How quickly one’s idea of what’s important can change. The shift of focus of this weekly series of articles from general principles of healthy living to the more immediate threat of a Covid-19 infection has now been superseded for me  by rampant wildfires, one of which is on the move toward my house. My family and I bugged out, to what seems to be a safer location, at least for the present.

It’s a good thing we did. The air quality right now in our neighborhood is very bad, according to a person who just returned from there. The government threat level was just upgraded from Level 1 to Level 2, which means the fire is advancing toward my house. Level 3 means “Get out NOW!”

It’s amazing how quickly priorities can change. For me, avoiding Covid-19 has moved down on my priority list. Somehow, keeping from being burned alive has seemed more urgent. The important lesson here is to remain flexible. Things could change, drastically, in a heartbeat. You need to be able to pivot and take appropriate action just as quickly. Life is full of surprises.

It’s said that there is an ancient curse that goes, “May you live in interesting times.” It seems that 2020 has become a very interesting time indeed.

BIO:

Allen G. Taylor is a 40-year veteran of the computer industry and the author of over 40 books, including Develop Microsoft HoloLens Apps Now, Get Fit with Apple Watch, Cruise for Free, SQL For Dummies, 9th Edition, Crystal Reports 2008 For Dummies, Database Development For Dummies, Access Power Programming with VBA, and SQL All-In-One For Dummies, Third Edition. He lectures internationally on astronomy, databases, innovation, and entrepreneurship. He also teaches database development and Crystal Reports through a leading online education provider. For the latest news on Allen’s activities, check out his blog at wwwallengtaylor.com or contact him at allen.taylor@ieee.org.