Since COVID-19 has now been declared a pandemic, I wanted to see how the FOLCs here are doing. My country (the United States) has declared a national emergency, and stuff is being canceled all over the place.
I'm fine thus far, and so are my family members, though I worry because there are a lot of 70+ family members (including a frail great-aunt in her late 80's, a great-uncle who just turned 100, and an 84-year-old uncle who has survived multiple cancers and other issues).
The school district I work for has been shut down until April 13 (the day we come back from Spring Break). The kids are expected to work from home using their Chromebooks, which is likely to be ineffective, since the kids 1) view this as an extended vacation, 2) often don't have access to WiFi in order to use the Internet, and 3) are using very old equipment that breaks down if you look at it cross-eyed (I'm the librarian/computer tech for my school, and I spend a huge amount of time fixing the Chromebooks and begging for more when I run out of fixable machines).
The play I take part in each year, the Ramona Pageant (aka Ramona Outdoor Play) is canceled for this year. It isn't the first time it's been canceled (it was canceled in 1933 due to lack of money, and from 1942-1945 because of World War II), but this is the first time I my tenure that it's happened (I started in 1995; the show has been around since 1923). It should return next year (knock on wood), but it's still disappointing.
Stay safe, FOLCs. Wash your hands with soap and water, stay well-hydrated, and stay home if you're sick if you possibly can.
