Novel Coronavirus | Journal Post 5

Tuesday, March 24, 10:15am EDT

Yesterday Katia Dmitrieva of Bloomberg wrote a great piece in which they laid out how the economic shutdown is estimated to limit infections and prevent as many as 6000,000 unnecessary deaths in the US. Yet on the same day we have the Trump administration suggesting the president may scale back closures soon despite this outbreak worsening. According to Trump, “America will again and soon be open for business - very soon. We cannot let the cure be worse than the problem itself”. Though I am happy to see doctors and scientists continuing to caution otherwise, it’s unfortunate the plan now seems losing five percent of our population will boost the economy… The fact that this administration is pondering retraction of restrictions before they’re even in place is concerning at best. How about we send all Americans $1,000 to help boost the economy instead?

25th Amendment when?

The current state of COVID-19 testing in Indiana.

I’ve heard the same story from family and friends at least a dozen times now. Even if you’re in the hospital, showing multiple symptoms, you’re still unlikely to be tested for this coronavirus at Indiana healthcare facilities. Conversation below is a text I received between an old friend and his mother. Of course, with this being America, her main concern was lack of pay, and not her health… Truly uncertain when testing will ramp up in our area, but there’s been absolutely zero betterment over the past few weeks.

Important headlines since yesterday’s post:

  • The 2020 summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan have officially been postponed. Finally. The games will now allegedly take place “no later than summer 2021” according to the International Olympic Committee.

  • The World Health Organization is now concerned the “US may become center of coronavirus pandemic”.

  • Lt. Governor Dan Patrick of Texas is now suggesting he and other senior citizens are willing to die so that the economy will continue growing. “Those of us who are 70 plus, we’ll take care of ourselves, but don’t sacrifice the country”. Apparently “die for that paper” should be America’s motto during this crisis.

  • In the Lombardy region of Italy, “no outside exercise allowed, and dog walking limited to 600 feet from house”.

  • In Kentucky, gas has fallen below $1 per gallon.

  • Per the International Monetary Fund, the coronavirus pandemic will cause a global recession in 2020 that could be worse than the 2008-2009 global financial crisis. World economic output, however, should recover in 2021.

  • According to the National Institutes of Health, the coronavirus is detectable on surfaces for several hours:

    • Air - 3 hours

    • Copper - 4 hours

    • Cardboard - 24 hours

    • Stainless Steel - 2 to 3 days

    • Plastic - 3 days

  • San Francisco’s Public Health Chief, Dr. Grant Colfax yesterday stated, “I am sad to have to say the worst is yet to come. Every community where the virus has taken hold has seen a surge in coronavirus patients who need to be hospitalized. We expect that to happen in San Francisco in a week or two or perhaps less.”

  • 514 people in Spain died yesterday due to the virus, or roughly one every three minutes.

The current numbers:

Per the Coronavirus COVID-19 Global Cases by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University (JHU) latest update on 3/24/2020 @ 9:54:39am EDT there are as follows (note, as deaths are now being assigned by the city level in states, I will no longer be including specifics for Indiana):

  • 392,780 total confirmed cases globally

    • 46,485 of these are in the US

  • 17,241 deaths globally

    • 593 of these are from the US

World - click / tap to expand image.

US - click / tap to expand image.

Novel Coronavirus | Journal Post 4

Monday, March 23, 2:30pm EDT

First, please watch the following video on how a politician should be acting during this time of crisis. Commissioner Omari Hardy (his Twitter) showing outrage towards the mayor of Lake Worth Beach, Florida, cutting off local citizens’ power during this pandemic. Heated argument goes on to discuss the mayor’s negligence and inaction over the past few weeks. Mr. Hardy is currently running for Florida State Representative in District 88; join me in donating to his campaign here.

The Department of Justice is seeking additional powers during this coronavirus outbreak, including the possible suspension of Habeas Corpus.

Basically the proposal in its current form would grant certain judges the authority to “pause court proceedings during emergencies”. It would apply to “any statutes or rules of procedure otherwise affecting pre-arrest, post-arrest, pre-trial, trial, and post-trial procedures in criminal and juvenile proceedings and all civil process and proceedings”. This brings to question on how habeas corpus (a Constitutional right), which grants all Americans the ability to appear before a judge after arrest and seek release, would now come into play. Per Norman L. Reimer, Executive Director of the Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, “You could be arrested and never brought before a judge until they decide that the emergency or the civil disobedience is over. I find it absolutely terrifying.”

Concerning headlines over the past 24 hours:

  • New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said yesterday that the widespread stay-at-home-orders to help combat this pandemic could last for up to nine months. “This is not a short term situation - this is not a long weekend - this is not a week. It is going to be four, months, six months, nine months”…

  • On a call with Trump officials, a police chief from the San Fancisco area was heard saying, “Stop testing NBA players, and start testing our first responders". As I briefly touched on testing inequality yesterday, I agree 100% with this statement.

  • Yesterday Governor Mike DeWine of Illinois and Governor John Bel Edwards of Louisiana announced their own “stay at home” directives. At noon today our own Governor Eric Holcomb of Indiana issued his own “stay at home” order. This order will be in effect from March 25 to April 7, but will more than likely be extended in my opinion.

  • As the coronavirus reaches war zones (including Syria and Gaza), United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres today said the spread of this virus demands a global cease-fire so nations may focus on the pandemic as their true enemy.

  • Due to the number of dead in Madrid, Spain, they are now storing bodies temporarily on ice rinks before the overwhelmed funeral homes and crematoriums can pick them up. The bodies will be placed on “a technical surface of synthetic material 2-3 centimeters thick, which will be installed on the ice rink, to avoid direct contact of the body with the ice.”…

  • Doctors are now saying loss of smell, in some cases loss of taste, may be symptoms.

  • US Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams noted the following earlier today, “I want America to understand this week, it’s going to get bad, and we really need to come together as a nation”. “Everyone needs to act as if they have the virus right now, so test or no test, we need you to understand you could be spreading it to someone else, or you could be getting it from someone else.”

  • Per the Associated Press, there are more than 1.5 billion, one fifth the world’s population, urged to stay home.

Coronavirus in the U.S.: Latest Map and Case Count

Fantastic resource put together by the New York Times. “More than 30,000 cases of the coronavirus have now been identified in the United States, a figure that continues to grow rapidly as testing expands and the virus spreads through the country. As of Monday morning, at least 33,018 people across every state, plus Washington, D.C., and three U.S. territories, have tested positive for the virus, according to a New York Times database, and at least 428 patients with the virus have died.”

Map of where cases have been reported. Note: The map shows the known locations of coronavirus cases by county. Circles are sized by the number of people there who have tested positive, which may differ from where they contracted the illness. Some people who traveled overseas were taken for treatment in California, Nebraska and Texas. Puerto Rico and the other U.S. territories are not shown. Sources: State and local health agencies, hospitals, C.D.C. Data as of 8:09am EDT on March 23.


US - click / tap to expand image.

The current numbers:

Per the Coronavirus COVID-19 Global Cases by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University (JHU) latest update on 3/23/2020 @ 1:48:33pm EDT there are as follows (note, as deaths are now being assigned by the city level in states, I will no longer be including specifics for Indiana):

  • 367,457 total confirmed cases globally

    • 41,511 of these are in the US

  • 16,113 deaths globally

    • 499 of these are from the US

World - click / tap to expand image.

US - click / tap to expand image.

Novel Coronavirus | Journal Post 3

Sunday, March 22, 6:15pm EDT

First off, for my own clarification, I’d like to note that the virus itself has been named “SARS-CoV-2, whereas the disease the virus causes is named “coronavirus disease 2019”, aka “COVID-19”.

Had my father over for lunch this afternoon, put away the rest of our winter decorations, and immediately feel better with our spring / easter accessories out. Completed our usual Sunday cleaning around the home, but we did not make our weekly grocery store run for obvious reasons…

I’ve heard reports from a former Indiana University colleague who is now at Cook Pharmica in Bloomington, Indiana that their essential staff are now being provided paperwork and identification which will allow them to be out and about on the highways if a lock-down occurs. I’ve also seen reports that Catalent Pharma is issuing similar paperwork to their essential staff as well. Rumor has it staff at the Wal-Mart in Bloomington were also informed of a potential lock-down coming a week from today (Sunday, March 29). Currently I have no "proof” that a lock-down will be announced, but I highly expect it to be communicated out soon.

A friend of mine reached out earlier concerned that their mother is showing all symptoms related to this coronavirus, and is planning to visit the hospital soon. Am curious if the care centers in our area will even test her, or if staff will simply send her home.

Also read a concerning report that police were called to the Plainfield Meijer yesterday afternoon as patrons were fighting over supplies. Law enforcement remained out front of the store with their K-9 companion to ensure all customers shopped in an orderly fashion. I’ve seen videos from Canada depicting minor looting at a handful of stores, and would expect the same to happen here before this is all said and done. With millions of Americans losing their jobs two weeks ago, many will not have a check to rely on come next week’s payday. Sure the government is working on a relief package which will allegedly send citizens checks directly, but it’s possible these won’t be sent out until mid-April. Many times I’ve read that the average American family couldn’t afford a $400 emergency if their life depended on it. Without income being deposited soon, many will seek to earn money through criminal acts, or simply loot and cut out the middleman. Let’s hope I’m wrong.

Recently came across a coronavirus predictions model which calculates the estimated number of humans that will contract this virus.

The estimates are calculated automatically by an algorithm using the current growth rate of the virus in each nation. Though the results are adjusted daily depending on current growth factor, I was amazed at the calculations available.

  • Globally | per current 1.09 growth:

    • Today: 329.8k - 363.9k cases

    • In three days: 465k - 513.1k cases

    • In one week: 735k - 811.1k cases

  • United States | per current 1.17 growth:

    • Today: 34.2k - 37.8k cases

    • In three days: 92.2k - 101.8k cases

    • In one week: 345.8k - 381.6k cases

I’m curious to see how close these calculations are to proving correct, and plan on offering a weekly update each Sunday moving forward.

I also recently discovered a site offering graphs depicting the following:

  • Infections since “day x” where “day-x” is the first day when more than 100 people were infected in the US. Data as of 3-22-2020 @ 5:10pm EDT may be found below. Please note it’s only been nineteen days since the US reached 100 infections, now we’re at 25,489.

  • Deaths since “day x” where “day-x” is the first day when more than 10 people died in the US. Data as of 3-22-2020 @ 5:10pm EDT may be found below. Please note it’s only been eighteen days since the US reached 10 deaths, now we’re at 307.

Important headlines / updates over the past 24 hours.

  • The state of Michigan now has over 1,000 confirmed cases.

  • In Bergamo, Italy, a current coronavirus hot-spot, there’s now a seven hours wait time for an ambulance.

  • The US is now the third country in the world to reach 30,000 cases of COVID-19.

  • Mayor Bill de Balsio of New York is concerned shortages of supplies will arise ten days from now. I’m very concerned with what will happen to New York in the coming weeks, and fear many of their citizens will die unnecessarily because of this fiasco. Note that the state of New York currently accounts for 6.72% of all global confirmed cases.

  • More and more states are issuing stay at home orders.

  • The Federal Reserve now expects unemployment in the US to reach thirty percent, and the US gross domestic product to drop 50%.

  • The US Surgeon General was quoted saying, “help fight coronavirus, delay nonessential procedures”. It’s concerning, but I suspect our health system and hospitals will be overwhelmed very soon.

  • India has suspended all public transport.

  • Per the Federal Bureau of Investigation, extremist groups are now encouraging their members to “spread COVID-19 to police officers and Jews”.

  • Germany has now banned gatherings which consist of more than two people, with their Chancellor, Angela Merkel, now in home quarantine.

  • Grocery stores in Spain are now requiring customers use hand sanitizer, single use gloves, and are installing plexiglass at checkouts to protect their cashiers. Britain is planning the latter safety measure as well. Speaking of the United Kingdom, data currently shows their coronavirus outbreak is following a very close trajectory to that of Italy with a two-week delay.

The latest numbers.

Per the Coronavirus COVID-19 Global Cases by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University (JHU) latest update on 3/22/2020 @ 5:43:02pm EDT there are:

  • 329,862 total confirmed cases globally

    • 32,644 of these are in the US

    • 201 of these occurred in Indiana

  • 14,379 deaths globally

    • 402 of these are from the US

    • 6 of these deaths occurred in Indiana

World - click / tap to expand image.

United States - click / tap to expand image.

Indiana - click / tap to expand image.

Novel Coronavirus | Journal Post 2

Saturday, March 21, 5:17pm EDT

“I fully recognize I am choosing between saving people’s lives and saving people’s livelihoods, but ultimately you can’t have a livelihood if you don’t have a life.”
— Governor J.B. Pritzker (Illinois)

I truly didn’t expect to be adding another post so soon, but some of the items I touched on yesterday, as well as a few shower thoughts this morning, convinced me to write while everything was still fresh in my mind. It’s great seeing several visitors forwarded my blog along yesterday, but the best review I’ve received thus far is the response from my older brother Dustin - “Just got done reading it all. I felt like I was reading notes from Resident Evil.”

Just a few moments ago, I received a message from my dentist informing patients their office is now closed for preventative and elective procedures, per recommendations put forth by the American Dental Association in lieu of this virus. I also received a message late yesterday evening from the place I normally schedule my haircuts through noting they will be “pausing” their business “in the best interest for the community, barbers, as well as their families”. Ironically enough I had an appointment scheduled for March 6, but with all the craziness happening, I opted to cancel a day beforehand. Can’t wait to fast forward a few months from now - cutting my own hair with the pair of scissors from our kitchen knife block… Fortunately both our pups were last at the groomer on March 10; here’s to hoping we won’t need to use the same pair of shears on them…

Speaking of dogs, after reading reports earlier this month that veterinarian offices in certain areas were cancelling appointments, or now only allowing pet drop off and pick up services, we visited our nearby vet to stock up on Iverhart and Nexgard, as well as had them administer a Cytopoint injection for Machiavelli, our West Highland White Terrier, just in case his allergies reappear in the spring. A few hundred dollars later from Chewy for food, teeth chews, Omega bites, and treats, we felt comfortable knowing our doggy supplies would be covered for a few months.

A few important news items I failed to mention in my initial post:

  • Many states are now suspending court proceedings, with the US Supreme Court itself now delaying all arguments and suspending trials.

  • The Internal Revenue Service just extended the US tax deadline from April 15 to July 15 (for now; possible they may extend the deadline even further).

  • Various states are now shutting down their bureau of motor vehicles offices. As my plates are set for renewal a month from today, I plan on navigating to our BMV site after posting this and ordering my 2021 tags.

  • Most stores that are allowed to remain open (grocery, pharmacy, essential businesses) now have limited hours, with their first hour of business now being limited to the elderly only.

  • Some states have deemed liquor stores as essential businesses, while others have not. In many areas they’ve modified liquor laws to allow delivery. The most interesting change I’ve come across is that that distilleries and breweries are now producing hand sanitizer and either donating it to nearby hospitals or offering it free to those in need.

  • Apple iPhone shortages are popping up across the US, with a purchase limit of two devices of the same model now allowed from not only Apple’s online store (note* all of their retail / physical locations are closed), but from most telecom carriers as well. I had planned on waiting for the next iPhone release, but have decided to purchase my upgrade online this weekend. With shipment delays from Asia, and with limited workers, I can’t imagine they’ll be able to released the next hardware revision on time this fall; even if they do, I suspect limited stock and puchase delays at time of release.

  • As of tomorrow, March 22, India plans to suspend all international flights arriving and departing for a minimum of one week. Chances are this suspension will be extended.

  • As of yesterday morning (March 21), Italy is urging their citizens to halt jogging / walking outside during the lock-down, As Italy reported 793 coronavirus related deaths over the past 24 hours (or one death every two minutes), these restrictions are understandable. Iran is now reporting one death every ten minutes due to this virus.

  • Late yesterday evening, Spain’s death toll has reached 1,000, making it the second nation in Europe to exceed this steep number (Italy being the first).

  • Andrew Cuomo, the Governor of New York, issued a mandate yesterday that “excluding essential services, 100% of workforces must stay at home”. He went on to demand all nonessential gatherings of individuals in the state are now cancelled. Expect all states to communicate out similar requirements in place soon.

  • It came to light earlier this week that a handful of US senators, as well as the chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, used knowledge obtained in private intelligence briefings earlier in the year to sell millions of dollars in stock. They were provided details that a negative economic impact would occur due to the coronavirus outbreak, and only seemed to care about their own financial well-being.

  • There’s outcry regarding COVID-19 testing inequalities. It seems the wealthy and celebrities are able to secure testing without showing symptoms, yet the average American must meet highly specific guidelines related to health and travel and then be selected by an algorithm to actually be tested. Even earlier this month, how was the Utah Jazz NBA team able to secure over fifty test kits, but a regular citizen in their state wouldn’t have had a remote chance of securing just one?

  • The price for oil has now dropped to $20 a barrel, with gas in Indianapolis hovering at $1.86 per gallon. To put that into perspective, the average cost per gallon of gas in the US in 2019 was $2.60. Nice that the cost is so cheap, yet with most Americans stuck at home, the price reduction doesn’t really help…

  • Nonessential travel is now being limited at the US-Mexico border.

  • Mayors of many cities, including Baltimore’s Jack Young, are now asking their citizens to stop shooting one another as they need to keep all hospital beds open where possible - "We cannot clog up our hospitals and their beds with people that are being shot senselessly, because we’re going to need those beds for people who might be infected with the coronavirus, And it could be your mother, your grandmother, or one of your relatives. So take that into consideration.”

Some important headlines recently made available:

  • FEMA has now declared New York a “major disaster”, with over 10,000 coronavirus cases now in play, with a majority of their cases being in men 18 - 49 yeas of age. The US Army Corps of Engineers is planning to use as many as 10,000 hotel rooms and college dormitories in New York for medical-related services. Hospitalizations are expected to rise drastically in the near future.

  • The National Guard now has 5,500 troops active in 32 states.

  • California’s death total is now at 24, with hospitals now expecting a “flood of patients”.

  • Health experts are now reporting that “even if the US cut its coronarvirus rate of transmission in half, some 650,000 would become infected over the next two months”.

  • Nursing home outbreaks are continuing to spread. Per the CDC’s findings, “once the virus is introduced, it spreads hyper-fast in a nursing home setting”.

  • At 9:00pm EDT this evening, the state of New Jersey will begin their full lockdown.

As this post is getting long, as promised, I’d like to close by offering the latest numbers.

Per the Coronavirus COVID-19 Global Cases by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University (JHU) latest update on 3/21/2020 @ 4:43:03pm EDT there are:

  • 299,125 total confirmed cases globally

    • 24,148 of these are in the United States

    • 128 of these occurred in Indiana

  • 12,762 deaths globally

    • 285 of these are from the United States

    • 3 of these deaths occurred in Indiana

World - click / tap to expand image.

United States - click / tap to expand image.

Indiana - click / tap to expand image.

Novel Coronavirus | Journal Post 1

Friday, March 20, 4:15pm EDT

Over the past few days, I’ve pondered with the idea of creating and continuing a journal while we’re amid this unprecedented, once in a hundred years situation. With the news, both international and domestic, seeming to change every hour, I’d like to use this posting as a means for bringing myself up to speed regarding our newfound reality. Moving forward, I will write as frequently as desired, with a minimum of one online journal entry per week. Thoughts below in this initial note may be jumbled, but my goal is to simply offer a “how’d we get here”, while future posts can offer recent details in a timely fashion.

I’m not 100 percent sure when I began following news pertaining to this coronavirus. Per message logs with others, I’ve been intrigued since mid-January 2020, only then I referred to it as the “Wuhan virus”. Even so, this COVID-19 Novel Coronavirus as we refer to it now, only began affecting my day to day life a week ago. Sure, I may have begun stocking up on supplies in late February (after seeing the writing on the wall), but life, in my opinion, was still “normal”. I was aware of the lock-downs in China, how the virus may or may not have been spreading west, that cruise ships weren’t allowed to dock due to a few positive cases, et cetera, but in the US, and in most of Europe, there really wasn’t a concern. That, however, has since changed quite drastically over the past week, which I will detail below.

First, here’s a quick summary thus far:

  • December 31, 2019: Virus at this time is allegedly unknown, though cases of pneumonia that occurred the past few weeks in December are reported to the World Health Organization.

  • January 1, 2020: The news begins reporting about a wild animal / wet market in China that could possibly be the origin of this virus.

  • January 5: It’s confirmed the illnesses out of Wuhan are not MERS or SARS related, and instead it’s possibly something new?

  • January 7: China identities the virus as a novel coronavirus. At this time, it’s referred to as 2019-nCoV by the World Health Organization.

  • January 11: China announces the first death caused by this new virus; allegedly a man in his sixties passed away on January 9th.

  • January 13: Thailand reports coronavirus infection in a Chinese citizen from Wuhan.

  • January 16: Japan confirms one of their citizens who had recently visited Wuhan was now testing positive for this virus.

  • January 17: China confirms a second citizen has died because of this virus. America’s response is to begin screenings for symptoms at a few airports (LA, NY, and San Francisco).

  • January 20: China reports a third death, and notes over 100 illnesses related to this virus.

  • January 21: The state of Washington confirms first case of virus in the United States.

  • January 22: Death toll from the virus is now at seventeen. Wuhan set to close their railway stations and airport for those attempting to leave.

  • January 23: World Health Organization states the virus is not yet a “public health emergency of international concern”. China begins cancelling large scale events and locking down Wuhan transport.

  • January 29: The White House sends out press release noting the creation of a “coronavirus task force”.

  • January 30: First confirmed “person-to-person transmission” in the US is confirmed.

  • February 2: The Philippines reports its first death from the virus, also marking the first death outside of China related to this virus.

  • February 4: Japan notes ten patrons on a cruise ship (Diamond Princess) in a nearby bay test positive for the virus. With 3,700 on board, the ship is placed under quarantine.

  • February 11: World Health Organization now refers to this virus as COVID-19.

  • February 14: Chinese citizen passes away in France tests positive for the virus; also becomes first death in Europe. Egypt reports their first positive case for the virus.

  • February 19: Those testing negative for the virus are allowed off the Diamond Princess cruise ship, even though it’s possible they could be carriers.

  • February 25: Lombardy region in Italy begins locking down a few towns in hopes of halting the spread of this virus.

  • February 26: California reports a patient is being treated for the virus. Vice President Mike Pence appointed head of the coronavirus task force.

  • February 29: The State of Washington reports their first death related to the virus. Governor or Washington declares a state of emergency. In the coming days, governors of several states begin declaring similar emergencies.

  • March 3: Iran states 23 members of their parliament have the virus.

  • March 8: Prime minister of Italy begins placing travel restrictions on more than a dozen provinces. The entirety of Italy goes on lock-down the following day.

  • March 11: World Health Organization declares a pandemic.

  • March 13: President Trump declares a national emergency.

Timeline of the past week in my own personal life:

Wednesday, March 11: This day was the turning point in my own life and those around me. I don’t personally follow the NBA or any professional sporting leagues, but what happened at the Thunder-Jazz game that evening was an eye-awakening moment for many. At 2:18 in this video you can hear the announcer clearly say, “Fans, due to the unforeseen circumstances, the game tonight has been postponed. You are all safe, and take your time in leaving the arena tonight, and do so in an orderly fashion. Thank you for coming out tonight. We are all safe." It wasn’t immediately made clear that the reason the game was postponed is due to a member of the Jazz testing positive for COVID-19, but when I saw this clip the following day, that was my initial thought (second being a possible bomb threat to the stadium itself).

Thursday, March 12: This was my company’s last day in the office, and as of this writing, we have not yet returned and are uncertain if / when we will return. To say life at work was a bit hectic is an understatement. We began hearing that community schools in our county were discussing the idea of closure. Of course, schools were only set to close for a week or two. After leaving the office, I went by the dry cleaner’s to drop off a duvet. Once complete I stopped by the nearby Meijer’s grocery store to pickup some Cascade dish soap, only to be greeted by a full parking lot, no carts available at the entrance, customers yelling about the lack of toilet paper and cleaning supplies. I then noticed a majority of the meat, dairy, and frozen sections were fully depleted. Though I was only there for some detergent, I stocked a hand basket full of all the fresh produce I could and headed home.

Friday, March 13: Ironically, the HR department at my office planned for this to be a “test remote workday” for all staff. An email was sent a week beforehand communicating out the plan. This test was to ensure all users could complete what they needed to while working remotely, to ensure our infrastructure could handle the demand, et cetera. The CDC released a projection noting “between 160 million to 214 million people in the US could be infected over the course of the epidemic that could last months or even over a year. As many as 200,000 to 1.7 million people could die in the US. 2.4 million to 21 million people in the US could require hospitalization”.

Saturday, March 14 – Tuesday, March 17: The news continued to roll in. States began declaring curfews, some counties began releasing non-violent criminals in their prisons, major cities announced orders for residents to remain inside except for essential needs, National Guard divisions began to activate across the US. President Trump states this could be our reality “until August, maybe July”; however, a leaked military document reportedly anticipates an eighteen-month pandemic with widespread shortages of supplies, and multiple waves of virus infections. Europe announces plan for a full border closure. The National Health Service in Britain issues a release noting “deathbed goodbyes should be done over Skype” as a majority of visitors will be banned from hospitals to hopefully halt the spread of this virus. Yes, if you have a loved one dying, you may not even able to visit them. In other nations, due to number of deaths, it’s possible you won’t even be informed of their burial or have any say in the matter.

Wednesday, March 18: Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada, and Trump, both discuss their plans for closing the US-Canadian border to all non-essential traffic. More closures, more and more people beginning to take this seriously. I realize I’ve communicated more with my family in the past few days than I have over the course of the past year.

Thursday March 19: Hearing reports out of Spain that there are so many bodies that there is a three-day waiting period for cremations. Italy had to send in army trucks, generally used for moving troops, to come load up hundreds of bodies as the area’s cemeteries are full, while London plans on expanding their crematoriums as a preparation method. Additional details on Iran’s “mass burial pits” are made public. Hospitals are slowly filling up in certain areas of the US. Makeshift hospitals in soccer fields and fairgrounds continue to pop-up across the country in anticipation. The Pentagon notes they will be sending hospital ships to either coast for assisting with trauma victims. The State Department issues a Level 4 “Do Not Travel” advisory for American citizens.

Friday March 20 (Today): This morning Indiana’s Governor Eric Holcomb announced our primary election would be moved to June 2. At this point, I’m uncertain if we will have a general election this fall. The US-Canadian border is set to shut for all non-essential travel. The Dow Jones Industrial Average has officially experienced its worst week since the 2008 recession. Millions of Americans have lost their jobs over the past week due to many sectors and industries being closed to meet the guidelines of not attending events / locations which contain ten or more people. As I was writing this, the Governor of Illinois, J.B. Pritzker, issued an order requiring residents “shelter in place” beginning tomorrow (Saturday, March 21st). This commands all residents to remain in their homes, except for running to the grocery store, pharmacy trips, and to take walks outside. Though Indiana has not yet made a similar announcement, obviously it’s coming. Currently, no road closures or state border travel bans exist. Airlines are still operating, though in limited capacity. Major cities begin announcing lock-downs.

I realize there’s information above I’ve missed that should have been included, but what’s there at least offers a fairly detailed summary on how we made it to this point. For my own future memory, I’d also like to note the most recent dates I saw my parents. We had my mother over for dinner on Friday, March 13th. My father stopped by on Monday, March 16th. As I followed him outside and walked him to the car after our visit, I halfway-jokingly said this could be the last time I see you; he teared up and kissed me on the cheek – easily one of the saddest events I’ve endured this year.

As this post is currently running long, I’d like to say that this experience will more than likely transition from “interesting” to “scary” very soon in Indiana. We’ve seen what it’s like in Italy, which has fantastic healthcare and facilities. It’s obvious the US isn’t prepared for this situation. Even if it were, there are only 2.77 hospital beds per 1,000 citizens – if you take into account the fact most intensive care units within hospitals hover around eighty percent occupancy at any given moment, I’m curious what will happen to those either 1) currently admitted to an ICU, or 2) those who experience a heart attack, car accident, or some sort of injury or trauma that would normally be treated at a hospital. Even if more ICU beds existed, the number of ventilators needed to keep those suffering from this virus alive simply do not exist. Though the Defense Production Act was invoked yesterday, with several companies and manufacturers set to churn ventilators out, by the time they’ve modified their assembly lines to mass produce, it may be too late. Americans who shouldn’t have died because of this situation will, and that’s disappointing to say the least. I’ve heard from family members this week whose scheduled appointments, exams, or follow-ups have been postponed, possibly cancelled indefinitely. Some states are asking dental clinics to shutdown as well. I have a cleaning scheduled for April 15th which I solely expect to be cancelled soon. Just today I received a cancellation notice from Pearson Vue regarding a Microsoft Azure certification exam I had scheduled next week. Options are slowly dwindling and life is definitely changing.

I truly feel bad for any college student who has worked hard the past few years to earn their degree, only to be recently informed their spring graduation commencement ceremony has been cancelled. I feel for any high school student who should be learning to drive this spring, those students who would otherwise be planning their prom, those who are excited for graduation and heading off to college (which as this point, isn’t even a certainty for the fall semester at this point), or an internship that’s since been revoked. For those of you with grade school aged children, I cannot even imagine having to explain why they aren’t allowed to visit grandma’s house, or why they can’t attend extra-curricular activities such as sports, band, girl scouts, what have you. This truly is history in the making, and our lives will never be the same.

OK, time to stop typing, but drafting all of this has given me an idea for the next two blog posts, regardless of any breaking news / policy changes between now and then.

In closing, I’d like to leave you with the current numbers.

Per the Coronavirus COVID-19 Global Cases by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University (JHU) latest update on 3/20/2020 @ 3:13:30pm EDT there are:

  • 266,082 total confirmed cases globally

    • 16,605 of these are in the United States

    • 83 of these occurred in Indiana

  • 11,153 deaths globally

    • 216 of these are from the United States

    • 2 of these deaths occurred in Indiana

World - click / tap to expand image.

United States - click / tap to expand image.

Indiana - click / tap to expand image.

If you’re reading this, I hope to see you on the other side of this mess. If you or I do not make it, I’m certain we’ll see one another again someday soon <3.