Flight

 There's so much Delta variant here in Bali, even with 70% having had the first shot of the vaccine and 18% both, that there's been bule flight - foreigners leaving for wealthier home countries where it's more under control. When I pay people for work, I frequently hear that they'll buy rice now. Made, the woman down the street who has a fruit and vegetable stand that she runs out front of her family's compound, not poor people at all, I saw collecting frangipani to dry and sell. It's used for its scent in soap etc. Those flowers dried used to be well worth collecting. We'd collect ours and dry them and we get a lot every day - and our housekeeper would sell them. But the price went down so far we just started composting them. No more. We've going to collect them again and give them to Made down the street.

Good to Hear

 Jackie Pomeroy's Bali Covid 19 Facebook page reports that 70% in Bali have received their first shot and 18% their 2nd. Almost all the locals and foreigners we know have received both. Still over a thousand new cases a day. Deaths are down somewhat averaging about 27 a day now. Lockdown listed a little. We can go to the beach and sit at a restaurant feet in the sand again and go into the water I guess. I'm in favor of strictness with Covid but think outdoors places especially beaches and parks should be open so people aren't encouraged to meet inside.

Excellent short video

 Don't Make This Deadly Mistake - A video from about rational errors people make when thinking about Covid 19 - from Holy Koolaid

Wet Bulb temperature

 Read about it. - Washington Post

Bali Covid report

Jackie Pomeroy reports on Facebook daily on Bali Covid 19 and today she reported that 69% of people in Bali have received at least one shot. Most of them are Sinovac but some, like us and others in Sanur, got AstraZeneca. And they'll keep going trying to get more. You won't have the high rate of anti-vaxers here as you do in the US so this is promising. At present though, another report today from a friend in the health care community, says there are critical cases waiting in line to get into Covid hospitals. They're full. She begs us all to stay in and disses the Sinovac as being ineffective. I've looked into Sinovac and what I see from established sources (I avoid all alt news outlets) is that it's way better than not getting vaccinated and protects almost everyone whose had it from serious illness or death. One study said it kept 50% from having any symptoms. Anyway, with all the vaccinated and all the people who've had it here I would think that we're headed toward better times. But we should get boosters, preferably Pfizer or Monderna. A Pfizer booster has shown to bring the AstraZeneca almost to Pfizer levels of protection. We could all use that. Even a Chinese study showed that. A leak revealed that the Thai government has tried to stop front line medical workers there from getting a Pfizer booster because they felt it would diminish public confidence in Sincvac and Sinofarm. Last comment - I wish they'd not close outdoor places in lockdown. I think that would work better and maybe there would be less clandestine meeting indoors.

Eating

 Some local musicians and I met today in our courtyard to go over some songs. First we eat. Nyoman brought the bunkus - wrapped lunch. We all got nasi campur - rice mix. Four got chicken, I got fish, Katrinka got a tempe tofu one. We all ate without talking. When we were done, Gus (pronounced goose) said that people here really appreciate food because when the volcano went off big decades ago, there was almost no rice afterwards. Just a little maybe once a week. Everyone was hungry all the time. We remember that, he said. So we don't talk when we eat. We enjoy the food. 

Lockdown locks back up

The lockdown was over for Java and Bali yesterday. And today --- a new lockdown! Just five days. Can get together with people at home but not in public places - they're just for take out.

Lockdown Unlocks?

 Bali's been in lockdown since early in July due to rising Covid numbers. Today is the last day and we're expecting it to be extended but it hasn't been yet. Mainly we want to walk on the beach and get in the water. It's never crowded there but they don't have time to micro-target where one can and can't go. It's sweeping. We just had rapid antigen tests with negative results because our vaccinated housekeeper had Covid. So we had a lockdown within a lockdown for a week. Indonesian doctors want the lockdown extended - from the Straights Times

Nice Pic

Greg Johnson's portrait of dogette Bandita and feline Kucita (pronounced kuchita) in our courtyard two years ago October.
 

They're Watching

As far back as I remember I lived with other sort-of beings watching me all the time. It wasn't something I believed in or thought of as real or as pretend. I thought about them when I was on the toilet and naked in the bathroom. Not embarrassed or disturbed by it. It made no difference. Actually they made no difference that I knew of though I didn't rule out that they did. They weren't judging or anything like that. Just watching. I had no idea about them at all. They weren't part of the world or my life here but I did see this world as part of a bigger world that I was not in touch with. That's where they were looking from. Sometimes I ask them to help me and thank them for all they've done in the past in case they had anything to do with all the good fortune I've had. It seemed to me they did - they and whatever greater whatever there is. I never wondered what the purpose of life was. It was clearly just to be here and follow what paths opened up and realize greater mind. That was due to my parents guidance and I guess the unseen connections. O kage sama de - thanks to whatever there is to thank. 

karantina

 Our housekeeper Kadek has Covid 19 for sure. She was here Monday and said she had a toothache and a headache. She didn't tell me but Katrinka noticed and asked her what was wrong. Tuesday she called as said she couldn't work for our neighbor because she was sick and asked me to tell him. Wednesday morning we talked and she said she'd been vomiting and her husband was sick. He went to a doctor and got a Covid 19 positive test result. Today he said she was aching and coughing and that he was coughing to. She's been vaccinated but he hasn't due to an auto-immune and hypertension condition. Their son and daughter are okay. Tomorrow they'll go with their mother to get tests. We've been isolating here at home. Not going out at all. We get deliveries though so the main problem is we can't take walks except inside. Kadek was wearing a mask all day We both feel fine and plan to go get rapid tests tomorrow. If they're negative, we'll go back to the normal lockdown which is pretty restrictive too. Only food outlets are open. But Kadek and Ketut have to isolate for two weeks from first symptoms. We pay her by the week on Mondays so I said I'll send next weeks pay to their home on Monday. 

A Song

On our Way to Venus 

US & Canada Heatwave

 What wildfires to come? - BBC

Sixth Anniversary Song for Katrinka

 Happy Anniversary 6 - July 10, 2021

A Reminder to Follow the Rules here when out

https://balidiscovery.com/3-deported-for-not-wearing-masks-in-bali/

Happy 6th Wedding Aniversary Today

To Katrinka McKay - and let's see now - who's she married to? Oh! Me! That's right. Thanks to those irritating Facebook memories being forced on us, we remembered! Then she went to a yoga retreat. 

Karantina

 That's Indonesian for quarantine. Gus and his daughter Radha and everyone in the family tested negative with the rapid test but no music for ten days with them because they're in Karantina till then. 

Lockdown

 Bali is in a lockdown now. All restaurant food is to go - except some fudge. One in Uluwatu got in trouble for doing that, serving people there, a got shut down. It's easy to get it delivered too. Katrinka's such a good cook we don't eat out or order out a lot, but it's neat to do so - a lot of great choices - even with over half the places closed. I think the lockdown is set to run from July 3rd to the 20th. Guitarist Gus, his vocalist daughter Radha, and stand-up bassist Ketut were going to come over today to work on a song for a couple of hours but Gus and Radha had to get rapid tests - I imagine because they were with someone who had Covidity. We're all double vaccinated but we can still get it and transmit it of course.  Numbers are up here. Katrinka keeps up with the stats and she said that 500 people tested postive yesterday, all locals. I remember on Tuesday there were 14 foreigners. We'll see what happens on the 20th. They might extend it. 

Remembering a diet plan

 I remember reading an article on some of the extremes people have gone to to lose weight. The one that stuck with me was the guy who'd tried diets and programs galore and nothing worked. So he put $10,000 in a fund he had no control over. If at the end of one year he'd lost forty pounds, the money would be returned to him. If not, it would go to the American Nazi Party. It worked.

Money Honey

Being of lost and found body and mind I accidentally paid our gardener for a day's work on a day he didn't work. He's always urging us to buy another plant and another pot and more fertilizer and was just here with a couple of pots and a plant I finally agreed to get somewhat due to the fact that Katrinka was in  favor. Wouldn't matter. I almost always give in to him. So when I paid him I accidentally paid him for a day's work. Anyone else we work with would have said something, but he's like a child and went no further than being pleased and going off. Not dishonest - simple - pure of heart. He did work today and I'd already established that he'd been paid but he needed a little to get lunch and has a family and someone in his family up north in Singaraja died - families are extended here so that's not unusual but it means he had to come up with money. And he's such a good worker and a day's pay here is like an hour minimum wage where we come from so I paid him 3/4 of a day's wages and he was happy. 

Plumber/electrician Mudik came over right away when I called and said we're about to run out of pulsa which means electricity which I usually get by walking to the nearby mini-post office but it's closed so he came over and added 500 rupiah as usual which is good for about 18 days at about two bucks a day. Then Mudik was desperately trying to do something and I saw a look for horror on his face.

Bali and Java Covid response

Java and Bali are going into lockdown because of rising numbers. Bali has a higher standard because of all the tourists and people from other islands who want to come here. Almost no foreign tourists since March of last year. Sometimes none from other islands. Rules keep changing. Doesn't affect us much but local people are hurting. We're helping to support about four family's now and don't have a lot to spare to begin with. They say that till the 20th only grocery stores will be open. They may require people to stay in their own areas. Sometimes they close the beaches or some beaches. Not a lot of enforcement but almost no resistance here like the US. Lax following of rules too.

AC Delimma

 Can't live with it. Can't live without it.