Hello, 2022!

COVID-19 updates, a new format for local news, and Desert Oracle eyes the end

Hello again from California’s high desert. I hope you had a restful end of 2021 so you were able to kick off 2022 feeling restored and refreshed. I spent a lot of time outside hiking and climbing these last few weeks, and I feel cautiously optimistic about accomplishing the goals I’ve set for this year because of that.

A lot has happened since you last heard from me, so please bear with me as I try to sort through all the items of interest to our community this week. This newsletter is a little longer than usual, so I am testing out a new format to try and get it all in. Let me know what you think — I’m curious to hear your feedback as to whether this is something I should continue. As with any new endeavor, this newsletter requires a lot of trial and error to see what works best. At the end of the day, I am writing for you all and want to make sure you are getting exactly what you need every Wednesday.

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In COVID-19 news:

Editor’s note: I am waiting for the day that COVID-19 does not need its own dedicated section for updates, but until then I wanted to round everything up in one place.

• At-home rapid COVID-19 tests are now available today to all households in the US. Each household is eligible to receive 4 tests for free from the US Postal Service.

  • You can order them through USPS directly or from covidtests.gov. Tests are expected to start shipping next week.

• The Joshua Tree Sportsman’s Club is still offering PCR tests three times weekly by appointment and walk-up. The center is a county-run testing site every Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m.

  • Appointments are highly encouraged to avoid long lines given increased demand, but health officials are also authorized to distribute at-home tests upon request to residents. You can make an appointment here.

• Cases in San Bernardino County are at an all-time high, with a record 6,406 cases reported county-wide on January 4. Reporting has lagged due to the holiday weekend, but many officials expect this to be an undercount given the popularity of at-home tests.

  • Those results are not reported to the county for the official case counts. For the comprehensive county report, see here.

• A reminder to practice patience and understanding with our community members. Many are working through reduced staffing and increased stress due to the current surge. It costs nothing to be kind to our fellow humans during once-in-a-lifetime public health emergencies.

• The Supreme Court blocked the Biden Administration’s vaccination requirement for businesses on January 14 but allowed the healthcare rule to stand for any facility that accepts Medicare or Medicaid payments. The rule had required all private companies to require employees to be vaccinated or undergo COVID-19 testing at regular frequencies. If you are curious to read the ruling in full, check it out here.

• California surpassed 7 million total coronavirus infections on Tuesday. The count includes all cases reported since the onset of the pandemic in 2020.

  • Officials were concerned at the rapid increase in total cases, stating that the state added roughly 1 million total positive cases in just one week.

In state news:

• The California Public Utilities Commission plans to dramatically scale back the state-established credits for surplus solar power from residential installments. The new plan aims to incorporate peak and off-peak usage, plus incentivize battery storage for solar panel owners.

• California became the first state in the US to allow any resident to sign up for Medi-Cal coverage, officials announced on January 12. The coverage would extend to the state’s 2.2 million undocumented immigrants that did not previously qualify for coverage.

• Here is a good breakdown of Governor Gavin Newsom’s budget proposals for the coming year, which include investments in housing development, contact tracing, and public education.

  • The state currently has a projected $45 billion surplus, and officials may be forced to return some of the funds to taxpayers in the form of stimulus checks due to existing provisions. Governor Newsom has not indicated his plans for repayment, though he did say at a press conference on January 10 that taxpayers could expect “substantial” contributions.

In local news:

• King of the Hammers returns to Johnson Valley next week for a 10-day event in “Hammertown,” the temporary settlement on Bureau of Land Management land.

• San Bernardino County is delaying its annual homelessness survey that was canceled a year ago due to ongoing COVID-19 concerns, officials announced January 14. The on-the-ground count was scheduled for January 27 but is now set to occur on February 24.

  • High Desert areas taking volunteers include Adelanto, Apple Valley, Barstow, Twentynine Palms, Victorville, and Yucca Valley.

• County-operated facilities like libraries and field offices are closed due to COVID-19 concerns through at least January 28.

  • Residents can call and reserve library items as needed during the closure, and wi-fi is still available at the Yucca Valley and Twentynine Palms locations. Trials and jury duties will be rescheduled.

• Twentynine Palms is getting new developments, hotels, and other businesses as the downtown area experiences rapid growth.

  • Editor’s note: If you haven’t already checked out Grnd Sqrl in Twentynine Palms, I highly recommend it! Great food and an awesome beer selection, plus they are hosting trivia on Thursday evenings.

• There is a virtual public meeting regarding Joshua Tree National Park’s proposed climbing management plan on February 8 from 6 p.m. until 8 p.m. Public comment on the plan opened on January 13 and will continue until February 27.

• Ken Layne of periodical magazine Desert Oracle announced Tuesday that it will publish its final four issues through the end of 2022 and at the beginning of 2023. Layne said he was unable to find a partner to publish the magazine and was unable to continue with it in addition to his other endeavors.

  • In true Desert Oracle fashion, its final issue will be lucky number 13.

In other news:

• A California congressman wants to make the 4-day workweek the law of the land.

• Southern California is experiencing a growing canine influenza outbreak. If your dog goes to daycare, boarding, or is around other dogs at all, experts advise getting the canine influenza vaccine.

• Do you like word games? Check out Wordle, an online word puzzle where you get six tries to guess the day’s word.

• You’ve probably already heard about Jason Momoa’s divorce, and no, you probably don’t have a chance with him.

• Microsoft announced its plan to buy video game maker Activision Blizzard for nearly $70 billion.

• Communications with Tonga remain limited after a volcanic eruption ruptured an undersea cable and cut the island nation off from the rest of the world.

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This was already a long email, so I am holding off on things of the week this time around. If there are any you’d like for me to continue highlighting, I would love to hear it! In the interim, please enjoy this photo of Alice getting extremely comfortable over the holidays.

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That’s it for this week! Please let me know what you think of the new format and whether it should stick around. I am all ears.

Have a great weekend, and get outside!

- Megan