The New Reality: Living in a Pandemic

"The Scream" by Edvard Munch

My Fears of 2020

Just before the new decade dawned, I had a sense of foreboding. At the end of December, 2019, as everyone was getting ready to ring in the new year, I wasn't feeling good about 2020 at all. Maybe it was the dissonance I felt from three years of living under a Reality TV show President who spent every day of those three years using social media and television to villify fellow citizens, his political opponents, the press, scientists, public servants, immigrants, and women while praising the likes of Vladimir Putin and other autocratic rulers, climate change deniers, misogynists, racists, and sycophants.  I felt exhausted - mentally and physically.  My weight had increased to a dangerous obese level, my drinking of alcohol was excessive, I carried too much credit card debt, and my marriage was tettering because we were being driven apart by radically different political values.

Making Positive Changes in My Life

During the last month of 2019, I began to make positive changes in my life. I began to aggressively pay down my credit card debt.  I re-evaluated my modest IRA account which was mostly invested  in safer bond mutual funds during 2019 because I feared that an economic collape was coming under Trump and the dangerous debt loads of businesses.  But I lowered my guard because the stock market was making huge gains and I decided I better get on board with more stock funds and by December 20th, I had re-balanced my account to 41% stock funds. And as a result my IRA increased by $1000 from Dec. 20th until the 19th of February, 2020. My husband and I took a vacation to Minnesota to visit his daughter and her fiancé and our two grand-children for Christmas  Upon our return, I decided to change my life-style to lose weight. On December 30th, I began a strict Keto Diet.  Many of us watched the Democratic Presidential Primary elections and caucuses with hope that a single strong Democratic nominee would emerge to beat Trump in November.  In January,  I began to read with concern the news about a viral epidemic in Wuhan, China.  But improvements in my personal life gave me a false sense of personal security.

Dark Clouds On the Horizon

In January, 2020, the press was reporting about a novel corona virus (Covid-19) that was ravaging Wuhan, China.  Now that epidemic was spreading very quickly throughout the world.  The corona virus made "landfall" in the USA January 21, 2020 in Seattle and soon killed several elderly Americans in a nursing home there.  Our President downplayed the danger, even condeming Democrats and the press for spreading a "hoax" to damage him and the stock market. He finally took an action January 31st to ban travellers from China as the Health and Human Services Department declared a Public Heath Emergency.  Trump followed up the China Travel Ban with travel bans from the Islamic Republic of Iran, and the Schengen Area of Europe. Intially he excluded the UK as a favor to Boris Johnson despite the high incidence of corona virus in the UK, He later included the UK in the travel ban as their epidemic grew exponentially and even their Prime Minister was stricken with the virus.  New international fears arose when Cruise ships began to be quarantined in February as the virus spread among passengers and crew.  Fears of the effects of the corona virus on business and the move by Russia and Saudi Arabia to lower their price of oil and increase production combined for the perfect storm in the investment climate.  The stock market took a big drop on February 20, 2020 and could not recover.

The Trump administration began to change it's tune in March, 2020, probably as a result of the stock market collapse.  But he had dithered for about eight weeks too long due to his very short-term thinking and need to use positive "spin" to promote himself regardless of facts.  The States had already begun to take action and the prognosis wasn't good.  On March 11th, the World Health Organiziation (WHO) had declared Covid-19 a pandemic.  On March 13th, President Trump declared the Covid-19 Pandemic a National Emergency.

Social Distancing Mandated by Individual States

Very quickly, the scientists and public health experts began to take center stage.  Watching the terrific rise in cases and deaths in Italy from corona virus led scientists to advocate "social distancing" as a means to slow the spread and "flatten the curve" so hospitals and doctors would not be over-run in the 4th week of infection incubation.  Workers were told to stay home, gatherings of 10 or more have been prohibited, school has been cancelled, runs on grocery stores have depleted the shelves.  People hunker down in their homes, hoping to neither infect nor be infected by human contact.  The economy is in a free fall and a recession, even a depression, is forecast as a possible outcome.  Political futures in the 2020 Presidential election year are in flux. There is no "Quick Fix" for this Pandemic and it will be around for months or even years: "The Virus Can Be Stopped, but Only With Harsh Steps, Experts Say".  



The Personal Toll of Living In A Pandemic

My grand-children are out of school.  I care for them when my daughter and her husband cannot because they must work or they are flat out having an emotional break-down.  I follow the teachers and librarian suggestions and utilize many educational internet and You Tube websites.  I developed a schedule for the kids to follow with their own daily suggestions. The kids are watching very little TV and we get out about an hour a day to play in the fresh air.

My husband and I are watching movies at home but we both probably spend too much time watching the news and that is depressing.  We are sitting outside some days now that it is warmer. I find joy in watching the spring flowers bloom and the birds singing and building nests.  We had taken a long road trip to Cleveland to visit my husband's daughter and her family (February 26-March 7).  It was 4 days and 3 nights of driving each way and he had to have an emergency tooth extraction and infection treated in Kansas City on our return trip.  The trip and the infection has really knocked him down.  

I had a scheduled eye surgery March 13 (cataract extraction and partial cornea transplant -  a DMEK procedure for my Fuchs' Dystrophy)  My daughter took me to my post-op visit the next day and took my husband to Urgent Care next door where the doctor gave him a stronger antibiotic for his infection. I returned a week later for a checkup on my eye to a new regimen of temperature check at the entrance and verification that I had an appointment.  No elective surgeries and no medical visits to doctors if you aren't recovering from a surgery or suffering from symptoms of the virus.  Medical staff are trying to keep healthy and preserve precious supplies of PPE and hospital beds and equipment needed to deal with Covid-19 patients.

My decision in December to increase stock holdings in my IRA proved short-sighted.  I lost all my earnings and am now a $1000 down into my principle savings.  At least I have monthly Social Security and pension payments and am not worried about a loss of a job's income.  My children are truly worried about their financial future as they face layoffs or even loss of employment.  I stopped at a local restaurant during the week for a carry-out order and I include a big tip.  They are trying to hold on but with only pick-up and delivery and few customers, it doesn't look good for our local small businesses.  Things will get much worse in the next eight weeks.  Follow the Pandemic stats worldwide, by country or by US State here.

The Good News

I have lost 12 pounds on my Keto Diet since 12/30/19.  My cholesterol tests I took in February were all normal (first time in 40 plus years that my triclycerides were not sky high!).  My fasting blood glucose readings are usually below 100 (normal!).  I no longer drink alcohol.  I call my friends and family everyday.  I am helping my grand-children to normalize their life and to keep learning and loving.

My eye that was operated on is in excellent shape and I can now drive and read.  I have almost paid off all my credit card debt. I am re-examining my priorities to care more about each day, my loved ones, my community and my personal well-being.  Life is precious, indeed!