What Social Distancing Looks like in Baker, Nevada

It was mid-March when things started getting weird fast. On Friday, March 13 Millard County Schools announced that they would transition to online school, starting Monday, March 16. We went to Ely on the weekend, including a stop at the grocery store, where the run on toilet paper had already started (fortunately we had gotten lots of supplies at the end of February when we took a trip to Salt Lake City).

On Sunday, March 15, White Pine County Schools announced that they would go to online schooling starting Monday, March 23. All the announcements were for two to three week periods, but it didn't seem likely that the Coronavirus would be over that fast.

I started doing mostly tele-working, but one day when I went in to get files, I found a co-worker all geared up to clean restrooms. This was the very start of going to lots of PPE. 


We had an all-employee meeting outside. This was the start of social distancing at work.

On March 17, Lehman Caves and the Visitor Center closed. For about a week, rangers would meet visitors outside, making them stay behind a six-foot distance line and answer questions. Later they just had people phone in if they had questions.


On March 25, the campground closed along with restrooms.


Viewing scopes were bagged to keep people from touching them and possibly spreading germs.


People were encouraged not to touch the pay phone.
 

Desert Girl puts out a monthly newspaper and gave a schedule of what life was like under stay-at-home time aka quarantine.


We started getting used to Zoom meetings. Here's a 4-H meeting, where we still managed to show off an animal!

We started baking more, even trying our hand at donuts (they were a little flat!). We also gladly participated in getting carry out from our local businesses, such as the Border Inn, Kerouac's and Salt & Sucre catering. It's such a mood booster to look forward to some different cooking!

On April 15, Great Basin National Park totally closed. By about this time, it was obvious that schools would not be reopening for the spring semester.

It was weird seeing the barricades at the park entrance.

Signs at the visitor center gave some safety announcements.



On May 9, the roads and trails in the Park reopened, although the campgrounds stay closed during this Phase 1 of reopening.


The restrooms with plumbing soon reopened, although with alternate days so that any bad germs would die.


In the meantime, people were boosting each other's spirits. Whispering Elms put these lovely messages on their windows.

Chalk art appeared at the post office.

Humor showed up at the post office bulletin board.

We're still all asking what this skeleton at R&R Reststop wants to know, "Quarantine How Long?"


It may still be quite awhile before Great Basin National Park and local businesses are up and running like usual. But seeing the small things people do to improve each other's lives is like seeing the rainbow. It's beautiful and reminds us that even the bad things will end.

We can get through this together.

Backyard Birds--The Thing To Do in Spring 2020!

For years we've been keeping track of the bird species we see in our backyard (here's our list for 2019).  This year, it turns out, we have even more time to look around our yard to see what's there. All this stay-at-home time means we are trying to #exploreourbackyard even more.

These two geese have been hanging out lately. It's not common to have Canada geese right near our yard, but they seem to be going all over town. By the way, anything you can see or hear from your yard counts. eBird is encouraging folks to record what they see in their yard.

We do have some non-native species that are nearly always present. One is Eurasian Collared Dove. They arrived about ten years ago. Now we hardly every see Mourning Doves.

Another non-native is European Starling. They're actually very pretty birds, but they make a lot of noise.

Fortunately we have a lot of native species, too. As the trees have started budding, we've had flocks of goldfinches and pine siskins visit the yard. The pine siskins make a zipping sound that is very distinctive.

About a week ago, I saw the first Yellow-rumped Warbler of the season. They're a good sign that summer will be arriving soon. This one looked a little confused.

Soon after I saw something that made me extremely happy...a Great Horned Owl in one of our poplar trees. Two years ago, she and her mate used this tree for a nest, but last year they didn't. I'm so glad they're back, especially this year. When I think I'm having a hard time being a mom, I go out and look at her. She's there rain or shine, night or day, cold or hot. She has stay-at-home mastered. While her mate will come and give her little breaks, she is there most of the time. It takes her 30-37 days to incubate the eggs, and then about 45 days to raise the chicks.

I'm not so good with staying-at-home, I like to wander. So sometimes I take little walks. Not far from the house, I saw these two birds, a Brewer's Blackbird on the fencepost and a European Starling landing on the barbed wire. I liked how the tail feathers were spread out.

I was later able to photograph a lone Brewer's Blackbird on a set of posts.

We hear Western Meadowlarks all the time, and they sound so close, but they are usually so far away. And when I get anywhere close, they fly off. The yellow chest is especially bright now during breeding time.

I found a couple White-crowned Sparrows in a bush. There were many others, but they flew off!

And then I found this sparrow sitting calmly on some rabbitbrush. So many sparrows dive into bushes that I couldn't believe my luck. I think it's a Sage Sparrow.

Okay, back to the owl. Did I mention how much I like these owls? :)

I really liked this photo of an American robin on the garden fence.

While I was checking on the owl, I saw little birds hopping around in the grass. Turned out they were goldfinches!

Okay, one more of the owl!

The weather is looking great for the next week, so I'm hoping to spend even more time outside. I'm looking forward to observing the lives of birds. Even though we humans aren't traveling much, the birds don't have such restrictions (except for those already nesting!), and it's so fun to think about where they might have spent the winter and what they might have seen on the way back from their warmer refuges. Bird watching is such a great hobby! If you need help identifying birds, try out The Cornell Lab All About Birding or the Audubon Guide to North American Birds.

Happy birding!
UPDATE: I just learned Great Basin Bird Observatory is having a Bird-a-thon May 1-17!

Some Strategies for Coping with Coronavirus

Coronavirus is a word I didn't even know until January. Now it's a term we use daily, and it sure has changed our lives.

My husband is a farmer and rancher, so he is still working to keep food production going. I'm teleworking most of the time, and the kids have transitioned to online school. We are still getting used to these changes. Here are some things our family is doing trying to stay sane with these unprecedented times.

1. Keeping a regular sleep schedule. We are trying hard to go to bed at a normal time and wake up at a normal time. The kids get to sleep a bit later than they do when they have to go to school, so they're happy about that. :)


2. Keeping a normal eating schedule and eating healthy food. It's been a treat to eat so many meals together as a family. We generally don't allow electronics at the dinner table, and instead talk about various topics. Over half of our food is prepared from scratch, and I try to have the kids help with some meals so they learn more about cooking. We look forward to takeout on the weekends and special treats, like ice cream sundaes.


3. Having some alone time (or self-care). Since we're all together more, we also need to take breaks from each other. Some of that is in the house reading or watching separate things. A lot is outside. I like to run and bike, Desert Boy likes to go on short rides, Desert Girl likes to walk the dogs, and my husband simply does a lot of work alone. It seems like we all need some alone time every day to recharge our batteries.





4. Getting outside each day. One day Desert Boy was super grumpy at the end of the day, and I realized he had had way too much screen time. Even though he declares he's an introvert and loves all the video game time (often with friends online), he needs a break from it. It's nice that it's spring and we can do some planting; there's just something about dirt that is so calming. I also will assign the kids to walk the dogs if they are really grumpy--they always come back in a better mood.


5. Not having huge expectations. Yes, it would be great to write the next new novel or learn a totally new skill, but we're not pushing for that. The kids have to do their school work each day. Then they have some other tasks, like working on 4-H projects, reading, music, and cleaning that they do in half-hour increments. They have lots of free time. We do lots more talking than before. We are watching more movies. We play more board games and cards. But we're not trying to change the world. We're mainly trying to stay home and stay healthy.


6. Connecting with friends and family.  We all definitely appreciate that this pandemic is happening when we have so many resources like Internet, smart phones, and cool technology like Zoom so we can easily connect across thousands of miles. We check in with distant family at least once a week via video conferencing, and as a result, the cousins are getting to know each other better. I had a fun time seeing friends on Google Hangouts and reconnecting. We're also writing cards and letters--it's so exciting to see something personal in the mailbox!


7. Arming ourselves with knowledge--but not too much. I like to know what's going on in the world, but I don't need to know every detail. I've focused on learning the science behind Covid-19, which makes it easy to practice physical distancing. Some sources: This Podcast will Kill You (a 6-part series on Covid-19, including mental health), a presentation on Coronavirus by Hazel Barton,
 and the New England Journal of Medicine. When I read or watch too much about current events, I get overwhelmed. So I limit my exposure, and we really filter it for the kids.

8. Finding the silver linings. Yes, this disease is horrific. It's changing so many things in how we live. Normal is a word we can't exactly describe anymore. So much has changed in just a few weeks. But it's not all gloom and doom. And if we can focus on the silver linings, it makes it a little easier to cope. Less traffic is good for the environment. Reconnecting with family or strengthening connections with loved ones is a joy. Some of our natural areas will have a chance to rest, for the wildlife to be wild again and not worry about traffic or other human influences. Slowing down life a little bit is something probably a lot of us need. And I'm guessing a lot of apartments and houses are getting cleaner than they have been in a long time.

It's also inspirational to see how people are coming together to get through this pandemic. I'm in awe of the scientific minds working to make new vaccines, of the engineers designing equipment to help us. I'm so thankful for the teachers revamping how they teach, food producers who keep getting food to us, folks in service jobs who keep our world running, and all in health care who are true heroes. We're all on this same little planet together, and together, we can keep our species alive and thriving.

The next weeks will not be easy. We need to give ourselves grace. We won't do everything right, but we can try our best.

Here are some other great resources:
Coronavirus: Mental Health Coping Strategies
CDC Mental Health
Coping with Coronavirus Stress

Take care. I'm thinking of and praying for all of us every day. And I'm washing my hands a lot.