March 17th, 2020 … Tuesday
Friday the 13th … I should have known then the date falling on a Friday and affiliated with a full moon would wreck havoc. Yeah – I should have known. That combination brings out the crazies … but that day was different. It was much more than the usual lunacy.
I’ve returned from my trip to Colorado and North Carolina – nothing like scheduling a personal trip during a global virus outbreak. However, myself and both places were Covid-19 quasi-ignorant at the time of my departure. But things (as in “virus”) were changing daily/hourly and I cut my trip short and hightailed it home – back to the NW (infection city) before the airlines were shut down or the WA borders were closed. Neither has happened … yet … but I was worried they would. I left my home when the death toll in WA was 6 … 10 days later we’ve reached 50 people gone. While NOT GOOD … the virus, as of today, has taken nearly 8000 worldwide! It is beyond time to get serious.
I was in the airport in Charlotte when WA state was announcing school closures … when a friend of mine texted me that the grocery store supplies were at apocalyptic lows and the NBA had suspended play. I had left the basketball craziness in Greensboro but was experiencing my own kind of March Madness.
I watched the TV above my seat in the boarding area. Watched how our illustrious President – the Ignoramus in Chief – blatantly lied during a press conference and then took ZERO responsibility for the lack of direction coming from his office. Later he gave himself a “10” for doing so well with all things virus related. OMG. It’s apparent we cannot count on our highest office to offer any solace or direction. We need to be smart.
I feel like tossing my Girl Scout cookies but figure I’d better ration my cleaning supplies! And … what is it with people hoarding cleaning supplies? Cleaning supplies, sanitizers, food and … toilet paper. TOILET PAPER?!
What gives with the TP?! Yes – we are now in what the WHO is calling a global pandemic with the Covid-19 virus. Yes – it can be deadly for some people but the majority of people who get it will have mild to severe flu-like symptoms (2-14 days after exposure) … malaise, aches, fever, coughing and shortness of breath. If you experience any of those symptoms call your health care provider or 911. You might need medical attention (difficulty breathing) or maybe you might just need some rest and chicken soup.
But you will not need 120 rolls of toilet paper!
I started this post when I was in the air – 30,000 some feet up – and joked with my seat mates as we wiped down our areas well enough to make any HazMat worker proud – that if they had to use the plane’s bathroom, they’d better do it before some looney stole all the TP to sell on the black market once they arrived home!
Little did I realize how true that may have been! What is with people?! I joked (as in ONLY KIDDING!) with a friend that I’d been to 3 hotels last week and could have stolen a good dozen rolls and paid off my mortgage from selling them when the time gets right. I could have stuffed them into my sweater and if anyone said anything I’d just look sad and say, “Bungled boob job.” Alas, I missed my chance!
The guy sitting behind me on that flight – yeah, the one with the loud voice, the one coughing his fool head off and not covering his mouth, the one who turned his phone on before we landed – you know, the ass of the plane … was (presumedly) talking with his wife telling her to “make the rounds” and get as much as she could of said TP.
I wanted to engage him in a civil conversation about such ridiculous behavior but knew I couldn’t be civil. I figured an altercation somewhere over Utah probably wasn’t in my best interest.
I know this is unprecedented … I know this is scary … I know we are not in control. But hoarding things does not make any sense! And it certainly doesn’t help out the person who REALLY needs whatever you’d got 200 of.
People … (as my dad would say) … this is a dangerous and scary situation for many. For most of us – if we get it – our symptoms will be mild or non-existent. We’ll simply be carriers. Lock down, etc. will be a mere inconvenience for us – not life-threatening as it is for those compromised or elderly. And, yes – on the flip side there are financial hardships along with all of this. The trickle down effect from closing big businesses to those self-employed will have great impact … and may be absolutely devastating to some. And, the stock market will be in trouble. This outbreak has economic implications as well as health-related ones. But – do not panic. We will rebound. We will go forward. We are resilient. We can do this. And if we stay away from each other – this will all go away sooner. Or so we hope.
I am self-quarantining. I am not taking the chance of passing this along to any of my older neighbors. Am I worried about them? Yes. Am I worried about my 91 year old mom? Yes. But I have to have faith that people will be smart and do what they are told and the lack of social contact will be the demise of this virus. It will just die out. Eventually. In the meantime, stay in … stay away … stay safe.
Will we go stir-crazy before that happens? Maybe. But I am one of the lucky ones. I will not be that impacted. I could be in my home 6 months and still have projects to do and food to eat. It might be dog food – but it’s food. Let’s hope that doesn’t happen … but, if it does, it does. For those of us so fortunate … read a book. Be creative. Write some letters. Give a (gloved) hand. Clean your house. Play with your kid. Share some stories with others (mail, email, phone, social media, etc) … we do not have to be isolated while in isolation! It doesn’t have to be “awful” or so hard … financially for some yes – emotionally/mentally NO! Now is your time for a stay-cation. Relax into it and do not stress (it weakens your immune system)!
And I say this so easily because I am not scrambling for financial security. I am not worried about money for medication or food. I am comfortable in my home. I am not worried where my next house payment will come from because I’ve been let go from my job. For many of our neighbors this is complete reality and it’s scary. Be helpful and understanding as much as you can be. Be a light in the darkness. What control of this we have is to be cautious and care for those that now need assistance most.
I was around a LOT of people last week; I hate to think that I might be a carrier of this virus. I have no symptoms but without testing – how do I know if I’m positive or not? How do any of us? No one knows if they have it or not if they don’t have symptoms … and those with symptoms aren’t sure if it’s the regular flu (it is flu season) or a cold or allergies (spring) … so people continue on with their lives as testing is not available. I’m just not taking any chances. Nor should anyone else. This is not the time to be flippant.
We’ve been told to stay home. Hunker down. Wash our hands. Shelter in place. Practice social distancing. Limit our errands and the like. Yet, nowhere in any of these directives does it say to hoard toilet paper.
I’m not making fun of the situation … this is a frightening time for many people. I’m just poking fun at the idiots around us. I understand that this is so different for most of us because unless you are in your upper 70’s or older … we’ve never had a national emergency. We’ve never had to limit buying. We don’t know what it’s like to ration. We’ve never had to quarantine. But we don’t have to be jerks.
I saw on Facebook the other day a post that said, “Your grandfathers were called to war. You are called to stay home and sit on your couch. YOU CAN DO THIS.”
Exactly. We can do this. But we need to be respectful and responsible and helpful. Stop hoarding stuff. Ask your friends and neighbors how they are doing and if they might need anything – and maybe, just maybe in your time of need – someone will spare a square.