Marie Curie conducted pioneering research on radioactivity. In 1903, they awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics to Marie, her husband Pierre, and physicist Henri Becquerel. Conservators store her notebooks in lead-lined boxes because of elevated levels of radiation. Her furniture, cookbooks, and many of her personal possessions, also require special handling. Marie carried vials of the deadly radium isotope in her pockets, a material with a half-life of 1,601 years.

Scientists throughout history have acted in ways that we might now consider reckless. But their investigations advanced our understanding of nature and our amazing universe. Curie’s research led to her hypothesis of the existence of atoms and she coined the phrase “radioactivity.” Today, scientists work to discover the next brilliant theory, a viable cure for life-threatening diseases, and new antibodies that will protect the world from evolving viruses. Scientists, health care providers, and the anonymous individuals who volunteer for clinical trials to test the vaccines deserve our gratitude.

Today, the first clinical trial for a possible COVID-19 vaccine will begin at the Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute in Seattle. Forty-five participants are set to receive the initial experimental shots. These doses were developed by The National Institutes of Health (NIH) and Moderna Inc. Validating any potential vaccine may take a year to 18 months.

While we must wait for full testing, news like this helps to lessen fear. Hand washing, not touching your face, and limiting exposure, is still the best way to contain the spread of the virus.

How can you support our unsung heroes?

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

I am waiting for Spring. I can’t wait for Spring.  I have a long list of things I am looking forward to.

1. No more turtleneck sweaters, sweatshirts and heavy winter coats because
2. Warmer temperatures and
3. No more snow
4. No more cabin fever. I am being optimistic, and assuming self-isolation will grant me a few hours in the
5. Sunlight
6. Cadbury Eggs and
7. Girl Scout cookies (I have boxes safely hidden from prying eyes)
8. Saying Buh-bye to a New Year’s Resolutions because of #6 and #7
9. Bright colors
10. Flowers, songbirds, and my budding garden.

What Spring things are you looking forward to?

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

“Pi has been calculated to over thirty-one trillion digits beyond its decimal point. As an irrational and transcendental number, it will continue infinitely without repetition or pattern. – PiDay.org

“The reason for adopting this particular Greek letter is because it is the first letter of the Greek word, perimetros, which loosely translates to circumference.” – PiDay.org

Thank goodness it is Pi Day. I love numbers and math and all things scientific. With the current global situation, we need a little levity, and nothing makes me smile more than a slice of pie. Who can resist pie?

Pies come in so many delectable fruit flavors like Apple, Cherry, Peach, Strawberry, Blackberry, Blueberry, and Key Lime. If those don’t complete your equation, there are creamier pies to temp you like Lemon Meringue, Sugar Cream, Coconut Cream, and French Silk. For the more adventurous consider Pecan, Pumpkin, Rhubarb, Sweet Potato, Banoffee, Mississippi Mud, Mince Meat, Grasshopper or Turtle Pie. The greatest pie of all just might be Pizza Pie and all the topping options that make your heart go pity-pat.

Excuse me while I run to the bakery. I hope the Pi line does not stretch to infinity.

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

Having a positive attitude is more than a smile on your face. Deeply rooted in your soul, calmness and love flows through your heart and shines in your eyes. Joy, hope, and inspiration can spread faster and create better results than obsessive worry about any virus. A negative view is such a drag. It makes you defensive, causes you to second guess every decision, and encourages you to surrender before you start. It is easy to find yourself consumed by dread and mired in self-doubt. The abyss is frightening, and pulling yourself from the brink is a difficult proposition.

Arm yourself with facts and discard the reactionary hype. Monitor your language and your thoughts.  Does your thinking turn to disastrous results, or do you imagine a favorable outcome? Noticing and changing a single response doesn’t seem like much, but it might be the spark that changes everything.

Staying positive during tough times takes effort. Try to discover something constructive about this situation. Looking for a realistic worst-case scenario helps you realize things may not be scary as your fear-fueled mind produces. Smile, breathe, listen to uplifting music, and know this too shall pass.

How will you respond today?

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

Many of us have retreated to the perceived safety of our homes, opting for isolation to endure our anxieties over viruses, fluctuating stock markets, canceled events, and general uncertainty. Winter is hard on our mental state, it disrupts our biological clocks, and makes us susceptible to restlessness, sadness, food cravings, frequent napping, and an inability to handle stress. They call it cabin fever. After weeks of hibernation, long dreary nights, and gray gloomy days, it is easy to feel down in the dumps.

Thankfully, Spring is in the air. Daylight lasts longer, temperatures warm, and we dare to hope. They say the best method of coping is to get outside, enjoy a walk outdoors, and soak up the sun. Humans crave social interactions. Even though we spend countless hours on social media sites, scrolling through our feeds and monitoring our friend’s updates, we need to remember to sign out of our accounts and connect in a more meaningful fashion.

A wonderful thing happened this week. My phone has not stopped ringing, beeping, and chiming. Friends and family members have been reaching out, checking in, and touching base. I now have coffee dates, lunch plans, and informal meetups. These are the connections that matter. They are the people we turn to when the going gets tough. When life is uncertain, we depend on those we trust. Together we are strong.

Do you owe a call to a friend?

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

This time of year, the temperature swings from 30 to 70 degrees and back in a few hours. Rain turns to snow, ice coats every surface, then melts, creating the perfect conditions to weaken our defenses, leaving us susceptible to viruses. I am not concerned about contracting Coronavirus disease (COVID-19). The habits my grandmother advocated are still the best practices for remaining healthy today.

Grandma insisted we scrub our hands, face, and under our fingernails, with plenty of soapy warm water whenever we came inside from the big, nasty world. We washed our hands after using the bathroom, before, during, and after we prepared food, served, or ate any meal. Hand washing was vital before applying makeup or contact lenses.

I use a glove or my sleeve when touching public door handles, elevator buttons, and shopping carts. Grandma’s voice reminds me, “You don’t know where that’s been.” I also brush, floss, and gargle to help mitigate any germs that might slip past my defense systems. She advocated avoiding anyone who looked sick, getting enough sleep, staying home the moment we felt ill, and eating lots of chicken soup and forcing liquids.

While these steps aren’t new, I monitor the latest recommendations and sanitize frequently used surfaces, including my phone. The odds are in my favor, and I refuse to worry about circumstances outside of my control. Instead, I live my life and write.

How are you protecting yourself?

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

Rain, rain, go away. If you lived on a different planet, you might wish it would never rain. Rain, in the form of water, only falls on our blue marble. Venus’ atmospheric condition creates hot sulfuric acid rain. Saturn’s largest moon, Titan, offers icy methane rainstorms. On Mars expect dry-ice snow, Jupiter rains liquid helium, and the Sun provides plasma rain. Most amazing of all, scientists speculate extreme pressure and temperature can create diamonds in the atmospheres of Saturn, Neptune, and Jupiter. At lower levels, the diamonds liquefy and fall as rain on the surface.

We should consider ourselves lucky that we don’t have to contend with flesh-melting precipitation. By comparison, plain old H2O sounds wonderful. Earthly rainfall evokes impressions of sadness, rejection, and despair on chilly gray days. But it also creates feelings of rebirth, emotional and physical cleansing, and renewal. In desert locations, a single shower can lift human spirits, signal relief, and contribute to the continuation of life. The precious water is a cause for celebration.

Writers accept a challenge to transform mundane occurrences, natural phenomenon, and unconnected events and give them new significance. We needn’t live on Saturn to see diamonds glittering in the misty sky. An evening sunset turns showers golden. Moonlight imparts raindrops with silver hues reflecting in puddles, suggesting imminent peril, and we glace over our shoulder as we hurry across the deserted parking lot.

What meaning do you notice in your everyday life?

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

Monday morning dawns, and I am excited to get a start on my day. After my online training course last week, I spent hours dealing with my overflowing inbox and reworking my weekly agenda. I feel calm as I review the reminders of the work ahead. I have set new deadlines and self-imposed targets in anticipation of recommitting to my dreams.

That’s when it happens. It never fails. The phone rings, the email alerts ding, and questions queue outside my office door. The pressure to respond, and abandon my finely crafted plan, is overwhelming. I am determined to stay on track, check all the boxes, and still support my coworkers. But the more I accomplish, the more items appear on the never-ending list. The adage says if you want something done, ask the busiest person you know.

I am wiser, and I have learned my lesson. While I love to help family, friends, and even total strangers, I politely decline many inquiries, without guilt. My personal list is far more important. Reaching my goals are more satisfying to complete. What I have discovered is, when I reach my goals, helping others becomes easier.

How do you balance your agenda with requests from others?

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

If there is one thing I dread, it is Daylight Saving Time (DST). It defies reason. The nomenclature is nonsensical. We are not “saving” daylight, the earth’s rotation does not speed up or slow down. Science says today there are eleven hours and thirty-five minutes of sunlight, and tomorrow we gain another three minutes. It is a natural phenomenon for spring.

The adjustment to DST mimics the feelings of jet lag. The abrupt change messes with our normal bedtime schedule. Studies show Americans sleep approximately 40-50 minutes less on the night after DST. This pattern continues for several nights. The disruption may cause daytime fatigue, an upset stomach, symptoms of mild sickness, moodiness, foggy memory, and lost productivity.

I suppose if we can alter time, we can transform anything. Good stories are the embodiment of change. We expect our characters to undergo transformations, and authors create and shape entire worlds. We take messy first drafts and edit them to tighten the writing, resolve plot holes, express ideas succinctly, and increase emotional involvement for the reader.

What changes will you make for Daylight Saving Time?

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

This week overflowed with hustle, bustle, and problems to solve. I attended intense meetings, navigated personal dynamics, and invested early mornings coupled with late-night work sessions to move a large project toward the finish line. I climbed the exhaustion mountain, and I earned the tee shirt to prove it. While I enjoy meeting and interacting with others, it is a huge mental drain. I make small compromises, bowing to the group consensus, and read individual emotions to ensure everyone is happy and having a good time.

I long for the opportunity to follow my heart, with no need to consult anyone. Being alone is a precious joy. Would I care for another cup of coffee? Why, yes. Thank me. Calmness washes over me. My shoulders relax, tense muscles unclench, and I can breathe. A warm blanket, my current book, and silence helps me find a comfortable position in my favorite chair.

The freedom to do, or not do as I see fit, allows me to hear my inner thoughts. I think about my interactions, contemplate conversations, and take notes of new ideas, record things I don’t want to forget, and remind myself of further questions I wish to clarify. I realign the pieces that complete me.

How do you refuel?

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer