COVID Queen

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Covid Queen

With High School Friends

Philadelphia, PA

August 2020

Bridget E Kelly

 is with 

Kathi Lewis

 at 

In Riva

.

1h  · Philadelphia  · 

Shared with Public

Hanging with the Miracle Woman. After 8 weeks on a ventilator and 4 weeks in rehab, she is alive and kicking. Here’s to the COVID Queen. What a great day, a great celebration, a great friend. In May 2020, I had no hope that we would ever have this moment. I’m so happy and relieved.

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Karst Brewery

 Karst Brewery

Fountain, MN

Spring 2017

I visited this place on a snowy, cold Saturday afternoon. This tiny town, with only 374 residence, has one great brewery.  The brewery is just a small house that is the brewery and the tap room all in one.  There is very little space and the place gets packed.  There are only a few beers to choice and flights are not served.  But beers are served in both 8 oz and 16 oz pours.  So I had the coffee porter and the IPA.  Both were delicious.  The place is run by a husband and wife team who work tirelessly to make this a great place to stop by for a great tasting brew and an opportunity to hang with your neighbor.  Everyone knew everyone who came through the door.

Riff Raff brewery

 Riff Raff Brewing Company

Paganos, CO

July 9, 2017


This is a sweet, little brewery with some great beers and great happy hour prices.  I got a beer for $1.87.  WHAT A DEAL THAT WAS. They only have six beers on tap.  I tried 4 of them and I liked them all. The porter was the most flavorful and it was being served even though it was midsummer when I visited. This was the first beer they brewed when they opened their doors a few years back.  So this signature beer is released as an anniversary beer.

Food is also served and there was a nice selection of bar food. I liked this place.

Sports Festival

Sports Festival

SIAS University

Henan Provence, China

Spring 2012

I was teaching in China at the time and there was a sports festival.  All freshmen were mandated to attend so all 5,000 of them showed up and sat through the event even though it began to rain.  My students were invited to participate and they performed a synchronized dance routine that required hours of practice for the 3 minute presentation. They were so honored to be a part of this moment.

Getting ready to perform



Even though it rained, the performances went right on schedule

Agatha is our student leader



The whole group

Lisa 

Jude

Eyes Half Open

 Eyes Half Open

Budhanath Temple

Kathmandu, Nepal

I've been to this temple twice, in 1999 and then again in 2017.  Both times, the place just mesmerized me.  These eyes followed me throughout the square and made me nervous.

Bricks

 Bricks

Kathmandu, Nepal

December 2017

They buy a lot of bricks in Nepal.  A delivery truck comes down eh street and people buy bricks in volume.  These bricks sit on the side of the road until something is done with them.  They are used to build a house, extend a house, for walls and pavements or to fill in holes on the road in front of people's houses. They buy bricks just in case they need them.

Old Standby Beers

 Old Standby Beers

I rarely drink beer from large breweries anymore. And I rarely drink anything but an IPA.  But if I have to drink something else, I only drink these beers:

1- Pabst Blue Ribbon
2- Rolling Rock
3- Lord Chesterfield Ale
4- Genny Cream Ale
5-Molson Golden Ale

Beer Fact #7

 

Beer Fact # 7

Billy Beer

1977

In 1976, President Carter reduced restrictions on small batch breweries.  And that was the birth of craft breweries. His asshole brother released a beer in an attempt to make a buck off his brother.  I never tired the beer but I was told that it was terrible.

Billy Beer - Wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billy_Beer

Billy Beer was a beer first made in the United States in July 1977, by the Falls City Brewing Company. It was promoted by Billy Carter, whose older brother Jimmy was the incumbent President of the United States. In October 1978, Falls City announced that it was closing its doors after less than a year of Carter's promotion.

Dumpling Man

 

Dumpling Man

Henan Province, China
November 2015

He made three or four different kinds of dumplings.  His kitchen is in the corner of the Lo Bing cafeteria.  I used to stop by here if I missed lunch.  I would get three dumplings for a dollar.  He always wanted to known what kind of dumplings I wanted.  My last of understanding of the Chinese language was frustrating to him.  I just had to point at one of the baskets and I took what he gave me. Some of them were filled with rice noodles, others had pork or vegetables and one had a substance that I couldn't identify.  Regardless of which ones I got, they were all good.

Carrying Their Goods To Market

 

Carrying Their Goods To Market

Ganges River

Varanasi, India

July 2015

In the early morning, as I woke to run to the bathroom and then back to bed, I would peek out of my balcony to see what was going on just before the sun would rise.  I would see lots of people carrying their goods on their heads.  they were headed to the local markets.

Eating Lunch

Eating Lunch

Central China

Spring 2012

Many of the high schools in China are boarding schools.  Kids stay at their schools during the week and maybe get home a few times a year.  These students eat all of their meals outside, rain or shine or cold or windy. Nothing distracts them from lunch (except an old, white woman).

 

I'm Numb As You Can Imagine

I'm Numb As You Can Imagine

A Text From a Former Student

In The Midst of the COVID 19 Virus

West Chester, PA

June 2020

In April I received word that my friend, Mary Ann, died of COVID.  She had a compromised lung system and contacted the virus on a Wednesday and died on a Saturday.  So I hunted down her daughter, Stephanie, who is also a former high school student of mine.  We chatted on the phone for over an hour and it was nice to hear her voice as I hadn't seen her for five or six years.

In June, I woke up to a text from Stephanie.

HER: "Hello Dr. Kelly, I wanted to let you know that my dad died yesterday from complications from COVID 19.  I am numb as you can imagine.  Hope you are doing well."

ME: "OMG, Are you fucking kidding me!  May I come see you today or tomorrow?"

HER: "Well, in addition to this fucking news, I have been dealing with a terrible case of vertigo.  I am laying low for a while and feeling crappy. I'll definitely let you know when I am up for hanging out".

ME: "I am without words to comfort you.  All I can say is, I am so very sorry".

HER: "Thank you, my friend".

August 2019

AUGUST 2019

PA, CO, NM

1- TH- PA- I am in Stroudsburg and went kayaking with Sue Frantz and Lisa Latham.  We paddled for 12 miles down the Delaware River and I loved every minute of it.  The weather was perfect.  The water was cool, the sky was bright blue and sunny.  We saw two eagles.  Sue packed a picnic lunch for us and the day brought me great joy.  Afterward, Lisa and I went to the Deerhead in search of Lauren Chamberlain.  It was great to see her even though she is struggling with life.  Sue and I went to a Thai restaurant for dinner and then I drove home.  My arms were throbbing from all of the paddling today. This was a great day.

2- F- PA- I couldn't get myself up and going today even though I had intentions of a full day of activities.  So I went to the East Branch Brewery in Downingtown for a quick flight.  Then I met up with Debbie and Dom for dinner at the Stone Tavern.

3- SA- PA- It's circus day.  Lauren and I are going to the Cirque du Soleil today.  I love these shows.  We had great seats.  The story was hard to follow but that didn't matter as the performances were stunning.  We went to the Stickman Brewery for dinner.  And then we went to the Anderkos for a visit.  This was a pleasant day.

4- SU- PA-  I just notices two drawers in my bathroom that haven't been opened in two years.  So I spent yet more time, shifting my junk around and throwing out things I have never used.  I hate my over consumption.

5- M- PA- It's Root beer Day #58, our silly family holiday where we all make it a point to drink root beer on this day in honor of our move to Overbrook in 1962.  So Sharon sent a text early in the morning, to remind us,  and we all chimed in.  Then I caught up with her , later in the day, and we went out for a root beer.  We had trouble finding one and she was willing to settle on a birch beer.  But I insisted that we stay puritans. After our root beer, we went off to the movies to see Marianne and Leonard, the story of Leonardo Cohen. I loved it.

6- TU- PA/DE- Continuing with my Brandywine Trail Pass, I went to the Delaware Contemporary Art center (DCAC).  Most of the exhibit didn't interest me.  But there was a photography exhibit that was in a dark, dark room and the images were projected on the wall.. I loved it.  Each area was filled with exotic portrays of people.  I thought the piece represented hell but the artist wanted them to represent purity.  I didn't get it.  Then I went off to Kennett Brewing Company for a flight. I came home and took a quick dip in the pool and later went to the Square Bar with friends for a beer.

7- W- PA- I sent the day waiting to pick up a cancer patient but she cancelled at the last minute. I feel as if I wasted my entire day.  I spoke to KT.  She has everything arranged for us to work at a music festival next week in Colorado.  It should be fun. We had flash flooding in the late afternoon and I had a meeting with the West Chester Democrats.  I am going to help secure more volunteers for the November election.

8- TH- PA- Kathy Flatley called me to talk about my new mirror less camera.  As I tried to articulate my thoughts about this new purchase, I was stunned at how many common words escaped my mind process. I am getting old.  These are early signs of dementia.  I am going to be an insufferable person as I become more demented.  I went to the movies: Echos of the Canyon, the story of the California music scene in the mid- 1960's. It was good but too male oriented for my taste.  Afterwards I came home and joined others in the lounge to watch the opening Eagles football game.

9- F- PA- it was another beautiful day so I went to a museum on my Brandywine Trail Pass, The Brandywine River Museum, home of the Wyeth family.  Three generations of men painted American as they saw it.  this is a sweet, little place.  I walked along the river's edge and lamented the last time I was here, probably 13 years ago with Darcy and we went tubing in the water.  I wish I could go back to that delightful afternoon.  In the evening, I went to the musical, Chess, with Phyllis.

10- SA- PA- it is the big bike race today in West Chester.  Tricia and Bill came over and several of us from the apartment took over a corner and set up a tail gate party as we watched these stunning athletes go around and around the track for 60 laps.  I was exhausted just watching them.  Every lap had a new person in the lead and it was hard to keep up with all of the suspense of the race.  But finally, one man pulled out and leaped ahead of everyone by the 30 second lead.  And it didn't even appear as if he was breaking a sweat. It was thrilling to watch.

11- SU- PA- it's another beautiful day.  I started out knocking on doors for the Democratic Party but decided to postpone this activity as no one was home on this gorgeous day.  I came back to the apartment and chatted with Debbie.  She leaves for Europe tomorrow but her back pain is getting worse.  She may have to postpone the trip by a week.  I would be disappointed if I was her.

12- M- PA- OMG, I was a lazy ass today.  I spent too much of the day in bed.  I just finished a great, great book, When Air Becomes Breath,  or maybe it is titled When Breath Becomes Air. So I was in search of another audiobook to start. I found few and started two of them but I can't adjust to the voices.  If the voice doesn't click with me right away, I drift off in random thoughts.  So I spent too much time on this activity.  I did pack for my trip to Colorado and I did talk Steve in to joining me to knock on doors for the November election.  We weren't too successful.

13- TU- PA- I went to another museum in the Brandywine Trail Pass.  I went to the Nemour Estate today, the home of AI DuPont.  The home was nothing short of a palace and the opulence offended me.  How does one person have so much money that he can build a home with 77 rooms?  And why?? I only stayed about an hour and then I had conspicuous consumption overload.  I came back to my apartment and got in to a debate with Debbie about our first amendment rights.  We are not on the same page but so what.

14- W- PA/CO- I'm off to my annual trip to Colorado.  This may be my 10th trip out to visit with KT. She picked me up at the airport and as usual, we had so much trouble figuring out where to connect.  Once we got together, our first stop was the liquor store where I purchased too much beer.

15- TH- CO- we are up early today because we have to be at the ticket desk for the Rocky Mountain Folk Fest.  We are working the desk for the next four days.  As compensation, I have a free four day, all access pass to the event.  We are camping and there are several musicians I want to see so it should be great fun.

16- F- CO- this is my day for music.  I want to see Patty Larkins and Mandolin Orange.  I didn't think Ani DeFranco would interest me but she was excellent. I sat in the front row and she was so loud that my pants vibrated.  I should have had ear plugs in but I didn't.  That's one more day without hearing in the near future.

17- SA- CO- we worked an early afternoon shift which gave me the rest of the day to do what I wanted.  I got to hear several great performances.  The main draw of the day was Josh Ritter.  I volunteered to watch the kids so Jessica could listen to the show.  She told me she was so happy and grateful that she could cry.  I didn't tell her that I am not really a Josh Ritter fan.  I took the gratitude.

18- SU- CO- it's the last day of the festival and many campers are breaking down their camp site so they can listen to Josh Ritter and then get the hell out of here.  The camp is so sparse now that I couldn't find my way to our site.

19- M- CO- breaking down camp is one big pain in the ass.  We had so much stuff and it was a big group effort to get everything stuffed back in the car.  We got to KT's house and I planned on taking an hour nap and then helping with unloading the car.  I slept for hours and got up just in time to go to an Irish Pub for dinner with the whole family.

20- TU-CO- we are off to New Mexico.  We anticipated it would take us 6 hours to get there but we made a few stops.  First we went to the Air Force Academy to see its impressive cathedral.  This church is protestant but there are smaller places of worship in the basement for Jews, Catholics and Buddhists.  There is no visible place for Muslims.  We drove through the Gardens of the Gods and that was just magnificent. Each rock and turn of the car reviewed more and more beauty.  We stayed at the Sandhill Crane hotel.  This area is south of Colorado Springs and on the migration trail fo these cranes.  Now I have to come back here.

21- W- NM- Santa Fe- Sometime before lunch, I ate some popcorn and did some damage to my tooth.  I was hoping I just bruised my gum.  But when I ate lunch, I just knew I did substantial damage to this tooth.  FUCK. FUCK. FUCK. In the afternoon, we wandered around all of the expensive shops in Santa Fe. In the evening, we went to the Santa Fe Brewery and 2nd Street Brewery.  I like Santa Fe.

22- TH- NM- Taos- I am in pain with my tooth but mostly I am worried.  I feel a root canal is in my future.  There goes a fucking $1200.  Damn, damn, damn .I am wearing my night guard full time in a effort to minimize the damage and pain of my tooth. We went to the Kasha-Katawe Tent Rock National Monument and it was beautiful.  The rock formations look like stone tents. In the evening we went to Taos Mesa Brewery for a flight.

23- F- NM- Taos- we walked across the Rio Grande Bridge and it was windy and beautiful. We went to the Mesa Brewery.

24- SA-NM/CO- we stopped at a high end shopping area because KT wanted to go to this geology art store.  I dropped a lot of coin here.  I bought myself a beautiful black Merrino wool coat.  I love it.  It's so damn soft and I can't wait to wear it.  And I better wear it a lot because it costed $450.  I also found a few silver pins that I just had to had.  They was about $150. Then I found another shop that had one great blouse after another.  I left with 2 of them and they were $200. I never spent this much on me in one hour. Ouch!! We stopped at the Earth Ship commune of susbstainable housing.

25- SU- CO/ PA- I left CO shortly after midnight and got in to Philly around 7 AM.  It was 9AM by the time I got back to my apartment and I was tired but restless. I spent the day napping.

26- M- PA- I had a 9AM appointment with the dentist and she informed me that my tooth was damaged beyond repair.  I wanted to cry. Seeing how upset I was, she apologized profusely, as if it was her fault that she couldn't work her magic and fix this tooth that I cracked in half, vertically and damaged the nerve in the process.  So she sent me off to a specialist and he yanked  tooth #13 out of my head. The moment devastated me.  This is the beginning of the decay of my old body.  I really wanted to die with all of my teeth. That goal is off the table and now I am waiting for my gum to heal so that I can get an implant for a mere $4000.  FUCK.  It took so damn long to extract my tooth that I couldn't get to Philly in time to beat the afternoon rush hour.  I was meeting Deb Green and others for dinner and my 35 minute trip took almost two hours.  By the time I got home, I was in lots of pain and bleeding.  Today was an awful, horrible, miserable day.

27- TU- PA- There is not as much pain today.  I need to do a better job of taking my pain medicine.  I wait too long.  In the afternoon, I went to the movies: The Farewell, a story based on a lie.  I thought I was going to love it.  I liked it but I didn't love it.  Later in the evening, I ushered at Uptown for the Dave Mason show.  We sold out and the crowd loved this guy.  The audience was filled with old cotton heads who knew every some he released.  They really had a great time, listening to him.

28- W- PA- Something is wrong with me. I came home from the theatre and had two beers and a few hours later, threw them up.  This is happening more frequently.  I just cant process alcohol.  I probably should speak to my doctor about it but I know she issuing to tell me to give up beer.  So I don't want to have  that conversation.  I went to the Delaware History Museum as part of my Brandywine Trail Pass.  This museum is a hidden gem.  There was a large section on the history of slavery in the state.

29- TH- PA/DE- I am determined to visit all of the museums on the Brandywine Trail Pass.  So I started my day in New Castle, DE to visit the Read House and Garden.  The entrance door was locked so I rang the bell and someone, a young woman, reluctantly answered the door.  "May I help you," she asked with a voice of annoyance.  "This is the museum, right, " I ask.  "yes but you cant come in for another 1/2 hour.  I', giving a tour right now."  Damn,  It was too hot to stand in the sun and there was nowhere to sit.  So I wandered the gardens which were poorly maintained and left.  I headed to the Rockwood House and Gardens but I also had to take a tour which I didn't want to do.  So the woman let me explore the first floor by myself.  This area of the house centered in the lives of the servants which I found to be very interesting.  Then I headed over to the Delaware Art Museum.  The woman behind the counter told me, "We only have mostly American artists."  Then she told me about an exhibit by Caribbean artists which was good. I came home to my apartment for an end-of-summer party.  And I discovered that my stitches are falling out of my damn tooth hole.  That's not a good omen.

30- F- PA/DE-  I went off to the Winerthur Museum.  I only took the garden tour because I just couldn't bring myself to tour this 175 room house filled with treasured filled by a rich, white man.  Touring his 1,000 acres of gardens on his estate was enough.  I met Kathy Flatley for the movies: After The Wedding.  I didn't really like it.

31- SA- PA- I had a lazy day.  My damn tooth problem is getting the best of me.  I didnt feel like doing anything.  I did watch the PSU game with Steve and Phylis. I left when we were 58-0.  But the final score was 79-7.  Jeff grill spare ribs which were great.  And then I got annoyed with a neighbor who thinks we should all carry a gun to protect ourselves.  And then I got annoyed at neighbors who let their dogs run free in the lounge.  Two damn dogs jumped all over me and that annoyed me.  So I just went back to my apartment to sulk.