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Covid Shrinks the Work Force

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When discussions about how employers in the United States are having a hard time filling jobs in the emerging-from-global-pandemic world of COVID occur, the various effects this is having on businesses are noted. Limited production, shipping delays, and limited hours on the retail end all factor into the big picture of economic slowdown. I just heard NBC state that, currently, there are two job openings for every one person . We also hear about how, at 3.6%, the unemployment rate is extremely low , which indicates that people are, in fact, working. So, what attributes to the gap? Several situations contribute to the gap between a working population and there being tons of jobs unfilled. Things such as people retiring or going back to school are regularly cited, even career changes that have scores of people leaving the hardest hit-by-COVID industries such as hospitality .  What I NEVER hear (and maybe it's being stated, and I just have been missing it so, please, correct me if I am...
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Listening to a Literary Scholar

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  Today, Dear Readers, I am offering you something out of the ordinary from what you have become accustomed to me to publishing, during the short time that I have been publishing in this space with you that is. As a student of liberal interdisciplinary undergraduate studies, I have exposure to wonderful educators, scholars, who actively produce programming and publish professional content out into the world. I am fortunate to have some who evolve into excellent coaches whose feedback I have valued in class  and  envision that will remain the case long after class has dismissed. These are the ones I admire for the work they do outside of university settings and, as professors, in the university setting are passionate about helping others learn and achieve their goals, subsequently.  These are the professors who understand they are helping to shape the futures of other people, even of generations and societies, and give agency to their students without an inkling of se...
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Little Big Souls

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@ bedtime reading Breath, Eyes, Memory by Edwidge Danticat It has been written that having a plant is the new equivalent to having a pet and having a pet is the new equivalent to having a kid, adding the only people who are having children in this day and age are "crazy" or the filthy rich. I've thought about this several times over the last few weeks and continue to chuckle about the fair amount of accuracy with which this was stated.  Fresh cut! Both her and 1st mow of the spring/summer season. If you have seen some of my previous blog posts, you know I enjoy gardening. So what about the pets and children? Well, I do not have children. Never have I been in a situation where I trusted a partner to raise a child with me. Frankly, I did not want to be a single mother, and, regardless, I did not want to physically push out a baby. No, thank you! Besides, there are plenty of kids already in existence who ...
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6 Ways To Find Your Ancient Face

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  Have you ever found your ancient face then realized it has gone out of focus, again? Probably. It's a common practice in this dimension and, to some degree, denotes the nature of being alive. Possibly, you aren't sure to what I am referring.  Ancient face?!  This is a term I have heard sung and the definition to which I am referring is one I have assigned based on soulful music from the early 2000s . The meaning that I've construed and wish to share might not be a new concept for you, however. And I hope it isn't because, if it is, you've undoubtedly been living a solitary life in a vacuum after alien abduction. Should that be the case, welcome back! You are starved for integration to today's world on Earth. While you've been away, the biggest buzz word with which you need to acquaint yourself before someone leads you astray or reveals your are an alien love child: self-care. Self-care means different things to different people. At first glance, a quick Go...
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How Does Your Garden Grow? (part two)

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Wild. My garden grows wild. Need to catch up?! Link right HERE to Part One! Straw, although not emitting sunlight, was an excellent plan to mitigate dampness.  I brought in a bale of straw mid-season.  Here is where things go awry. I did not put the straw down. Full stop. I can identify numerous times in my life when I have not followed through and, for every time I can recall, there must be dozens forgotten or unnoticed. For a very long time, self-sabotage has plagued me. There are reasons behind that, which I have been fortunate to explore in therapy. Cultivating the tool of being  able to recognize behavior patterns is important  in caring for my mental health. That said, it takes time to notice patterns. Admittedly, I am still repeating unbecoming and unhelpful patterns in new ways, sometimes old, before I recognize that I need to make adjustments.  Take the tomatoes trying to thrive in the shade. Straw probably would have helped, b...
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How Does Your Garden Grow? (part one)

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Purple Hyacinth Bean Vine My 2022 gardening season officially began a couple of weeks ago when I opened my contract in the mail! This will be the fourth consecutive season to have a plot in a community garden that is, luckily, just a few blocks from my residence! It was in my seventh year of living downtown (this stint) with no green space that I was invited to join but didn't for fear of being trapped by a bona fide stalker who had resurfaced  (years prior he was arrested in my living room while he was strangling me) , and I didn't want to put anyone else in harms way.  Gonna eat a lot of peaches! The following year I got brave enough to join, and I quickly found such an urban getaway to be an absolute oasis. Clearing out the winter debris is a fast exercise of progress, and when spring produces its leaves to fill in the trees, the garden becomes so lush it is all but hidden in plain sight.    My first time growing Buttercrunc...
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