As we all get ready for a new week, all the medical experts tell us the spread of the coronavirus will only get worse. We still have to figure out how to test people. Then we’ll how know many more people have the virus. So those who have symptoms or been exposed and get a doctor’s approval, can look forward long lines in Walmart parking lots as people in hazmat suits stick a long swab in their mouths to take a sample. Oh, and that great web site that a Goggle subsidiary is working on to tell us how to self diagnose and what to do and where to go to wait on line that the president said would be up and running tonight, not so fast. Trump never says anything that doesn’t need a follow up, correction or explanation. Google says they’re working on a prototype that will be tested in the San Francisco area. They don’t know when it will be ready. Oops.
Before I think about the coming week, I’m still trying to process this past week, when I was suppose to be celebrating my birthday. We were all dealing with crazy stock market gyrations. I spoke with my financial advisor twice. I’m sure many of you did the same. My birthday was Tuesday, when most businesses were still functioning. Coincidentally, we were having two new windows installed in our house. Two guys showed up on time. But I started to notice that one guy was doing most of the work, while the more senior guy was walking around outside the house on his cell phone. He was walking along the side of the house, then he was walking back and forth in front of the house on the phone. He then got up on the scaffolding to work on the window, smoking a cigarette and holding the phone under his chin as he was chalking my new window. I was tempted to call the company and complain, but I held off. A short time later, I see the two guys packing up the truck in my driveway. I realize they didn’t install the second window. I opened the door and ask, “Hey, aren’t you guys going to put in the back window?” Phone guy says, “Oh, Mr. Archer I was going to come in and speak with you. I just quit the company.” Oh course, I was surprised. I said “You’re quitting right now?” He went on to say the company wasn’t paying him what they promised, and he couldn’t feed his kids. I said you couldn’t quit last night or this morning before coming out here, and you’re leaving after doing a half assed job? He got very insulted and called me “a f…ing a…hole”. I would have preferred happy birthday. I told him to leave. The company was just as shocked as I was and responded very quickly. They knocked money off the price and got a very good crew back the next day to finish the job. I told my wife that’s the first time I’d been called that on my birthday.
But back to the pandemic. The next night was the Oval Office address which just showed how much trouble we’re in. We saw how reassuring it was the next day, when the stock crashed. Then we had the follow up news conference on Friday to correct, explain, and clarify the Oval Office address. Trump surrounded himself, not only with public health experts, who he doesn’t listen to, but executives from big companies like Walmart, Walgreens, and CVS who are going to let the government use their parking lots for the tests we still don’t have. Trump continued to shake hands with each executive as they got up the podium except for one guy who surprised him the an elbow bump. Trump had said the White House doctor told him he didn’t need to be tested even though he was exposed to several people who have tested positive. Of course, that was followed up by a press release from the White House medical office saying Trump would be tested. He’s negative. So he’s free to continue to lead the country through the crisis one stumble at a time. He was most happy after the news conference that the stock market jumped way up. Tomorrow is another day.
And finally, my wife and I were scheduled to travel to Texas this week to help our son and his family move into a new house. We really wanted to go thinking there would be no one at the airport or on the plane. But, our son said it’s not an emergency and the wiser course is to stay home. He’s right. We cancelled. We now get to sit home and self isolate. We’re not sick and haven’t been exposed, but there’s no place to go. The state of Pennsylvania is urging non-essential businesses to close and for people to stay home. No malls, no restaurants, no bars, no gyms, no movie theaters, no big meetings, work from home, schools closed, stay six feet away from everyone if you do go out. The few places open like supermarkets don’t have anything.
So as I sit here celebrating the end of my sixth decade, I realize it’s March 15th, the Ides of March. The Romans used to call the middle day of the month “ides” from the Latin meaning “to divide”. It was also a day for settling debts. But March 15th is considered an unlucky day. It goes back to 44BC when Julius Caesar was assassinated. Let’s hope we can look forward to a better week than he did. I’m looking forward to next year’s birthday to start a new decade. But I’m will not be having any windows installed.
Happy birthday?