These are difficult and troubling times for all of us with the country in a semi lockdown. I say semi because we still have the ability to go to the grocery store and Home Depot to keep our larders full and to buy the materials to fix whatever may be broken. The ban is really on socializing with others except from the safely prescribed distance of 6 feet. Even then, people with any of the symptoms, fever, sneezing etc should remain indoors and secluded.

I can’t imagine what it must be like if you happen to live in apartment as so many people do, especially if you have kids. Keeping them amused and busy must be a major problem and everyone must be going stir crazy. These times indeed are a true test of the Parent’s patience not even to mention how trying it must be for the kids. For any Parents that are working from home, a real test in concentration.

For me, I am one of the lucky ones as indoor seclusion is a normal part of my daily life. I live alone and have done for these past 28 years so the current situation is just an extension of my normality. I am fortunate in as much that I own my own home and it is situated on a half acre lot meaning that I have a large back yard that takes up a lot of my time. This plus the 4, soon to be 3 ponds and the couple of hundred Goldfish and Koi always take up some part of my day. Just lately, when I am in the mood to exercise, I take the two remaining dogs for a walk around the local neighborhood saying “Hi” to all of the other people doing the same thing. Nobody stops to talk except for the greeting and we usually pass on opposite sides of the street. To be truthful, I only know the people whose houses are situated close to mine and these other people whose paths we cross, are really strangers. I didn’t realize it until I started walking with the dogs, that I can cover as much distance on one of these walks as I do when I hike at the local Parks. There, I usually average between 4-5 miles and on my local walk yesterday, covered almost 4 miles with still some streets that I have not yet walked.

I can’t help wonder how this is all going to end as I suppose most of the world is having the same thoughts. In the USA where I live, we have not yet reached anywhere near the peak of this thing. My own guess is that we will probably be in lockdown through the end of May and even beyond that. What that will do to the economy and to the individuals affected by this with no money other than unemployment coming in and rents and mortgages due along with car payments and other large items such as credit card debt, remains to be seen. It will probably take another couple of years for the economy to settle back down that is assuming that it does. Without a vaccine, it is still not clear if those once affected are immune and in the future and could maybe catch it for a second or even third time creating a never ending cycle of contagion.

Scary thoughts for today’s blog.

Written 4/6/2020