March 14, 2020 – First, the title refers to Jimmy Buffett’s iconic song “Trying to Reason With Hurricane Season”, which we also know about in Mississippi. In the last 72 hours, our worlds have undergone a major transformation. On Thursday, I laughed and said that I didn’t know I would have to give up everything for Lent. COVID-19 (the novel coronavirus spreading around the globe) has caused mass cancellations (and mass hoarding) of toilet paper. Groups are preparing for and cancelling events all across Mississippi and around the globe. Hal’s St. Paddy’s Parade was cancelled. This parade is one of Jackson’s Crown Jewels. All tournaments and seasons of the NCAA, NBA, NHL were cancelled. The start of the season has been delayed by baseball. Broadway is now dark. Groups of 250 people are being warned not to meet. Services are being cancelled by churches. Online colleges are becoming more popular. Public schools are also closing. Many of us now work from home. This is not because of panic. It’s to prevent one. To protect our health care center, our elderly and vulnerable patients, we need to flatten our curve (rate of infection). There are not enough ventilators and hospital beds to accommodate all the patients that need to be intubated. We wash our hands and keep our faces covered. Social distance is one of our main weapons. The future is far away for vaccines and treatments. Yesterday (Friday) I worked at home. I will in the near future. For three months, all events of Mississippi Today have been delayed. For obvious reasons, my chances of getting out in the public will be greatly reduced in the short-term. I don’t want the risk of being a super spreader. One of my goals is to reach out to you in order for you and your family to cope with the rapid, massive changes in our lives. I will share some tips that I have learned about staying sane when trapped in the house. Mississippi is blessed with many places where you can “social distance” while still enjoying yourself. Yesterday, a social media follower stated that he was going turkey hunting. That’s the spirit. This blog is about you. I would love to know how you are adapting your life to this huge shift. This will be an opportunity to have a discussion. You know social media is social. Your tips and comments will be added to this blog. We can only get through this together, but not in the same place. It will be difficult. We are tough. I look forward hearing from you. Email: mramsey@mississippitoday.com On Twitter: MarshallRamsey On Facebook: Marshall Ramsey Fanpagepalooza. MarshallRamsey IDEA: