Coronavirus / COVID-19

Dec 2019 - TBD 2020

Starting in December 2019 the global coronavirus pandemic began, and quickly spread (timeline here). In January 2020 is was growing globally, February saw the first US death and travel restrictions, and by early March US cities were being locked down after a National Emergency was declared. From the guidance of our employers, the last day Michele and I reported to regular work was Friday the 13th, and began working remotely from home starting on Monday March 16th. In San Diego in particular, the situation accelerated rapidly when on March 19 California Govenor Gavin Newsom ordered a "shelter in place" order.

This page captures a few thoughts, considerations and memories for this series of unprecedented events. As the pandemic spread, it's worth noting how quickly events accelerated. I recall listening to NPR correspondents reporting from inside of Wuhan in February during their lockdown, and thinking that such a thing wouldn't happen here. Yet in a few weeks, it already had. Once the National Emergency was decleard, people started "panic buying" all manner of goods, and while this initially seemed like an over-reaction, it only took a few days before store shelves were empty. Therefore, if you had not been influenced by the tendencies of the herd, and participated in (and in doing so contributed to) the escalation of emotional reaction to the pandemic, you could potentially be left without. Such is the irony of groupthink and panic reactions. Fascinating to read about, but much more surreal when you are in the midst of such an event.

There were a number of fortunate events that allowed us to transition to this new reality in a manner that was much easier, had these events not occured. None of these events occurred in anticipation of any disaster or "prepping" for doomsday scenarios:

• On Sunday October 27 2019, Michele and I moved into our new home. We purchased a 3 bedroom, 2.5 bath ranch style home on 0.7 acres in Escondido, CA on a high hillside looking towards the hills and Palomar Mountain to the east. Narly half of the property is grass with fruit trees and a blank slate for creating landscaping and gardening. This is the single most serindipitous event before the pandemic, as we regularly acknowledge that life would have been much more difficult in an apartment lacking natural light or direct access to a green space. We also decided to create an outdoor home gym rather than joining a local gym... the right move in hindsight.
• On Sunday Jan 26 2020, Michele and I held a Housewarming / Super Bowl party. In preparation for this party we excessively stocked up on supplies such as paper towls, napkins, cleaning supplies, toilet paper, food and beverages, etc... We were left with a stockpile of exactly the types of goods that would soon be in short supply.
• On March 12, 2020, a yearlong Community Planning Process in the APS Division of Plasma Physics concluded with the final report being concluded and posted online. This was a major effort by the community, and the personal investment in time and travel by many was concluded with a collective sigh of relief. Just in time... the following day was the last day of regular work for many before lockdown.

As of the writing of this page (March 28), we have only left the house once since the lockdown was ordered. We drove past Torrey Pines on Saturday March 21 to see the ocean, and found a large population of San Diegans at the beach, as if all was normal in the world. This fact did not escape the local news media or the notice of government officials. Two days later, all beaches and parks were closed.