I must admit that when I hear about the shopping malls and theaters being closed it does not upset me. My “local” mall, Terminal 21, has started playing hip hop themed music. And going to a movie up on the top floor means enduring a seemingly endless string of advertisements before the show finally starts. The current plan is to keep these venues closed for at least three weeks. Three years would be fine by me.

The shutting down of the Bangkok bars, on the other hand, has proven to be more traumatic. I am a long time regular at Beer Garden on Soi 7. It is such fun to saunter in on a busy night, find a good seat, order my usual glass of red wine, then casually scan the premise to see if any of my special friends have arrived yet. (Like Liam Neeson’s character in the opening bar scene of Schindler’s List, except I am not looking for high ranking SS officers.) To have this routine suddenly shut off has led to some empty evenings.

Of greater concern is how my pair of barmaid friends, Sumontha and Sirada, will be getting by. Thailand does not have much of a safety net: if things go bad, family and friends become the fallback positions, though neither may have much in the way of money. This got me thinking that if the two of them will not be getting paid while the bar is closed — an assumption that proved correct — they could be feeling the pinch. So for my final visit before the shutdown, I gave them each three thousand baht (@ $90 USD) to help them through the following two weeks. (This had Sirada in tears.)

Today’s announcement by the Thai goverment of a state of emergency and possible curfew bodes ill for the girls; it could be another couple of months before they can return to work. I will continue providing support, relying on Sumontha to tell me how much they need. It’s something I am happy to do. Last year, when I was under the weather, I made a joke about them bringing some wine to my apartment to aid in my recovery, never imagining they’d actually do it. So when they did show up late one night after work and presented me with two bottles of respectable red vintages, I was stunned. Friends like these deserve to be helped.

In the past week I’ve made three grocery runs to restock my depleted cupboard. I always go in the mornings when there are fewer shoppers. But even then I inevitably find myself having to edge around someone as I go down an aisle. At least they are all wearing masks!

From speaking with friends and relatives back in the U.S. — as well as following the local news — it sounds like there has been a rash of panic buying. In particular, people have been stockpiling toilette paper (which may become the new currency in a post-pandemic world). It has made me realize that people’s reactions can be as much of a concern as the coronavirus itself. (Also known as covid-19.)

Happily, my own grocery (Villa Market on Soi 2) has experienced no shortages that I’ve noticed so far. The shelves in the TP section have not been denuded and there’s no sense of urgency amongst the shoppers. Of course this is no guarantee things will be going as smoothly come next month, so I’ve been loading up on cereal, pasta, canned goods…anything with a long shelf life. These can be rather bulky, which gave me the idea of going to Villa Market wearing my old backpack with a reusable bag stuffed inside. After I finish my shopping, I put the big heavy stuff at the bottom of the pack, then on top of it, the reusable containing the smaller purchases. Lugging all this home makes me feel like a pack mule, but it reduces the number of visits I have to make.

I have started visiting the Bangkok Post website for the latest on the in country infection rates and places that are closed. They seem to be on top of things. However, sometimes there are advertisements which are in the same format as the news stories, which can be confusing.

Another website, that of the World Health Organization, I checked out a few weeks ago, hoping to find some common-sense advice. This turned out to be a disappointment. The home page featured, amongst other items that were of little use to me, a pair of links to speeches by the WHO General Director. Not just one, but two talks, mind you. Whether these slowed the pace of the global outbreak is unclear.

At least it now looks like the WHO is on the ball. When you bring up their site, there’s a large red hard-to-miss rectangle on the left side of the page. Clicking that will show a box titled “Protect Yourself” that leads to plenty of useful information. (And below the box, of course, is the latest speech by the General Director, who seems to have nothing better to do these days.)

And for those who want to keep things simple, I’ve come across an easy-to-follow checklist from a New York Times columnist.