Happy Friday!

 

Fridays represent the very core of duality - it’s both a day for wrapping up the week’s tasks and assignments, but it’s also the day when you jump headfirst into the weekend!

 

Some great news for all of you - the current Covid-19 crisis is showing some improvement. According to Vox, Covid testing (the metric that medical experts assert is essential for reopening our community) is dramatically improving. During the week of May 5, the U.S. averaged about 300,000 Covid tests per day, doubling the approximately 150,000 new daily tests in early April. Experts say that we will need anywhere from 500,000 to tens of millions of daily tests in order to safely reopen and pursue a “new normal” - and this news shows that we are getting there!

 

In addition, the percentage of positive results has fallen from 21% a month ago to 8% now. Medical researchers say that higher percentages point to a lack of sufficient testing and the subsequent testing of only individuals with obvious symptoms. The fact that the percentage positive diagnoses is decreasing while the amount of testing is increasing shows that the pandemic may be slowing nationwide.

 

This is the result of our collective efforts - as a town community, as a county, as a state, and as a country. We’re not out of the woods yet - but let’s keep doing the right thing!

 

And now, for our weekly quarantine recommended activity. 

 

Recently, I got to thinking: this quarantine is an excellent opportunity to do that which we may typically feel too busy to do. While I have urged home renovations in the weeks past, it’s important to remember that the purpose of a home is to have a loving, fun space to share with the ones we care about. So this weekend, why not put together a puzzle? It’s been proven to improve your memory, stimulate creativity and visual-spatial reasoning, and it’ll distract you from the repetitiveness of quarantine!

 

Best of luck - especially to those of you putting together 10,000 piece puzzles this weekend! Stay safe!