Post 11 - March 22, 2020
Day 11…
As of today, I have now been back from London for 14 days. Two full weeks. It doesn’t seem possible that the world has changed as much in that time as it has.
We all need to stop listening to the daily White House briefings. They are not helpful. Trump is a damaged man who requires constant affirmation and attention. He is not able to hold in-person rallies during these challenging times so his White House briefings have become a substitute for him. Despite having experts with him, he is still spreading dangerous misinformation. He lacks clarity and coherence. Lacking empathy, there is nothing about how he addresses us that is comforting or constructive. We can’t do anything about them happening except just tune them out. Stop watching them.
You want to know what’s going on? Listen to Governor Cuomo’s daily briefings. He is literate, clear, calm. He is not sugar-coating the news and developments but nor is he sensationalizing them. His briefings are now being broadcast everywhere - this morning among other channels, he is on NY1, CBS, ABC, CNN, NBC, MSNBC and FOX NEWS. Let’s take that in. The Democratic Governor of New York Andrew Cuomo is being broadcast IN FULL on FOX NEWS.
He is reporting on what NY is doing in light of this pandemic and clearly outlining the obstacles that are in the way. New Yorkers need to stay at home. Exercise outside does not mean gathering in groups. Just the opposite. We have to do better.
Here are some quotes from this morning:
“I don’t know what I’m saying that people don’t get. This is NOT life as usual. It (gathering in groups) has to stop and it has to stop now.”
“All we are trying to do is slow the spread, but it will spread.”
“America is America because we overcome adversity and challenges.
We will overcome this and America will be better for it.”
He is not touting his own accomplishments.
He is not looking for our approval. (Directly, anyway)
He is knowledgeable on the virus, how government works and what can be done.
If you miss the briefings live, you can watch them online. However scary the news is, it is far less scary to know what’s actually going on than to continue to live in an anxious haze of misinformation and nonsense.
Watch the briefings then turn off the TV and get on with your day. This is going to go on for a while… “4 months -6 months -9 months.” Nine months takes us to the end of the year. If it stops before that, great, but let’s be prepared and clear about this. This is likely to be what are lives are for the rest of the year.
We will get through this.
Stop buying stuff that you don’t need online.
You don’t need new clothes because nobody is going to see you in them for a while.
You are going to need the money in a few months. Make it last.
All that we need to buy now is food and medicine.
You are not the only person who is terrified that you’re going to run out of money, we are ALL terrified of that. The fact that we are ALL in the same boat should be a cause for comfort.
Because we are ALL experiencing the same thing there will HAVE to be a national economic response to this.
In NY, you are not going to be evicted because you can’t pay your rent.
There is a 90 day hold on mortgage payments. This is not a gift. This is a delay on having to pay the mortgage. Your mortgage will continue 90 days further than it would have at the end. It’s like a snow day. Your classes will go a week longer before summer recess.
They aren’t giving you the money to go out and buy new sneakers or a $40 candle. They are letting you keep the money for the moment because you may need it to eat.
Life is going on.
We are figuring this all out.
Focus on what we can do, not what we can’t.
Tune out the negative - it simply isn’t helpful. There is real and constructive information out there. We all need to get better at identifying what that is as opposed to the other.
And we have each other.
That's not nothing.
That's everything.