April 16th: Plans to reopen
Headlines:
Trump says governors can reopen sooner than May 1 and offers guidelines in three stages.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin appeared to suggest that coronavirus stimulus payments of $1200 could last people 10 weeks. He makes a real case for not having millionaires in charge of the government.
Senate adjourns without a deal on the small business loan program after initial funding ran out.
Prior to Ohio Governor Mike DeWine’s announcement for things to gradually re-open starting May 1st, residents protested and a viral photo with comparisons to “Shaun of the Dead” was born.
Michiganians marched to statehouse yesterday in protest. Definitely noticed a lack of social distancing and masks in that crowd.
“Vermont at War With Out-of-Towners Seeking Refuge From Coronavirus.” Sounds harsh, but I get it They don’t want to overwhelm local hospitals and groceries.
Headline of the week: “What Do Countries With The Best Coronavirus Responses Have In Common? Women Leaders.”
Danielle scheduled a call with a new Recruiter. Hopefully more interview news to come. Danielle needs a job. Tell a friend.
I must begin today by admitting an error. I wrote about my lovely interaction with a Safeway cashier yesterday and joked that she should’ve been holding a tiger over her head like in the Lion King while singing “Circle of Life.” Obviously I meant a lion. I blame The Tiger King. We all have tigers on the brain. Thanks to Kelly for correcting me for this grievous error.
My big outing today was a little walk and coffee. Shocking, I know. David’s nerves are a bit rattled by being the only person some customers talk to all day in the flesh (or “IRL” as the kids would say). He’s kept his usual sense of humor, but like us all, just wants shit to get back to normal.
I was able to watch the White House press conference without wanting to punch anyone in the face, which feels like a step forward. To be fair, I watched some of it, then had it muted with closed captions while on the phone. This is probably a great way to do it, but you loose all the nuance.
At 4pm I joined a Zoom with SF Chronicle subscribers and Audrey Cooper, Editor in Chief. Over the last 6 years, the Chronicle has developed a membership program for subscribers that I’ve really enjoyed. A few years ago I went to a Newsroom tour that Cooper hosted, they have ongoing community events and lectures, and most recently the #TotalSF series that includes screenings of SF filmed movies. The premiere was the 90s classic “So I Married An Axe Murderer” with Mike Meyers and Nancy Travis. They even had the bagpiper who played “Do You Think I’m Sexy” in the wedding scene there to play for us. Considering the screening happened to occur a few days after I returned from my Dad’s funeral, it was a much-needed laugh.
Another classic was “The Rock” which is just as brilliant and terrible as I remembered it. They did a trivia contest in advance and I won when they asked “What well known actor was present during the Native American occupation of Alcatraz in 1969?”
My hand shot up like a rocket, and like a proud nerd I said “Benjamin Bratt!” Someone behind me said “How on earth did you know that?” I admitted I’ve been on the Alcatraz tour three times, but honestly I think I may have read about it, too.
Ms. Cooper was her usual delightful self and talked about the state of current news and did a Q&A afterwards. It’s worth noting that she’s the only woman to run a major metro newsroom. She also volunteers for a group that gives free walking tours of SF that I’ve always meant to take. Basically, she’s a total badass.
Nice Things on the Internet:
An article on Slate “The Unexpected Poignancy of Trolls World Tour.”
Tennis stars Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic will team up tomorrow to do a Q&A on Instagram Live. I’m Team Murray all the way, but will give Novak a chance to charm me. 10am PST / 1pm EST.
Sir Andy and wife Kim Sears also challenged tennis fans to the 100 volley challenge and funny videos have rolled in from across the world.
If you’re on Twitter way too much like me, look for #TheBestOfUs. The best of humanity during this dark time.
A small shoutout to Secretary Mnuchin: Arrested Development: Lucille Bluth Banana Quote.
