I had lost much of my appetite but was forcing myself to drink Gatorade. I suddenly began craving bagels and English muffins — even though I normally refrain from eating those kinds of “bad” carbs. While I had lost much of my taste and smell, I couldn’t get enough of English muffins with peanut butter.
Thankfully, I also had Netflix. And I distracted myself by watching “Tiger King,” which I now deeply regret. That docuseries made me feel worse about the state of American humanity.
Why? Because its star — Joe Exotic, the gun toting, polygamist and former gubernatorial candidate in Oklahoma — was a deeply troubling character who seemed to bring the most disturbing elements of our society to the forefront. Perhaps I’m a bit predisposed to dislike Joe Exotic, who owned an exotic animal park, since I was a co-sponsor of the Big Cat Public Safety Act in 2017, which sought to limit the owning of big cats as pets and stop their display in roadside zoos.
But I also found Joe Exotic’s behavior reprehensible. To give you an example, he made threats against his nemesis, Carole Baskin, founder of Big Cat Rescue — even shooting a blow-up dummy dressed to look like her. Who does that?
Joe Exotic also had a three-way wedding with two other men. And while I am supportive of marriage equality, it does not extend to polygamy. These kinds of actions, when taken together, further highlight his instability and flagrant contempt for authority.
Fortunately, I found plenty of other programs on Netflix, Amazon Prime and Hulu that were more inspiring, humorous and less depressing. For example, I watched the Amazon Prime miniseries on “Gallipoli,” a tragic story of the failed British Dardanelles campaign in Turkey during World War I, costing the lives of many thousands of Australian and New Zealand soldiers as well.
I also snuck in a season of the hilarious show “Fleabag,” about a young, promiscuous British woman and her many escapades.
And I even indulged my wife’s love of Jane Austen, watching “Emma,” which could cure anyone’s insomnia and is a stark reminder why I own more than one television.
I also watched a lot of CNN, where, in healthy times, I am a political commentator. The network’s coverage is largely focused on the pandemic — and I must say that seeing images of people across America and the world fall victim to this deadly disease is a tragedy of epic proportions.
Since the pandemic began spreading in the US, there have been countless stories of individuals who have contracted the coronavirus. Some have been heartbreakingly severe; others have been seemingly asymptomatic. For me, it was somewhere in between. There has thankfully been no tragic plot twist — just a very real experience with the disease that has defined the start of my 2020.
And my time at home has given me the space to reflect on the scope of this pandemic — how it appears to be a toxic mix of fear, economic crisis and public health menace wrapped into one never ending, catastrophic event.
That said, I have no doubt we will prevail over this pandemic if we remain patient, smart and determined. We must all exercise good judgment, which means maintaining social distance, practicing proper hygiene and continuing to shelter in place so that the number of new cases per day drops and the economy can reopen — sooner rather than later. We must also increase our testing capacity, since more testing means better data and a stronger ability to track the spread of the virus.
And for those who are in a position to help others, now is when we need it the most. The hope is that plasma from someone who has recovered from the virus can help treat those with more severe symptoms.
I look forward to donating my plasma as soon as I’m given the all clear by my doctor. And there are real signs I’m on the road to recovery and may soon be able to contribute (and maybe stop watching as much television). For the last three weeks, I’ve largely been unable to exercise — something I normally enjoy and do quite regularly.
As I’ve struggled against fatigue, I’ve had to limit myself to walking the dog around my Allentown neighborhood — all while practicing social distancing from my neighbors. But over Easter weekend, I walked for three miles and then slowly jogged on my treadmill for another two miles each day. And it felt pretty good — actually, it felt great.
In the aftermath of the Easter and Passover observances, I must give thanks to frontline workers in health care, public safety, life science and medical technology, trucking, logistics, agriculture, grocery stores and others who risk their well-being for the benefit of the rest of us who are sheltered in place.
America owes these people a measureless debt of gratitude. But, in the meantime, my best advice is do yourself a favor, stay inside your homes and skip out on watching “Tiger King.”
