I've tried everybody. Believe me when I say that I tried very, very hard to not be a downer. But, with all the craziness that is happening in the world right now, I am going to be bleak and upsetting today. I think, scratch that, I know it is because I am upset and scared and don't really know what to do, or how to handle this pandemic going on all over the world right now.

This is unlike anything that I have ever witnessed in my lifetime to this point. I remember SARS, MRSA, Zika, Anthrax, all of that stuff, but I don't think it ever got to this level. I wasn't really aware, maybe not even alive yet, when HIV and AIDS became a pandemic that we still haven't figured out, and still hold a stigma over. But this, this COVID-19 thing seems to be pretty scary, and doesn't seem to be going away anytime soon.

Usually with stuff like this, the news gets a little better each day. This time around, it has been all bad. I first remember hearing about it in February, and thinking that it would get contained quickly. That didn't happen. I even remember when I heard that it made its way to the US, I had the same thought. I assumed it would get figured out quickly. It hasn't. But, and I know this is going to sound bad, but it really hit hard for me last night when the NBA suspended the season. Then today the NHL, MLB, MLS and all the major men's college basketball conference tournaments canceled, or suspended play. I am sure that March Madness is the next to be postponed or canceled (ed note: This was written before the NCAA cancelled the Men’s and Women’s tournaments). The same stuff is happening in my hometown of Saint Louis right now. They postponed all Saint Patrick's day festivities this weekend, my son and I were both participants in the biggest race weekend in Saint Louis, Go!, and that was canceled today. I know some concerts and other places with large gatherings are being postponed or canceled as well.

As much as this hurts, I do understand that it is the right thing to do. I understand, to mitigate this, to slow it down, large groups of people do not need to be hanging out for awhile. But what gets me is, I don't know how long this will continue. I've heard people say two weeks, I've hear ten days, I've heard months. I simply don't know what is going to happen. I don't know if we will be quarantined like Italy. I don't know if we will have zones quarantined. I don't know if my kids school will be postponed or canceled. I don't know if my wife will be working from home for awhile, or if her office building will stay open. That is what gets to me, the unknowing.

This is why I also want the people in charge, not the "government", but the scientists and doctors and epidemiologists, the people who know what to do in these situations, to hammer the hell down and figure this out. I think it is insane that we don't have a test, or tests for this. I am baffled that there isn't a vaccine, or trials for a vaccine. I mean, Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson had to be in Australia to get tested. Just think if they were here, and they didn't get tested what could've happen. It is almost a good thing that they were in a different country where they could easily be tested.

But, going back to the sports stuff, the cancellations and postponements are upsetting. When there is bad news out there, like all the stuff I mentioned up top, or the 2016 election or all the school shootings, I always had sports to turn to to try and keep my mind off all the bad news. Now, that is all gone. It is all dark. I was all for the teams playing with no fans, but I understand the stoppage because human lives are at stake, and safety is the number one priority. I get it, but I am upset, and I think it is okay to be upset. There will be no NBA, for the minimum, for 30 days. There will be, at least, a two week delay to opening day in baseball. Who knows how long the NHL will suspend play. And, more than likely, there will be no March Madness. I hope they do eventually play it, especially for the seniors in college basketball, but it doesn't seem likely at this point. There is still so much unknown, and until the powers that be figure something out, the best way to quell this is to limit large gatherings.

As for me, I will find things to watch. There are a million streaming options, old movies and TV shows to catch up on. I also have a tremendous wife and two kids that I can play with and do fun things with. And I will continue to be vigilant in washing hands, cleaning counters, cleaning the house, staying away from large crowds. I am not going to self quarantine unless necessary. I need to live my life. I still will run. I need to do these things to stay sane. But, this Coronavirus is real, it is scary and it should have us all on alert. We should all be taking the necessary precautions. We should all be doing the things the CDC and WHO tell us to do. And I need to realize that, if I have a tickle in my throat, or if I sneeze, or if I cough for a second, it doesn't mean I have the virus. I recently went to my personal physician because I had a lingering sore throat, and was informed that it was my allergies getting worse the older I get. They actually said that I was, other than the allergies, and I quote, "a very healthy person".

This sucks, this is bad, but, hopefully, we will figure this thing out, and we will prevail. Hopefully we will get back to some kind of normalcy in this world. I envision this NBA season, which has been tremendous, will eventually come back, and they will have a championship. I hope March Madness turns into April or May Madness. The MLB will have an opening day, it will, most likely, be in late April. I'm scared, but I know what to do, and I will not let this virus, this pandemic take me over. I will follow the guidelines, and eventually, things will be somewhat normal again. At least I hope.

Ty 

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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