The Coming Plague*

My blogging and other writing got delayed this morning, even though I was up early.  As I was reading through all sorts of corona virus information and updates, I decided to go to the WalMart Neighborhood Market right when they opened at 6 a.m.  Yesterday I gave away a bottle of cough syrup to a friend who needed it; this morning I was thinking about supplies we might need, if we get sick.  We have plenty of aspirin and ibuprofen, but we don't have much for coughs and other cold symptoms that might come with a Covid 19 infection.

I decided to go this morning because when I went to Trader Joe's last night on my way home, I was startled by the lack of food in some areas.  The store had the usual Friday crowd for 5:45 at night.  What was unusual: the whole freezer section was completely empty, completely wiped out, as was the bread section and the fresh meat section. The cheese section was still full, so I bought my usual cheeses that I buy there. And happily, there was beer and wine, which was the main reason I stopped. I also bought a container of yogurt--there was plenty of yogurt, along with some milk--but the milk's pull date was March 13, which was that day. There were no eggs, and all the potato chips and tortilla chips were gone. The pasta was gone too. Plenty of nuts, but I don't need any nuts. The produce looked well stocked.

As I drove home afterward, I started thinking about supply chains and possible disruptions.  I have enough food for 2-4 weeks, but what if everything is disrupted and once we've eaten all that food, we don't have any more?  I also read  a post from a nurse about what we might need to take care of a Covid 19 infection if we got a mild case that we could treat at home. 

I thought that I should stock up on some over the counter flu medication before everyone else realized we might need it.  Ha!  That section of WalMart was close to wiped out, although I did get a few items.  No cough syrup to be had, but I got cough suppressant tablets, along with multi symptom meds.

I also stocked up on food while I was there.  I have now bought enough brown rice to last for the next 6 months, plus a variety of beans, both canned and dry. No toilet paper to be found--but frankly, I'm not as worried about that.  I bought baking supplies, just in case.  I don't need bread from the store if I have enough flour, and before this morning, I didn't have enough flour for a long quarantine.

What's strangest to me about this crisis so far is the mix of responses.  Coming home last night, I saw groups of youth sports practicing in city fields and rec areas. I knew I should be concerned about public health, but I was glad to see kids, parents, and coaches, under a beautiful evening sky.

The community colleges where my spouse teaches are sending mixed messages.  Classes are moving online, but all the faculty and staff should continue to be on campus. If schools are moving classes online to avoid social contact, why have people continue to come to work?  Some of my friends fume about the schools feeling like faculty and staff are expendable while protecting students, but I think it's just that administrators haven't thought the whole process through.  Or they have lots of motives that are at cross purposes with each other.

The school where I am an administrator only has 7 days left of Winter quarter; Spring quarter starts on April 6.  I imagine that many decisions will need to be made between Monday and April 6, but many of them won't be up to me.  Let me enjoy this tiny time of quiet, the time before the coming plague.


*Today's literature of the plague allusion:  The Coming Plague by Laurie Garrett, an amazing book