COVID-19 Resources, Online activities and more!

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A Note from Work/Life

Dear Retirees;

Doris Kearns Goodwin’s Pulitzer Prize winning account of Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt during World War II is aptly titled No Ordinary Time . Suddenly, we too are experiencing a set of challenges unlike any we’ve ever known. With that in mind, we have decided this month’s retiree newsletter will be “no ordinary newsletter.” Instead, our focus will shift to COVID-19 and resources we thought might be helpful to our retiree community, whether you are practicing social distancing or currently spending time in quarantine.

The newsletter is divided into three sections:

Coronavirus-specific information focused on physical/mental health; safety; and challenges caused by shutdowns and closures
Resources and ideas to keep you engaged during this time of social distancing and stay-at-home orders
The general news and announcements that usual comprise the retiree newsletter

In sharing this information, we acknowledge two major challenges. First, we realize that while many of you reading this newsletter reside in the Ithaca area, others are scattered around the globe. Currently the new normal for those in New York City is drastically different than that for areas of the country yet to be hard hit by the virus. Second, COVID-19 developments are changing so rapidly that today’s advice is more and more often obsolete by tomorrow.

Please know that even though we are physically distanced, we are keeping our retirees in our thoughts. As always, we welcome your emails , suggestions, and questions.

Work/Life, Cornell Human Resources

COVID-19 Resources

Trusted Information About COVID-19

The amount of information (and misinformation) regarding COVID-19 can be overwhelming. Here are some trusted sources of information:

Shopping for Necessities

This article from Consumer Reports provides some good, basic advice on grocery shopping . It’s a bit daunting to think about washing all your produce with soap and water, wiping down every container before you put it away, and laundering your grocery bags, but these steps may help you to stay safe:

Services that will do your shopping for you (with options to have those groceries delivered to your home or to schedule a time for curbside pick-up) keep you out of the store altogether. Be aware that the per item price you’ll pay will be higher when using a shopping service, and that not all items on your list may be available on any given day. Because there is currently a huge increase in demand for these services, you may need to schedule well in advance. You can find some local services on the Cornell HR website .

To avoid the most crowded shopping times, you can Google the name and location of a local store and obtain updated information on how busy it is. You can scroll through the days of the week to see normal shopping patterns, and also see live updates showing how busy the store is currently. Keep in mind that even though very early and very late hours might be least populated, you also may find shelves much less stocked during those times. Many stores are now offering special hours for the older community.

Make an extended meal plan (2, 3, or 4 weeks worth of meals) – with a back up plan in case you aren’t able to find key ingredients for any given recipe – before you go to the store. Be aware many stores are now limiting shoppers to only one or two of many items (such as eggs, peanut butter, canned beans). Plan to be flexible and probably a bit creative with your recipes if you find you need to make in-store substitutions. It’s better than having to make a second trip.

Experts advise us to stock up on a month’s worth of prescription and over the counter medications . Now is the time to make sure you have everything you need! If you use a mail service that provides you with 3 months worth of your prescriptions with automatic refills, you should be fine. If you normally refill prescriptions on a monthly or as needed basis, make a plan to pick up all your prescriptions at once, or arrange with your pharmacy to have your prescriptions delivered, if they offer this as an option.

Local Farmers Extend Help

For those who wish to support local farmers and/or avoid large markets or grocery stores during the COVID-19 crisis, more than 400 farms and producers in Tompkins, Tioga, Schuyler, Chemung and Cortland Counties are listed on this website .

For those who wish to buy local meat in bulk for the freezer, there's a sister website, MeatSuite .

The Ithaca Farmers Market also has compiled this consumer directory of farms serving Tompkins County that are willing to deliver or have a farm stand with limited foot traffic. This is a living document— farms will continue to add themselves so please bookmark and check back.

Health and Wellness

Nutrition and Wellness with Cornell Wellness

Tending to our mental and physical wellbeing are so important during these times of self isolation. Finding ways to take care of yourself can be more difficult without the availability of the myriad choices we are typically used to. But Cornell Wellness continues to provide services to the Cornell Community via l ectures and workshops available through Zoom.

Lifelong Virtual Health & Wellness Classes

One of the things that helps to bolster the immune system, raise spirits, and prevent all kinds of physical conditions associated with aging is exercise. Although we've had to cancel our in person classes, we would like to offer some group activities virtually to help keep you healthy, and also to let you know we are still here and will be when this is over.

The classes we are offering are:

Chair Yoga: (Tuesdays & Thursday, 10:15 - 11:15 am)
Enhance Your Fitness: (Monday, Wednesday, Friday, 10:00 - 11:00 am)
Strength Training: (Thursday, 9:30 - 10:30 am)

How to Join A Class:

To join a class, you will need a Facebook account.
Search for the group you want to join by name (listed above; you may join all three).
Request to join the group. You will receive a notification that you are in the group.
On the day of the class, sign in and go to the group a couple of minutes before the class is due to start; when the instructor goes live you'll be in!

Although the instructor won't be able to see or hear you, she will see that you are signed in. Please leave a comment or greeting afterward so everyone in the group will see it and we will be together in some way.

Cancer Resource Center Online

Support Groups, workshops, etc. will be meeting via Zoom (a free, interactive online platform) until further notice. Please join by Computer, Smartphone or Tablet.

This is how it works:

Let them know that you are interested in joining one of our groups/workshops
Monica will send an email with the link & instructions the morning of each meeting/group.
Note: You do not need a zoom account to be able to join a meeting
Computer: Download Zoom>Click on the link>it will direct you to download>then it will take you directly to the meeting/group.
Smartphone or Tablet: Download the Zoom app.>Enter meeting number>then it will take you directly to the meeting/group.
If you don’t have speakers on your computer, you can call in 1-646-558-8656.

CRC wants to make sure they support everyone during this extremely stressful time. Many of us are new to this new platform, so if you have any questions, problems or ideas for how to make this information clearer, just let Monica know at monica@crcfl.net .

Stay Engaged Online

Cornell History Happy Hour

During this period of disruption, a sense of community is even more important. Each spring semester, hundreds of students at Cornell University gather on Monday nights to learn about Cornell history by taking AMST 2001: The First American University. With the suspension of classes, all members of the Cornell community are invited to join in the fun with a virtual Cornell History Happy Hour each Monday night until classes resume. Come learn about historic campus disruptions, share Cornell trivia, and ask questions.

AMST 2001 is taught by Corey Ryan Earle ’07 and explores Cornell’s identity as “the first American university,” referring to its unique role as a coeducational, nonsectarian, land-grant institution with a broad curriculum and diverse student body.

Join the Cornell History Happy Hour on Mondays at 7:30 pm by using Zoom.

Seed Starting 101

Wednesday, April 1, 6:00-8:00 pm

@YOUR DEVICE via ZOOM!

Grow everything from artichokes to zucchini from seed at home. Save money and enjoy the miraculous process of seed germination and plant growth in your home to get you through these last weeks of winter and get your garden started early. We’ll cover techniques such as cold stratification and scarification as well as simple recipes for making your own potting and fertilizer mixes to save even more money. We’ll talk about tools such as grow lights and heat mats and soil blocks.

Cost: $0-$30/person self-determined sliding scale; pay what you can afford. Register and pay online . Questions? Contact Jennie Cramer, Horticulture Program Manager, at jrc10@cornell.edu , (607) 272-2292 ext. 146.

Cornell Online Streaming Resources

Cornell Library offers a large number of no cost streaming videos that may be both educational and entertaining during this more isolated time. From Shakespeare to history documentaries, you can find a little bit of everything! Kanopy offers movies, documentaries and courses, and is free to Cornell ID holders through Cornell Library. Library locations are currently closed but click here to find info on accessing services and resources remotely.

The Lab of Ornithology offers some great online options - check out their various Bird cams from all over the world, including our very own red tailed hawks on campus, which now have eggs in the nest!

Looking for concerts, cooking classes, or workouts online? Check out CornellCast - they even have the latest Cornell fashion show online!

Cornell Lectures Available

Now is a great time to catch up on some Cornell Lectures. Check out some options below:

Retiree Celebration Postponed

Cornell’s guidance on cancelling or postponing gatherings, in venues both on and off campus, is now active with no specified end date. Due to this fact, we are postponing the spring celebration of Cornell Retirees.

Although we were all very excited to join together for breakfast and welcome Jonathan Lunine speak, we must follow university guidelines and keep everyone’s safety a top priority.

We will reschedule and hold the event at a future date.

We apologize for any inconvenience.

Cornell University | 607-255-0388 | hr.cornell.edu/retirees | cornellretirees@cornell.edu