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So I have been taking Elyce out for driving lessons every Saturday recently. With the whole shut-downing of things since COVID came about, it put a wrench in our plans to sign her up and take driving lessons with a 3rd party. That was the plan. Things, obviously, have changed.

So we go out in my car every Saturday for an hour or so. We started in a parking lot – where I just had her NOT using the accelerator and getting a feel for braking/coasting/turning. Then we went to parking and maneuvering around a parking lot (empty casino lot – shut down due to The Rona). Then driving around being-built neighborhoods in the area (empty streets) … to “drive me to Lowes”. Yesterday, she drove on the main street here in town – 55 mph. Umph.

Her ‘driving school’ started today, finally. But it is all on-line. “Virtual”. Friday she gets her permit and will start her 100 hour driving log to eventually get her license.

I’m happy. I’m sad. Here we are at another crossroads of parenting that kind of makes me sad. Reminds me of when I took her to her first day of school so many years back. I didn’t think being a dad would make me sad when we hit milestones like this. You always see other parents so happy when their kids grow up and move on. Really proud and happy to see both Elyce and Gavin growing, learning. I just wish this lasted a lot longer – that somehow time could just chill a bit.

Twenty years ago, fatherhood was something very far from what I wanted. Today – it’s just time I treasure.

To add to the world-wide calaminity of the COVID19 Pandemic of 2020, we now have worldwide demonstrations. Realizing there is no ‘good time’ for having a demonstration on matters that we are dealing with [or have failed to] throughout history, it just seems like the picture below [from Paris, today] are so twistedly bad under the grip of a 100-year pandemic. The clash of these two events in the world’s history just shows you how messed up 2020 has been. And we’re not even halfway through.

With all of the commercials on during this pandamic, you hear a lot of “during difficult times like these”, or “We’re all in this together”. Piano music background is typically in the mix.

Here’s a new one: “We’re Making Toilet Paper as fast as we can”.

Who knew that in 2020 we’d be seeing Old Navy spotlight masks for sale …

I think the thing that is really sad for me to see when I’m out and about is seeing little girls wearing masks – kids, for that matter. I don’t know … just seems like such a sad thing to see. Still hard to accept that this is what it has come to.

Dumped more into AMZN late March … earnings today, will be on sale in am. Sweeping recent gains from travel stocks that tanked 45 days ago with COVID and will be dumping into AMZN in the am. 10 more shares while on sale …

Final Warning: Wear Your Pants to check the mail during the COVID Pandemic.

Thank You.

This is just really really sad – Lonnie, husband of fairly famous grandma (story here) passed due COVID. Ugh.

Every news article is just depressing to read, frankly.

It is weird, because just a month ago, my news ‘dashboard’ was always filled with -what now seems- as trivial BS news articles. To remember what it was like to check my newsfeed back then is just odd. The past few weeks has just been COVID. All of it.

A really sad new reality in our lives.

With all of this COVID Scare, the market has been thrashed over the past 2 weeks. A month ago, a day +/- 100 would envoke emotion (elation/fear). Today, the new norm is a fluctuation of 500 – 2000 points. It’s crazy – and people have been panicking. Panic is the word – the lever, the ‘GO’.

“A market downturn doesn’t bother us. It is an opportunity to increase our ownership of great companies with great management at good prices.” — Warren Buffett
“You make most of your money in a bear market, you just don’t realize it at the time.” — Shelby Cullom Davis

This is literally a once-in-a-lifetime market. Tomorrow, I get my annual bonus. I have been waiting for this, doing due diligence over the past 2 weeks. I will be increasing my MSFT and AMZN holdings bigly, as well as adding some additional tickers to my portfolio – relative to travel and hospitality.

Hell – practically everything is on sale right – a BOGO event, if you will.

Go Big.

These are the types of articles that make the news when everyone is on lockdown and there are no sports on.

Tina and I have been talking about how we must write down our experiences and thoughts during this pandemic. It’s been just over a week now since it’s hit society hard. 8 Days ago, I was picking up a VP from the airport to tour stores together – a pretty typical day, I guess. Effective that morning, field leaders had received an email announcing stricter standards with safety … this was around the time we started hearing the term ‘social distancing’.

After I dropped Mike (said VP) off at the airport, I headed south to El Paso, TX. It’s a 4 hour drive from ABQ. As I drove, I would periodically check the news on my phone (not the smartest thing but whatever). The news grew darker and darker. The news was a curiosity, though. Especially with Trump’s farcical leadership.

The President is just an embarrassment, frankly. His ramblings (‘Incredible’ ‘Tremendous’ ‘Huge’ ‘Great’ ‘Winning’) and inability to stick to the script for Pandemic Updates are just terrible. It is painful to hear him talk and it’s just best to ignore the news at this point. Washington (state) has even opted to not carry his updates live due to his messaging.

Every once in a moment I catch myself wanting to call a friend or relative to say ‘you’re never gonna believe the shit that’s going on right now – there is a friggin pandemic!’ But then I realize the entire world is going through this. Weird.

It was just this week that things started to feel like a science fiction movie. People were acting differently – you can see the worry and almost panic in peoples’ eyes. At the grocery stores, meat is sold out – cleared out. Cheese – gone. Milk, Eggs, Canned Food. I’ve never seen anything like it.

All news on the TV, web, apps on the phone – bad. Dire tales from elsewhere as it sweeps across the us from centralized hubs and spreading a web as you look at the maps.

Yesterday, one of my managers – who is married to a state trooper – informed me that the police were preparing for looting. Bothered me for a bit and I let it go, but then today I was with another manager who was former military and he said he was loading up on ammunition. It’s getting deep. Shit.

I went online this evening and purchased some supplies to help fortify, should it get to that. Not panicking, but preparing for the worst. WTF.

Spring Break is here! But not so glorious … COVID is here.

Heard at 3pm the Governor was going to close all non-essential businesses. Went to Lowes real quick to get supplies for the week (Spring Break vacation week. I will be painting. No trips under current state-of-affairs).

This was the checkout at Lowes: Social Distancing (notice the cones every 6 feet). Getting strange and lonely.

Over dinner I told the kids that they must spend 1 hour per day during this mess (schools have gone remote for now) doing Khan Academy, and we will be eating dinner together as a family every night.

Literally within hours Elyce asks me “where are my lessons, Dad?” (Khan Academy).

Nerd.

I know it’s been a while since I’ve posted … whatever.

Today is a day within a week and month where I (and I’m sure you) say … WTF?

Feels like 9/11 to some extent. I’m not panicking – just feels like the world is, right? Where is the grip?

Umph. That’s all. Umph.

Curious where this all goes …

Stay safe – sanitize those hands (jeez – mine are dry. Yours?)

I get my annual bonus check in 15 days … dumping in stocks. BOOM!

An unfortunate trend for a couple of years now – but with a brilliant solution.

The kids haven’t worn diapers in a few years – but maybe it’s coming for me. I’d be happy to share my bodily fluids for the effort, in case any one is reading this when I start wearing them.

Hmm. I do remember Windows 7 being a thing – but not quite like this. We didn’t have a party … wasn’t invited to one. Had either been a possibility in our limited social circles, I can’t say I would have participated.

Been very lucky with MSFT stock … this news is HUGE (announced Friday) and had been lurking for over a year now as a possibility.

Looking forward to Monday market open.

I freakin’ love Mexican food – Old or New.

Sitting here in El Paso at Leo’s (work travel), realizing it can’t get more authentic (old) Mexican than this (at least in the states).

I could literally throw a rock across the road and hit Mexico.

Cheap, homey, from scratch, authentic, amazing service – always.

Larga Vida Leo’s, biatch!

So … I travel weekly. Today I find myself in Clovis NM.

When I got settled this evening, fired up the laptop and arrived and the splash screen, below is one of the segments of the sign-in page of Hilton. I think I’ll stay in the room tonight.