March 30, 2020
Today the governors of Maryland and Virginia and the mayor of Washington DC all declared lock-downs of their jurisdictions. A week ago all three officials had called for citizens to stay at home except for essential business. Today’s declarations are not much different, except they have the weight of reinforcement—imprisonment and/or fines for offenders. The numbers of confirmed cases are rising dramatically here—-over 1,000 confirmed cases in Virginia.
Basically citizens are restricted to their homes except for required work and essential errands meaning buying food and medicines.
The man in the White House withdrew his aspirational idea that everything would be back to normal by Easter and the churches packed, and called for social distancing to the end of April. He also said if the fatality rate was not more than 100,000 in the United States then he would have done a good job.
April 8, 2020
We are approaching Easter. We now have 3,340 known cases of Covid-19 in Virginia with 63 deaths.
CDC and the White House now recommend that we wear home-made masks when we go out in public, but not the N95 masks because those are in very short supply and are needed by medical personnel. At first we were told that masks would not protect us, they would only protect others, and that we would need training in how to put the masks on, so no one needed to wear masks. Now people are sewing masks and demonstrating how to sew them on YouTube.
Going to the grocery store has become a fearful expedition for many, and for those who work in the stores it is frightening, too. Many grocery stores have begun limiting the number of customers in the store at one time, have set up one-way aisle systems, marked the floor with tape for six foot distances at the check-out lines, and installed plexiglass shields to protect the cashiers. My last trip to the store was March 11th, but my son brought me food from Costco on April 1. I have a good supply of frozen and pantry foods, it is the fresh items I will run out of. There are food shopping services, but they are swamped with customers. One friend said it took her several days to get an order through—she was successful at 1:35 AM—and it will be delivered in five days. For we Americans accustomed to instant gratification, this is an adjustment.
A tiger in a zoo was diagnosed with Covid-19, apparently contracted from a keeper.
Meanwhile, it is spring. On my hilltop the pear tree has finished blooming, and the crabapple and forsythia blossoms are fading, but the red bud trees and Alleghany serviceberry tree are blooming. The serviceberry was so named because it was the one of the first trees to bloom when the ground was soft enough to dig graves after the winter, and hold funeral services.
Last night through my open window I heard the spring peepers.