Staying positive / calm? (during a pandemic)

Ajahn Brahm calls it "COVID-19 Opportunity". A great opportunity for training the mind to be still and peaceful.

I love confinment and solitude. I can practice my two favorite things: play guitar and meditate (although both activities go, somewhat, in opposite directions: one is to excite and distract the mind and the other is to calm it down and let go 😅)

Here is a simple 20 minutes guided meditation with priceless advices:



(p.s.: no religious contents)
 
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How some countries are doing it... Milan, Italy tenement jam. (Unmute)


I think that's Agrigento (near my home) not Milan and that's a famous Sicilian song.

Anyway here's my approach to stay positive and calm: smoke a lot more joints than usual :cool:
YMMV
 
All interesting stuff.... I do find it interesting that the one thing that hasn't really been mentioned, in a forum that is guitar based, is playing guitar.
I too live in Portland and I think because I'm still working and really every day is similar to my work day anyway, its not hitting me as hard.
I find I'm playing my guitar way more and even take a few 10 min breaks during the day, pull a guitar off the wall and practice things I need work on. My wife is working from home too and its great to see her whenever I want, be able to have lunch with her - its pretty cool.
It sucks I don't get to go wherever I want - but I know it will all pass.
 
The cure for anxiety is preparation
I think the cure to my anxiety is religion. Specifically joining the Mormon church.

I need to know where they live in my neighborhood.

They all have one year of food storage in their houses for their 3 wives and 17 children.
 
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I still don't understand people. I have seen the numbers on the number of cases in NY and NJ compared to the rest of the country, and it is a staggering difference. being someone who lives in NJ and works in NY at an essential service business. The amount of people I see out and about every day and the amount of customers still coming in tells me NY'ers and NJ'ians just don't take this seriously. That is why the numbers are so much higher in these two states. So frustrating.
 
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For a different perspective on viruses as entirely bad, it's thought that the placenta evolved from a virus being incorporated into the gestation process. The placenta protects two genetically distinct organisms while letting certain materials in and out.

From https://whyy.org/segments/the-placenta-went-viral-and-protomammals-were-born/:

“The placenta is essentially a fascinating organ because it allows for two human beings that are genetically very different. Because half of the fetus is maternal, but the other half is paternal, and yet the pregnancy can go on for nine months without the mom’s body destroying it,” Barroeta said. “And that, from an immune standpoint, is fascinating, because if you were to receive a piece of someone else and insert that under your skin, that would not last there for three days, your body will actively reject it.”
When evolutionary biologists like Chuong mapped the genomes of these cells, they found that the protein that allowed these cells to fuse into a wall, called syncytin, didn’t look like it came from human DNA. It looked more like HIV. According to Chuong, this protein actually came from an ancient retrovirus, the most famous of which is HIV.
“We got an upgrade,” Coolahan said. “Viruses fuse with things in order to infect them. Now, we get this viral DNA that lets us make a protein that fuses things.” Once a viral protein, the virus essentially morphed or evolved into what we now know as syncytin. This protein gives baby the ability to fuse cells into a wall — the placenta — that connects mom and baby but also keeps them separate.
Looks like we’ve been domesticating viruses for a long time. Or have viruses been domesticating us? Either way, what all that DNA is doing for us is, for the most part, still a mystery.
“It just seems like in a way we’re part virus, otherwise we’d be laying eggs,” Coolahan said.
 
Some humor a friend forwarded to me (no offense intended).

* I used to spin that toilet paper like I was on Wheel of Fortune. Now I turn it like I'm cracking a safe.

* Half of us are going to come out of this quarantine as amazing cooks. The other half will come out with a drinking problem.

* I need to practice social-distancing from the refrigerator.

* Still haven't decided where to go for Easter --The Living Room or The Bedroom

* PSA: every few days try your jeans on just to make sure they fit. Pajamas will have you believe all is well in the kingdom.

* Homeschooling is going well. 2 students suspended for fighting and 1 teacher fired for drinking on the job.

* I don't think anyone expected that when we changed the clocks we'd go from Standard Time to the Twilight Zone

* This morning I saw a neighbor talking to her cat. It was obvious she thought her cat understood her. I came into my house, told my dog..... we laughed a lot.

* So, after this quarantine....will the producers of My 600 Pound Life just find me or do I find them?

* Quarantine Day 5: Went to this restaurant called THE KITCHEN. You have to gather all the ingredients and make your own meal. I have no clue how this place is still in business.

* My body has absorbed so much soap and disinfectant lately that when I pee it cleans the toilet.

* Day 5 of Homeschooling: One of these little monsters called in a bomb threat.

* I'm so excited --- it's time to take out the garbage. What should I wear?

* I hope the weather is good tomorrow for my trip to Puerto Backyarda. I'm getting tired of Los Livingroom.

* Day 6 of Homeschooling: My child just said "I hope I don't have the same teacher next year".... I'm offended.

* Classified Ad: Single man with toilet paper seeks woman with hand sanitizer for good clean fun.
 
We're incredibly lucky that our biggest day-to-day issue is cabin fever. I've worked from home for 17 years (self employed software dev), so being home all day isn't new to me - but being home all day with my wife (a professor) and our 7 year old is really different. They're both having a hard time acclimating. They both love the classroom environment and are struggling in different ways with remote teaching and learning. The biggest challenge for me is trying not to attend to the other things that are happening in the house. I'm used to working in silence, and that's just not possible anymore. I've got a handful of minor-but-complicated issues/bugs I'm putting off dealing with because I can't get my head into the right space with all of the background noise and interruptions.

We're in a pretty rural area, so we're fortunately still able to get out and move around. My wife and I are both runners, and running helps a lot with the anxiety. We also have a large dog that requires a couple of hours a day of exercise, so we alternate our running and dog walking days. We're just in this incredibly privileged bubble while the world is burning, and I simultaneously feel thankful and guilty about our situation - especially when I read accounts like Dpoirier's.
 
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