LIFE AS IT IS

March 15, 2020 I have always followed good hygiene practices, or so I thought. However, after the World Health Organization began to share proper hand-washing techniques following the coronavirus outbreak, I realised that I seldom washed my hands for at least 20 seconds, and a lot of times, skipped the backs of my hands. Am I grossing you out? But did you know that 4 out of 5 people do not wash their hands properly? I did not, until recently. However, living and working in pandemic conditions are teaching us new things every day. At the time of writing this piece, the total number of confirmed cases has topped 182,000 with over 7,000 deaths globally. The schools in my state, Delaware, have been shut down. My husband's workplace has asked its employees to work from home. Bars, taverns and restaurants were ordered by the state's governor to halt their dine-in services. From today onward, the food joints in Delaware, Pennsylvania, California, New York, Michigan, Maryland an...

Location: Public park in Delaware Hubby, daughter and I have been at home since March 15, 2020. We left home on a few occasions, but those were to buy food and refill our water gallons. Oh, hubby also went out to get a new kitchen faucet, because it suddenly started leaking water. The timing could not be worse!   I went out for a walk with my daughter last week. We really needed some fresh air. There were other people at the park, too. Everyone needed some fresh air, I guess. People practiced social distancing, so did I.  Health experts say that it is good for your mental and physical health to go out for a stroll during this time of social distancing. One must avoid crowded places, of course. But this is definitely not the time to drive to Washington, DC to enjoy cherry blossoms, which some people are doing.  I don't know what these 'nature lovers' are thinking. These folks are not only risking their own lives, but the lives of others. The cherry blossom...

Picture yourself standing in half-darkness amid naturally-forming calcite columns, cascades, stalactites and stalagmites sixteen storeys under the surface of the Earth. It is eerily beautiful down there. The ambience is primitive, and your surroundings feel uncanny, because your mind keeps telling you that all of this had formed over an estimated span of four million years. The limestone formations you see around you are still forming and changing every day.   The Daily Star link Luray Caverns, in Virginia, USA, is an active cave system. Located in the lush Shenandoah Valley, to the west of Blue Ridge Mountains in Luray, Virginia, Luray Caverns was discovered in 1878. Today, it is a registered National Natural Landmark (NNL), visited by some 500,000 people annually from all over the U.S. and the world. Before we decided on visiting this awe-inspiring feat of nature, we had to find out if it would be too cold in February. We found out that the caverns' temperature remains...

Marriage Story, starring Scarlett Johansson as an actress named Nicole, and Adam Driver as a theatre director named Charlie, was released digitally by Netflix on Dec. 6. We see in this critically-acclaimed film that a divorce does not mean that two parties must part ways, loathing each other for the rest of their lives. The respect the couple had for each other can remain, the good qualities in an ex-spouse can still be looked up to, and certain compromises can be gladly made for the good of the children involved.   The Daily Star It’s the subject of the film, the often-overlooked details of a divorce, and the sheer brilliance with which the protagonists executed their characters have made Marriage Story one of the best films of 2019. Directed by Noah Baumbach, the film shows how the dissolution of a marriage can lead two people, who were married for a decade, stop acting civilly with each other. The film also shows how expensive a divorce attorney can be, expen...

In the West, “it’s the most wonderful time of the year,” because the holiday season is knocking on the door. Here in the continental U.S., where I live, from Thanksgiving until the New Year, the entire country dons a festive look. People shop, travel, donate, watch holiday movies, bake chocolate chip cookies, drink hot cocoa with marshmallows, get together with families and in the colder states, play in the snow.  The Daily Star link There are so many reasons for me to love this season!  Holiday decorations and lightings As the holiday season nears, families get into the holiday spirit, adding glitz to homes, making them merry, bright and beautiful inside and out. Like many others, we drive around cities and neighbourhoods just to marvel at Christmas decorations that make everything so bright and beautiful.  The holiday fever also touches our family  — we bring out our holiday table runner, snowman-themed mugs, bowls, dishes and pillow cases, and light...

To those who reside in the US, summertime is synonymous to beach vacation, and a beach getaway is something Americans look forward to every summer. This year, we explored the historic Cape May, New Jersey, which has some of the most beautiful beaches in the country. Cape May’s beaches are consistently ranked as some of the best in America, and even the world. They are not only family-friendly, but also clean, quiet, safe, and have easy access to restrooms and restaurants. But visitors have to buy beach tags to lounge on the soft, white sand. I understood that the revenue from the beach tag sales goes toward safeguarding, maintaining, and improving these beautiful beaches. The Daily Star link Cape May, which is a peninsula, is the southernmost point of New Jersey, a Mid-Atlantic US state. Besides its beaches, the place is also known as a birder’s paradise. Forests, wetlands, and marshes make it a top destination for migratory hawks, songbirds, and seabirds. We set up our be...