JessicaRulestheUniverse.com

Even if hard lockdown is not reimposed.
Even if you’re just getting some air.
Even if you feel fine.
Only go out if you absolutely have to. “Absolutely” as in you’re running low on food, medicine, and necessities.
Nearly everything you need, you can order online.

“Our health workers are suffering burnout with seemingly endless number of patients trooping to our hospitals for emergency care and admission,” said Jose Santiago, president of the leading doctors’ group Philippine Medical Association.

“We are waging a losing battle against Covid-19 and we need to draw up a consolidated and definitive plan of action.”

Read Filipino medics beg for lockdown as health system teeters

Heard about the Giordano Bruno series from S.J. Parris’s guest shot on the Art Detective podcast. Now reading the Elizabethan-era mystery thrillers. Knew very little about Giordano Bruno apart from the manner of his death (burned at the stake at Campo dei Fiori, as stated in the wonderful poem by Czeslaw Milosz). I did some reading, and learned that one of the Vatican inquisitors who condemned Bruno to his horrific death was St. Robert Bellarmine, the same Jesuit theologian for whom the Ateneo de Manila building which houses my publisher is named. Bellarmine was also involved in the trial of Galileo.
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It’s been four months since the virus upended our lives. As apocalypses go, it’s been quiet. Sometimes I don’t speak to another person for days. I force myself to walk 4,000 steps a day indoors. Most days I don’t venture past the parking area of my building. I go downstairs to feed the three garage cats and collect packages from motorcycle delivery men (Shopee is my retail therapy: cat food, envelopes, broom, coffee filters, bond paper, etc). Twice I went to the supermarket, and once to the print shop (and then my friend lent me a laser printer so I don’t have to go back). I’ve walked to the drugstore and the convenience store down the street six or seven times.

I would not survive this quarantine without my friends who, knowing my total lack of cooking skills (I gave my stove to my cleaning lady since I never used it anyway), include my grocery list when they shop, send wine and pastry, and let me judge their cooking experiments. I had one fabulous al fresco lunch on a friend’s birthday. The next one will have to wait—covid numbers have risen since the city reopened (and some testing became available), and hospital ICUs are at full capacity.
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Photo of Mercury from the National Geographic.

Have been feeling particularly useless since Monday. Nothing like an official confirmation of powerlessness to bring on the gloom. A burst of righteous anger would’ve perked me up, but I’m too tired.

I figured I’d read, sleep, and watch videos until the black cloud passed. (Always bear in mind that the black cloud passes, just keep yourself entertained and wait till it does.)

Yesterday I sent some money to my cleaning lady Linda on Smart Padala. She still can’t come to work, but I’ve been sending her money since March. I don’t have a Smart account, so I sent the funds to my friend, who sent it to Linda’s Smart Padala number. Then I called Linda and told her the funds had been sent, and she could pick up tomorrow.

When I went to bed I had an idea for a story about my powerlessness so I slept soundly.

At 7am my phone rang. My phone never rings at 7am because I put it on silent mode. In fact it was on silent mode so I don’t know why it rang.
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Zine #2 featuring Genius and Garbage, a new story by Jessica Zafra, designed by Yodel Pe. Limited edition, so get it now. We still have copies of Zine #1: The Adventuress. The plan is to produce six zines in 2020. Collect the whole set! Each zine costs P250. We accept payment by BDO deposit and PayPal, and donate 10 percent of the proceeds to food assistance programs. To order copies, email your full name, mobile number, and delivery address to saffron.safin@gmail.com. We deliver by Grab, Lalamove, Ninja Van outside Metro Manila, and DHL abroad.
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