Coronavirus Rant by Yours Truly

I might have to do more of these in the future. This was kind of fun, as well as helpful de-stressing therapy. LOL

Not Desperate

I love it when old boyfriends decide to come around to see if it's safe to try to come back into my life to use me some more.

They tend to get mad when they find out I don't need them anymore. I've learned to take care of myself better than they ever could...and I don't need a relationship just because I don't have one.

Just got blocked. LOL

If I EVER have another relationship, it is going to be with someone who has become my best friend FIRST.

I'm too old for the traditional dating games.

I sleep hugging a pillow that is so comfortable -- and less dramatic when I push it away to get even more comfortable.

I've learned I don't HAVE to have sex. And, some man pawing me or undressing me with his eyes doesn't turn me on.

What DOES turn me on is knowing that someone thinks I'm worth the time of day to hang out with, is never too busy to talk to me when I need to, and doesn't try to impress me by being someone they aren't just because they want to get laid. I want to love someone for who they really are, not someone I hope they will be. And I want consistency.

And, honestly, I'm just plain not looking. I really don't want someone who is. If it happens, it happens. But, I don't want a situation in which not wanting a relationship with someone is going to ruin being friends with that person.

And if I can't have that, well, I'll just consistently stay where I am.

#notdesperate

Corona Bug Blues

Hello, World!

I am so looking forward to selling some Avon soon! It is just so much easier when you are face to face with your customers.

Plus, my hours are getting cut back at work. Not sure how much longer my job will hold out in this bad economy today.

I found out, yesterday, that some members of my family have contracted the virus. (Please keep praying for them! I hear it is working!)

I called my mom, who lives just a few minutes away from them. I asked her if she knew about it. She said, in a frustrated tone of voice, "No. I don't have Facebook. I depend on ya'll to tell me what is going on." LOL

My mom, to this day, STILL refuses to get on the internet.

I don't think I can live without it.

Rules for Safe Commerce online:

Never give any information to anyone you don't know.

Never do business with anyone you don't know that doesn't have an established reputation. (for example, Amazon is an established business on the internet. George's fruitcakes is not. Never heard of them. They don't have any affiliate marketing links anywhere. They don't have a security certificate anywhere...etc.)

Never click links to make payments through Email, unless you have a heads up from someone you KNOW and TRUST that it is coming. (I have received emails from someone saying they are paypal and I owe this amount of money for something, and it asks me to put my password in the link they provide -- so they could steal it and take my money from my REAL paypal account! Thank goodness I am not that stupid!)

Never pay for anything over the phone. Make them send you a bill. ALWAYS have a paper trail.

ALWAYS know who you are talking to. Name, company they work for, position they hold and contact information in case you have questions BEFORE anything else is discussed.

Never offer information for anyone to verify. Make them give YOU what they know for you to verify.

Never give any information to anyone that isn't explicitly asked for, and then make sure that you trust them first.

Don't be scared to do business online. Everything you do, even if you are not doing it on the internet, goes online at some point. That credit or debit card you used? The information about what you bought, where you bought it, and who you gave the money to can be found online. Every time you bank, your information is put into a computer and that information can be accessed.

It isn't a matter of not giving information online. It is a matter of WHO you give the information to. Just like anywhere else. How secure is their website? What steps are they taking to keep your information safe? ON AND OFFLINE!

Days of Quarantine

Hello, World!

How is everyone's quarantine going?

I know one thing, I am ready for NORMAL again. I want to go out and sell my Avon! And, I want time to pass by faster at work.

I mean, where is the challenge anymore? All I do is twiddle my thumbs at work. Everything that can be cleaned is cleaned. All we do is sit around waiting for customers to call...and on Graveyard that isn't happening much.

I sure hope things get back to normal soon.

I had a customer call me the other day after I delivered her order to her. She said, "Did you say Avon was going to start selling household cleaning supplies?"

I said, "Yes, Ma'am! We have de-greaser, all-purpose cleaner, dryer sheets and laundry detergent sheets. We will be getting more as we progress."

She went on to explain how she was unable to get simple things at the grocery store, due to everyone hoarding supplies. She asked me to order it for her.

"All of it?" I asked. "Are you sure you want to do that? It's going to be about a month before all this is available. We'll probably be back to normal by then..."

She assured me she didn't want to chance it. LOL

I'm selling stuff we haven't even got yet! LOL

I've started updating my personal web site lately with all I am doing online. Plus, I decided I needed a central place to put all my bookmarks, and since I've been wondering what I should do with my web site since I have all my blogs...I figure I could use it as a doorway to all my stuff.

You can visit my website by clicking HERE

NO, FACEBOOK is not a web site. FACEBOOK is a blog. Facebook is run by people who tell you what you are allowed to post and only show what they want you to see. Just clarifying that for those of you who wonder why I would need another web site. You see, at my website, no one can tell me what I am allowed to post. It is MINE to do with what I want to. And, everything I post gets seen by those who really are interested enough to visit.

So, ya'll come see me!

Hope you all had a great Easter!

I keep looking for my stimulus check to arrive any day now...

Have a blessed day!

Thinking outside the box...

Hello, World!

It's been a few days since I updated you here, so I figured I would. LOL

We have now been in "shelter in place" measures for a month. It has taken a toll on the business where I work, but I see small signs that people are getting bored. We actually are picking up a little bit on some nights. Other nights just drag by...

It's so slow, that we have had to keep our meats in the freezer to be pulled as needed, because even in the refrigerator, the meat does not last and starts to go bad. We don't prep anything except on an as-needed bases, and we stopped selling grits because not enough people order them and it takes too long to make them on an as-needed bases.

We even stopped making tea. But, I found a way around that. I am not going all night without a glass of tea. So rather than make the regular 5 gallons we usually make, I make one gallon and put it in the refrigerator. If it don't sell, I drink it. LOL

This whole situation has made me appreciate the small business owner who is struggling. If it weren't for the new bills that Congress is enacting to help them, I know I would not be working right now, and I really appreciate it.

I had been afraid of selling Avon, because I didn't know if I would get into trouble doing it. BUT, we had a meeting last night on Zoom (a video conference website) and my Upline Leader, Miss Dana, said that we, at Avon, are ESSENTIAL. We sell essential products, so we can continue to sell as needed.

She encouraged us to "think outside the box" during these trying times, and gave us a lot of great ideas on how to go about it. We each shared our own experiences and ideas, and things that work for us. And, I am now highly motivated again!

I will be doing a live video soon to show off my bucket sale items. I am looking forward to it! AND, I think some of these ideas will be things that I will continue to do once we get back to "normal". In the meantime, nothing is stopping me from making sales ONLINE, so ya'll make sure to visit my store!

Also, I've been updating "The Ponder News" a lot more. I've just about got all of my sources arranged in one place so I can work more efficiently to that end. Ya'll make sure to visit to see what those in "the know" are doing that effects YOU as a citizen of this great country! And, make sure to join the Facebook group to stay updated when new news items are posted!

Ya'll have a blessed day! (And, remember, in spite of all this, we all ARE still blessed!)

WHY Trump is and HAS BEEN doing the right thing in all this...

The first person in the US to be diagnosed with COVID-19 who had NOT travelled outside the United States was diagnosed on FEBRUARY 25, the DAY Mardi Gra took place.

Seriously? Ya'll want to blame Trump for letting you go to Mardi Gra? HOW IRRATIONAL!

How would it have sounded if he had got on live TV on FEB 24 and said, "There is a virus ravaging China right now. I closed the Borders to China in January because of it. There is a TRAVEL BAN in place. Therefore, it is not advisable for anyone to go to Mardi Gra!"

EVERYONE, including ME would have thought he'd lost his mind. I almost did when he finally DID.

Not any more.

So, to put this in perspective:

The FIRST person to contract the virus who was not travelling to or from the US was on February 25. The day Mardi Gra STARTED.

The first person to be diagnosed in NY was on March 2.

Let that sink in. There are over 175,000 in the US today, 3351 REPORTED in TX right now.

At the rate it is going, even with quarantine, there will be over 50 Million who have COVID 19 in 6 months. There were only 54 Million who had ALL the other flus combined during the last 6 months.

Trump is doing, and HAS BEEN doing the right thing....buying us time. Just think what the numbers would be WITHOUT the quarantine measures.

Not IF, but WHEN

1:48 PM on March 29, 2020

Texas now has 2564 Cases of Covid-19

The measures put into place by counties across Texas have slowed the numbers significantly. Texas dropped to number 12 from number 11 in the number of cases each state has.

There have been 36 deaths so far.

Roughly 54 Million people got the Flu this flu season with roughly 62,000 deaths. That is 6 months worth of data.

COVID-19 is new. In the beginning of this month alone, there were less than 100 cases in Texas. Without social distancing measures, the number of cases would have been 10X larger than they are, or more. Times 10 for each month of a regular flu season. You are looking at it encompassing ALL of Texas and then some. NO ONE would have been untouched by the COVID-19 virus.

So yes, Trump made the right call, and so has our local governments who are enacting stay at home measures.

If you want to see how bad it could get, just look at New York, who already has over 60,000 cases and is begging for help. Their hospitals are so over-run that organizations are pitching in to help provide more space for the sick. Trump just sent a Naval Hospital via ship to help out.

Most who get the virus, as with any other flu, will recover. But, about half of them will need help. This isn't about the numbers of people who will get it, this is about not overwhelming our hospitals and health centers during the progression.

If our hospitals are over capacitated, they will be FORCED to decide who and who not to treat. MORE people will die. Including those who have not been touched by the virus. For instance, a young mother of two comes in. She WAS healthy, strong, had a great long life ahead of her, but got the virus. Now the hospital is overstaffed. There is a terminally ill patient in a room that could save this girl. The hospital would probably have to chose to save her and let the terminally ill person die before his or her time. And THAT would be just the beginning. Soon, it would be older people who got the virus versus younger people who have more life ahead of them.

As it stands, yes, abortions outnumber the deaths. But if this happens, DEATH will be chosen by those who are not dying. So, because we choose LIFE, social distancing and stay at home measures are a MUST.

BTW, until a vaccine is made, be prepared to catch the virus. It isn't a matter of IF, but when. When you do, don't you want the BEST care the medical community has to offer? Or, is it worth living knowing someone else may have had to die for you to do so?

If Trump Was in The Bible...

If there were a chapter in the Bible written about Trump it would tell how he came to know Christ. Then it would tell how he led a nation back to God in the face of daily, hourly persecution by everyone in it.

Then it would tell how God sent a great plague to that Nation, and how everyone who persecuted him and hated him looked to him for guidance.

The cities in that nation that persecuted him the most and drove him out to live in a city far away was the most hard hit by this plague.

And Trump, being the man of God, the good Christian (albeit not a perfect man oh, just like all the other heroes of the Bible) did what Jesus would do. He did what Jesus said to do.

"If your enemy falls in a ditch, help him.
Pray for those who persecute you and despitefully use you. It will be like coals of fire raining down on them."

Donald Trump did everything in his power to help out the ones that persecuted him the most, in spite of their hatred.

The end has not been written yet. But you can bet God has a copy of the book already!

Working Faith

I keep hearing people say, "When God wants to take me out of this world, I'm ready. When God says it's my time to go I'll go."

This is true. However, God also gave you the opportunity to live for a reason. So don't tempt fate.

Your job on this Earth is to glorify God. Your mission is to tell others about Jesus. If you refuse to look after your health and well-being you cut your life short. How many people did you miss out on telling about Jesus because you died too young?

I am not saying to worry about anything. I am just saying be wise about everything. It takes as little effort to take a vitamin c tablet every day as it does to read the Word.

Faith without works is dead, though. JS. (Yeah, I know, context, but I use it in every sense of the way)

For instance, I can sit here and say, "If God wants me to be successful, He CAN have my dream job call and offer me a job" OR I can pray, then take ACTION and go out and try to GET that job.

I can believe in God for my health, but if I am eating the wrong things and never exercising, I'm going to get fat and have high blood pressure.

I'm just saying, God gave us a brain to use for a reason.