What makes up unnecessary travel? One could look at what businesses are open in Maryland. Based on my trips, the following are open.

Necessary Trips!?

I picked up my prescriptions at the Navy pharmacy and shopped for groceries at the base commissary. The pharmacy and commissary are about twenty-seven miles from our home. There were few others on the road at the time of our trip.

My wife and I took advantage of the curbside service Sam’s store offered seniors. We gave our order to one of their employees, and soon another brought it to us. The number of cars in the parking lot, and the number in line, surprised us.  We filled up with gas at Sam’s gas station on our way home.

My wife required an ingredient for dinner, and  I found it at the local Safeway grocery. The store was swarming with people. The store marked the floor to help shoppers maintain social distancing during checkout. It was a busy store with many shoppers.

My wife and I picked up bulk shelled peanuts for our squirrel friends, grass seed, suit, and onion set from the county co-op. I had trouble finding a place to park the first visit, and a little easier the second time—so many finding going to the co-op an essential trip, including me.

My son-in-law and I made a deposit of branches from a down tree in the county. We filled the bed of my truck with limb debris from a tree recently downed. We were one of the few customers.

I should include the farm where we bought fresh free-range eggs. That was a pleasant drive after leaving the interstate through rolling farms, stands of trees. I remember commenting to my wife I hadn’t noticed a car on the road for miles.

We would like to get out more but there are limited places to go. All of the precautions, with the closures, give us very few choices.

COVID-19 Response Necessary?

I hope there will be a serious conversation regarding whether there were better ways to deal with this virus.

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention estimates there were 38 million illnesses, 390,000 hospitalizations, and 23,000 deaths from the latest flu strain as of March 25^th  in the United States alone.  These numbers are like every year’s as additional strains of the flu attack. Yet, we don’t shut down America for it.

COVID-19 has not run its course, and the numbers are still going up. I am sure they will have the numbers eventually. But, will they be able to learn the number of deaths caused by the shutdown? How many who lost their businesses or jobs committed suicide or turned to drugs? What was the increase in domestic abuse? There were severe repercussions from shutting down America besides those attributed to the virus.

Your thoughts about the shutdown. Have you been out during this trying time? Share with me using the comment form.