What we are doing this week

Dear Friends Who Are Also Stuck at Home,

Well, we had our first Zoom meeting for Western Front Indivisible. Maybe you were one of the 21  people online. We had a good time and were really happy to talk with each other about how we are handling shelter in place and the threat of COViD-19.

So, let’s look at where we are right now.

First: we have a pandemic. We have to shelter in place, go out only when we must for essentials, and try to avoid contact with others so we don;t get the coronavirus. Because it can make you sick. Or really sick. Or maybe kill you. Nothing big or anything.

Second, we have a timeline that is going to extend longer than we want, where we will have to shelter in place. We will have to continue to be extremely vigilant with washing our hands for 20 seconds all the time, wiping surfaces with disinfectant, etc.

Third, it's going to be a long hard spring.  As you may have heard, Illinois is becoming the epicenter of COVID-19 cases in the US.  Each community is going to experience an increase in the number of cases. And that means it will impact all of us. Personally.  We are going to know someone who has the virus.

That’s the bad news. The good news is that we have a connection which is going to increase and intensify even though we cannot physically meet. And, we can control how we are responding to this pandemic.

Let us invite Hope to stay.

HEY. HAVE YOU FILLED OUT YOUR CENSUS FORM?

I have just finished mine. Have you filled out yours? You should have received something in the mail. Remember it’s important, and something you can complete online. 

COME HANGOUT WITH US

Until we have another monthly meeting, we are going to have a weekly hangout. Twice a week, actually. We’ll have a Wednesday morning Coffee Klatch, where we can drink coffee and tea and check in with each other about how things are going. And a Friday late afternoon Happy Hour. We’ll use Google Hangouts for this. (Another new thing for some of you.) I will send out an invitation tomorrow to both of these.)

WHAT DOES ACTIVISM LOOK LIKE NOW?

If you want to wrangle with this idea, you might like to sign up to listen in on the Indivisible Monthly National Activists Call, which has been merged with Be a Hero Campaign’s Weekly COVID-19 call, where Indivisibles will have the chance to gather in community with other activists from around the country and hear from special guest Stacey Abrams. You can RSVP for the call on Tuesday, March 31 below. 

Indivisible National Activist Call/Be a Hero Campaign Weekly Call ft. Stacey Abrams (Tuesday, March 31 at 8pm ET/ 5pm PT)

The challenges we currently face are immense, but we believe if the progressive movement comes together to organize, plan, and mobilize, we can hold elected officials accountable and pass relief that puts people first. 

But there’s more!

TUES., MAR 31, 5-6 pm Health Care Voter is launching “Our Lives On The Line: A Digital Town Hall Series” to elevate the stories and experiences of Americans affected by the spread of the coronavirus, and how in the face of this epidemic we’re still fighting for the Affordable Care Act and against the skyrocketing costs of prescription drug prices in our country.

YOU CAN STILL WRITE POSTCARDS

Sign up with Postcards to Voters and they will provide you with addresses and the message for a current campaign.  You can use your own  blank postcard, or you can order from them at their Etsy page.

If your fingers have rested from the Wisconsin campaign, then maybe you’ll be ready with something new.

THERE ARE STILL CALLS TO MAKE

Keep up with Indivisible’s response to the Coronavirus. Look especially at the section called What Needs to Go Into the next Coronavirus Response bill. There are still calls to make.

Go to Calls to Make for scripts on needed calls for the Medical Supply Chain Emergency Act and the Natural Disaster and Emergency Ballot Act. Also there’s a script for No Surgical Masks for ICE.

You have time. Why not make a couple of calls this week?

There are opportunities to take care of each other.

And here are some I have seen on Facebook.

Mask making. You can join this local Facebook page to learn how to get involved.

Feeding medical people: Meals to Medics, a local group, is seeking financial donations to provide meals to frontline medical staff in the Chicago area.

Supporting Whole food workers strike on March 31st. Instacart has gone on strike in solidarity. Why not avoid going to Whole Foods on Tuesday.  Jeff Bezos can afford to support these demands.

Until next week, check in on neighbors. Connect with people you love. Reach out to people you haven’t talked to in a long time. And go outdoors and soak up some sun when it appears. 

We are all in the together (but separately),

Etta

Please email us at westernfrontindivisible@gmail.com if you want to not receive this any more, or if you have any questions.

I MISS THE ART INSTITUTE

posted by Etta Worthington

I admit it.
I miss the Art Institute.

I mean, it's spring, I have some time. I could hop on the train and be downtown in no time. And since I am a member, I could just glide on in and go where ever I want in the collections.

I have favorite places I go, of course. The Chagall windows. America Windows. That is first. I make a beeline for that first of all.  Well, an appropriately moderately-paced beeline. And if I'm lucky, there's some space on a bench and I can sit and breathe. I church there.  Okay, I'm not sure if it can be a verb, but most sincerely,  sitting in front of these windows is a spiritual experience.  The deep blue soaks into my soul and brings peace.

Many favorite painters. I have to stop by some Georgia O'Keefe's. Of course Degas, Toulouse-Lautrec, Monet, Renoir . . . The list goes on.

But I can't now, so of course I very much MUST go.

Sometimes, when there's a special exhibition, I will purchase the accompanying book. So I can raid my bookshelves and spend some time in one of these books. 

Ah, this looks to be a good one to get back into.  And perhaps quite appropriate. (Read the title.)

So I have accepted that I can't go to the Art Institute. Not today or anytime soon.

But here's a possibility that may satisfy some of that need I have for art.  How about going to a museum in Paris?
Paris Musées, a public institution incorporating the city’s 14 museums, has just made it easier to see those masterworks. Paris Musées has uploaded 321,178 works of art—including paintings, photographs, and coins—to its website.

So, this is something you can do today. A good way to bring beauty into your heart and soul.

Did you see something you especially liked? Tell me about it.

WHOM DO YOU LISTEN TO?

posted by Etta Worthington

I'll start by saying who I do not listen to.
The President.
No way will I tune into his briefings. Ever.
And for that matter, I don't want networks to cover it.
So I signed a petition today, begging networks not to broadcast him live. You can to.

So if you aren't listening to Trump, who do you listen to?

Sharon Bloyd-Peshkin suggested tuning in at 11 every day to hear  Dr. Arwady answer questions about COVID-19 and Chicago.  Here's the link to the Facebook live daily event. 

Dr. Allison Arwady, MD, MPH, is the Commissioner of the Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH). She answers questions in that daily livestream.

Again, daily livestream is on Facebook or Twitter at 11 a.m. to get the latest updates on COVID-19 from CDPH Commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady.

Governor Pritzker has a 2:30 pm briefing every day. He is joined by others, including medical leaders, business leaders, National Guard leadership. You can find it on this Facebook page but there are many places to see or just hear it. Yesterday I listened to it on WBEZ.

I highly recommend this briefing.

ALL THIS TIME ON MY HANDS

posted by Etta Worthington

What to do, what to do, what to do?  For some in our group, I'm thinking especially people in the healthcare profession, this is an extremely demanding time. Long hard hours. For those people, please stop reading.

However, many of us are working at home, or at home and not working because our jobs are in nonessential businesses.

And so for those of us in these categories, we are wearing pajamas all day, eating at odd times, and are generally disoriented.

How do you handle being isolated and cooped up? Who better to answer this question than an astronaut. And to offer advice. This is from Scott Kelly who spent nearly a year on the International Space Station.

On the space station, my time was scheduled tightly, from the moment I woke up to when I went to sleep. Sometimes this involved a spacewalk that could last up to eight hours; other times, it involved a five-minute task, like checking on the experimental flowers I was growing in space. You will find maintaining a plan will help you and your family adjust to a different work and home life environment. When I returned to Earth, I missed the structure it provided and found it hard to live without.

Hmm. That made me think. I looked at my calendar for tomorrow. Blank.  This makes me think. I have been feeling a little lost lately, flitting from one thing to another during the day.

So I am going to schedule my time. Maybe not as tightly as he had to in space.  And I am going to follow some of his other suggestions. Things like making sure you schedule time for exercise. For me that means getting outdoors and  jogging, or walking, or riding bicycle.

Kelly also says to schedule fun/relaxation time.  And this is a good one to remind myself. Schedule time for just, hmm, maybe watching a movie for fun. Playing a game. Listening to some music that I enjoy.

Okay, I have a assignment for today.  Create a schedule. How about you? Are you going to schedule your time? If you do, let me know if this helps.

BREATHE IN. BREATHE OUT

posted by Etta Worthington

Have you ever meditated? Have you ever developed a meditation habit?

The very thought of it may make you shutter. Maybe you envision having to sit on the floor with your legs curled up in a terribly uncomfortable fashion. Maybe you think you'd go crazy if you had to sit and think of nothing for 15, 20 minutes.

Relax.  I am not going to suggest you need to become a Buddhist. Nor study yoga and become a yogi. 

I frankly haven't been doing any meditation. Not for a long time. But I think now, of all times, it would be important.  So I have been looking around and have found that there are many guided meditations online that aren't too long, and seem like they are so appropriate for our current time.

My daughter Ashley discovered this guided meditation on YouTube and recommends it. It's a 15-minute meditation for anxiety and stress.  I'm going to try this tonight before I go to bed. Why don't you do that as well, and let me know what you think?

DEAR FELLOW ISOLATES

Dear Fellow Isolates,

Ah. There’s a new word for you. Meaning, a person, thing, or group that is set apart or isolated.

How are you doing? How are you handling the sudden and drastic change to your regular life? It may be that this is so challenging that all you can think of is how to get through the day. It may be that you are every so often feeling so terrified that you close to having a panic attack. It may be that you are so overwhelmed with managing the work-from-home thing that you hardly have time to think about what’s happening. It may be that you are suddenly out of work and fairly panicked about how you are going to keep paying your bills. Or it may be that you are a health care professional and are on the front lines of dealing with the coronavirus, putting yourself at risk daily as you do your job.

If that’s so, then the first part of this letter is for you.

WHAT IF…

There is so much fear, and perhaps rightfully so, about COVID-19.

And, what if…

we subscribe to the philosophy that life is always working out for us, that there is an intelligence far greater than humans at work…

That all is interconnected.

What if…

the virus is here to help us.

To reset.

To remember.

What is truly important.

        -- Gurpreet Gill

And then I ran across this on Facebook.

As some of you know, I have been doing a blog post everyday on the Western Front blog.  Ideas to help us get through this time. If you haven’t read the blog lately, this is what you missed:

• How to Listen for Free
• Talking About Toilet Paper
• Get Lost Today
• Some Questions That Need to Be Answered
• REACH OUT AND . . .

I particularly like the one about questions. And since most of you won’t click through and read it, I’m going to force you to look at the graphic.

We need to stay connected, so we are going to try a ZOOM meeting (video conferencing).  We’ll plan it for 3 PM this next Sunday. You’ll get an invitation midweek with all the details on how to connect.

ACTIVISM IN THE AGE OF COVID-19

We will continue to do activism. Even though it may have a different shape than before.  And we will present you with opportunities to stay involved in the fight. And first off, please don’t watch Trump’s press briefings.  But, do consider watching Governor Pritzker’s daily briefings at 2:30 each day. If you haven't already, I think you’ll be most favorably impressed. You can find links a number of places, such as here or by watching the governor’s Facebook page. 

If you'd like to watch the video of a teleconference from Indivisible national, especially a talk by co-founder Ezra Levin, you can find it here on YouTube.

Right now Congress is debating another bill responding to the COVID-19 outbreak. We need to call our representative and our Senators and let them know what is important:

Demand That Your Representative Addresses the Coronavirus Outbreak

Congress has already started working on a third coronavirus response package intended to tackle the looming consequences of the outbreak. Decades of Republican efforts to hollow out the middle class and gut our safety net programs have left millions of people teetering on the edge. With the economy slowing down, Congress urgently has to act to preserve our democracy, and to protect families, workers, and low-income people from destitution.

Any effective response to this crisis must include the following three policies (and you can read more about what should go into the coronavirus response bill in our full resource here):

1. Nationwide vote by mail, as laid out in the Natural Disaster and Emergency Ballot Act.
   
2. Direct cash assistance to individuals and families, and strenuous requirements attached to any corporate bailouts.
   
3. Universal paid sick days, family leave, and expanded Unemployment Insurance to fill in the gaps from the second coronavirus response bill.
   

Call your Representative and tell them that the third coronavirus package must include vote by mail, direct cash assistance, no unaccountable corporate bailouts, and stronger economic supports for workers and families!

PROTECT OUR CARE

join Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, Protect Our Care, and health care advocates who were on the front lines during the fight to pass and then protect the Affordable Care Act, for an activists’ call on the 10th anniversary of the law’s passage. The discussion will highlight the tremendous progress that we’ve made in the past 10 years, as well as the fight we have ahead of us to protect it—especially in the midst of this health care crisis and the ongoing effort to sabotage and repeal the law.The call will be held tomorrow, Monday, March 23, at 4:30pm ET (3:30 CT)

Space is limited. To confirm your participation, RSVP using this form and the dial-in information will be emailed to you just prior to the call. the dial-in information will be emailed to you just prior to the call.

ICE

DEMAND THAT ICE STOP ARRESTING AND DETAINING PEOPLE DURING CORONAVIRUS LOCKDOWN: Even though several California counties are in shelter-in-place status and the whole country is hunkering down to maintain physical distance and restrict all non-essential activities, ICE is continuing business as usual in LA, arresting both undocumented residents and green card holders who have committed crimes. Let’s tell the Department of Homeland Security (202-282-8495; DHSSecretary@hq.dhs.gov;  https://homelandsecurity.ideascale.com/; Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/homelandsecurity/; Twitter: @DHS.gov) that this non-essential activity that limits physical distance is putting the health of all of us at risk. Let’s also ask our MoCs to introduce legislation to stop or severely restrict eligibility for arrest and deportation during this crisis.  

Contact your elected representatives to demand they prioritize getting equipment to health care workers

SCRIPT:  Hi, my name is [your name] from zip code [your zip code]. I'm calling to urge the Representative/Senator to prioritize personal protective equipment, including N95 masks, for our nation's healthcare workers. Even as they brace for more Covid-19 cases, many hospitals have already begun to run short of crucial equipment. Please urge President Trump to work with private sector companies to produce the essential gear that our health care workers on the front line urgently need in order to protect themselves, their patients and the public. Thank you.

COULD YOU SEW A MASK?

Now this is something I can’t do, but if you can sew, consider making masks for healthcare workers who have no masks but still must have patient contact.  Go to this Facebook Group to find out more about what is happening locally.

So, there are things for us to do. But first, make sure you are taking care of yourself and being safe and washing your hands until they are raw (ok, an overstatement). And keep reaching out to people. Neighbors, friends, family.  Reach out.

I hope you can reach out and join us this next Sunday.

Peace,

Etta

Please email us at westernfrontindivisible@gmail.com if you want to not receive this any more, or if you have any questions.

How to Listen for Free

posted by Etta Worthington

I just ran across a nice free resource.  (Most of us have a little extra time on our hands these days.)

How about listening to books?

Audible is offering some books to listen to for free. No, this is not their 30-day free trial. It's just go in and grab something you want to listen to.

It's a very limited collection but you can find things for kids of all ages, literary classics, and books in other languages.

Here's an news article about it. Or you can go to the site directly.

Please let me know if you try this out.  Or, can you share with all of us what other free resources are you discovering and enjoying?

Now I am off for a long solitary walk.

Talking About Toilet Paper

What's all this obsession with toilet paper? It seems like people are hoarding it, or are desperate if they can't find any. In fact, people are trying to grow their own.

 

  
But seriously. Sharon Bloyd-Peshkin has some ideas.

Ladies, let’s talk about toilet paper

One of the ways I’m staying upbeat during the pandemic is by seeking out silver linings to this very large and menacing cloud.

So let’s talk about toilet paper. Three statements I believe to be true: 

• People are hoarding it. 
• Some of us who aren’t are running low on it. 
• There will be more soon, so we don’t have to worry about it. 

As someone who isn’t hoarding TP, I had a realization: I use too much of it! Women, in particular, generally use TP every time they pee. 

Is this necessary? Of course not. When I camp in the wilderness, I don’t use TP when I pee because every time I do, I either need to burn it or pack it out. But at home, I do use it, and I use too much. 

So ladies, two ideas for you: Either minimize your use – one or two squares is sufficient – or don’t use it at all when you pee. Instead, use the DIY bidet method: Keep a small cup of water by the toilet and pour it instead of wiping with TP. If you wish to dry, keep a cloth near the toilet for that purpose. You can reuse the cloth for days because it’s only wet, not dirty. 

Here’s the silver lining: This experience of scarcity has awakened me to my wastefulness. There’s no need for me to purchase and discard so much TP. Doing so is destructive of forests and puts a strain on our water treatment facilities. This pandemic will end, and we will have an abundance of TP long before it does. But that doesn’t mean we need to waste it.