Snow so deep you didn't just lose your car, but your house as well. And a couple weeks later after the streets and roads had been dug out, we still didn't have school because it was so damn cold, the school furnaces couldn't keep up even if there had been enough fuel. You gotta remember, this was in the middle of the Energy Crisis. (If you're younger than forty-three, you might need to look it up.)
That's what it feels like now. You know something's coming. You can't get out of its way. All you can do is prepare, hunker down, and hope for the best.
Governor DeWine has shut down K-12 public schools in Ohio for the next three weeks. A lot of colleges around us are going to online classes.
My father-in-law's assisted living facility is forcing everyone to use one entrance. Also, everyone is getting checked for symptoms when they enter: residents, staff, and visitors alike. And residents are restricted to one visitor per day. FIL is finding the whole thing amusing.
[Edit to add: FIL's facility has now gone on total lockdown. They're not taking ANY chances. I'm glad the manager and staff are taking this seriously. For those residents who aren't tech savvy, the staff is setting up Facetime, Skype, or other video conferencing for the residents and their families.]
DH's company has suspended travel and shut down their offices around the world. Everyone's working from home, but then, the majority of their employees already did so.
Genius Kid's military base is on lockdown for now. No one's allowed to leave except for the drill sergeants who live off base. And that may change depending on circumstances.
We went out for a couple of things yesterday evening we would absolutely need for the next three weeks--dog food, dog treats, frozen pizzas, and low-dose aspirin. I wanted some extra Pepsi Max because I'll working on the next Millersburg Magick Mysteries book. Alas, the Pepsi shelves were as empty as the toilet paper shelves. The weirdest thing the grocery store was out of--Dean's French Onion Dip. Seriously. Chip dip was totally gone. And all the bagels except for onion.
I'd already stocked up on tissues, Sudafed, and acetaminophen because allergy seasons has already started in abnormally warm and wet northwest Ohio. I have plenty of tea and coffee, not to mention a family-size bag of Doritos and Lays wavy chips.
It's a little disappointing a few movies I wanted to see at the theater are having their releases delayed. It's even more disappointing that I had to cancel plans for a research trip the first weekend in April.
But frankly, seeing a movie or visiting a haunted house is not worth my life. And it's definitely not worth spreading the virus around to other people who are in the vulnerable category like me.
In between writing sessions, I've got plenty of books, music, movies, and TV to keep me occupied, including one of my favorite series, Seven Days.
So be smart, take precautions, and Cthulu's sake, QUIT HOARDING THE DAMN TOILET PAPER!
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