Strange times.

We’re all adjusting to our new reality. The other night I called my friend Marc in Las Vegas. I asked him, what’s new?

Marc: We’re off bat.

Me: You’re not eating bat anymore?

Marc: No, we’ve switched to Impossible Bat. Tastes just like real bat!

Before the pandemic, I had no idea people ate bats. I also had no idea I’ve been washing my hands wrong my entire life. I’ve now washed my hands so many times I no longer have fingerprints.

Did I mention these are strange times?

Who are all these people I see riding their bicycles? Some of them are even children.

And then there are the joggers and the strollers. Strollers in Los Angeles! Nobody walks in California. In California one pair of shoes lasts a lifetime.

Some of you may vaguely remember scenes like this from the distant past; before HBO, before Nintendo, before the internet. This is how we once lived.

Fifty years ago, kids played in the street without fear of abduction. Neighbors walked after dinner and said hello to one another and even stopped to chat. Backyards were alive with swooshing badminton rackets, Wiffleballs sailing over the hedges, driveway horse contests with your cousin Fred lucking-out with a miracle bank shot from behind Mom’s station wagon. What’s old is new again.

Will it last?

Will our suddenly clear skies stay clear once COVID-19 runs its course and gridlock returns?

Probably not. We love our gadgets too much to stay outdoors. This pause from the present will likely fade as quickly as the Spirit of Christmas evaporates after the last gift is unwrapped. Still, we should take pleasure in these simple pleasures while they last. After all, we’re paying for them.

Boy are we paying for them!

A virus did this to us. A microscopic bug from the back-alleys of Wuhan, China, has paralyzed the world. The human world. The raccoons and sparrows don’t care if stores are closed. We care because our lives revolve around things. Now, there’s no baseball, no movies, no paper towels and if we don’t get this right, no grandparents.

Have we overreacted? Have we been stampeded into destroying the economy by a bunch of mask-clad TV ninnies feeding us fear 24/7? Maybe. Maybe not. If you were in charge would you roll the dice on your loved ones lives? I wouldn’t. This is the decision our leaders face. Get it right and millions lose their livelihood, their savings and their jobs. Get it wrong and millions could lose their lives. I am utterly unqualified to make a decision of this magnitude, so I choose to listen to the experts. Facts do matter.

The president is antsy for it all to end. So am I. The president is worried about the economy. So am I. The president is worried about his re-election. Me, not so much.

Even more frightening than flying, grocery shopping or the virus itself is the triangulating for political advantage at the expense of science, public health and common decency. People on TV are now seriously suggesting my mother should die for the good of the economy. Community standards prohibit me from publishing my suggestion where they can stick their opinions.

The kids are playing in the street, loudly and probably too close together. I will not tell them to get off my lawn. I like the happy sounds I hear.

Doug McIntyre’s column appears Sundays. He can be reached at: Doug@DougMcIntyre.com.

The Pac-12 announced Monday morning it has decided to extend its suspension on organized athletic team activities through May 31.

The conference originally suspended team activities until March 29 but has revisited the decision. All scheduled sport competitions have already been canceled for the remainder of the academic year and there will continue to be no in-person team activities of any type allowed.

There are limited exceptions to the Pac-12’s team activity suspension that are based on student-athlete well-being. In-person, on-campus nutrition plans are allowed to be provided to student-athletes who are unable to leave campus.

Athletic departments are allowed to continue providing non-athletically related support to student-athletes for issues such as sports medicine treatment, physical therapy, academic support and mental health and wellness resources as well.

Teams are allowed a set number of hours for virtual group activities, such as film study. Football is limited to two hours a week, while other sports are allowed four hours. The Pac-12 said it is appealing to the NCAA to increase the two-hour limit for football teams.

Coaches are able to recommend written and self-directed workout plans for student-athletes. This includes sharing pre-recorded demonstration videos on proper form and technique. However, virtual supervised voluntary workouts are not allowed.

Onyeka Okongwu’s USC career came to its expected conclusion last week.

The freshman center from Chino Hills High declared for the NBA Draft, ending his time as a Trojan after earning All-Pac-12 first-team honors in his lone collegiate campaign. He led USC in scoring, rebounding and blocks, but is off to pursue his professional dream.

Okongwu spoke with the Southern California News Group about his time at USC and his next steps now that he’s declared for the draft:

So how does it feel to be taking the first step toward an NBA career?

Okongwu: “It really feels good. I’ve been through so much in my life, a lot of adversity, failures, that made me the way I am today. So being able to make this decision is a testament to my faith.”

Were you able to do anything to celebrate at home through the quarantine?

Okongwu: “No, I just stayed here. My family, they’re all proud of me. I always know that.”

You spoke before the season about USC being your dream school. How did your year at the school live up to your expectations?

Okongwu: “My goal coming to USC was just to have fun. It’s my hometown school so I wanted to go here. So to be able to help lead our team to a bunch of wins, it’s why I stayed home.”

Is it hard going out without having gotten the chance to play in the Pac-12 or NCAA Tournaments due to the COVID outbreak?

Okongwu: “It is what it is, we can’t do nothing about it. I would have loved playing in the NCAA Tournament. I really would have. I thought we would have went far, too. But stuff happens and things change. But I’m happy to end the season on a W against our rival school.”

When you look back on your USC career, what would you say was the top moment or game for you?

Okongwu: “Favorite moment, definitely the three dunks I had against Oregon State or the full-court shot against Arizona.”

Do you think that 3-pointer or your dunks will be the moment USC fans remember about your time as a Trojan?

Okongwu: “Definitely the dunks.”

What was your biggest area of growth while at USC?

Okongwu: “Honestly, my confidence. That went a long way. For that to be able to grow, that really helped a lot. At the beginning I was just a little freshman. I was happy to be out there and doing what I love. Once I realized the coaches believed in me, the fans believed in me, everybody on the floor believed in me, it just helped me tell myself that I could really do this and really make a name for myself.”

Was there a moment when you realized that you had earned that belief from your coaches and teammates?

Okongwu: “Probably when we were in Europe [in the summer], in Barcelona and overseas. I was able to play against grown men overseas and do well, I knew I could come back to the States and overcome challenges in basketball.”

Your pre-draft process is going to be unique given the circumstances of shelter in place during the coronavirus outbreak. How are you going to prepare for the draft? Do you have a place where you can work out?

Okongwu: “Once I pick my agent, I’mma end up working out with who they have for me and be able to get ready for the draft.”

What advice are you getting going into the pre-draft process?

What area of your game do you think you’ll be able to make an immediate impact at the next level?

Okongwu: “Straight energy and hustle. I’m one of those players that will give unrelenting energy and effort every game. That’s what I’m always going to be able to give out.”

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A new quarterback at St. John Bosco has been offered a scholarship by San Jose State.

Katin Houser, a 6-foot-3, 195-pound sophomore who transferred from Liberty of Henderson, Nev., was offered by the Mountain West Conference school on Thursday.

God is Great!! After a great talk with @TheGundy, I am blessed to say that I have received my second D1 offer from San Jose St. University pic.twitter.com/ZCgt5Wc6GL

— Katin Houser (@Katin_qb12) March 27, 2020

Houser also holds an offer from Hawaii.

He enrolled at St. John Bosco earlier in this semester, Braves athletic director Monty McDermott recently confirmed.

In the fall, Houser played in four games for Liberty (10-5), which won the Nevada 4A state title.

Liberty started the season 0-5 against a national schedule that included St. John Bosco and then ran the table in Nevada. The Patriots’ run included a historic, overtime victory against longtime state kingpin Bishop Gorman of Las Vegas.

Liberty’s main quarterback last season was junior Daniel Britt, who passed for 2,141 yards and rushed for almost 800 yards.

Houser has impressed this offseason. He trains with quarterback guru Danny Hernandez, who tutors some of the top passers in Orange County.

Houser could emerge as the replacement for DJ Uiagalelei (6-5, 245), who led St. John Bosco to the 2019 national crown and signed with Clemson.

The Braves finished second to Mater Dei in the Trinity League last season but beat the Monarchs in the CIF-SS Division 1 final.

Please send football news to Dan Albano at dalbano@scng.com or @ocvarsityguy on Twitter

Coronavirus-related business limitations have forced 12 of 49 Wahoo’s Fish Taco restaurants to temporarily close.

The iconic Mexican fast-food chain with a surf-culture theme is still serving meals for take-out and delivery at 37 locations still operating. But Wing Lam, co-founder of the 32-year old chain based in Tustin, says it’s a daily struggle for every restaurant operator.

“It’s super sad, oh my God,” he says.

Wahoo’s closings reflect the broad challenges facing the restaurant industry walloped by virus-containment orders. Hurdles include bans on sit-down service to stay-at-home orders, which are cutting into service from lunch to dinner and hurting weekend sales. Many workers also are at home with children out of school.

Wahoo’s has temporarily closed locations at the mega-mall South Coast Plaza; the empty sports arenas Honda Center and Staples Center; the low-traffic Ontario airport where food offerings have been scaled back; college campuses without students at UC Irvine and UC Santa Barbara; and in economically devastated Las Vegas, where the chain closed two of five restaurants).

Some of Wahoo’s closings were simply due to slow business in Marina del Rey, Santa Monica and at Irvine Spectrum Center. The company also closed an international eatery in Japan.

“You hate to close stores, but there’s nobody around,” Lam says.

It’s not like the open restaurants are doing well either, Lam admits. Sales run roughly one-quarter of what they once were, generating only enough cash to pay for labor and food costs. He hopes that landlords, who are currently deferring rent payments, understand they must share some restaurant losses in order for the industry to recover once the crisis ends.

“If we had to pay rent, we’d have to shut down,” Lam says.

Lam says he finds some hope in innovation he sees around the restaurant industry — from eateries offering to-go family-style meals to others helping the public stock up their pantries and refrigerators.

Wahoo’s has found partners to help it get food to workers on the front lines of the virus battle, from medical professionals to food bank workers.

“Nobody is making money; we are all scrambling,” he says.

In these times of coronavirus concern, country music legend Dolly Parton is going to read us bedtime stories.

Every Thursday, starting April 2, Parton will choose a children’s book from her very own Imagination Library and read it aloud from the comfort of her home in Tennessee for the “Goodnight With Dolly” series on YouTube.

Each book will be chosen to be appropriate for all ages and bring comfort to families hunkering down at home and practicing social distancing amid the global coronavirus pandemic.

The first book Parton will read is the classic “The Little Engine That Could.” Parton founded the Imagination Library in 1990 to help inspire a love of reading at an early age. The program mails out free books to children, with the offerings chosen by experts in education and based on the child’s age, each month from birth, up until the age of 5.

The 74-year-old is an award-winning singer-songwriter, actress and humanitarian who’s known for her big hair and even bigger personality. Throughout the years she’s scored many hits including “I Will Always Love You,” “Jolene,” “9 to 5,” “Hard Candy Christmas,” “Here You Come Again” and her duet with the late Kenny Rogers, “Islands In the Stream.”

In 2019, her Netflix series, “Dolly Parton’s Heartstrings,” made its debut and she, along with producer Linda Perry, crafted the soundtrack for the 2018 Netflix film, “Dumplin’.”

Earlier this year, Parton won a Grammy for best contemporary Christian music performance/song for her collaboration with Australian duo For King & Country on the song, “God Only Knows.”

You spoke with your votes and with your comments about our Sweet 16 selections for the top Southern California movies, food institutions, athletes and recreation spots.

We got blasted for our omissions, and you did a number on some high seeds in the brackets we established. Although, was there ever any doubt that No. 13 “Die Hard” would take down No. 4 “Earthquake” in our movie showdowns? Please.

Now it’s time to check out the Elite Eights you’ve chosen through your votes and try to advance your favorites to the Final Four.

Cast your votes and, of course, tell your friends:

Elite Eight Southern California movies of the past 50 years

Elite Eight Southern California athletes of all-time

Elite Eight Southern California food institutions

Elite Eight Southern California recreation spots

A new aerial video of an eerily empty Disneyland shows a lonely Sleeping Beauty Castle, motionless Matterhorn mountain and a vacant Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge as the Anaheim theme park remains closed indefinitely due to the coronavirus outbreak.

Disney’s two Anaheim theme parks, three hotels and outdoor shopping mall remains closed until further notice due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

SEE ALSO: Disneyland hotels taking reservations — but only for June 1 and after

The 50-second video from Disney-owned KABC in Los Angeles serves as the first semi-official look inside Disneyland during the COVID-19 pandemic. The rare overhead view shows the Loneliest Place on Earth without the 51,000 visitors that jam the theme park on a typical day.

An earlier aerial video shot by a Netherlands-based media production company for the British tabloid The Sun offered a fleeting birds-eye glimpse of Disneyland and Disney California Adventure.

SEE ALSO: Disney furlough of theme park employees in April could save $500 million, analysts say

The new ABC aerial video begins with a zoomed in look at the peopleless drawbridge leading to Sleeping Beauty Castle, the iconic centerpiece of the park. The camera pulls back to show Disneyland’s central hub with the Partners statue of Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse standing all alone.

Work is visible on the hub entrance leading to Frontierland and Matterhorn mountain where brick pavers have been removed from the walkways.

SEE ALSO: Disneyland and Disney World coronavirus closures could stretch until May, analysts warn

An aerial shot of the park’s front entrance shows the distinctive Mickey floral garden with a trainless track next to the Disneyland railroad station. The camera zooms in on a vacant front gate turnstile that would be normally bustling with visitors on a typical day.

A panning shot travels down shuttered Main Street U.S.A. that has become a ghost town during the coronavirus closure of the park.

SEE ALSO: Disney faces $3.4 billion coronavirus one-two punch at U.S. theme parks, analysts warn

A helicopter shot hovers over the 100-foot-long Millennium Falcon that serves as the entrance marquee for the Smugglers Run attraction that typically has a 30 to 45 minute line of visitors waiting to ride.

An overhead look at the Matterhorn mountain and the nearby lagoon shows how motionless the park has become without the bobsled coasters, monorail train or submerged submarines in action.

SEE ALSO: Photos: A look back at Matterhorn Bobsleds, Submarine Voyage and Monorail on 60th anniversary of Disneyland rides

Julia Child died in 2004, but she’s still commanding attention on American TV. The legendary chef’s lovable small screen personality still fascinates us all, especially culinary types.

So PBS has brought “Dishing with Julia Child” to the screen with six episodes beginning on Friday, April 3. In a cozy, chatty format that Child would have loved, the network has invited nine superstar chefs to watch her reruns and provide pithy running commentary.

Martha Stewart praises her talent as a teacher, Éric Ripert and José Andrés laud her cooking techniques. Rick Bayless, Carla Hall, Vivian Howard, Sara Moulton and Marcus Samuelsson all chime in but it’s Jacques Pépin who knew her the longest and the best. He still fondly remembers their friendship which started when the young chef who had cooked for heads of state, including Charles de Gaulle, struck out for the U.S. in 1959 and made a big splash here.

He worked under Henri Soulé at Le Pavillon, the restaurant that defined French cooking in the U.S., turned down an offer from Jackie Kennedy to helm the White House kitchen, flipped burgers and developed recipes for Howard Johnson’s during what he calls his “American apprenticeship,” and earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Columbia University. His list of honors goes on and on: Daytime Emmy, James Beard Lifetime Achievement Award, France’s Chevalier de L’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres and even the Légion d’honneur. A prolific writer, he’s penned 25 cookbooks and contributed to the pages of the New York Times, the Washington Post, Food & Wine Magazine and many other top publications. His Jacques Pépin Foundation has more than 40,000 followers on Instagram.

But a big part of his legacy will forever be entwined with Julia Child’s. Both pioneered a brand of cooking show that sought to teach techniques while entertaining audiences with titles such as “Cooking in Concert” and “Julia and Jacques Cooking at Home.”

While he was more than 20 years her junior, the duo made a powerhouse match, the culinary equivalent of Margot Fonteyn and Rudolf Nureyev. They had a magical kitchen and on-camera chemistry, engaging in famously funny sparring matches about black or white pepper, kosher salt, even stealing ingredients from each other’s mise en place. He cooked the last dinner in her home, an intimate charity event for 12 guests.

We jumped at a chance to reminisce with Pépin. He interrupted a recipe he was preparing to post on social media to come to the phone. Here’s his take on America’s favorite TV chef.

Q: It’s great that all these chefs appear on the show. They all admired her. But you spent more time with her than any of them. Did it bring back a lot of memories? 

A: I met Julia in 1960. So I knew her for half a century, basically. And when I met her, actually, we spoke French because she had just come back from France and her French was probably better than my English at that time. I had only been here like six months. So we became friends. She always said that we started cooking together, which, I mean, we have 22 years difference between us, but what she meant by that is that we cooked in a bit of the same style. Because I was working in Paris in the ’50s, she came there at the end of the ’50s, so we were kind of trained in the same types of things, you know? So we had a good time together. I mean we did argue a lot but we had a good time.

Q: What did you guys talk about when you were off camera? 

A: Recipes, the food world, what was going on with different chefs … all of those things. She was very good at that too.

Q: So she was fun to be with?

A: Oh yeah, yeah, she was fun. You know, I like to drink. She liked to drink. So we did drink. And she loved to work for PBS and I did too. She didn’t need to kowtow to endorse any products, which she never did, I never did either, but sometimes it went too far. I remember when we were shooting the series, one of the sponsors was Kendall-Jackson and I knew Jess Jackson, I became friends with him, he sponsored all my shows. And he was very generous. In fact, they probably had over 50 or 60 wines. And he told me, you can use any other wines you want, French, Italian it’s fine with me. So, we did the show and at the end of it I remember I told Julia, “OK, we have a piece of beef, or some type of meat, what would you like to drink with that? Do you want a merlot?” She said, “I want beer.” … So you know, she was funny this way.

Q: What do you miss about her as a friend?

A: Julia was very natural, right? Julia was Julia. People always ask me how was she off camera and she was exactly the same off camera or on camera. She was never pretending. I would cut a piece of meat and she’d say, “What do you call that piece of meat again?” Or we would go on the road and people might ask a question about galangal (Thai ginger) or something like that. And then she would say, “I have absolutely no idea what that is.” You know, she had no problem saying if she didn’t know something. I think, whether people realize it or not, it came through that she was very genuine.

Q: On this series we get to watch parts of the old shows. What do you remember about how she cooked?

A: We got many letters saying that she was much more French than I was. … I remember one time we cooked spinach and I put spinach in the skillet that I had just washed so it was a little wet and she said, “No, no, no! You have to boil the spinach in water and you refresh it under cold water. Then you press on it and then we have spinach ready to cook.” I said, “I remember doing that in Paris in the ’50s but now we do it this way.” So we had a big argument. But like I said, Julia was often more French than I was.

Q: That’s so funny. And the arguments were fun. Do you think they made for good TV? 

A: Yes! People always thought that things were planned but the menus and recipes were not planned at all.  In fact when we finished the show, it took two years to put it on the air because we had no recipes.

Q: Really?

A: We cooked the way that you cook at home with your spouse, with a friend, and all in a very natural way. I happened to put scallions in that dish. Why? Because they happened to be on the table.

Q: What did she teach you about being on TV?

A: She would say, “This is television. So you have to lighten up and smile.” But that being said, at the end of the show she would be the first one to say, “OK, what did we teach today?” The teaching part was always very important to her.

Q. There’s an artistic part to television, too. It’s very visual. And you’re a painter. Did presenting food for the camera come easily to you? 

A: It’s interesting that you say that because visually I like food to look good, but I was never very interested in that part of nouvelle cuisine — and neither was Julia — with arranging the tiny, newborn vegetables on the plate. Julia said, “People have touched that thing too much I don’t want to eat it.” We don’t have to rearrange everything until it gets cold. I was never for that. I think that food, if you put it naturally on a plate, it looks good if it’s done fresh.

Q: You say on the onion soup episode of this series that TV was a great vehicle. Do you think that you and Julia were some of the first chefs to show the world that it was a great way to teach cooking?

A: I don’t know. I think it was a challenge at the time when Julia and I cooked, because prior to that I remember seeing a show from James Beard. And it was crazy because at that time you were not supposed to look at the camera, you were not supposed to know that the camera was there, it was just a voyeur. So James Beard is in the kitchen and you have one minute when nothing is happening. No one is talking. …It was really boring because you are not conversing with the camera. When I started doing television with Julia we thought of it exactly the opposite; we discussed with the camera, like a friend to explain what we were doing.

Q: So did you think of it that way? Like you were just talking to a friend?

A: Yeah. She would ask me, “What are you doing?” So I talked to her. In a sense she was the camera for me or I spoke directly to the camera, it was one or the other. Yes, we thought about that.

Q. Because you’re one of the world’s most accomplished chefs, I can’t let you go without asking for your insights during this coronavirus lockdown when we’re all cooking like mad. What should we be doing?

A: Plant your own garden, get close to nature. A couple of days ago I did a video like this with dandelions. I went outside to pick dandelions. It’s kind of a rite of the spring for me. So do that at home. Maybe people who are confined at home used to cook once a week or once a month. Now they have to cook every day. Maybe that will put people closer together. Maybe the family will learn again to cook together, to sit down together, to eat and to talk together without having to talk to your iPhone all the time. So that may be a good thing coming out of it actually.

Q: What do you think Julia would have to say to chefs during this crisis?

A: She would have given advice. She would have tried to do some shows. She would have tried to answer any questions. She would have tried to sponsor as many restaurants as she could. The way she was, she would have done anything to help.

‘Dishing with Julia Child’

When: Premieres Friday, April 3. Back-to-back episodes air at 10 and 10:30 p.m. Fridays on PBS SoCal, for repeat showtimes visit pbs.org.

Episodes

April 3: “The Whole Fish Story” and “The Good Loaf”

April 10: “Your Own French Onion Soup” and “Boeuf Bourguignon”

Alien Ant Farm will drop a new collaboration this week, but you won’t find this exclusive on Spotify or Tidal — the rock band has teamed up with Riverside’s Packinghouse Brewing Company for a new beer.

The double hazy IPA, dubbed “IPAAF,” is the result of a months-long partnership between the Riverside brewery and the alternative rock band, which started in Riverside. People will be able to pick up four-can packs from the brewery as of April 4.

Terry Corso, Alien Ant Farm’s guitarist, said the process has been an enjoyable experience, from devising the beer to helping add hops.

“We’ve been having fun with it,” Corso said. “Like I said, we’re definitely not manufacturers, we’re just musicians, but being musicians we know what we like to drink.”

Collaborating on a beer was a project the band had wanted to do for a while. Corso said the band even had the IPAAF name in mind before the partnership with Packinghouse began.

Helping to make the dream a reality was Esjay Jones, the band’s producer.

“She’s somebody that we started writing with a long time ago and she’s become not just a friend and family, but a fifth member of this band, and she kind of aligned the whole thing,” Corso said.

Ron Gomez, an owner and managing partner for the brewery, said he was contacted by Jones in the early fall and that the brewery met with the band to devise a game plan.

“Riverside’s a small town, and talking to people, we all know some of the same people so it just was a good fit for everybody,” Gomez said.

Corso said everyone in the band is into a good IPA so coming up with an IPA seemed like an easy choice. He said he wanted the beer to have a rye flavor because he really likes that in beer and whiskey.

The brewery came up with a small batch that members of the band got to taste. Corso described the beer as being cloudy and juicy with a hoppy overtone.

Later, when the actual batch of beer was being made, the band members added hops to it.

Though there were some plans in place for how to release the beer, Gomez said the novel coronavirus pandemic has upended them.

“Initially, we were going to have a concert at the brewery and release it that same day, but again, because of what’s occurring, we can’t do that,” Gomez said. “So we’re going to probably do that at a later date but since the beer is done and ready to go and obviously has a shelf life, we’re still planning on releasing it.”

People will be able to pick up cans from the brewery if they live in the local area, Gomez said, but the brewery is also working on getting the beer out to some other outlets so people further away from the brewery can also get some. Details on where else the beer can be ordered will be forthcoming on social media, Gomez said.

New music brewing

The arrival of the beer comes as the band is working on making new music.

Corso said the band was able to crank out four new songs earlier this year and that this was the first time in the while that they made songs they “were really in love with.”

“You’re always in love with everything, but these were songs that were just like, ‘OK, this is us and it sounds like us. This is the next step, this is the next progression for Alien Ant Farm musically,’” he said.

Corso said he hopes the band will be able to put out an album sometime this year, maybe by summer, but he can’t make any promises. He also said that with the coronavirus, the music making process has been a little compromised.

He said the band isn’t recording more songs for the album yet but they’re writing and working with each other through the internet. He said the band recently started using Zoom for conferencing.

“We’re just going to do what we can to keep the workflow going,” he said.

Corso said fans of the band can expect a little bit of a new sound. He said the tracks on the new album will be heavy, but also still catchy and accessible.

“Metalheads can listen to it, but probably the alternative kids can listen to it now,” he said, adding that the band has always kind of straddled that line anyway.

One constant across the albums, Corso said, has been lead singer Dryden Mitchell’s voice.

“I feel like we’re very fortunate that whatever we do stylistically, he’s that kind of link that makes you go, ‘oh this is Alien Ant Farm,’ whether it’s kind of like this Cuban reggae quasi jazz jam or it’s this kind of prog metal,” Corso said.

And when the new songs do come out, Corso has some thoughts on how you can listen to them.

“I suggest listening to them in a rad car stereo,” he said. “They sound huge.”

IPAAF 

Available: Saturday, April 4

Where: Packinghouse Brewing Company, 6421 Central Ave., Riverside; other vendors to be announced.

Information: alienantfarm.com, packinghousebeer.com, @packinghousebrewingco on Instagram.

NFL vice president Troy Vincent has sent a letter to several prospects inviting them to participate “live” in the NFL draft in three weeks.

The Associated Press on Tuesday obtained the letter sent by the league’s football operations chief to prospective early selections in the draft, which will be held remotely on April 23-25 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

“We hope that you will start your NFL journey with us as part of the NFL family,” Vincent wrote. “At this time, we are working on the plan for draft. As you can imagine, it is a bit of a moving target with all that is going on.

“We are contemplating several options that we will be communicating to you once details are confirmed. We want to ensure that you and your family stay safe while we develop the best way to give you a great experience and highlight your accomplishments as you are drafted into the NFL.”

Vincent asked the players not to publicize the invitation.

In recent drafts, first-round selections were announced by Commissioner Roger Goodell. Then followed hugs involving players and Goodell — some of them comical — and photo sessions with the players wearing team ball caps or even showing off team jerseys. Often their families and friends would get involved in the celebrations.

This year, with all public events at the planned site of Las Vegas canceled and the draft set to proceed remotely, players will likely be at their homes when their names are called.

Hollywood studios and other major entertainment media entities are making efforts to treat the people who work for and with them decently at this point in the coronavirus crisis.

Late last week, WarnerMedia committed to contributing $100 million to a fund to help production workers sit out Warner Bros.’ many idled shows.

It was also reported that Netflix will be paying actors from their curtailed series their minimum guaranteed fees for episodes that won’t go into production until the all-clear is sounded.

In an act of solidarity with the nonworking creatives on Disney’s gazillion projects, not-yet-retired company leader emeritus Bob Iger renounced his entire salary and his recent CEO replacement Bob Chapek will only take half of his until the COVID-19 pandemic is contained.

Meanwhile, there’s hope that the government’s multi-trillion dollar stimulus package will give everyone from the industry’s out-of-work craftspeople to the furloughed employees of the nation’s shuttered movie theaters to entertainment producers large and small some compensation for all the money being lost by the production and exhibition shutdowns.

No matter what, though, lawyers and insurance companies are going to be brought in at some not too distant point as production delays inflate budgets, pushed-back release dates throttle cash flows and sped-up jumps for some theatrical films to home video release make a mess of income and talent remuneration formulas.

We asked an insurance attorney and a forensic accountant who specialize in the entertainment business what the concerns and implications are likely to be.

The most sure thing at this early stage? It’s awfully complicated.

“For the film and television industry’s productions that have been shut down, studios and producers are going to be looking at specific insurance policies that are put in place for a specific television or movie production,” explained Sarah Cronin, a partner in the law firm Venable LLP’s Century City office who specializes in entertainment and insurance recovery. “Those policies have different elements to them that will cover such things as if a set collapses or if a castmember gets sick and can no longer participate in the production. Sometimes they have what’s referred to as civil authority coverage, which could be particularly applicable right now, which is if you have a government-issued order saying people can no longer congregate and productions can no longer continue.”

It sounds like the producers of that Australian Elvis movie Tom Hanks caught COVID-19 making may have a case with their insurer. But Cronin noted that most property insurance policies have particularly excluded pandemic coverage since the SARS outbreak earlier in the century, though she hadn’t seen that particular exclusion added to production policies.

Ilan Haimoff, the partner responsible for the royalty licensing and forensics department at L.A. accounting and consulting firm Green Hasson Janks, noted that his company’s audits of myriad production bibles show that all kinds of insurances get charged to shows and their participants. Which ones can be compelled to pay out on them is a matter for the lawyers, he said, and admittedly beyond his expertise.

“What will happen now that all of these productions are delayed or moved into the future?” Haimoff questioned. “Who’s going to pay for the additional incurred costs? Is it going to be the completion bond or is it going to be the various other insurance coverage they brought into the production. There’s insurance coverages that every production company gets; I know that because they charge our clients for it.”

Beside the production entities seeking to cushion their losses, other parties – loan companies, outside investors, talent whose compensation is tied to a show’s various revenue streams – may be coming at them and, by extension, their insurers with complaints.

Take, for example, not just the sped-up moving of first-run movies such as “The Invisible Man” and “Onward” to online platforms after the theatrical venues they were in closed down, but Universal’s upcoming release of the made-for-multiplexes “Trolls World Tour” on VOD instead, and Paramount’s transfer of its planned April release “Lovebirds” to Netflix.

“The general practice in our industry is to consider theatrical exhibition as the first wave of revenue coming in,” Haimoff explained. “That’s historically how it’s done. If you start messing with that and distribute the film into other media very quickly after that or at the same time, you’re moving up the home entertainment revenue stream to an earlier point in time. When you start shifting the windows like this, it might actually have an impact on how the talent is paid. Home video is primarily paid on a royalty basis. What will happen is, as you eliminate theatrical revenue and you shift that to new forms of revenue, you might only get the benefit of just the royalty.”

Lawyers for talent will likely take issue with that. Additionally, decisions made to generate some income from completed movies during this extraordinary coronavirus situation could trigger investor suits over lost profits that could have been generated if, say, more was charged for a digital rental or the studio had waited for theaters to reopen. Cronin explained that such exposure could be covered by a studio’s errors and omissions insurance policy, though such contracts aren’t usually intended to cover lost profits.

“Speaking in general and not commenting on what any individual studio did, if it’s a decision being made by any particular studio or production company essentially as a pivot of where to monetize the content on a different platform,” she added, “if somebody later sues and says that was the wrong decision, you would probably in that case look at your directors and officers liability type of policy.”

The postponed, completed films that are too big to drop on the internet for quick bucks – “A Quiet Place Part II,” Disney’s “Mulan,” the James Bond entry “No Time to Die,” Marvel’s “Black Widow,” Warners/DC’s “Wonder Woman 1984,” “Ghostbusters: Afterlife,” etc. — may never recover the millions in advertising and promotional dollars they’d already spent for their splashy spring theatrical releases. While some studios might have insurance coverage for such lost expenditures, Cronin couldn’t find any specific ones.

So, with reports that Hanks and his wife Rita Wilson are back in the States and feeling better, good chance that that Elvis movie might resume when the time comes? Probably, but that could depend on the superstar’s other obligations. That could be a problem for a number of planned or restarting movies and TV shows.

“If you move production into the future, can you still guarantee that a Brad Pitt will still be available?” Haimoff pointed out. “You can potentially lose the talent.”

Insurance could cover that eventuality. Or not. The same as with every scenario content makers and insurance companies will be wrestling over.

“Every fact situation is going to be different for a major studio,” Cronin said, using the term for the particulars of any given case. “If they had an actor that actually did get the virus during production, that’s going to be a much different analysis than if you have preemptively shut down a production because of the risk; if there is contamination because a castmember or somebody behind-the-camera had it on set, that’s going to be a different analysis.

“For major studios, for really anybody with insurance, everything is so up in the air right now,” she observed. “It’s unclear exactly how the insurance companies are going to handle these types of claims, though I think it’s likely to assume that they’re going to deny most of them. Just notify your insurance company, get it in there for future claims. Then start collecting all of your policies and really look at the language in your particular fact situation and see if there’s a potential for a claim.”

Two people who work at the Anaheim Emergency Shelter run by the Salvation Army have tested positive for COVID-19, Anaheim city spokesman Mike Lyster said Tuesday, March 31.

None of the 205 residents of the shelter on south Lewis Street so far had shown any signs of being infected, Lyster said.

After a trace of the two staff members’ recent activity at the shelter, 34 residents who came in contact with them were tested on Monday night, Lyster said, adding that shelter operators are waiting on results expected within the next 48 hours.

Outside of the 34 residents who were swabbed, the Orange County Health Care Agency offered to test all shelter residents, Lyster said, but given the choice, the other residents declined.

Lyster declined to provide any detailed information about the two shelter staff members out of concern that they could be identified. He did say, however, that they had tested positive with the novel coronavirus within the past two or three days and were in self-isolation at home.

Lyster described them as “in good spirits and generally good health.”

The Salvation Army, which operates the 224-bed shelter under contract with the city of Anaheim, is prepared to isolate on-site a small number of shelter residents – fewer than 10 or a number that can be reasonably be accommodated – should they test positive for the coronavirus, Lyster said. The Salvation Army has set up modular units on the campus, similar to the ones that house the residents, for that specific purpose.

But if there ends up being a large number of residents who test positive, then the city has quarantine plans to move all residents to a hotel under contract with the city for the purpose of housing homeless people under isolation.

Lyster would not disclose the name or the location of the hotel.

This story will be updated as more information becomes available.

California consumer confidence fell to a 13-month low as the economic fallout of the fight against coronavirus grows.

The Conference Board reported Tuesday, March 31 that its consumer confidence index for the state for March was 109.4 vs. 122.9 the previous month and 131.2 a year ago. The last time the index, based on consumer polling, was lower was February 2019 as the national and state economies were cooling and interest rates were on the rise.

The March report showed California shoppers had a poor impression of the business climate. The current conditions index was 156.7 vs. 164 the prior month and 172.6 a year ago.

Consumers statewide felt the financial future was down. The expectations’ index was 77.9 vs. 95.5 the previous month and 103.7 a year ago.

Nationally, consumer confidence fell to a 32-month low. The U.S. index was 120 vs. 132.6 the prior month and 124.2 a year ago. Current U.S. conditions were seen as worse this month. Expectations for the future? Down, too.

Among the seven other states tracked by the Conference Board, two had rising confidence in the month — Illinois and Ohio — and optimism rose in a year in three — Florida, Pennsylvania and Ohio.

NFL team owners voted Tuesday to expand the playoffs by one team in each conference for next season.

During a conference call to discuss league business after the annual meetings were canceled due to the new coronavirus pandemic, the owners also awarded one of those extra games to CBS and one to NBC. Three-fourths of the 32 owners needed to approve the change.

Only the teams with the best record in the AFC and NFC will get a bye under the new format; the top two teams skipped wild-card weekend in the past. The seventh seed will play No. 2, the sixth will visit No. 3, and the fifth will be at the fourth seed for wild-card games.

This is the first expansion of the playoffs since 1990, when the NFL went from 10 to 12 postseason entrants.

Three games each are set for Jan. 9 and 10, pending the NFL schedule going forward as planned; that schedule should be released in April.

CBS will broadcast one additional wild-card game Jan. 10 at approximately 1:40 p.m. PST. The game will also be available via live stream on CBS All Access. A separately produced telecast of the game will air on Nickelodeon tailored for a younger audience.

NBC, its new streaming service Peacock and Spanish-language Telemundo will broadcast an additional game Jan. 10 at approximately 5:15 p.m. PST.

These days, when shopping is not easy, it’s nice to know that we can still enjoy the favorite Passover specialty haroset. This traditional spread can be made entirely from pantry foods — dried fruits, nuts and wine. Haroset is served during the Seder, the ritual dinner on the first evening of Passover, which will begin this Wednesday, April 8.

I grew up with Ashkenazi haroset, which my mother always made from grated apples, chopped walnuts, cinnamon and wine. If you don’t have apples, there are other kinds of haroset that you can make. Some Sephardi Jews use a mixture of dried fruits; others make their haroset from dates, walnuts and cinnamon. A friend of ours of Iraqi-Jewish heritage follows her family’s recipe, which has walnuts combined with date molasses — that’s all. Persian Jews might add pistachios to their haroset and moisten it with pomegranate juice. Basically, you can prepare your haroset from the nuts and fruits you have.

My haroset has ingredients loved in the Middle East: dates, dried figs, dried apricots, raisins, almonds and walnuts, which I blend with wine and sweet spices. It’s denser and more concentrated in flavor than the salad-like grated apple haroset of my childhood.

In some households it’s the custom to make enough haroset to serve during the entire week of Passover. Haroset is also a good flavoring for desserts such as cookies, cakes and matzo kugels, which are like bread puddings made with matzo.

Combine haroset with chocolate melted in wine, shape the mixture in balls, roll them in shredded coconut, and they become tasty haroset truffles; or use haroset to make delicious haroset blond brownies studded with chopped chocolate.

There is flexibility in these recipes. If you’re out of dates, you can make the haroset with moist pitted prunes. If you don’t have dried figs for the blond brownies, use raisins.

This year many of us cannot get together with family and friends to celebrate Passover but the taste of homemade haroset will bring us the sweet flavor of the holiday.

Sephardi Haroset

When I was growing up, our haroset was made with sweet red wine but you can use dry wine or substitute grape juice or pomegranate juice. Taste and add a little honey or sugar if you want your haroset to be sweeter.

Yield: 10 servings of 1/4 cup (makes about 2 1/2 cups)

INGREDIENTS

3/4 cup almonds

1 1/4 cups walnuts or pecans

1 cup dates (about 4.5 ounces or 20 Deglet Noor dates), halved, pitted and cut in chunks

3 ounces dried apricots (about 12 apricots), cut in chunks (1/2 cup chunks)

3 ounces dried figs (about 4 large whole figs), cut in chunks (1/2 cup chunks)

1/4 cup dark raisins

About 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sweet red wine, divided, or more if needed

1 1/4 teaspoons ground ginger

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Walnuts, pecans, pine nuts, chopped pistachios or slices of dried apricots, figs or dates (optional, for garnish)

Matzos or tender lettuce leaves (for serving)

PROCEDURE

1. Finely chop almonds in a food processor, leaving small chunks. Transfer to a medium bowl. Chop walnuts in food processor, pulsing to leave small chunks. Add to bowl of almonds.

2. Combine dates, apricots, figs and raisins in food processor. Add 1/3 cup wine and the ginger and cinnamon. Process mixture until it forms a slightly chunky spread, stopping occasionally to scrape it down and adding more wine by tablespoons if necessary to enable mixture to blend.

3. Transfer blended fruit to bowl of chopped nuts and mix well. Add more wine by tablespoons until mixture has the consistency of a thick spread.

4. Spoon haroset into a shallow serving bowl. If you like, garnish it with nuts or slices of dried fruit.  Serve with matzos or lettuce leaves.

Haroset Chocolate Truffles

Roll some of the truffles in walnuts, some in coconut and some in cocoa, as in the recipe, or choose just one or two coatings and increase the amount.

Yield: 32 truffles

INGREDIENTS

6 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped, or semisweet chocolate chips

3 tablespoons oil — walnut, almond, grape seed or mild olive oil

3 tablespoons sweet red wine, grape juice or orange juice

1 cup (packed) Sephardi Haroset (8 ounces) (see recipe)

1/2 teaspoon finely grated orange zest (optional)

2/3 cup chopped walnuts

2/3 cup shredded coconut

1 1/2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa

Walnut pieces or thin slices of dried apricots, dried figs or dates (optional, for garnish)

PROCEDURE

1. Combine chocolate, oil and wine in a medium bowl. Set bowl above a pan of nearly simmering water over low heat. Heat, stirring occasionally, until chocolate melts. Remove bowl from above water; cover pan of hot water and reserve.

2. Stir chocolate mixture until smooth. Let it cool for 5 minutes. Add haroset by heaping spoonfuls, in about six portions, stirring quickly and thoroughly after each spoonful. Stir in grated orange zest.

3. Spread chopped walnuts in a thin layer on a plate; spread coconut in another plate, and cocoa in a third plate.

4. Let chocolate mixture stand until it just firm enough to shape into balls. Make a small ball of chocolate mixture of about 3/4 inch, using about 2 teaspoons mixture and rolling it between your palms.  Roll ball in chopped walnuts, pressing firmly so they adhere.  Set the truffle on a plate or tray.

5. Make more balls from the chocolate mixture, rolling them firmly in chopped walnuts or coconut and adding a garnish if desired as each one is made. When chocolate mixture starts to stiffen, set bowl of mixture above the warm water to keep it soft and make shaping the balls easier. If the chocolate mixture gets too soft, remove bowl from above the water.

6. If you want to prepare cocoa-coated truffles with a garnish, have the garnish elements ready. Make chocolate balls from remaining mixture and roll them in the cocoa, rolling very lightly to get a thin coat of cocoa and setting a garnish element, if desired, on each ball as soon as it is coated. Press so garnish adheres. Set the candies on a plate.

7. If truffles are soft, refrigerate them until firm, about 1 hour. If you’re making the truffles ahead, refrigerate them in one layer in shallow airtight containers, and bring them to room temperature for serving. Serve them in small paper candy cups if you like.

Haroset Blond Brownies

These haroset-flavored bar cookies studded with dried fruit and chocolate are easy to make. If you want to make them pareve — suitable for kosher meat or dairy meals — use margarine.

Yield: 16 blondies

INGREDIENTS

1/4 cup finely diced (1/4-inch dice) dried figs

1/4 cup dried cherries, dried cranberries or finely diced (1/4-inch dice) dried apricots

1 tablespoon sweet red wine or grape juice

1/2 cup matzo cake meal (about 2 ounces)

1/4 cup potato starch (about 1.2 ounces)

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup (4 ounces or 1 stick) unsalted butter or margarine, soft, cut in small pieces

3 tablespoons grape seed oil or mild olive oil

1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar (about 2.4 ounces)

1/4 cup granulated sugar (about 1.5 ounces)

3/4 cup (packed) Sephardi Haroset (about 6 ounces)  (see recipe)

2 large eggs

1/2 teaspoon grated lemon zest (optional)

2.5 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped into small chunks of about 3/8-inch (about 1/2 cup chunks) or 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1/3 cup chopped walnuts

PROCEDURE

1. In a small jar combine diced dried figs and dried cherries and add wine. Close jar’s lid, turn jar upside down and shake it a few times to moisten fruit. Let mixture stand about 30 minutes while preparing remaining ingredients.

2. Position a rack in center of oven and heat to 350 degrees. Lightly butter an 8-inch square baking pan. Line pan with foil and butter the foil.  In a medium bowl mix matzo cake meal, potato starch and salt.

3. In a large mixing bowl using a hand-held mixer, or in a stand mixer, beat butter until it is smooth. Add oil, brown sugar and granulated sugar; beat until mixture is smooth and fluffy. Add haroset and beat on low speed until blended. Add eggs one by one, beating thoroughly on high speed after each one. Add 4 tablespoons of the matzo meal mixture and beat at low speed. Using a wooden spoon, stir in lemon zest, followed by remaining matzo meal mixture. Stir in dried fruit mixture and any wine in the jar. Stir in chocolate pieces.

4. Transfer batter to the pan and spread it in an even layer. Sprinkle it evenly with the chopped walnuts and pat them lightly so they adhere to the batter. Bake until top browns lightly and a wooden pick inserted into the center comes out nearly clean, about 18 to 22 minutes; if the wooden pick comes out chocolaty, test again.  Cool cake in the pan on a rack.

5. Turn cake out gently onto a plate, then onto another plate or a cutting board so that walnuts are on top. Using a sharp knife, cut it carefully into 16 bars.  If making the brownies ahead, store them in an airtight container at room temperature.

Faye Levy is the author of “Faye Levy’s International Jewish Cookbook.”

Disneyland is expected to see an initial reduction in attendance after reopening following the COVID-19 crisis before bouncing back with higher than usual crowd levels, according to new data from theme park analysts.

Touring Plans, which uses big data and statistical analysis to calculate daily crowd sizes and ride wait times at theme parks, projects that Disneyland will rebound from the coronavirus closure within two months and see a surge in attendance as visitors reschedule canceled vacations.

SEE ALSO: Disney theme parks donate 100,000 N95 masks to battle coronavirus outbreak

Disney’s two Anaheim theme parks, three hotels and outdoor shopping mall remain closed until further notice due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Touring Plans statistical analysis team has modeled several possible park reopening scenarios for Disneyland to see how they might impact crowds, according to Steve Bloom, a Touring Plans statistical analyst who studies theme park crowd levels and makes daily projections.

“A pandemic closing the parks is unprecedented,” Bloom wrote in a Touring Plans blog post. “We have data from the September 11 attacks that closed the parks and disrupted travel. During the 2008 recession, people reduced spending on vacations. The data for all disruptions in operations shows an initial reduction in attendance and then a bounce back.”

SEE ALSO: Hotels near Disneyland are taking reservations — but only for June 1 and after

As with any projections involving the COVID-19 pandemic, there are many unknowns when it comes to reopening Disneyland — from the length of the closure to changes in consumer behavior to potential travel restrictions.

“Once Disneyland reopens, we expect that it will take 8 to 10 weeks for attendance to reach normal levels and then attendance will be above normal as people reschedule their cancelled vacations,” Bloom wrote on the Touring Plans blog. “It would take a year for attendance to get back to normal levels.”

SEE ALSO: Aerial video shows Disneyland castle, Matterhorn mountain and Galaxy’s Edge during coronavirus closure

Touring Plans rates Disneyland daily attendance on a 10-scale, with low crowd levels assessed a 1 and the highest levels given a 10. For Touring Plans, a “normal crowd level” might mean a 4 on a Wednesday in April or a 10 on a Saturday in June.

Disneyland attendance is expected to be light after the park reopens — with crowd levels at 30% in week 1, 50% in week 3 and 80% by week 6, according to projections by Touring Plans. Disneyland crowd levels are projected to return to normal two months after reopening, according to Touring Plans.

At that point, an influx of visitors who rescheduled canceled vacations are expected to fill the park beyond normal crowd levels, according to Touring Plans. That crush of visitors is expected to level off about five months after reopening and remain at 140% of normal crowd levels for another four months, the Touring Plans data shows.

The influx of rescheduled vacations won’t begin to recede until nine months after Disneyland reopens, according to projections by Touring Plans. The parks are expected to finally return to normal crowd levels about a year after the park reopens, the Touring Plans data shows.

SEE ALSO: These 17 virtual Disneyland and Disney California Adventure rides are like being at a theme park

Touring Plans has modeled a series of scenarios with a variety of reopening dates — from late April and early June to the beginning of July and August. The attendance recovery patterns remain consistent with park reopenings that begin in April, May or June. But trouble arises if Disneyland’s reopening gets pushed into late summer, the Touring Plans data shows.

If the parks don’t reopen until July or August, the post-COVID-19 recovery could take much longer as the park heads into the natural post-summer attendance drop-off, according to Touring Plans. With a late summer reopening, attendance could see a much shallower recovery with Disneyland attendance unable to regain its footing until the Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas seasons, the Touring Plans data shows.

SEE ALSO: Marvel reveals Spider-Man comic based on Web Slingers ride coming to Avengers Campus

Disneyland’s eventual reopening date and other factors could affect the “adjustment curve” in the Touring Plans projection models, according to Bloom.

“The length of the pandemic and a potential subsequent recession will affect crowds returning to the parks,” Bloom wrote on the Touring Plans blog. “The shape of the adjustment curve will stay the same, but the length and magnitude of the curve will likely change.”

Disneyland officials, who rarely discuss attendance numbers, declined to comment.

This is how Kristen Orr began her weekend newsletter to residents of The Towers at Laguna Woods Village on Saturday, March 28:

“Good evening all! It was a gorgeous day in Laguna Woods Village! I hope you all had a relaxing day wherever you chose to isolate. I have stood back and observed the beautiful acts of kindness and sweet conversation between staff and residents this week—this community is one of a kind…”

Orr, general manager of the Towers, sends the newsletter to every one of the Towers’ 311 units seven days a week, to praise and cheer both residents and staff, to impart the latest news taking place in their residence and the rest of the Village and to alleviate feelings of isolation and boredom among residents, whose mobility and outside contacts might already be somewhat curtailed by time and now the coronavirus and the threat of its ensuing disease, COVID-19.

Orr went on to write that she enjoyed dancing with those who have become her neighbors. Orr recently moved into the Towers to stay even more on top of things than she was before the COVID-19 threat. She wrote about chalking up sidewalks with happy drawings and also encouraged staff to go beyond assigned duties and do things that not only serve the community but make them feel refreshed and alive. She reminded them that residents will appreciate little signs of love and connection now more than ever.

To reinforce feelings of connectedness between residents and staff, Orr said she moved the administrative office into the common area.

Even though the twin condominium highrises loom over a bucolic expanse of green, they’re something of a mystery to many Village residents more accustomed to their single- or two-story manors. The Towers is home to 320 residents whose average age is 87. Consequently, one might wonder how they are faring during the required sheltering in place in such close proximity.

The place is bustling, even now, with entertainment scheduled daily. Recently, Tony Rogers enthralled fans in front of the building, with all seated, as necessitated, 8 feet apart. Since every unit has a balcony, fans could also applaud him from above. As popular are the twice-daily shows when staffers, seemingly spontaneously, break into song and dance, spreading joie de vivre through golden oldies or younger fare.

To keep fit, residents can join chair exercise classes outside. Orr encourages participation. “I try to put something into every memo about exercise, fresh air and sunshine — programs that lift people’s spirits,” she said. “I also update on the health of the community, show plans for the next day and find creative ways to still follow rules for social distancing.”

Social distancing also means that dinners in the communal dining room were replaced by three-course dinners delivered to individual units. Similarly, the countless packages formerly delivered by personnel from UPS, Amazon, Fed-Ex and the US Postal Service are now handled by in-house staff in order to protect recipients. The Towers has 41 staffers who must abide by the 6-feet rule inside residences or outside, wearing requisite masks and gloves.

Orr credits staffer Luis Ramos with coming up with the idea of gathering all parcels before distribution to residents, thus protecting them from too many outsiders. “Everyone does their very best, but Luis stands out. He has taken on whatever anyone asks of him,” she said.

“Outsiders” also means friends and family. Only one person is allowed to visit at a time and, besides being called into a gate, guests must also register at the front desk and sanitize hands. Elevators only transport two passengers per ride.

Repairs are limited to emergencies and house cleaning is done by request only, but Orr stresses that she and staff are issuing recommendations rather than orders and that residents are compliant by and large.

“What they miss a lot is playing bridge and mahjong,” she said. Sometimes they take her to task: When she inadvertently parked in the landscaper’s spot, she got a friendly admonition but then a cleaver person took some chalk, crossed out the original designation and put her name on the spot instead, she recalled with a smile.

She also spoke of Blanche, the 103-year old resident who, while at Stater Brothers, asked her what she needed and duly brought the items for her. “Everyone rises to the occasion. I’ve seen the best of everyone,” Orr said.

Pets are part of the Towers family as well; there are 35 dogs and a slew of cats by accounts, and they too add to the communal ambiance, said Orr.

Ryna Rothberg was elected last year to her fourth term as president of Mutual 50, the Towers’ governing board. As a resident, she says she can make a contribution and cherishes the joys and challenges inherent in her position.

“People have settled in, and Kristin keeps everyone informed,” she said. “People walk with friends and with their dogs, and friends are maintaining their activities and are visiting each other,” she said — albeit in small groups to share food and a bit of wine.  “People move into the Towers because they have taken care of others all their lives and now they want to be taken care of themselves. No one has to be lonely.”

One might say that Lorraine Raft exemplifies most Tower residents except that she is also lucky to have her boyfriend and her son live in the Towers. She declined to reveal her age but said that while she already lived in the Laguna Woods for 11 years, she felt lonely after her husband passed away.

“People are very nice here; I have a lot of friends,” she said of her first year at the Towers. “I take a lot of walks and exercise. The staff does their very best. It’s a wonderful place to live at any time.”

The impasse is over.

Spectrum Networks announced Wednesday that it had reached an agreement with DirecTV and AT&T TV providers to add the Dodgers’ SportsNet LA channel. The agreement goes into effect immediately for DirecTV users and on April 8 for AT&T TV or AT&T TV Now users.

The carriage agreement ends a six-year battle of acrimony and absence. Since the Dodgers agreed to a record 25-year, $8.35 billion deal giving exclusive TV rights to Time Warner in January 2013, a large segment of Dodgers fans were unable to watch Dodger games on TV in their homes.

“It’s such great news for all those Dodger fans that haven’t been able to watch our games in recent years,” Dodgers team president and CEO Stan Kasten said. “I know how eagerly they’ve been waiting for this day and I’m so happy those guys (Spectrum and AT&T) were finally able to make a deal — which means once this pandemic is over we’re going to have a terrific team with a real chance to win a World Series, we’re going to have a beautiful, newly-renovated stadium and we’re going to have nearly everyone in Los Angeles able to watch our games.

“So the future looks bright — again, once we get past the pandemic.”

Negotiations for expanded carriage of the Dodgers’ network have been an off-and-on, largely unproductive cloud hanging over the franchise since the 2013 season. Mergers and sales changed the parties involved with Time Warner sold to Charter Communications and eventually purchased by AT&T. Tech-savvy fans were driven to find ways around the situation and watch games online.

“Listen, a lot has happened along the way,” Kasten said. “There were three mergers, two of them failed, there was a federal investigation against one of the other carriers. There were a lot of things that intervened that held things up. But at the end of the day there were two companies that finally had a way to work with each other, to give and get on both sides of the equation, that probably hadn’t existed until this most recent acquisition (by AT&T). It finally just made too much sense for them to reach a deal and I couldn’t be happier that they did.”

DirecTV subscribers can find SportsNet LA on Channel 690. The carriage agreement does not extend to Cox or Frontier cable subscribers, a small percentage of the Southern California market.

“This was a very, very substantial problem for all of us because it affected so many of our fans,” Kasten said. “We’re really glad to get this problem fixed for almost everyone.”

Q: Is takeout and delivery from restaurants safe right now? 

A: Well, food sales are considered essential services, and that’s really one of the few reasons anyone should be leaving their house during this crisis. We just have to be vigilant.

I recently ran to the grocery store to grab a few basics, and I encountered 20 times as many people (staff and fellow customers) in a single visit than I have in two weeks’ worth of restaurant pickups. 

I encounter minimal human contact when getting delivery/takeout. So which is safer? The latter seems to me to meet the definition of social distancing much better than the occasional trip to the grocery store. 

The Centers for Disease Control & Prevention says there’s no evidence to suggest the coronavirus is transmitted through food. It is generally spread through respiratory droplets and on hard surfaces. 

My colleague Fielding Buck recently wrote about how delivery services are offering contactless home delivery. And most of the restaurants where I have gone for takeout also have systems in place that let you pay and tip by credit card over the phone, with no need to sign anything when you arrive. Plus, when you get there, they either have curbside pick-up or else they have the front door propped open so that nobody has to touch the door handles or get to close to anyone. 

Whenever I go out to get food from a restaurant, I order enough to last several days rather than just a single meal. 

Anyone can be a vector, though, and everyone should assume they are. So I always wear gloves and a mask, and when I get home I wipe the containers before transferring the food to my own plates. I can’t begin to count how many times a day I wash my hands.  

Eat well. But do whatever you can to keep yourself and others safe. We will get through this. 

Got a burning question? Ask away. I might not respond personally, but you could see my answer here in the coming weeks.

Resources for restaurant personnel

Important information and guidelines regarding food safety and COVID-19 (including proper sanitation, hand-washing, package handling, safe customer contact, etc.): 

ServSafe, servesafe.com

OC Environmental Health Care Agency, ocfoodinfo.com

California Restaurant Association, calrest.org

California Department of Public Health, cdph.ca.gov

Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, cdc.gov

James Beard Foundation, jamesbeard.org