I really like that analogy. We started by going every weekend to the largest rescue in our metropolitan area. It gave us a chance to meet a variety of kinds of dogs and to chat with the volunteers. I had cats growing up, but had never owned a dog. We went in wanting a doodle mix, but those are hard to find. There was one, but he was very high strung, and we didn't want that. We walked some larger dogs that needed training and decided that we needed something smaller. The beagle mix we chose was a little older than we wanted, but she was so interested in engaging with us. She carefully went to each of us and was very friendly and outgoing. She didn't have leash manners, but was happy to go on a walk and kept looking back to make sure we were coming along. She liked playing with other dogs in the yard. In other words, she's a very easy and personable dog. Her file said that she rarely barked and never tried to bite. And that's pretty much what we got. She barks when she goes out in the morning for some reason, but that's it. Training her to leash took awhile because she wants to sniff everything, but now she'll look back at me before pulling on the leash as if to say, "Please let me go check this out!" She's run a handful of times, but will go and then will look back as if to say, "Are you coming?" She's never gone far. Other than two vet visits when she was limping, she's been very healthy. Both of those visits were after she slipped and fell, but she recovered fine with doggie Motrin and less activity. One advantage of beagles over the doodle breeds is that they don't have to be groomed. She doesn't like baths, but I bathe her once a month and put on a lot of conditioner because she tends to get itchy. Prior to the virus, I took her to a grooming place for her nails, but that's not hard to do yourself. When her time comes (NO!), we'll get another beagle mix. They're just right for us. We like the size and personality.

I didn't do direct deposit for my 2018 taxes because I was transitioning banks. I'm still working on 2019, but probably will get the docs to my preparer this week. I could have used it now, but I'll be OK. I just had to refresh a legal retainer for ongoing work, so it will go for the credit card bill when it comes. Thankfully my work hasn't been at all affected by the virus. Summer may be a concern.

We got an older beagle mix from a rescue and have never looked back. One advantage of getting an older dog is that they have less energy and have developed their personality. I couldn't afford a purebred, so focused our search entirely on the rescues. She was housebroken and friendly right away, but apparently had very little training. We had to work on leash manners and basic commands. No problem training her, but being a mix supposedly helps that way. I was surprised by how cuddly she is. She truly wouldn't mind laying on the couch with a human ALL DAY LONG. She's very companionable.

Both of mine have done community college and are commuting now to a nationally-ranked four year. Both are academic superstars and are thriving. Absolutely the right choice for us.

Yes, from what I've read, the testing is not considered definitive at this point. More R&D is needed. I had a truly horrible virus in the fall. I was visiting a friend in ICU every few days, and probably got it there. I had a high fever for days, and then it went into my lungs. No pneumonia, but it took months for my breathing to return to normal. I have asthma, so I had my asthma doctor monitor it. I live in an area where international travel is not uncommon. It makes me wonder, but I wouldn't do a test unless it was more affordable for me.

We had a nice garden at our other house. We canned tomatoes, salsa, jam, applesauce, and green beans. IMHO it was a huge amount of work. Since then, I'm much more prone to freeze or dry excess produce. It's far less work, and you can buy good canned goods. The Ball canning book was my reference. That said, I made so much salsa that I could get a batch on the stove in an hour, working by myself. IMHO the salsa declined after a year. though. It was still good, but pretty much like store bought after a year. It wasn't something I'd do a lot of. I liked the dried herbs in the winter, but the quality declined after about a year. If I buy herbs now and don't use them all, I usually dry them and use them up that way. When we moved, I gave my water bath set-up to a friend. You can get that sort of thing very reasonably to try out canning. Pressure canning is more of commitment. I still have my canner, but probably will sell it this spring as I haven't used it in several years. I'm going to keep my drying set-up. Not long ago, I was cleaning out the garage and found some canned beans in with some cleaning supplies (LOL). Needless to say, they had spoiled and looked very disgusting. If you preserve, you have to plan to get it eaten.

Yes, it's painful. When the at-home stuff started, I got fired up and replied to several people when I should have held back. One was ranting about college stuff I know about as a professor, and another was pushing the "call the formula company for a free case if you can't buy any" for the twelfth time. Now I update a group I manage, scan my feed, and stay off the rest of the day. When I scanned this morning, there was all kinds of conspiracy and fake science stuff amid "look how pretty my Easter table is." OK, I liked the pretty Easter tables. I'm not into it, but good for them.

Yes, it's all a bit unpredictable. I ordered several critical computer-related items, and they said May. I considered hauling myself to a computer store that I know is open, but it's over an hour each way. And then they shipped and arrived this week.

We've had our rescued dog for over two years, and she was finally doing really well with us being gone. If I got her water dish and lick mat ready in the laundry room, she'd actually go there herself, knowing that we'd be back for her soon. Now we don't go anywhere, and I'm just going with it. We'll gradually have to get her back into that, but this is not the time. I work from home, so she had a lot of companionship even prior to the virus concerns. But of course there were times we left her for up to six hours, and she was fine with that.

That's not right. I had a six-month routine follow-up with my internist, and they called ME to cancel and to ask which refills I needed. I saw in the paper that they are now offering online appointments for that type of thing, but I appreciated that they were proactive about it.

Celebrate Recovery is an evangelical Christian group that can be helpful too. My mother had mental health and addiction issues, and it's been very helpful for me. I have had therapy but couldn't afford it any longer. Whatever recovery group the person tries, it's important to note that every group has its own character and culture. If one group seems like a poor fit, there might be another that is better. Some are larger, some are small. Some are mostly older people, and some are more mixed.

Mine are commuter students, but we use a local bank that doesn't have any branches near their campus. They use their debit cards and a joint credit card with me for most purchases. Our bank pays the fees for four external ATM withdrawals a month, which is more than enough when they need cash, which isn't often. They deposit checks via the bank app.

I went to Wal-Mart a week ago right when they opened and got an OK brand. Not our preferred, but not bad. I figure I have about two weeks left, and it never is in stock when I do my online order. I might have to go into the store again (LOL).

I'm an online-only professor with a large community community college. Of course our programs (70,000+ students) are all online now. My college REALLY wants to offer face-to-face classes in the fall, but the online meetings we've had indicate that they know that may or may not be possible. It's just such an unknown, crazy time. They are focusing on the summer right now. They are planning to be entirely online this summer. It's a bit of an issue because not every face-to-face professor wants to teach that way. So they are going through all of their offerings professor-by-professor. I've already agreed of course because I teach only online. Not an adjustment for me at all. They are working on better proctoring arrangements and such. My own college kids don't mind online learning because they did a fair amount of that in high school, but some of their professors really aren't into it. It's a bit worrisome, but they are busy going to online class sessions, writing papers, and taking tests. Some learning is going on.

Outskirts of a major metropolitan area. I do Wal-Mart ordering because I feel better about that versus going in. It's a bit of game to get a slot, but I know what to do. Other than T.P., everything I ordered from Wal-Mart was in or reasonably substituted. I tried to order pasta sauce and couldn't, but I was fine getting ingredients to make pasta sauce. That sort of thing continues. Ordering or shopping inside is too hit-or-miss for me. I really don't want to have to go into 3-4 stores to get what I need. I was at Wal-Mart relatively early (9am) and about 1/2 the people coming out had masks on. I drove down the main street area, and that ratio was about the same for people walking down the street.

Yes, I do. I'm a single parent and really miss my friends and activities. I need that. So I'm doing at least three a week. Keeps me sane. I've been using that type of technology for a decade, so it's not a biggie. My church has decided not to embrace that technology, so we are enjoying services with other churches. My college kids are online everyday with friends.

Pretty much. I was planning one trip to visit a relative and another with friends to a conference. I haven't booked anything, but I'm guessing that both are toast.

I'll probably give a little to the college kids and apply the rest to medical stuff that I haven't been billed for yet.

Mostly the same stuff. I upped my Amazon Subscribe-and-Save so that I have extra dog food and some the things I can't buy locally on an ongoing basis. In February I had the foresight to order some emergency supplies that are gradually arriving now. Not a lot, just a little more than I would usually have around.

Friends and family have talked about the Great Depression, and certainly not everyone weathered well. There were families who pulled together and did well, and others that didn't. As other links have indicated, there was depression, suicide, abuse, alcoholism, and abandonment. In those days, people mostly didn't talk about it because of shame. They hid and denied their problems. I volunteer with several ministries seeking to help women battling addiction and/or abuse. And I can tell you that those we try to help are really having a hard time. We are doing what we can with phone calls and Zoom. The women's shelters are full, and there are so very many difficult situations and needs. I'm thankful every day that I have solid connections with friends and family, a job, and a place to live.

Everything here (ah-choo)! Some of the trees are done, and some are just starting. The cherries are almost done, and my dogwood is getting ready. The daffodils are all over, and my peonies are sprouting. They normally bloom in May.

Our Wal-Mart has actually been better stocked than any of the grocery stores, but it's a little tricky. The only way to get a slot for the following day is to checkout right after midnight. So I build my cart all week, then right after midnight on Sunday I checked out for a Tuesday pick-up. You can actually add or subtract groceries in that scenario on Monday. But the substitutes are a bit funny. Today I got powdered sugar instead of brown sugar, which I went with because we'll use it either way. I also got pineapple yogurt instead of peach, which is fine.

I've had to go out about twice a week since early March, but just for essentials. I everything started closing down around here the second week of March. I went to an after-work dental appointment, only to find that they had closed the office at noon for the duration. I went to an asthma doctor appointment that week, and they closed the office that evening for the duration. I had a hair appointment that week too that got cancelled. I had a six-month bloodwork and recheck appointment with my primary doctor this week that I rescheduled for May. Why should I expose myself there? We still get groceries about twice a week. I did a Wal-Mart pickup today, went by the bank (ATM and drive-through only), and then filled up my car. My oldest heard about a gym equipment liquidation from a friend and went to that (cash only). Otherwise we are home-home-home. My normal Wednesday Bible study is meeting online. Our church isn't doing anything, so we've been watching other church's services on Sundays.

Get yourself a very experienced lawyer. They are still working in this mess and can file emergency motions with the court. I understand that you are focused on the emotional, but what he has done is ILLEGAL.

My income varies widely because of the type of work I do. January is a low month and then it picks up. But I had all kinds of expenses in January and February including some that I put off. One of my college kids needs new tires on their vehicle, and thankfully we had a mild winter. But we'll have to do that before it's due for inspection. His school year job is cancelled, as is his summer job. So I have to cover more than I usually do. My younger one's job moved online. March ended up much better for us, but I've got some catch-up to cover. And I've got to buy food for three meals a day for everyone.