The Happened Yesterday Digest - 3/25/2020

Well, hello there! A lot happened yesterday (and the yesterday before that) in the world and in the news. As a local blogger, a new thing that we're factoring into our writing and delivery of articles to you is the national news. Now that we are all watching the same thing (pretty much) on the TV, we are all hearing the different opinions about every single subject fly across different channels. This could cause anxiety at night, or during the day if you have the news on all day in order to catch live press conferences. (Pro tip: Keep the volume down until the president finally enters the room.) And yes, I did not just capitalize his job title. Not only do I not say his name, but I am no longer capitalizing his job title. Before we get to the recap of what hit the blog the past few yesterdays, I want to address what happened two nights ago in the news: the 70-year-old Texas Lieutenant Governor who stated that he was fine with dying as long as the economy continued, the president suggesting we all go back to work and simply avoid touching metal subway railings, while his Surgeon General presented that this would be a very difficult week, while Governor Cuomo introduced the concept of going back to work after (not before) the tsunami hits the hospitals in New York. Part of why we are all staying home is to make that tsunami a little smaller. Two nights ago, the national news media, and the president, were panicking about the economy. Valid. We all have been. This panic comes in waves. It is why so much legislation passed last week so quickly, that we will all be working to figure out this week and in future weeks. As a mother of three young children, I want to tell you how I get through panic, anxiety and hopelessness. The feeling of something never ending. The feeling that life as you know it is over. That your business will stop forever. That what you do is not relevant anymore. That you must resign yourself to a new life of being in your PJs, hardly showering, being stuck in your house. Walking from end to end of your house on different errands for your children, sometimes being able to go to the basement for a moment of quiet while you switch out the laundry. What I have just described is the life of a new mother. Fresh out of the hospital, her body recovering, her emotions hitting highs and lows. It's not the pretty pictures you see on the box of diapers of happy mothers feeding their babies. Sometimes it's that, but mostly it's a rollercoaster. When you are a new mother with a tiny baby, you are feeding that baby all of the time. If you are nursing that baby, you are the main source of food. Literally. Your body. When that baby is hungry, you have to stop what you are doing and feed the baby. And your body may not produce enough food. And as you sit there, staring at your baby, who is wiggling and uncomfortable in your arms, you are wondering what you can do to fix this. Are you drinking enough water? Have you eaten today? How will you get to the grocery store? It would be nice to peel an orange or eat some chicken, but both of your hands are holding a baby. Your brain cycles into this place of worry. And your reserves of nutrients aren't helping you. So your brain thinks that this will never end. But. THIS WILL END... THIS IS NOT FOREVER... TAKE THINGS DAY BY DAY But here's the epiphany. It will end! This is not forever. Every day is different. Every bite of food brings new energy to you, and you get new ideas of how to survive. And not just how to survive, but how to be in a good mood about it. I have had to tell myself, "This Is Not Forever. It Is Only For Right Now," many, many times during the baby phases of each of my three babies (now 9, 7 [almost 8, next week!] and 2). Alright. Let's get to what happened the last few yesterdays so that we can get to today! CONNECTING GOING TO THE CHURCH OF CUOMO DAILY AROUND 11 AM Listening to Governor Andrew Cuomo's daily press briefings has been instrumental to staying grounded in what is happening. He includes facts, numbers, what he needs, what he's getting, what he's not getting, and a soothing sermon. It's slightly incredible. We have tricks and shortcuts on how you can listen, and why it's so important to your mental health to connect to him daily. Read This > MAYOR KYRIACOU ISSUES REGULAR COVID-19 UPDATES Now you can get a regular phone call from Beacon's mayor with the latest updates on the pandemic. This article includes links to the archives, and the new Resources page on the City of Beacon's website. Read This > DUTCHESS COUNTY LIVE UPDATE TODAY Dutchess County Executive Marcus Molinaro is hosting a Town Hall at 2 pm today (Wednesday, 3/25/2020) on Facebook. Details Here > REDUCED BUS SERVICE There is no G Line (the Free Loop Bus) running, and other lines have reduced service. Details Here > FOOD BARB'S BUTCHERY - LAST CALL Barb's Butchery put out a Last Call for meat orders, and is temporarily closing their doors. Go give her some love on her Instagram announcement. ALBB updated our Restaurant Guide with this status, and you can use the Restaurant Guide to find COVID-19 Updates for ALL eateries in Beacon. Get Details > BEACON FARMERS MARKET OPENS FOR PICKUP & PRE-ORDER The vendors have come up with a pre-order pickup system. Order from your vendor (like Eggbert's Eggs) by Thursday and then pick up on Sunday. Order Online Here > This link may change for future weeks. We'll keep an eye on it. BEACON SCHOOL DISTRICT BREAKFAST/LUNCH TIMES CHANGE - DELIVERY AVAILABLE Always evolving and improving to meet the needs of the changing situation, the Beacon City School District meal pickup days have changed to Mondays and Wednesdays. Delivery is also available. Details in the article. Details Here > Childcare for First Responders and Health Care Providers is also being offered. FREE GROCERIES AVAILABLE TODAY On Wednesday, 3/25/2020, groceries are available from a group of organizations. Should you be in need - or if you know of people in need - let them know about this. Delivery and pickup options are available. Details Here > FAMILY LIFE HOMELESS SHELTER IS SET UP AT PREVIOUSLY EMPTY DUTCHESS COUNTY LAW ENFORCEMENT CENTER & JAIL To help with social distancing for homeless people in crowded shelters, County Executive Marcus Molinaro issued an emergency order allowing the previously vacant temporary housing units (PODs) at the Dutchess County Law Enforcement Center and Jail campus to be repurposed as emergency shelters for those in need. The usage started last Saturday night. Read This > DOMESTIC ABUSE IN THE TIME OF ISOLATION While Governor Cuomo talks about the benefits of increased family time when looking for the silver lining in this, there are many who are experiencing increased or new situations of emotional or physical abuse. This article offers a list of resources to contact for help. Read This > CONSIDER FOSTERING A DOG OR CAT Some people may feel too sick to care for their pet. The DSPCA has started a form to collect names of those who want to foster. ARF, located in Beacon, lost the ability to have their major fundraiser this year. See details in this article on how you can donate instead. Read This > DIARIES OF HOME LIFE WITH KIDS Because maybe you need pictures of babies right now. ALBB wants your stories of how you are holding up. Email us a diary entry of how your Learn From Home Life is going. Got a schedule? How's it going? We want to read your true stories, because we are all in the same boat, and can learn from each other and feel not alone. COVID-19 HOPE VENTILATORS - NY NEEDS 30,000 VENTILATORS Governor Cuomo has been asking for ventilators for a while. Now he is begging, and demanding that the federal government send their stockpile of 20,000 now. NY needs 30,000 ventilators, and has 7,000. The federal government said that they would send 400. Cuomo flipped out. Here's Why > Update: The federal government later responded by saying they would send 4,000. 2 NEW COVID-19 TEST COLLECTION CENTERS For pre-screened people only, with a doctor's written order, a specimen collection center has been set up at Dutchess Stadium. Testing is not done on site, but is sent away with a six-day waiting period. Testing is a rapidly evolving situation, so expect more updates on this. To qualify for testing (per Dutchess County): - You called your doctor’s office and had a consultation. - Based on your symptoms and other information you provided, your doctor determined you meet criteria for COVID-19 testing and ordered a test for you. - You have a scheduled appointment at the collection site. Your doctor will give you the phone number to call to schedule an appointment at the collection site. HUNTING FOR ANTIBODIES Governor Cuomo is pursuing testing for people who have had the coronavirus, and have self-resolved. This includes people who may have had no symptoms, or mild symptoms. When the virus is in your body, fighter antibodies get made. Cuomo and scientists want those antibodies, to learn from them, and to possibly put them into other people's plasma. Two big goals from this: - Possibly save lives of critically ill COVID-19 patients. - Possibly send people back to work who have already had coronavirus. This was explained during Governor Cuomo's press conference on Monday (3/23/2020), but a good summation is here at Forbes. This is a developing story. LIST OF LINKS ALBB USES FOR ARTICLES ALBB made this List of Links to easily reference major websites, as we follow health changes and legislative updates. We update it as new resources become available. Get The List > A Little Beacon Blog has triaged our long-loved Restaurant and Shopping Guides to reflect the COVID-19 updates of ALL shops and retail on Main Street. Use these guides to figure out who is doing takeout, and which stores are shipping out orders you place online. FREE: Got a COVID-19 status you want to add to these Guides, and your store is on Main Street? Email it to us. We may have already stalked you on social. SPONSOR: Want to get your message into this newsletter? People are checking the Guides on repeat, but if you do want to elevate your message here, and help A Little Beacon Blog keep producing, you could activate a monthly advertising campaign. Restaurant Guide details here. Shopping Guide details here. OTHER BUSINESSES: Are you still in business, but people are finding you in different ways? List your business in A Little Beacon Blog's Business Directory. Details Here. We got a suggestion in from a reader, who wanted to know how to send A Little Beacon Blog some financial support to help us continue to produce. Even just $5. First of all: THANK YOU to that reader for wanting to do this! If you are feeling like you want to send ALBB anything as a reader (different from business advertising programs, we do have those!) then visit the new link in the ABOUT tab, called: “I Want To Support ALBB!” Different amounts are available, starting at $5. Click here or the on graphic above to learn more about how you can help! Support Here > People Who Have Given We made an option for people to list their names with comments if they wanted to. It's at the bottom of the Giving page. See Who Supported >

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