The map I found on the Aljazeera.com website didn’t specifically indicate the location of Pagosa Springs. It didn’t specifically indicate any cities or towns at all, for that matter. But based on my extensive study of geography, I was able to mentally locate my home town right in the very middle of the dark red blob which is the continental United States of America. The epicenter of COVID-19.
Probably anyone looking at this map would thank their lucky stars that they didn’t live in the USA.
Except, of course, those of us who actually do live in the USA. The 329 million of us who, according to Aljazeera.com, are colored bright red. We might be feeling… well, a bit terrified?
But I also hear that international travel is opening up. The airplanes are flying again. It’s not like we’re stuck here in a blood-red country. There’s a big world out there, where things are a lot safer. China is a lot safer. Even Russia is safer, comparatively.
But sometimes the answer to our quest for safety and security is hiding in plain sight.
Greenland.
That huge gray blob hanging atop the Atlantic Ocean, quietly minding its own business. Apparently, there are so few cases of COVID in Greenland, it doesn’t even rate a color. Not even bright yellow.
You don’t hear much about Greenland in the news. What you do hear, generally has something to do with the glaciers melting, due to global warming.
What you don’t hear, is perhaps even more important. You don’t hear about, for example, a major economic collapse taking place in Greenland. From what I can tell, there’s not a single Republican or Democrat living there. They don’t have parking problems. Taxes are pretty much non-existent.
Ah, but then we have global warming. Most people probably don’t ever think about the fact that slightly more than half of Greenland’s name, is “Green.” That’s because, when the Vikings discovered Greenland back in the 1400s, the earth was going through one of its ‘warm’ phases, and Greenland was, in fact, green. Wonderfully green, and warm.
Not quite warm enough, however, for vineyards. The Vikings were apparently very fond of wine, and were looking for a place warm enough for planting vineyards. So they passed Greenland right by and continued on to northern Canada, where — during the 1400s — you could easily grow grapes and not pay any liquor taxes.
Luckily, we are in the midst of a global warming event that is going to put the 1400s to shame. Right at this moment, the real estate in Greenland is pretty darn affordable, because most of it is still covered with ice. But anyone thinking of retiring — aren’t we all? — in a place where the COVID color is “gray”… well, I think you can see where this is headed.
Now, my goal here is not to encourage Daily Post readers to rush to your computer and book a ticket on the next flight to Greenland. I’m not sure there are any flights to Greenland.
But I’ll eat my hat if, within the next few months, we don’t start hearing about real estate offices opening up there.
Heck, I will even eat my face mask.
Underrated writer Louis Cannon grew up in the vast American West, although his ex-wife, given the slightest opportunity, will deny that he ever grew up at all.