Walks and ways

I’ve resumed my longer walks, now, daily or almost so. All of this in accordance with my interpretations of the official information in our area regarding the situation with the Covid-19 pandemic. In Barcelona, as in many other places, the quarantine restrictions are being relaxed with caution.

Meanwhile my account on Facebook is @WBainPoetry (with or without upper case). I’ll be linking accounts here soon but I should add that my Facebook posts primarily deal with more general information, especially things related to current events and the influence of social media. I’ve noticed that searches for the previously mentioned “@” tag brings up my FB page in a simple search on Google. The other search engines I’ve tried don’t do this, however.

In the context of conversations about social media usage this seems worth mentioning.

Barcelona

In the Barcelona area…… As restrictions begin to ease we’re going for short walks around our neighbourhood. So good to be out on the street! At the same time it’s disheartening to see how lightly some people take the cautions about using masks or maintaining safe distances.

More inspiring are the measures that are already visible of adapting the City’s streets with more bike lanes and designated parking areas for motor bikes. From some of the press I’ve seen this is another initiative that’s global. London is planning similar moves, also San Francisco, I think.

For years, for decades now, there have been plans to cut down on motorized traffic in cities. If memory serves one of the architectural solutions for Barcelona—the idea of having commuters coming into the City park in special areas outside the metropolitan area—was mooted 30 years ago or more. An accompanying shuttle system would then be used to get drivers back and forth to their cars.

So, hoping for healthier measures…… On we go!

#staysafestayhome

Out on the street last Friday for the first time in nearly two months. The quarantine has been hard to deal with generally, but perhaps especially in tersms of creativity.

But then… all of this is global, which in many ways is something positive because we’ve known for some time that the world has to work together more than ever to confront the Coronavirus-19 pandemic and many other environmental threats.

Global warning has to be addressed. The destruction of Earth’s rainforests has to be addressed.

So while unable to go out for those refreshing walks and get togethers, telematics and informatics have become an even greater part of our lives.

Underlying the ways we look at the quarantine are ideas about the human biome, both macro and micro—especially micro just now, with regard to the virus that has sparked this global response.

It’s still a pretty big shock to see TV news broadcasts showing the streets of Barcelona empty of crowds of walkers.

There is the upside of course that atmospheric pollution has dropped by something like 70 per cent. But there is also the very sad occurrence of lost lives and suffering. As in so many places the world over, every evening we stand on our small balcony and along with our neighbors applaud the courage of our health workers and others who are directly confronting the pandemic.

Continuing to create is obviously harder just now. But part of the job of dealing with the challenge is precisely to find ways of going on in life positive ways.

At the moment we’re forced to teach by conference call, to samizdat using WhatsApp, to enjoy a Sunday chat with friends using Zoom or similar techno calls…..

#staysafestayhome