My Thoughts on COVID-19

Clean Like Nobody’s Watching!

I’m praying that by the time you read this, fewer of us will have the illness and that we’ll be building cars, trucks, and snoopy phones again.

If your experience is anything like mine, you’ve been swamped with emails from company CEOs describing their COVID-19 plans. You can’t imagine my relief when the chairman of AT&T emailed to let me know that they’re hard at work protecting me as I order takeout chicken over my cell phone. Hertz also let me know that they’re now “really” cleaning the cars I’m not renting. I guess that means no unopened bags of Cheez-It under the driver’s seat (renting a Hertz car was a lot like opening a box of Cracker Jack, there was always a surprise inside). I’ve also heard from several companies that are doing their level best to ensure on-time deliveries of the bearings, rollers and parts bins I haven’t ordered.

As I write this in early March, I am on quarantine. I visited California recently and self-quarantined for two weeks as I have a few 90-year old, nonagenarians in my care. The airport was nearly deserted, but the people that were there were on heightened alert. Watched a lady wash down seat 4B like she was moving in. I didn’t think it was possible to get that much water, detergent, cleaning supplies, and paper towels on an airplane. She even tried to reach in and clean the little air vent above her head. I kept hoping no one would cough in her direction as I’m sure she’d have a heart attack, and I’d have an unexpected visit to Nebraska.

I also saw a family of six with surgical gloves. Is that really effective? The virus enters your system when you touch an infected surface and then absentmindedly touch your eyes, ears, mouth or nose. Aren’t you still likely to touch your face with gloved hands after gripping that dirty escalator railing? Seems to me that those cones that dogs and cats wear to stop them from licking their paws would be more effective. I thought it best to not approach the mom to make that suggestion.

As I’m home, I read three thousand articles this week on working from home. Most of the advice is to get up, take a shower, put on your work clothes and have a spot dedicated as your “office”. None of that is necessary. Instead, wake up 90 seconds before your conference call, beg your spouse to pour you a cup of coffee as you frantically sit on the 2^nd-floor landing booting up your laptop. When that’s done eat some of the kids’ Frosted Flakes so that your body will have so little blood sugar by 10 am that you’ll do a Gestapo-like raid on the pantry and refrigerator looking for carbohydrates.

Lest you think I am trying to make light of the situation, I’m not. A little humor (pretty much all I have) and a bit of laughter are always a good prescription for your health and sanity. Silliness aside, I am praying that fighting this virus won’t wreck our economy and cause untold millions of our fellow Americans depression-like economic harm. Let’s hope we can quickly get back to what’s important – disparaging our family and friends over politics, finding reasons to avoid exercise (let’s just keep the gyms closed), and looking forward to that Lions – Browns matchup in the next Super Bowl.

Please be well, my friends.

John