We missed Pi Day yesterday. I guess there were some other things going on.
Practically, we are being as diligent about cleaning as we always are. Staff has been told they can stay home if they want to and we have expanded our Paid Leave benefits for those who have to stay home. We’re promoting our menu ourselves as a takeout option and removing tables from the dining room to create more distance between guests.
Emotionally, this is a roller coaster. The methods to prevent spread are exponentially more strict than they were four days ago. While we need to stay open, it also seems irresponsible to tell people that they should come out to dine. While our friends in the restaurant industry are all talking about how we’re going to get through this together, I’m not sure what that means this time because we’re not supposed to congregate. We can’t have benefits or fundraisers for the victims because we are the victims and our farms will be as we stop purchasing and our employees who are being cut from shifts and our customers who work in entertainment, retail and other service industries that require in-person contact.
So, while I think we are on top of the situation as it stands now, there is so much uncertainty about how bad and how long. And there is so little consistent guidance.
It’s not time to think about next time or even after but I don’t look forward to the anger stage when the virus has passed and folks are dealing with the damage to their small business, their rent payment that they can’t afford. Families and businesses are taught to save for a crisis and to share in times of need. I hope that the powerful and wealthy amongst us will remember that teaching and begin moving us, all of us, to a safer, more secure financial place.