BUENOS DÍAS good
Friday morning.
Weekend Edition, 1023
words, a 5-minute read.
I am usually better with
long-term memories than the short-term kind. Mention sports, and I will deliver
the time in 1971 I attended the Major-League All-Star game in Detroit, in the
fifth inning the outfield for the National League was Roberto Clemente, Willie
Mays, and Hank Aaron. What a thrill.
Lately, I am dwelling on
lesser things from the fairly recent past. Sheltered in a pandemic, new
memories seem distant, and mundane. I remember the last meal I ate in a
restaurant, my last haircut, the last time I washed Big Red (my car), pretty
boring.
Emotionally charged
events are easier to remember than neutral ones. Something as simple as a
haircut (June 12) now qualifies as an emotional benchmark, because I have no
idea when I will again feel safe visiting my barber.
Research has shown that
the act of remembering is frequently enhanced by forgetting. We clear space in
our minds by replacing older memories with more recent occurrences. Right now
there is a lot that I look forward to forgetting.
My short-term memory
does seem to have improved during the pandemic. Mention a date, any date, since
mid-March, and I will be able to tell you the color of my boxer shorts I wore,
when I took out the garbage, and what I saw on my walk around the neighborhood.
Memories like these are
easier to preserve when nothing changes.
COVID-19 NOTES - The Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention on Tuesday released updated guidance on Covid-19 testing for
higher-education administrators. One highlight: The CDC isn't recommending that
colleges test all students, faculty, and staff as they return to campus, given
that it's unclear whether entry testing actually reduces the virus's spread.
Institutions that are planning a test-on-arrival approach, the CDC cautions,
should be aware of the limited utility of testing people at a single point in
time. And residential, isolated campuses, the organization points out, might
have less potential exposure to Covid-19 than do those with many commuter
students or those whose students live in the local community.
Here are 10 signs you
may have Covid-19:
▪︎ Shortness of breath
▪︎ Fever
▪︎ Dry cough
▪︎ Chills & body
aches
▪︎ Sudden confusion
▪︎ Digestive issues
▪︎ Pink eye
▪︎ Loss of smell &
taste
▪︎ Fatigue
▪︎ Headache, sore
throat, congestion
BAD NEWS FOR
LATIN AMERICA — Latin America, which is home to less than 10
percent of the world’s population, is now accounting for about half of
coronavirus-related deaths in the world.
The largest numbers are
in Brazil, but Mexico, the second most populous country in the region, is also
in bad shape: It’s the country with the fifth-highest number of deaths — more
than 32,000 — due to coronavirus and more than 275,000 confirmed cases. It’s on
track to soon surpass Italy in the number of deaths from Covid.
MARKET WEEK - Disney World will begin opening in phases
starting Thursday. Brooks Brothers filed for bankruptcy protection, while Bed
Bath & Beyond said it would permanently close roughly 200 stores.
The federal Paycheck Protection Program was
designed to keep businesses and employees from going under because of the
coronavirus pandemic. The businesses and nonprofit organizations that applied
could get money to cover up to eight weeks of salaries, as well as “interest on
mortgages, rent, and utilities.” The goal of the program was to prevent
layoffs. So why were colleges that faced certain closure among the
beneficiaries?
A RR analysis found that several colleges facing
closure or ceasing usual operations received Paycheck Protection funds. Other
colleges that announced plans to close or merge this year also got money from
the program.
TAX TIME? - IT’S ALMOST JULY 15 - It’s certainly
understandable why state and local governments wouldn’t want to deal with
another delay in federal tax deadlines.
States and localities are already on pins and
needles waiting to see what kind of extra financial assistance — if any —
Congress might offer in a next Covid-19 relief package, especially given the
timing of when that measure might come together keeps slipping. So with most
states about to spill over into a new fiscal year, state budget and tax
officials just want to collect the revenue owed for 2019 and move on.
TOP THREE PRO GOLF WINNERS - Sam Snead (82 wins, 7 majors)
Tiger Woods (81 wins, 15 majors)
Jack Nicklaus (73 wins, 18 majors)
MLB FACT – The Detroit Tigers are tied for the best record
in the MLB with 60 games to play.
HAPPY
BIRTHDAY – Yousef Daneshbod …”the man” for Mathematics, Cheryl
Ladd (69), Roger McGuinn (78), Linda Ronstadt (74), Donald Sutherland (85).
POISON IVY
- The Ivy League announced Wednesday that it will cancel all fall sports due to
COVID-19 and will not consider resuming sports until at least Jan. 1, 2021.
The eight-member conference
was the first to cancel spring sports, calling off its basketball tournaments
on March 10. Now, it's the first D-I conference to cancel football.
While Power 5
conferences could ultimately follow the Ivy League's lead, no decisions will be
made until late July.
It's also worth noting
that Power 5 schools and Ivy League schools are dealing with different numbers.
The former generates significant football revenue through TV contracts and
ticket sales, while the Ivy League does not.
The Ivy League generated
roughly $30 million in football revenue in 2019, while the Big Ten generated $1
billion.
THE SWAMI’S
WEEKEND PICK – F1 Styrian Grand Prix, Austria: 7/11, 9:05 am
(EDT), ESPN: The second F1 race of the post pandemic, we like Mr. Mercedes,
Lewis Hamilton to win. Mr. Hamilton leads in the 2020 driver standings.
2020 Season to Date (8-7).
Next Blog: Dear Rink
Rats and Word of the Month
Until
Monday July 20, 2020 Adios.
Claremont,
California
July 10,
2020
#XI-7-413
CARTOON OF THE WEEKEND – New York, Rothstein
RINK RATS POLL – Do you think schools
should open in the fall?
___ Yes
___ No
___ Not sure yet
QUOTE OF THE WEEKEND – “...I have done more than any
President in history in first 3 1/2 years!"
—
President Donald Trump
Rink Rats is a blog
of weekly observations, predictions and commentary. We welcome your comments
and questions. Also participate in our monthly poll. Rink Rats is now viewed in
Europe, Canada, South America and the United States.
Posted at Rink Rats The Blog: First Published – May 3, 2010
Our Eleventh Year.
www.rhasserinkrats.blogspot.com
