The Big Shut-In

Ann and her family all had COVID-19, and even though the cases were mild, it was still a scary, frustrating experience... and one that held on for weeks and weeks.

Joe Apfelbaum of Ajax Union is entering the second month of lockdown with in a fighting stance - he's going to save his family, save his business, and if you let him, maybe even save you.

Today I spoke to Patrick Sasso of Loop 7, who, despite the hit his business has taken, is finding real causes for optimism in all this - in the way we care for each other, and in the resiliency of our fellow New Yorkers.

Dan London and I have made podcasts together before - there's a bunch of them over under "London's New York" on this same network... tonight we talked about changing plans, modified expectations, and the nature of national identity in the time of COVID.

Lindsay Heather Pearce is a fiercely talented singer and actress who worked for years before getting her big break - the lead part in one of the biggest shows on Broadway. Unfortunately, the world had other plans.

Despite all the politics and abstract philosophy that's creeping in to how most of the rest of the country is still talking about COVID-19, there's an actual disease at work here, and it's nasty business. Phil is my neighbor. He's a doctor. He got very sick with this damned virus and lived to tell the tale.

Michael Shaw Fisher, a celebrated playwright in Los Angeles, is spending this lockdown clinging to his job with a moving company as he watches his entire creative community go into a tailspin.

Candace, a rock and roller who was making a good living working in restaurants, moved from New York to North Carolina in search of a lower cost of living and reconnection with her family. Now she and her whole band are locked up together with no income. Difficulties abound, but optimism holds.

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You can find Candace's band, Fall of Another Year on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/Fall-Of-Another-Year-567682636587705) and Bandcamp (https://fallofanotheryear1.bandcamp.com/)

For many of us, the only thing more frustrating than the constraints of quarantine have been the difficulties of accessing real help from the government. The severely overtaxed unemployment system is a dysfunctional mess, and other assistance is thin on the ground. I talked to my friend and colleague Matt - a successful freelance videographer here in New York - about the challenges of keeping himself afloat when he's not allowed to work.

With medical resources stretched beyond the breaking point, and hospitals barely able to keep up, what is it like to need medical care for some other reason? What in the world is it like for a New Yorker to have a BABY right now? I speak with expert NYC doula Megan Davidson about the unique challenges and hardships of giving birth in Covidville.