

Flashback Friday [Every Friday]

Friendship Friday [Last Friday]

Fry Day (Pastafarian; Fritism) [Every Friday]

Hairball Awareness Day [Last Friday]

Hooky Day (Argentina) [Last Friday]

International Viognier Day [Last Friday]

National Historic Marker Day [Last Friday]

National Skipping Day (UK) [4th Friday]

Swiss Beer Day (Switzerland) [Last Friday]

Undiagnosed Children’s Day (UK) [Last Friday]

World Meningitis Day [4th Friday]

World Women’s Wellness Day [Last Friday]

Weekly Holidays beginning April 26 (4th Week)

Global Youth Service Days [Last Weekend] (thru 4.28)

Interstate Mullet Toss [Last Weekend] (thru 4.28)

National Dream Hotline [Last Weekend] (thru 4.28)

National Pie Championships [Last Weekend] (thru 4.28)

Independence & Related Days

Aetosia (Declared; 2019) [unrecognized]

Karisradd (Declared; 2013) [unrecognized]

Kotland (Declared; 2020) [unrecognized]

Republic of Alba (Declared; 1796) [lasted 2 days]

Roskya (Declared; 2020) [unrecognized]

Tanzania (Union Day; Created by Zanzibar and Tanganyika merger; 1964)

New Year’s Days

New Year’s Seed Sowing Ceremony (Goddess of Fertility; Sierra Leone)

Festivals Beginning April 26, 2024

Asheville Spring Herb Festival (Asheville, North Carolina) [thru 4.28]

Astoria-Warrenton Crab, Seafood & Wine Festival (Astoria, Oregon) [thru 4.28]

Big Island Chocolate Festival (Hapuna Beach Prince Hotel; Hawaii) [thru 4.27]

Brewgaloo (Raleigh, North Carolina)) [thru 4.27]

Chicago Comic & Entertainment Expo (Chicago, Illinois) [thru 4.28]

Chicken Fried Steak Festival (Lamesa, Texas) [thru 4.28]

Clinton-Hickman County Spring Chicken Festival (Clinton, Kentucky) [thru 4.27]

Colleton County Rice Festival (Walterboro, South Carolina) [thru 4.27]

Fiddler’s Frolic [thru 4.28]

Georgia State Fair, Spring (Metro Atlanta, Hampton, Georgia) [thru 5.5]

Glen Lake Restaurant Week (Glen Arbor Area, Michigan) [thru 5.4]

Interstate Mullet Toss and Gulf Coast’s Greatest Beach Party (Orange Beach, Alabama) [thru 4.27]

Pensacola Crawfish Festival (Pensacola, Florida) [thru 4.28]

Procession of the Species (Olympia, Washington) [thru 4.27]

Sacramento Beer Week (Sacramento, California) [thru 5.5]

Sacred Heart Garden City Festival (Augusta, Georgia) [thru 4.27]

Santa Barbara Restaurent Week (Santa Barbara, California) [thru 5.5]

Shenandoah Apple Blossom Festival (Winchester, Virginia) [thru 5.5]

Striped Bass Festival (Manning, South Carolina) [thru 4.27]

Vermontville Maple Syrup Festival (St. Albans, Michigan) [thru 4.28]

Wakarusa Maple Syrup Festival (Wakarusa, Indiana) [thru 4.28]

Feast Days

Aldobrandesca (a.k.a. Alda; Christian; Saint)

Anacletus, Pope (a.k.a. Cletius) and Marcellinus (Christian; Martyrs)

Basil (Christian; Saint)

Bernard Malamud (Writerism)

The Birthday Cake (Muppetism)

Cimon (Positivist; Saint)

Cletus and Marcellinus (Christian; Martyrs)

Delphinia (Festival of Apollo; Ancient Greece)

Edward Charles Tarbell (Artology)

Eugène Delacroix (Artology)

Fairy Laughter Convention (Shamanism)

Festival of Renenutet (Ancient Egypt)

The Fixer, by Bernard Malamud (Novel; 1966)

Franca Visalta (Christian; Saint)

Get Organized Day (Pastafarian)

Giamonios (Celtic Book of Days)

Gian Paolo Lomazzo (Artology)

Hug An Australian Day (Pastafarian)

Jethro Tull Day (Church of the SubGenius; Saint)

John James Audubon (Artology)

Lucidius of Verona (Christian; Saint)

Mayan Rain Festival (Ancient Mayan)

Memorial of Our Lady of Good Counsel (Christian)

Moon Magick Day (Starza Pagan Book of Days)

Our Lady of Good Counsel (Christian; Saint)

Paschasius Radbertus (Christian; Saint)

Peter of Rates (or of Braga; Christian; Saint)

Rafael Arnaiz (Christian; Saint) [Diabetes]

Riquier (a.k.a. Ricardius; Christian; Saint)

Robert Hunt (Episcopal Church (USA))

Sacrifice to Zeus Epacrios (Ancient Greece)

Stephen of Perm (Christian; Saint)

Trudpert (Christian; Saint)

Visakh Bochea Day (Buddha Day; Cambodia)

Walpurgisnacht, Day IV (Pagan)

Lucky & Unlucky Days

Lucky Day (Philippines) [22 of 71]

Tomobiki (友引 Japan) [Good luck all day, except at noon.]

Uncyclopedia Bad to Be Born Today (because the Chernobyl meltdown began.)

Premieres

American Recordings, by Johnny Cash (Album; 1994)

Avengers: Endgame (Film; 2019)

Bear De Guerre (The Inspector Cartoon; 1968)

Belfagor, by Ottorino Respighi (Opera; 1923)

The Bridge at Andau, by James A. Michener (History Book; 1957)

The Cat Concerto (Tom & Jerry Cartoon; 1947)

Devils & Dust, by Bruce Springsteen (Album; 2005)

Dogtown and Z-Boys (Documentary Film; 2002)

Dragon Ball Z (Anime TV Series; 1989)

The Enchanted Wood, by Enid Blyton (Children’s Book; 1939)

Farewell, My Lovely, by Raymond Chandler (Novel; 1940)

4th Symphony, by Charles Ives (Symphony; 1965)

The Goose Goes South (MGM Cartoon; 1941)

Gunsmoke (Radio Series; 1952)

The Handmaid’s Tale (TV Series; 2017)

The Hip-Nut-Tist (Fleischer Popeye Cartoon; 1935)

Just One of the Guys (Film; 1985)

The Last Waltz, by The Band (Live Album & Concert Film; 1978)

Moosylvania Wish Mash or A State of Confusion (Rocky & Bullwinkle Cartoon, S6, Ep. 366; 1965)

Moosylvania Saved, Part 3 (Rocky & Bullwinkle Cartoon, S6, Ep. 365; 1965)

The Muppet Musicians of Bremen (Muppet TV Special; 1972)

Neverland, by Jim Steinman (Musical Play; 1977)

Pink Posies (Pink Panther Cartoon; 1967)

The Reluctant Recruit (Woody Woodpecker Cartoon; 1971)

Seven Samurai (Film; 1954)

The Ship Who Sang, by Anne McCaffrey (Novel; 1969)

Swing Your Partner (Swing Symphony Cartoon; 1943)

Those Were Wonderful Days (WB MM Cartoon; 1934)

Throwing Copper, by Live (Album; 1994)

The Trial, by Franz Kafka (Novel; 1925)

The Truth About Cats & Dogs (Film; 1996)

Tugboat Mickey (Disney Cartoon; 1940)

Ups ’n Downs (WB LT Cartoon; 1931)

A Waggily Tale (WB LT Cartoon; 1958)

”Weird Al” Yankovic, by Weird Al Yankovic (Album; 1983)

Today’s Name Days

Helene, Trudpert (Austria)

Kleto, Maksima, Montan, Stanislav, Višnja (Croatia)

Oto (Czech Republic)

Cletus (Denmark)

Eesi, Reesi, Teesi, Teisi, Tereese (Estonia)

Teresa, Terttu, Tessa (Finland)

Alida (France)

Consuela, Helene (Germany)

Glafyra (Greece)

Ervin (Hungary)

Alida, Bianca, Cleto, Marcellino (Italy)

Alīna, Geraldine, Rusins, Sandris (Latvia)

Dargailė, Gailenis, Klaudijus (Lithuania)

Tea, Terese (Norway)

Artemon, Klaudiusz, Klet, Marcelin, Marcelina, Maria, Marzena, Spycimir (Poland)

Chindeu, Chiril, Tasie, Vasile (Romania)

Jaroslava (Slovakia)

Isidoro (Spain)

Terese, Teresia (Sweden)

Clarence, DeMarco, Demarcus, Demario (USA)

Today is Also…

Day of Year: Day 117 of 2024; 249 days remaining in the year

ISO: Day 5 of week 17 of 2024

Celtic Tree Calendar: Saille (Willow) [Day 13 of 28]

Chinese: Month 3 (Wu-Chen), Day 18 (Geng-Shen)

Chinese Year of the: Dragon 4722 (until January 29, 2025) [Wu-Chen]

Hebrew: 18 Nisan 5784

Islamic: 17 Shawwal 1445

J Cal: 27 Cyan; Sixday [27 of 30]

Julian: 13 April 2024

Moon: 92%: Waning Gibbous

Positivist: 5 Caesar (5th Month) [Xenophon]

Runic Half Month: Lagu (Flowing Water) [Day 2 of 15]

Season: Spring (Day 39 of 92)

Week: 4th Week of April

Zodiac: Taurus (Day 7 of 31)

[ledenews]

City of Wheeling Named a 'Tree City USA'

Wheeling has been named a Tree City USA by the Arbor Day Foundation to honor its commitment to effective urban forest management. This is the first year that the City has received this honor. The Wheeling Tree Board has been working toward this achievement since its inception in 2021. “I am pleased to learn the City of Wheeling has been designated as a Tree City USA by the Arbor Day Foundation. There are many benefits to trees in a community including shade, wind reduction, natural stormwater management, increased property values and an improvement of air quality,” said Mayor Glenn Elliott. “The establishment of a Municipal Tree Board in December of 2020 speaks to the City’s belief in the value of trees in our community and I appreciate the Tree Board’s efforts in working towards the Tree City USA designation.” The Tree Board takes great pride in being named a Tree City USA. “This award is a clear indication of the City’s commitment to grow and maintain one of our greatest resources: our trees,” said Tree Board President Karen Cox. “Wheeling is fortunate to have 44 percent tree canopy coverage. By removing pollutants and controlling stormwater, these trees provide millions of dollars in value to the City. The Tree Board’s objective is to continue to increase these benefits for the City and its residents.” The Tree Board invites you to celebrate its new status as a Tree City USA at its Arbor Day Ceremony on Friday, April 12 at the Wheeling Island Boat Launch. The festivities begin at 11:30 a.m. with a Tree Identification Walk to be led by Cox. A tree planting and proclamation will follow at 12:30 p.m. Tree City USA is a national program that provides the framework for community forestry management in the United States. To qualify to be a Tree City USA, a city must meet the program’s four requirements: have a tree board or commission, a tree-care ordinance, an annual community forestry budget of at least $2 per capita, and an Arbor Day observance and proclamation. These standards ensure that every qualifying community has a viable tree management program. The Tree City USA program is sponsored by the Arbor Day Foundation, in partnership with the U.S. Forest Service and the National Association of State Foresters. Read the full article

[shahananasrin-blog]

[ad_1] Ask Patricia Anderson how she is doing, and you probably will not get a routine answer. “Today, I’m working and I’m fine,” she said on a recent Tuesday. “Saturday and Sunday, I was bedridden. Long Covid is a roller coaster.”Before the pandemic, Ms. Anderson practiced martial arts and did without a car, instead walking and taking buses around Ann Arbor, Mich., where she is a medical librarian. Just before contracting Covid-19 in March 2020, she had racked up — oh, she keeps track — 11,409 steps in one day.The virus caused extreme chills, shortness of breath, a nervous system disorder and such cognitive decline that, for months, Ms. Anderson was unable to read a book.“I was very sick for a long time, and I never really got better,” she said. On some days, fatigue cut her step count to three digits. Rehabilitation attempts brought progress, then crashes.The dozens of symptoms collectively known as long Covid, or post-Covid, can sideline anyone who has been infected. But they take a particular toll on some older patients, who may be more prone to certain forms of the illness.About 11 percent of American adults have developed long Covid after an infection, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported last month, down from the almost 19 percent recorded from June 2022 to June 2023. The figure suggests that some adults are pulling out of the syndrome as time passes.People over age 60 actually have lower rates of long Covid overall than those aged 30 to 59. That might reflect higher vaccination and booster rates among older Americans, or more protective behavior like masking and avoiding crowds.“There may also be biologic factors we don’t understand yet,” said Akiko Iwasaki, an immunologist and researcher at Yale School of Medicine. Though knowledge of long Covid has increased, she added, much remains unknown about the illness.Only recently has Ms. Anderson, 66, regained most cognitive and some physical function; she can manage 3,000 to 4,000 daily steps now. But she wears an N95 mask whenever she goes out and takes a sitting cane so “if I go shopping and run out of steam halfway down the aisle, I can rest.”And she worries. Her employer has allowed her to continue working remotely, but what if the library starts requiring more than her current one day a week on-site? “I can’t afford to retire,” she said. “It’s very scary.”The C.D.C. says long Covid begins when symptoms persist a month or more after infection. But the World Health Organization defines long Covid as “the continuation or development of new symptoms” three months after the initial infection, lasting at least two months with no other explanation.The extensive list of long Covid symptoms includes breathing difficulties, cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, kidney disease, gastrointestinal disorders, cognitive loss, fatigue, muscle pain and weakness and mental health problems.“There’s almost no organ system long Covid doesn’t touch,” said Dr. Ziyad Al-Aly, a clinical epidemiologist at Washington University School of Medicine and senior author of a recent study showing that these symptoms can persist for two years.“It can affect nearly everyone from children to older adults, across the life span,” he said.Though long Covid is more likely to afflict people who become severely ill with Covid and require hospitalization — and long Covid symptoms last longer in those patients — it can also follow mild infections. It can arise after the first bout of Covid, or the second or fourth.While older people are not more prone to long Covid overall, Dr. Al-Aly’s research using large Veterans Affairs databases shows that they are more at risk for four particular clusters of symptoms:Metabolic disorders, including new-onset diabetes and high cholesterol.Cardiovascular problems, including heart disease, heart attacks and arrhythmias like atrial fibrillation.Gastrointestinal problems like diarrhea and constipation, pancreatitis and liver disease.Strokes, cognitive decline and other neurological symptoms.Jane Wolgemuth caught Covid in June 2022, along with her husband. “He waltzed through it in two days,” she recalled. “I was in bed for a week.”They both felt better after taking the oral antiviral Paxlovid. Yet months later, Ms. Wolgemuth, 69, a retired bank employee in Monument, Colo., began noticing cognitive problems, particularly when driving.“I wasn’t reacting fast enough,” she said. “The brain fog was really taking over.”After an MRI and other tests came back normal, Ms. Wolgemuth was diagnosed with long Covid. She has been taking supplements and trying light therapy, and she has stretched her walking distance to four miles most days.She feels more herself, she said, but “it’s remarkable how destructive Covid was.”Seniors may mistake long Covid for other conditions common at older ages. “They may think, ‘Maybe I’m just aging or I need to adjust my blood pressure medication,’” said Dr. Monica Verduzco-Gutierrez, the chair of rehabilitation medicine at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. She has co-authored American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation guidance statements for treating long Covid.Long Covid can also exacerbate the health problems many seniors already contend with. “If they had mild cognitive impairment, do they move into dementia? I’ve seen that happen,” Dr. Verduzco-Gutierrez said. A mild heart condition can become more serious, reducing an older person’s mobility and increasing fall risks.“The best way in the world to prevent long Covid is to prevent Covid,” Dr. Al-Aly said. As infection rates tick up across the country, masking again in close quarters and eating outdoors at restaurants can help reduce infection.“Definitely get boosted,” he said. “Vaccination and boosters reduce but don’t eliminate the risk of long Covid” — by 15 percent to 50 percent, studies have found.“If you’re infected, get tested to be sure it’s Covid, then call a provider as soon as possible and see if you are eligible for Paxlovid,” he said. The antiviral treatment also reduces the risk of long Covid by about 20 percent for those in their 60s, and by about 34 percent for those over 70.Without longitudinal studies yet, it’s unclear if older people recover from long Covid more slowly. Patients like Ms. Anderson and Ms. Wolgemuth have tried an array of treatments — supplements, electrolytes, compression garments, various physical therapy regimens. “But we don’t have a medicine that has been shown to reverse it,” Dr. Iwasaki said.Certain rehabilitation approaches have proven to be effective, Dr. Verduzco-Gutierrez pointed out, but there are not enough programs or clinics experienced with long Covid. Some doctors dismiss long Covid symptoms, patients have reported.That leaves them searching for solutions largely on their own.“They are rising up together to advocate for research and find treatments,” Dr. Iwasaki said, comparing long Covid patients to the AIDS activists of the 1980s. She co-directs the Yale LISTEN study, which works with long Covid patients to better understand their conditions.The Biden administration recently announced a new federal office to lead long Covid research, and more clinical trials are beginning. For now, though, many patients rely on groups like Long Covid Support and the Covid-19 Longhauler Advocacy Project, and participate in the Patient-Led Research Collaborative.Sheila McGrath, 71, who lives in Herndon, Va., recovered from her first Covid infection in February 2020, but has suffered ever since her second bout five months later. Though her health has improved, “I haven’t gotten back to where I was,” she said.Now she and Ms. Anderson co-host an online chat for Long Covid Support. “Often someone winds up in tears,” Ms. McGrath said. “They’re so frustrated with not being listened to, not being validated, being told it’s psychosomatic, being refused treatment. None of us wants to be sick.” [ad_2]

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Band Interview Of The Day - Misery Lane

If could introduce yourselves for us, who are you? We are Misery Lane.  We have been around since October of 2020.  We are a non-genre specific metal band out of Ann Arbor, MI.  By non-genre specific I mean we don’t fall into one cookie cutter version of music.  Each song hits a person differently.  When people ask, I say we lie on the border where hard rock meets metal. How did you all…

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Absolutely heartbroken, as Low just announced that Mimi Parker, 55, passed away last night. She had been receiving treatment for ovarian cancer since late 2020, around the time that they were finishing up their latest album and planning multiple tours to promote.

This all happened so fast. I barely missed seeing them in Detroit this past April but didn’t think much of it, as I expected to see them twice this October on an international tour with Death Cab for Cutie. They had started pulling out of some dates in September so Mimi could receive more treatment, and then they canceled all remaining appearances a few weeks ago.

Reposting this song because it was an immediate favorite when I found the band, and it was one of my first Tracks of the Day over a decade ago (unfortunately the uploaded file no longer plays). I stood directly in front of Alan Sparhawk, Mimi’s husband and bandmate for ~30 years, when they played The Blind Pig in Ann Arbor in 2011. Just minutes earlier, I had found myself standing next to Mimi at the bar, as she was catching up with an old friend before their set, and she seemed so naturally calm and nice, as if she were perfectly in her element. And when the band took the stage, they immediately and completely entranced everyone in that cozy little space — 200-300 of us packed in on a cold Tuesday night. We were so silent during their set that you could hear coats rustling under people’s arms and dishes clanking in the dishwasher from the restaurant next door. It was the perfect ambiance and an unforgettable show.

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2020 vision care

#2020 vision care plus#

You pay a fixed dollar amount as well as a copay for the exam, glasses and lenses. These plans act more like traditional insurance coverage. Check the memberships you're already a part of: AARP Vision Discounts provided by EyeMed, AAA and retailers like Costco may offer cost savings. “This is a great option if you are just looking to have some help on the cost of routine vision,” Kunkle Roberts says. Pay a monthly fee for access to discounted comprehensive eye exams and eyewear in a specified network of doctors and vision centers. If you don't have access to employer-based vision insurance, you can buy a plan from a private insurer. AARP Services chief medical officer Charlotte Yeh, M.D., recommends a yearly comprehensive, dilated-eye exam for every person over age 50. “We conducted a study on adults ages 65-plus, and we found that 92 percent used eyeglasses for either distance or near-vision correction,” says Josh Ehrlich, the Michigan professor who coauthored the study, published in 2018 in the medical journal JAMA Ophthalmology. Many people get a deal on vision insurance through their employers: You pay a couple of dollars per month as an add-on to your current health benefits and your employer pays the rest, explains Danielle Kunkle Roberts, cofounder of the insurance agency Boomer Benefits.Įven if you're one of those lucky people whose sight is still sharp, it makes sense to take advantage of an employer-based vision plan, because there's a good chance you will need vision correction in the near future. Upgrades such as anti-glare coating on glasses and transition lenses aren't necessarily going to be covered, so read the fine print to see if any part of the cost will be picked up.

#2020 vision care plus#

This pays for services like routine eyesight exams plus a large percentage of your costs for glasses and contacts. But the best way to be diagnosed is to have an exam. That creates a bit of a hitch, since eye exams aren't covered unless you are diagnosed with a disease. (Check with your doctor about individual office policies.) While a simple refractive exam (to figure out your glasses prescription) is not typically covered, if your ophthalmologist diagnoses you with a medical problem like glaucoma or cataracts, the entire visit may be billed under medical insurance, says Josh Ehr-lich, M.D., an assistant professor of ophthalmology and visual sciences at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. What medical insurance doesn't cover is the cost of eyeglasses, contacts or other costs related to everyday eyesight support. Your regular health insurance will cover the cost of diagnosis and treatment for any eye injury or disease that requires a doctor's help - no different from a broken bone or a heart condition - though with the usual copays and deductibles. One takes care of your day-to-day vision - it's mostly about glasses and contact lenses. Think about vision care as providing two services. But options do exist, even for those on the tightest of budgets. “Expense is one of the key reasons why people do not get their eyes checked,” says Julian Roberts, executive director of the National Association of Vision Care Plans. Good vision insurance, though, isn't a given. For adults over 50, age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the leading cause of severe vision loss. Nearly 2 percent of people 40 and older have glaucoma. “I finally have peace of mind,” he says.Īn annual dilated-eye exam is important - it tests your ability to see, screens for age-related eye problems and even helps to detect chronic diseases, like diabetes. Hastert got an appointment, and his eyes were healthy. Then he heard that EyeCare America offers comprehensive exams by volunteer ophthalmologists at no cost through its Seniors Program. The 71-year-old retiree from Tupelo, Mississippi, didn't have vision insurance, and with money tight, he avoided going to the eye doctor. Yet Hastert hadn't had an eye exam in over 30 years. “My grandma went blind from diabetes complications,” he says. En español | Pete Hastert has diabetes and good reason to worry about his eyesight.