I don’t know that I even have the energy to list all the cancellations and disruptions that were listed by the time I went to sleep last night at about 11:30. Businesses here in New York City are closing and/or giving the option of working from home. The stock market continues to tank so badly that we are now officially in a bear market for the first time in 11 years. Nobody is untouched and to be fair the numbers of sick are increasing exponentially in a very typical epidemiological pattern. It’s not just increased testing that’s driving up the numbers, because testing isn’t available at all in most of the country. The president got on television last night and announced broad travel bans that include the European Union (with the exception of the UK). It’s all unprecedented but it’s always been a case of when, and not if.

The funny (although not necessarily haha funny) part of it is that about the only thing more tedious than the panic is the stoicism. I won’t even call it real stoicism. It’s public proclamations that ring very hollow. You just want to say, “Since you don’t really know, please just shut up.” You are going to feel really stupid if someone close to you gets very ill. And to be sure, people who are afflicted with other life-threatening ailments are frightened to go to the hospital. That is only one part of the ripple effect. This is brand new for all of us here in The West… and probably The East too. I must say with no small degree of shame that I really don’t know about The East and what they’ve suffered. It’s all seemed very distant, watching on the nightly news.

ODAAT.

I will play it one day at a time. I will go to work today and be one of about 4 or 5 people in the office willing to do so. Cancellation calls are coming in a steady flow and I expect that flow will grow stronger today. Someone has to answer the phones. It is our duty to respond. C’est la vie.

There will be no humor in this update this morning. Not feeling it.