2020 Life Logs, Day 75: The Ides of March
Date: Sunday, March 15, 2020
Weather: Blue Skies, Sunshine, and Cooler; High 44 degrees, Low 28 degrees F
Location: At Home in The Cottage, East Falmouth, MA
William Shakespeare wrote twice in his play “Julius Caesar” the words “Beware the ides of March.” Forewarned or not, Julius Caesar was assassinated on March 15, 44 B.C. and once Shakespeare penned those words it gave this date the negative connotation. In 1493, Christopher Columbus returned to Spain after his first trip to the New World on this date and in 1941 a blizzard killed more than 140 people in Minnesota and North Dakota. There are long lists of things like this that happened on this date, but none have stuck with us like the assassination of Caesar. But a modern day Ides of March became a reality for me today when my friend Karen Baranowski knocked on my door but backed down the steps when I opened the door. We talked using ‘proper’ social distancing to carry on our conversation outside. Certainly not a normal situation, but one that is necessary in these times. As of tonight, the CDC has issued a statement saying that in-person events of 50 people or more be should be cancelled for the next eight weeks all across the country. This doesn’t apply to schools or businesses, but it is a major change in guidance. I talked to Heather this evening and got an update on how she and Jed hope to move forward this week with home schooling while working at home. I didn’t make a lot of progress on anything today. I think, probably like many of you, I spent a lot of time just thinking about how to organize my life for the next few weeks of the unknown. One day at a time.
