As our COVID Summer turned into COVID Autumn, and with COVID Winter nearly upon us, I’m contemplating more shut-in activities. Sadly, binge-watching is a popular pastime brought to us by the pandemic, so now I’m contemplating more of that.

I’ve already watched the following series:

• Highlander
• Burn Notice
• Alias
• White Collar
• Psych (partial)
• Monk (partial)
• Elementary

That last one is a special case, if you love Sherlock Holmes as I do. Elementary is a CBS show about a modern-day Holmes who has moved to New York City. The series ended in 2019, but it was rerun at least once on certain TV channels. I recorded about a half-dozen-a-week for later consumption.

Those of you who are lucky enough to work from home recognize it as a mixed blessing. It has its upside, but there are a few frustrations too. Networking and communications technology can contribute to those frustrations.

My wife recently admitted needing a new phone. She had been using an iPhone 6 since forever, and it was starting to show its age. It would mute itself at awkward times during her business calls, and it had long since given up the ghost on Bluetooth connectivity in her car.

After the umpteenth instance of waiting for my gears to engage as I struggled uphill I decided that I couldn’t put off servicing my bike any longer. Biking outdoors is what I do for aerobic activity in these warm days of our Covid Summer. Since my neighborhood would put San Francisco to shame for hilly streets I can get a satisfactory workout in just 3.5 miles.

For the first time in months my wife and I bravely went out in public intending to recreate and grab a bite at a restaurant. After all it was July 4th and we had nothing better to do than to risk life and limb for some tempered social contact. We have already met with friends and relatives both at our house and at theirs but this was the first time in a long time we ventured out amongst a crowd of strangers.