Day 3734

I'm glad my gym was still open this morning. There were a few additional signs about wiping down the machines after use, but just about everyone did that anyway. The only changes I noticed were that the water bottle and paper cups had been removed from the water dispenser and all the magazines had been removed from the magazine rack. All the gym rats were still there. I don't think anything would deter these people from exercising.

The gym seemed comforting and familiar, but the grocery store certainly didn't. I've never seen the shelves so empty. Bottled water, toilet paper, cleaning products, diapers, and many other items were completely gone. There was a long line of people waiting for something at the back of the store. I don't know what they were waiting for. When I got my items and left the store, the line was still there and nobody had moved.

When I went to pick up a prescription at a pharmacy located inside a different grocery store, the situation was the same. Empty shelves everywhere. Conditions like these are what causes panic buying. You can't help but thinking that all the other people must know something you don't.

Before I headed home again, I went to Home Depot to look for an in-line dimmer switch for a floor lamp in the living room that had broken. Apparently they don't make these things anymore. I needed to find something to turn the lamp on and off and ended up buying a WiFi plug that claimed it would let me switch things on and off with my phone. The high tech switch turned out to be even harder to connect to the network than our new petcam, but I ultimately got it to work.

It's raining pretty hard now, so the time I spent on the roof removing all the standing water this afternoon was a totally wasted effort. Janet said the pumps on the roof were working while I was gone, but they must not have been working well. There was a lot of water on the roof. This roof is almost as frustrating as the virus. The problems never seem to end.

Janet and I both thought we had plenty of food on hand, but rumors are swirling now about a 14-day lockdown. We both made a list of things we might need if the grocery stores and restaurants were closed and will go shopping again tomorrow. Most of the things we like to eat are only available fresh, but a lot of fresh meat and vegetables can be frozen. We'll try to be creative. Neither of us plan on eating canned beans for the next month.

Dawn doesn't appear to be afraid of storms at all. There is lots of thunder and lightning right now and she is snoozing calmly on the bed. Dawn has seen some hard times in her life, but she seems to have learned to handle almost anything. She is one of the most calm and well adjusted Dalmatians I've ever seen. If the world continues to go to hell in a handbasket, she'll be good to have around.

If you've been reading this blog for a while, you already know that I'm not a big fan of globalism. I wonder if people will start listening to me now? We need to start making the things we need ourselves again and quit being so dependent on China. What we are seeing now is what happens when you outsource everything just to save a few bucks. It is unbelievably that we get most of our medicine from China. Who let this happen? We need to rethink a lot of things as a country. I hope we can finally put and end to all our political bickering and get to work.

Carmine is today's Dalmatian of the Day

Watch of the Day