Dear Ones,
I’ve asked Mike Rosen, our SUUS humorist, to offer us a regular column to inspire us in a chuckle or outright laugh. Be sure to check it out. Thank you, Mike!
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This Isolation is Making Some People Crazy
Those of you who follow my daily Facebook posts already know I enjoy posting humor and absurdities. I do so because we need to laugh, now more than any time in many, many years, and I guess I’m living what Reverend Jeanne refers to as my laughter ministry.
With that in mind, last week I read an article on the psychology of hoarding toilet paper (frankly, it was fascinating) and it led me to wonder about other things people ran out to buy as soon as the crisis became real. Some things people buy in quantity make sense, of course, while others raise eyebrows.
Dedicated serious researcher that I am (ahem), I did a search for odd things people ran out to buy (or bought online) just as soon as they could. Also, I polled some of my usual suspects for things they bought, or heard of items others bought. Now, I don’t intend this list to be an indictment. As far as I’m concerned, people can buy what they want as long as they’re not making it impossible for others to get what they need (buying three packages of toilet paper isn’t hoarding; buying three pallets of toilet paper is, however). Here is some of what I gleaned:
“I just bought like 200 vintage Harlequin brand romance books on eBay.”
“A Costco-sized jar of Jelly Bellies and 48 croissants.”
“Fifty 18-packs of kippered herring.”
“Massive amounts of Eggo waffles. At least one box of every flavor and the pancakes.”
“A new wet brush. I knew I’d be taking a lot of showers out of sheer boredom.”
“A baby bearded dragon. To be fair, I’d researched and considered one for months and am already a proud snake parent, but it suddenly felt like the time.”
“A ten-gallon aquarium and some fish.”
“Three dozen twelve-packs of socks.”
“Six cigar cutters.”
“I bought a pink wig and stocked up on skincare masks because why not. I’m bored. Might as well hide my terrible root grow-out and get glowing skin.”
Finally, just for a giggle, here is a photo of a signboard in front of an Australian pizza restaurant:
On a serious note, I hope each one of you is able to get adequate supplies of the things you really need. Right now, I have to go to the basement and check on my supply of Twizzlers. I might need to go to Costco tomorrow for another pallet.
Mike Rosen