It is as clear in my mind as yesterday how quickly many divides and gaps in the American culture and psyche narrowed, tightened or closed in the immediate aftermath of 9/11.

There is no estimated loss of life which we should consider an acceptable number but during a pandemic, there will be loss of life.

It is perhaps something of an understatement to say, as a middle-aged white male, that I am not really part of the target audience for most of the works of multi-talented actor/director/producer and increasingly successful entertainment mogul Tyler Perry.

As I write this, on Thursday, April 2, Georgia had its first diagnosed case of COVID19 one month ago. I started journaling about two weeks ago.

Hard as it may sometimes be to admit, we crave the routine, the known and the customary. This time is not that.

Business travel demands had me back on the road, almost immediately in the aftermath of 9/11. I got back on jets as I had been spending 3-5 days a week at that point for a few years.

Dozens of thousands of Georgians and millions of Americans spent the weekend heading home from various destinations, adventures and vacations from Spring Break. In addition to some surprise screening procedures at dozens of U.S. airports, they are returning home to a vastly new normal.

It is longtime considered conventional wisdom, particularly during election years, that the Republican Party would like to throw Grandma from the train, cut all social services and safety net spending to the quick, and give out only tax cuts to the rich and well-off.