As election season really gets rolling, the question some are asking is, are you better off now than you were four years ago?
This plays into the presidential election, as President Joe Biden runs for four more years and former president Donald Trump seeks a second, but non-consecutive, term.
Republican talking heads are asking “Are you better off?” with their ready answer being no, of course not.
That’s a lie, of course. Things are wildly better now. I mean, I can go to the store and buy toilet paper, for one.
That was something I couldn’t do four years ago, almost to the day. On March 15, 2020, I ventured to Kroger and saw nothing but empty shelves.
Don’t believe me? Here’s the photo I took that morning and nothing but paper towels and empty shelves.
The toilet paper aisle at Kroger, March 15, 2020.
Let’s see what else.
Four years ago, I made reasonable money as a consultant and freelance writer.
Four years ago, I was at Bryant High School covering the state tournament there and trying to piece together assignments for the following week’s state championship games in Hot Springs.
The vibes were off at Bryant that day. Crowds were subdued and giant bottles of hand sanitizer were everywhere.
People kept their distance, for the most part. Not Daryl Fimple though. Guy’s a hugger.
Daryl Fimple excluded, people kept their distance. Even in Bryant’s posh hospitality room, people sat by themselves and picked at their M&Ms, as nobody was quite sure what was next.
What was next was no state championship games.
They were called off by the AAA, as then-Gov. Asa Hutchinson pushed for a pandemic pause.
People were dying. There was no cure in sight, and no one knew what to do.
The freelance business, such as it was, went away. Then the company for which I did consulting work went on a pandemic “pause.” They later went out of business.
Lots of places went out of business, then.
March 2020 meant wild road trips out in rural Pulaski and Saline counties looking for toilet paper, because you heard that some Dollar General where roads intersected had some for sale.
Eventually, I found some, at a Dollar General near the Bass Pro Shop. Angel Soft. Not the preferred brand, but it was toilet paper.
At the Dollar General, the Angel Soft was kept locked in a storeroom, the clerk said, because if it were out for sale, people would rush in the store, grab it off the shelf and take off.
A completely new version of check ditching, I suppose.
All of this still seems fresh. Maybe because I turned 50 during that time, and the little birthday party I had was the last group event I attended for roughly the next 12 months.
Things like that tend to stick.
Trump dillied and dallied as people died. Some of those people who died I knew well. May their memories be eternal.
But, perhaps in his best moment, Trump turned on Operation Warp Speed, and vaccines started to become available. I got my shots in North Little Rock in 2021, after making an appointment to go to Texarkana.
Now, as a candidate, Trump seems to be eschewing his legacy as the vaccine president and promises to cut off federal funding to any school that has a vaccine mandate. A vaccine mandate for any disease. Personally, I’m glad the measles and whatnot still aren’t things.
But, to get back to the original question.
I’m much better off today. I’m gainfully employed. I've been vaccinated several times over, and I haven’t gotten sick from Covid. Or at least I haven’t tested positive, which also means I’ve managed to avoid the dreaded “long Covid” and its vast array of symptoms.
Chances are, just by being able to read this, you're better off as well. At least you’re not dead, like the 1,181,607 Americans who have died.
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The question of the day
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As election season really gets rolling, the question some are asking is, are you better off now than you were four years ago?
This plays into the presidential election, as President Joe Biden runs for four more years and former president Donald Trump seeks a second, but non-consecutive, term.
Republican talking heads are asking “Are you better off?” with their ready answer being no, of course not.
That’s a lie, of course. Things are wildly better now. I mean, I can go to the store and buy toilet paper, for one.
That was something I couldn’t do four years ago, almost to the day. On March 15, 2020, I ventured to Kroger and saw nothing but empty shelves.
Don’t believe me? Here’s the photo I took that morning and nothing but paper towels and empty shelves.
Let’s see what else.
Four years ago, I made reasonable money as a consultant and freelance writer.
Four years ago, I was at Bryant High School covering the state tournament there and trying to piece together assignments for the following week’s state championship games in Hot Springs.
The vibes were off at Bryant that day. Crowds were subdued and giant bottles of hand sanitizer were everywhere.
People kept their distance, for the most part. Not Daryl Fimple though. Guy’s a hugger.
Daryl Fimple excluded, people kept their distance. Even in Bryant’s posh hospitality room, people sat by themselves and picked at their M&Ms, as nobody was quite sure what was next.
What was next was no state championship games.
They were called off by the AAA, as then-Gov. Asa Hutchinson pushed for a pandemic pause.
People were dying. There was no cure in sight, and no one knew what to do.
The freelance business, such as it was, went away. Then the company for which I did consulting work went on a pandemic “pause.” They later went out of business.
Lots of places went out of business, then.
March 2020 meant wild road trips out in rural Pulaski and Saline counties looking for toilet paper, because you heard that some Dollar General where roads intersected had some for sale.
Eventually, I found some, at a Dollar General near the Bass Pro Shop. Angel Soft. Not the preferred brand, but it was toilet paper.
At the Dollar General, the Angel Soft was kept locked in a storeroom, the clerk said, because if it were out for sale, people would rush in the store, grab it off the shelf and take off.
A completely new version of check ditching, I suppose.
All of this still seems fresh. Maybe because I turned 50 during that time, and the little birthday party I had was the last group event I attended for roughly the next 12 months.
Things like that tend to stick.
Trump dillied and dallied as people died. Some of those people who died I knew well. May their memories be eternal.
But, perhaps in his best moment, Trump turned on Operation Warp Speed, and vaccines started to become available. I got my shots in North Little Rock in 2021, after making an appointment to go to Texarkana.
Now, as a candidate, Trump seems to be eschewing his legacy as the vaccine president and promises to cut off federal funding to any school that has a vaccine mandate. A vaccine mandate for any disease. Personally, I’m glad the measles and whatnot still aren’t things.
But, to get back to the original question.
I’m much better off today. I’m gainfully employed. I've been vaccinated several times over, and I haven’t gotten sick from Covid. Or at least I haven’t tested positive, which also means I’ve managed to avoid the dreaded “long Covid” and its vast array of symptoms.
Chances are, just by being able to read this, you're better off as well. At least you’re not dead, like the 1,181,607 Americans who have died.