It hit me on Saturday 3/14/20 when I was getting my hair cut and highlighted (timing is EVERYTHING) that this could be bad. Really bad.
My hair stylist and friend Andrea said she had been talking to her sister in Ohio and her sister said things were going to get really bad based on the news they were getting. We hadn't heard much here in FL and I knew Andrea was not an alarmist so I took this seriously.
Since my Dad and I live together we kind of came up with a list of things we would need to do/purchase just in case.
Sunday morning, we headed to Costco at opening.
Toilet paper and paper towel packs were piled in the middle of the aisles since they just got a shipment in. Grabbed a giant pack and then a few minutes they were gone. People laugh at the toilet paper hoarding but damn, if there is one thing you don't want to be without it's toilet paper!
Realizing this was getting real we picked up staples. Since refrigeration wouldn't be a problem since this wasn't a hurricane, frozen and fridge items were purchased. But in the back of my mind was the idea of what if things really go south and we lose utilities; water, electric. Can't worry about that now. Deal with the current situation.
The uncertainty of it all was so disconcerting.
Looking back I am so fucking angry that people KNEW what was going to happen but felt that the people would be better off not knowing and just left us to fend for ourselves with no knowledge, no plan, no answers. Even is the answer was 'We don't know.'
This is when you need government and our government failed us. And continued to fail us over and over again over the next year.
I’m incredibly grateful that we have finally reached a point where we can finally show what government can DO for the people.
On a personal note, this is the first diary I’ve written in almost 10 years and still feel an attachment to this community and lurk daily.