2020 Catch-Up

Catching up on one of the craziest years in my lifetime and only 1/2 over?

The year 2020 always seemed like the far future but this hopeful future arrived in tragic fashion and has accelerated month by month into uncertainty and increasing chaos.

January

The Covid virus arrives into the U.S from Wuhan, China with lots of unknowns and fear
The first cases arrive around the end of January: News Link

February

Things are looking like the virus will be spreading to the U.S. We get nervous and start stocking up on food, sanitizing materials, medicine, etc. It works out good as shortly these things will be in short supply and grocery stores overrun with desperate shoppers.

March

On Sunday March 8th in the evening, we get an email from our CIO informing us that the office is shut down and we are to work from home remotely
- Staff and Administration: Effective immediately, we encourage all teams in TDS to consider remote work accommodations for staff where appropriate. Please take into account projects, services or collaboration activities and work with your Director or VP to come up with approaches that support our partners. Staff working remotely need to complete a Temporary Remote Work agreement form if one has not already been completed. The forms with instructions should be available Monday by the end of the day. Notably, there are some areas that do not allow for remote work. We expect those staff who need to be on site to take appropriate precautions as outlined on the SHC intranet (link below). Also, if there is not a requirement to hold larger in person meetings, please explore ways to conduct them virtually.
The night before our cruise vacation, all cruises are suspended and we scramble to cancel flights, hotels, and tours. It takes around 60 days to get all our refunds processed
On March 16th the Bay area issues a stay at home order due to Coronavirus. All businesses (restaurants, shops, etc) are closed and remain so for months https://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/coronavirus/region-wide-coronavirus-order-to-impact-bay-area-residents/2255386/
Governor Gavin Newsom issues an unprecedented stay at home order for the state of California on March 19th https://www.gov.ca.gov/2020/03/19/governor-gavin-newsom-issues-stay-at-home-order/

April

Our vacation to Vegas to see Lady Gaga’s Enigma concert is cancelled as all the casinos and venues are still closed
Concerts to see the Hella Mega Tour (Green Day, Fall Out Boy, Weezer) and Pet Shop Boys/New Order are postponed for sometime in 2021

May

On May 9th several loud gunshots rang out about midnight at the America’s Best Inn across the street, I clearly heard them and after seeing around 30 police respond realize someone was murdered in their car and suspect got away. This was a disturbing scene where I saw them drag the body out and try performing CPR. The city feels increasingly unsafe- I can no longer safely go out after dark due to shootings and muggings in the area
- https://www.eastbaytimes.com/man-fatally-shot-at-oakland-hotel-is-identified
On May 25th George Floyd, a black man, was murdered by a white police officer while being arrested in Minneapolis, MN by kneeling on his neck for nearly 9 minutes. It was caught on camera and resulted in nationwide and worldwide protests, riots, and global recognition of the Black Lives Matter movement, and unrest around police brutality
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killing_of_George_Floyd
- https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/31/us/george-floyd-investigation.html
Extensive protests, riots, and looting occurs in my town of Oakland, CA and other Bay Area cities. Hundreds of local businesses are vandalized, burned, looted, and most ended up boarded up for weeks afterward due to citizen outrage
- https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/Protesters-return-to-SF-streets-as-Breed-15307156.php
- https://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/east-bay/downtown-oakland-merchants-clean-up-after-looting-vandalism-during-friday-night-protest/2299836/
My building puts up plywood over all the door and windows of the ground floor for added security as there are daily, sometimes twice per day, protests around the area. They are due to come down in mid June.
On May 28th while taking a walk, I heard people screaming and running away from Pine Knoll Park, where I had just walked by and noticed a large party/gathering. There was chaos as people quickly drove away and I saw people take a screaming lady and stuff her into a car. I hide behind a car as was unsure what was happening. I later found out this was the gunshot victim, shot in the chest, and she was driven directly to the hospital. The police and ambulance take about 20 minutes to show up