THE YEAR 2020

As this pandemic has been so domineering, had to bring this table up to date:

   From Worldometer (new deaths yesterday):

        DAY  USA  WORLD   Brazil    India    South Africa

June     9     1093     4732        1185        246        82

July    22     1205     7128        1293      1120      572

Aug    12     1504     6556        1242       835       130

Sept     9     1208     6222        1136      1168        82

Oct     21     1225     6849          571       703        85

Nov    11     1479     10178        564       550        60

           25     2304    12025         620       518      118

Dec       1     2611    11891         697       500      109

             9     3265    12342         848       337      142

           10     3107    12932         769       487      173

           11     3031    12401         652       440      205

           14     2976    12635         909       384      210

           16     3538    13535         968       357      166

           17     3387    12968       1054       342      184

           22     3376    13180         963       331      339

           30     3398    13791       1075       285      497

Summary:  It should get worse for the U.S. during the first two weeks of 2021.

• The USA had 194,860 new cases, #2 Brazil 57,227, and #3 UK 53,135.
• The U.S. of course had the most new deaths with 3398, but surprisingly, Germany was #2 with 1244.
• South Korea had 1045 new cases and 40 new deaths.
• China had 27 new cases, but no new deaths.
• Taiwan had 2 new cases and no new deaths.
• The U.S. just reached 20 million total cases today.  India has had just over 10 million, but they have more than four times our population.  China has had a total of 87,000 cases with 4.5 times more people.
• California had the most new cases in the U.S. with 35,197, Texas #2 22,696, and Florida #3 12,075.  
• Pennsylvania had the most new deaths with 285, Texas #2 271, and Michigan #3 212.  
• Hawaii had the least number of new cases with 75 and no new deaths.  Vermont had 82 new cases and one new death.
• Southern California had around 25,000 new cases, compared to the whole state at 35,197.

One way to review the Year 2020 is through an exam.  From The New York Times:

How well do you remember 2020?

A quiz that tests your knowledge of the year’s biggest stories.

And once you’ve finished, you’ll be able to see how your performance compares with other Times readers who’ve taken it.

You can take the full quiz here.   Good luck!

The Council on Foreign Relations indicated that 2016 (click to see the 10 most significant events, with #1 being Trump elected PUS) was a bad year, but 1968  was worse.  So here are CFR's top ten events for 2020:

• #10  Senate acquits Trump of impeachment.
• #9    Belarusians protest elections.
• #8    Tensions flare between Iran and U.S.
• #7    Oil prices tank.
• #6    Middle East accord.
• #5    Killing of George Floyd.
• #4    Climate disruptions continue.
• #3    China asserts itself.
• #2    Joe Biden wins presidency.
• #1    The COVID-19 Pandemic.

This was a unique year for me.  I took only one trip, to Thailand, and did not fly once on United Airlines, the first time in half a century, if not longer. 

Also for the first time in my life, I never caught a cold.  Through morning exercises, my knees are functioning as well as they have in years.

I was in euphoria all year, but learned something important during this pandemic.  Euphoria is a zone, not a peak.  Perfection is impossible.  Leave "well enough" alone.

While this seems disrespectful, considering the hurt to the general masses, I actually rather enjoyed the year.  I confirmed that a hermit existence is not all that bad, especially with security and abundance.  I certainly got my money's worth from Netflix, and used Amazon.com as a monthly Christmas for me.  My final purchase: two titanium instead of lead champagne glasses.

My meal enhancement skills improved.  I rarely cook anything from scratch, save for a steak, but every so often experiment.  The prime example is something called o-zoni, a Japanese soup containing various ceremonial foods consumed in the morning of the New Year.  I annually adjust the ingredients and have purchased what I plan to add this time, beginning on the eve to prepare the stock.

I'll end today with another Trump video, then a worst, but cute, case of social distancing:

The Dow Jones Industrial Average hit another  all-time high, rising 73 to 30,410.  The reason had mostly to do with a greater assurance that the pandemic vaccine should eventually restore the general economy.

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