Who could ever have imagined a world in which we drive store to store in search of toilet paper, especially here in the Paper Valley? It’s a mad, mad, mad, mad world.
But, it doesn’t have to be an angry one.
It’s a disappointing world, especially for people who’ve worked their whole lives to qualify for an event and then had it canceled or postponed indefinitely.
But, it doesn’t have to be a bitter one.
It’s a challenging world and it will get even more so as this business of social distancing really takes hold.
But human beings are born to rise and it is true that what doesn’t kill us makes us stronger and hopefully more empathetic.
A global pandemic, by definition, affects everyone and I think some really good things can come from this one:
- Better hygiene in general and hand washing in particular.
- A renewed appreciation for good ole soap and water.
- More flexible work opportunities for people who are sick and…
- Sick people who stay home until they aren’t contagious anymore.
- A healthy understanding of our human vulnerabilities.
- Respect for our healthcare workers who often risk their own well-being to render aid.
- Perspective.
I hope you all stay healthy and reasonably happy and, if you are a theatre student whose spring show is canceled, or a college athlete who won’t get to play in the NCAA Tournament, or a traveler whose trip-of-a-lifetime has been postponed, or a person with a compromised immune system who is really scared right now, or an hourly wage earner who is very worried about what your next paycheck is going to look like, please know that we’re genuinely sorry for what you’re going through and we’ll help in whatever way we can.
It’s a mad world right now, but we can get through it together.
Note: The first round of our Don’t Touch Your Face Challenge ended with a winner so surprising even he couldn’t believe it. “I never thought I’d win anything like this! I’ve never won anything in my life!” he said dramatically. Ironically, the biggest germaphobe in the house finished last. (Mostly because he was a compulsive self-reporter).
This week’s winner has requested steak tacos and that’s what we’re going to make. We’ll keep you posted on round two.
I was with the airlines in 9/11. After that, I hoped I would never witness destruction to our country’s economy again. And here, we go again….. It’s so sad…. So MANY people affected.
How long did it take the airline industry to recover from 9/11?
It was years. My F/A base, DFW and IAH, SEA, PDX, MIA, ORD and MSY closed in 2005, all well as smaller hubs downsizing — DFW went from 320 flights/daily to somewhere in the 20s. I took an early out then. I was 55. My husband was also affected in his job. He took the early out too. We figured we’d just get jobs with our qualifications – I was management and Rick was supervisor. One hiccup. We couldn’t compete with the younger people despite having same skills. We were considered “overqualified” or “too old.” After 31 years with Delta, I went through 8 employers in 8 years – both full and parttime jobs with limited medical coverage. Instead of talking to airplanes, Rick built airplanes. The hardest part was our 401K recovery. Our investments tanked with 9/11 and we’re seeing similar now. The bad part is 15 years later and living on SS since 66, we’re getting whammed again. While it’s nice Congress is working on a recovery package for the working families, they are forgetting seniors except to remind us how dangerous this is for those over 65 and with other medical conditions. There is nothing for us who are on fixed incomes and an empty portfolio that we were counting on in the “golden” years.