2020, Gatherings, Health, Music, Science, Uncategorized

Choir During Covid

35 Comments

We had church choir rehearsal yesterday for the first time since March.  Our county is a Covid hot spot, and the idea of rehearsal made me somewhat nervous. Choir rehearsals have been superspreader events across the country.

I really had little to worry about, as  there were only six singers, plus the director and the  accompanist. We sat in the pews instead of the choir loft, two singers to a pew, socially distanced, with two pews in between each twosome.  The church bought these plastic dealies that go under our masks and prevents the masks from being sucked back against the lips when you inhale. We all wore masks. We were all glad to sing. We expect more to join us in the coming weeks, but I think we can distance and sing and perform. We really have to listen carefully since we can’t sit right next to each other, and the tenors  aren’t right behind us and the sopranos aren’t right in front of us. It is  a musicianship challenge.

I have always considered myself a risk take, but this was a little scary until we got started and I saw how things would go.

What kind of a risk taker are you?  Has Covid changed your risk tolerance?

 

35 thoughts on “Choir During Covid”

    1. You and VS keep this going. Thank you. I admire you both for this immensely. I don’t how you do it. You are more than forgiven if you forgot to hit publish.

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  3. From my wife’s perspective, I’m Evel Knevel. But the risks I take are calculated and not foolish and aren’t usually life-threatening . . . well . . . as long as you don’t count week-long solo canoe trips in the BWCAW. 🙂

    Most of my risks seem to center around let’s try a new recipe or drive a different route than the interstate or stop at this hole-in-the-wall restaurant during a road trip or stay at this mom-and-pop hotel/motel rather than the “sure thing” of a chain place.

    My “risk-taking” seems more and more to be about avoiding boring and repetition and less about putting me or us in harm’s way.

    Chris in Owatonna

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  4. Most of my life I’ve been somewhat of a daredevil. I rarely shied away from trying something new, and on occasion I’ve done things, that in retrospect, were not all that smart. Consequences could have been dire, but I lucked out and got away with the scare. Advancing age, ever decreasing physical agility, and, dare I say it – wisdom, have tempered my derring-do.

    I’m not taking chances with Covi-19 at the moment, but that could change. Depending on how this upcoming election goes, I may or may not be able to see a reason to carry on. Four more years of this shitshow are just unthinkable.

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    2. I understand your feelings about this election and I share them. I think either way it goes, we are going to be in for some scary events. There are certainly some extreme groups that appear to be agitated. The recents events in Michigan are alarming. We need desperately to return to a more rational and calm social discourse. Of course, I am only saying what everyone already knows. I just came back to this Trail to be among calm and rational writers. Thanks to all of you for being here and for being welcoming. I feel quite humble about being here.

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  5. Rise and Shine Baboons,

    When I had cancer and subsequent treatment 30 years ago, I learned a lot about risk. With cancer treatment it is all a numbers game, and fortunately, I ended up on the right side of those numbers. When I was yammering on about “what if I die,” a friend and support person who also had experienced breast cancer looked at me and said, “Well, you gotta die sometime. We all do.” That made me snap out of the fear and into thinking more clearly. I realized an anvil could fall on my head at any time, ala Wily Coyote, without my taking any perceived risk at all. Really,, the one most at risk at that time, was my young, 8 year old son, who needed what I had to offer as a parent. Thank God I could finish raising him. And in a twist of fate, he now digitally engineers medical equipment used to treat all kinds of diseases.

    Renee, I think that if you want to sing, and you have taken all the precautions outlined above, you probably will be fine. Just don’t go to crowded bars, packed religious services, or unmasked rallies for #45. Those are foolish risks.

    I have gone to the gym since it re-opened in a mask and a face shield, both. If I don’t walk and finish my rehab and strengthen myself, I will limp and have no stamina, and that is a risk, too. If I go to the gym, I might encounter COVID bugs, but they have done a good job there with sanitation and keeping crowded conditions reduced. The risk is low enough for me to want to do the walking and strength training.

    2020 has taught us that getting up in the morning is a risk. Edith faced these same issues and decisions with her treatment last year. She was so brave in identifying the kind of life she wanted for herself. She just ended up on the wrong side of the numbers. But man, I miss her still.

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  6. I am a risk taker when it comes to repairing things. Yesterday husband got the cover for the dust cannister on the vacuum on the wrong way around. I pried it off with a pliers, risking breaking it, but it worked.

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  7. I like what everyone has already said, even if WP won’t let me say so. Maybe it will let me say I like things later. I’m glad VS and Renee are still putting up posts every day. Thank you. I’m also glad to see most of the Baboons are still here. Hello to Steve.

    I used to be much more of a risk-taker than I am now. I have always taken long drives alone and it no longer feels risky to me at all. It’s my way of having a cheap getaway. Fill the tank with gas and drive somewhere, always taking back roads, often with no idea where I am.

    I think it’s nice you’re singing, Renee. I’ll bet fewer voices safely distanced in the church that way sound really nice. I hope you continue and are able to stay safe. I think we’re all longing for a return to something near normal. Singing with other people is just so good for the soul.

    Years have gone by and I have been sick or injured, sometimes due to taking risks, other times just from being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Over time I have learned to be more cautious. COVID19 has me hunkering down in my cozy little hole in a wall and sanitizing everything I come into contact with that is not my own. With at least three underlying conditions, I don’t think I would survive. Jacque’s right in the philosophy that we all die someday, but I just don’t feel like this is my time and I’m not ready to go yet.

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  8. I envy you this, Renee – it sounds like y’all are doing everything as carefully as possible, and it does sound challenging with the distance between singers!
    Early on I thought our group should be able to sing out side, with distancing, but the other organizer was unsure. I’ve finally found a different organizer to help me get maybe half of our group together in her back yard, but it may be too late for warm enough weather. Sigh.

    I’m generally willing to take a risk if a negative outcome harms only me.

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    1. Yes. This reminds me of the seatbelt law. Who am I hurting if I don’t buckle my seat belt? I’m sure someone with a lot of experience calculating the costs to insurance companies and state taxes, etc., etc., will tell me that I am doing great damage to society if I don’t buckle up. I admit that I am defiant when it comes to the seatbelt law.

      But I do wear a mask to protect myself AND others. I don’t like it, but I do it.

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      1. There is a man who, contrary to building rules and state law, smokes by the exit door next to our apartment. His smoke drifts into out apartment if our windows are open, which is normal now. With Sandy’s respiratory issues from pneumonia, it is a huge things, and she has had problems with tobacco smoke for many years. He has twice given me the same argument as you just did on seatbelts. The manager kicked him out of the building. He was one of three in the apartment.

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        1. I’m sorry to hear that. It is really bad. I have a similar situation. My neighbor smokes in her garage and the smoke blows up and enters my unit through my open windows. When it’s cold and the windows are closed, she smokes in her basement. The walls in my basement are not finished and my basement fills up with her cigarette smoke. The trouble with second hand smoke is that there is real scientific proof that it is just as harmful to others as smoking is.

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        2. i just had a guy today tell me that covid danger is over now Nd its ru its course. sweden adopted herd mentality and its over there now. suth dakota is safe and wearing a mask is an infringement on his freedom. i asked him to leave and told him to be safe he shouted over his shoulder in an indignant tone… i dont have to be safe, i have jesus on my side.

          heaven help us and jesus cradle him in your hands on his way home

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      2. 35 years or so ago PBS did a series on constitutional questions with various panels debating specific questions. One of the questions was, does government have the power to protect you from your own foolish behavior. It was a great debate. mostly they debated the smoking issue, and back then there were no laws about it. In the end the majority by one vote said no. Smoking laws are of course are about protecting others from your behavior. Antimaskers argue exactly the same point. But they assume they are no danger to others, as does Donald. The seatbelt laws remain one of the few laws which are about protecting you from bad decisions.

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        1. Many of the oil workers out here don’t wear seat belts and when they are in accidents they tend to die. Just evidence for the theory of natural selection.

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  10. OT: I am trying to sell a really nice twin size bed. It has an adjustable base and a Tempurpedic mattress. It was $3000 when I bought it at Slumberland in July2018 for my mom. She didn’t like it and chose to sleep on her couch. She called her act of going to sleep on her couch, “tipping over.” She knew I was hurt that she didn’t like the bed. This has always been a dynamic between us. I take an over-the-top risk trying to please her and she hates it. Please let me know if you want or need a good bed for a low, low price.

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  11. Activity-wise, I used to be a big risk taker as a kid and young adult. But now, after a long and (fortunately) full recovery from a hip fracture, I have become more timid. Some would say just more careful but I know better than that.

    I am jealous of your church choir rehearsals. My church choir has over 80 voices and there is no way we could rehearse safely. The last time we sang together was back in early March and we don’t foresee resuming rehearsals anytime soon.

    WP won’t let me “like” anything even after posting a response. Dang!

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  12. I’m a safety nut. PPE constantly. Seatbelt by habit. I don’t believe I’ve ever driven a car over 90 mph.
    I just now am reading a story in Outside magazine about the ultimate risk taker, Jeb Corliss. He is a BASE jumper, meaning that he leaps from stationary objects like cliffs, bridges and buildings dressed in a wingsuit. He has been featured on quite a few television shows. He hosted a Discovery Channel show, Stunt Junkies (I have never seen it myself). The article in entitled, What’s Wrong With Jeb’s Brain? The piece describes his exploits and the psychology of risk-taking. Interestingly, at the bottom is the number for National Suicide Prevention.

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