The Skeeter Daddle Diaries

Here it is again, Groundhog’s Day in the Land of Covid. I think it’s Wednesday, or was Wednesday, or will be again tomorrow, but I’m not sure what week of what month. I vaguely remember the 4th of July awhile back but it might have been last year, I’m not prepared to wager any bets or testify under oath. I talk to my old man who’s 97 years old every day and invariably ask what’s new? He pauses to think for a minute or so, then invariably answers, Nothing.

He lives by himself, rattles around his two bedroom house, watches the news on two TV’s, cooks himself three meals a day, reads his subscription magazines that pile up, naps, watches movies at night until he falls asleep on his recliner. Next day he gets up and repeats the above. He likes the routine. Life distilled right down to its essence. Me, I’m not 97. But I’m locked in a similar routine and I really don’t like the same routine.

Oh sure, I love watching the news, reading the morning papers, digesting whatever new pandemic statistics roll in, marveling at the Trump Show, waiting for the election commercials to start gathering steam. Who wouldn’t? But if you ask me, like my old man does every day, what’s new? I’d be less than honest if I didn’t say Nothing. Grocery shopping once a week. There you go, there’s something different. Or fix the broken washing machine, a happy break in the monotony. Mow the lawn, same as last week, but this is this week, different, see?

Last night I hauled down the road at nearly midnight. Took two binoculars and a camera plus a small telescope hoping to find the comet that’s visiting our little solar system. Sure, it’s probably sprinkling viruses into our atmosphere, but hey, any visitor is welcome by me. I stood for half an hour in the middle of the highway without a single car driving by, looking toward the Big Dipper, and lo and behold, there it was, a small slash of light in the distance, my celestial intruder. I was gobsmacked. I was tickled pink. I was transported out of my ennui for at least a short time. A comet! In all my life I’ve only seen a couple. Admittedly this one was a little shy of a Double Rainbow event but I’ll jump up and down for any comet anytime anywhere. When my old man asks me today what’s new? I’ll say Comet. Tomorrow, of course, I’ll say the same thing if I manage to see it again tonight. Tomorrow is Wednesday probably, the day after I saw the comet. The day the conspiracy theorists start to spread the rumor that the comet brought Covid.

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