WHO WANTS TO GO BACK TO THE GYM?

Not me, particularly. I mean, I've had a membership at the town's fitness center but it's always such drudgery and there's enough damage to my spine and dominant shoulder already. But walking is fine. I can walk all day, especially if it's in, say, New York or Paris.

But some people really want to get that tone back. I heard on the news yesterday that one-third of Israel is fully vaccinated and those people can go back to the gym with the proper health credential. They can probably only show off like this in the shower room, though.         

ASSURANCE

A business on Delmar Boulevard in The Loop. I don't feel assured but then I don't know what's going on inside. I think it is a tattoo parlor. Maybe you're into that or maybe you're not (I'm horrified by it but my children have lots) but I can't imagine how it could be done safely. 

The public response to the pandemic remains unsatisfactory. The Governor of Missouri, Mike Parson, has declared the state to be wide open, subject to greater restrictions by local government like St. Louis City and County. Restaurants are reopening albeit with reduced capacity. Everyone in my suburban supermarket wears a mask but my one visit to Walmart was a horror. I am shocked by the number of people in our parks who don't bother with protection. They don't respect me or give a damn about my health. We just hope we come out well on the other side.        

THE FIRST SHALL BE LAST

An art gallery in Maplewood, something of a cooperative, something of a place to learn. I checked out their website, https://www.artistsfirststl.org/, and it sounds like a very cool organization but one I didn't know. Their web site makes it sound like social distancing is impossible in their activities. Another victim of the pandemic.         

PANDEMIC IN SPRINGTIME - CORONA TREATMENT

We live in a small housing development. Its single street ends in a cul de sac. Our house is at the far end. With mild temperatures late yesterday afternoon, our neighbors set up a spontaneous, well-spaced happy hour in the circle with the beverages of your choice.  My next door neighbor is a lawyer, too, and so has a way with words. I do not know if he was drinking this for the irony or because he likes it.          

PANDEMIC IN SPRINGTIME 2

Part of Forest Park's system of water channels and lakes. You can rent a little paddleboat  to idle away an afternoon, but not right now. The water and sky, with the just-budding trees, reflect the mood of the day.           

NO BALLS, NO STRIKES, NO OUTS

Despite my general aversion to professional sports (especially football), I do love baseball. It reminds me of happy days decades ago in the cheap seats at Yankee Stadium, when a kid could get a general admission ticket on the day of the game for the money in a kid's pocket. No more.

The baseball season should be well underway by now but Busch Stadium, seen through the center field gate, holds nothing but ghosts. No crowds stream past the iconic statue of Stan Musial. There is talk of starting the season in Arizona and Florida before empty stadiums. The umpires would be computerized camera systems so the ump at home plate doesn't take his usual crouch inches above the catcher. When it is safe the regular season would resume. The purists won't like it but the Cardinals will be back on TV. It's the only thing I ever watch.