I dig old books. ™
Est. 1998
 | ||
Home About Contact Donate Terms Privacy |
Quotations:
COVID-19 & Pandemics
Wash your hands and disinfect your thoughts. ~Daniel G. Amen, M.D., @doc_amen, Instagram post, 2020 March 16th
Epidemics have often been more influential than statesmen and soldiers in shaping the course of political history, and diseases may also color the moods of civilizations. ~Rene Dubos and Jean Dubos, "Consumption and the Romantic Age," The White Plague: Tuberculosis, Man and Society, 1952
Conversations will not be cancelled.
Relationships will not be cancelled.
Love will not be cancelled.
Songs will not be cancelled.
Reading will not be cancelled.
Self-care will not be cancelled.
Hope will not be cancelled.
May we lean into the good stuff that remains.
~Jamie Tworkowski, @jamietworkowski, @TWLOHA, 2020 March 12th
Dr. Rieux resolved to compile this chronicle, so that he should not be one of those who hold their peace but should bear witness in favor of those plague-stricken people; so that some memorial of the injustice and outrage done them might endure; and to state quite simply what we learn in time of pestilence: that there are more things to admire in men than to despise. ~Albert Camus, The Plague, 1947, translated from the French by Stuart Gilbert, 1948
I'm either coming out of this quarantine 50 lbs lighter or 100 lbs heavier, only time will tell. ~Chris Burns, @fatcarriebshaw, tweet, 2020 March 16th
When I was a child and would see scary things on the news, my mother would say to me, "Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping." ~Fred Rogers (1928–2003), as quoted in You Are Special: Neighborly Words of Wisdom from Mister Rogers, 1994
It's got a real medieval ghastliness, like the plague, only this time it will ruin everything, don't you see?... Everybody is going to fall apart... their lungs will crumble... But now we have only the early symptoms, the disease isn't really underway yet... Don't you see, it's just the beginning of the end... It's certainly the beginning of the end of the world as we know it now... It may be a carnival of horror at first... it will spread, slowly and insidiously... ~Jack Kerouac, The Town & the City, 1950 [Actual context: "the great molecular comedown... an atomic disease... death finally reclaiming life... the scurvy of the soul... Everybody is going to fall apart, disintegrate, all character-structures based on tradition and uprightness and so-called morality will slowly rot away, people will get the hives right on their hearts, great crabs will cling to their brains... You know about molecules, they're made up according to a number of atoms arranged just so around a proton or something. Well, the
We stay at work for you.
Please stay home for us!
~Plea from doctors, nurses, and medical personnel everywhere for people to stay home and isolate to avoid spreading the virus, March 2020
We belong to each other, and we can do hard things. ~Glennon Doyle, @glennondoyle, Instagram post, 2020 March 12th
Americans: Face masks are the most important, powerful tool we have against #COVID19. We have clear scientific evidence that they work, so please wear one to protect yourself, your community, and your nation. ~Dr. Robert R. Redfield, @CDCDirector, tweet, 2020
#WearAMask in public to help slow the spread of
Contagion has caused this plague-spot, and will extend it to many more, just as a whole flock perishes, in the fields from the scab of one sheep, or pigs from mange, and the grape contracts the taint from the grape it comes in contact with. ~Juvenal
viruses are contagious
so is panic
fear
hysteria
calm
love
enthusiasm
kindness
joy
choose wisely
~Dr. Caroline Leaf, @drcarolineleaf, Instagram post, 2020 March 12th
Not in one single episode of The Walking Dead did I see people fighting over toilet paper. ~Kali, @perksofbeingkr, tweet, 2020 March 16th
Every extraordinary occurrence unsettles the heads of hundreds of thousands of men for a few moments or hours or days. ~Mark Twain, 1901
Your grandparents were called to war.
You are being asked to sit on your couch for two weeks.
We can do this!
~Internet meme, March 2020 [And now this can be updated to: "You are being asked to wear a mask while in public. We can do this!"
As an INFJ, this social distancing is everything I’ve been waiting for since the day I was born. ~Keith Wynn, @ravens_rhapsody, tweet, 2020 March 14th
Wash your hands carefully.
It's up to you.
Use soap and warm water.
It's easy to do.
Rinse them and while
we all sing this refrain,
germs from your hands
will slide right down the drain!
~Tish Rabe, Oh, the Things You Can Do that are Good for You!, 2001
Anyone have a recipe to make toilet paper from cauliflower? ~Internet meme, March 2020
...the plague had spread dejection through the city, which was thus rendered more obnoxious to its fury... ~William Gifford, "An Essay on the Roman Satirists," 1802
As difficult as it is — (And I cannot imagine a single human being that I know, who doesn’t find this insanity difficult) — try to find the positive. Even if it is one tiny little positive, it will still have more power than all of the negative combined. ~Donnie Wahlberg, @DonnieWahlberg, tweet, 2020 March 17th
One day this is going to be over — can you imagine that day? How we'll come out into the sun and laugh and hug and sing and dance and hold hands? I'm living for that day. It'll be like nothing we've experienced before. ~Glennon Doyle, @glennondoyle, Instagram post, 2020 March 18th
Introducing the Coronadab, stay looking cool while sneezing into your elbow. You're welcome 😷 This could go viral 😊 #CoronaDab ~@CFR_Nick, tweet, 2020 February 13th
Sneezing shoots germs out
all over the place,
so lift up your arm
and cover your face.
Sneeze into your elbow
so friends won't get sick.
Or sneeze into a tissue —
and throw it out quick!
~Tish Rabe, Oh, the Things You Can Do that are Good for You!, 2001
My quarantine schedule:
Face masks... are the most important powerful public health tool we have. And I will continue to appeal for all Americans, all individuals in our country, to embrace these face coverings... If we did it for six, eight, ten, twelve weeks, we could bring this pandemic under control... We have clear scientific evidence they work, and they are our best defense. I might even go so far as to say that this face mask is more guaranteed to protect me against COVID than when I take a COVID vaccine... So I do want to keep asking the American public to take the responsibility... It's the most effective thing we have. ~Dr. Robert Redfield, Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Senate Appropriations Subcommittee Hearing on Coronavirus Response, Washington, D.C., September 2020
There is a certain malady of the mind induced by too much of one thing. Just as the body fed too long upon meat becomes a prey to that horrid disease called scurvy, so the mind fed too long upon monotony succumbs to the insidious mental ailment which the West calls "cabin fever." True, it parades under different names, according to circumstances and caste. You may be afflicted in a palace and call it ennui, and it may drive you to commit peccadillos and indiscretions of various sorts...
Be sure that it will make you abnormally sensitive to little things; irritable where once you were amiable; glum where once you went whistling about your work and your play... It will betray your little, hidden weaknesses, cut and polish your undiscovered virtues, reveal you in all your glory or your vileness to your companions in exile — if so be you have any.
Cabin fever has driven men crazy. It has warped and distorted character out of all semblance to its former self. It has sweetened love and killed love... ~Bertha Muzzy Bower, "The Fever Manifests Itself," Cabin Fever, 1918
Use your brains, as we're all very good at doing in this community. I want everyone to soberly consider and take responsibility for your life decisions. ~Judge Clay Jenkins, Dallas County, Texas, March 2020
If you’re out and you walk past someone it’s ok to still smile. It’s exactly what we all need right now. ~Jason Campbell, M.D., @DrJCoftheDC, tweet, 2020 March 17th
Can we uninstall 2020 and
This amazing spirit of human solidarity must become even more infectious than the coronavirus itself. Although we may have to be physically apart from each other for a while, we can come together in ways we never have before. ~Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization, @DrTedros, @who, March 2020
The world is currently riveted in fear of what is known as
...we do fear the end of the world as we know it... We are as children dreading the perils of the unknown... And the problems that puzzled the philosophers of the older civilizations are puzzling the philosophers of our own time. ~Newspaper World, c.1945
If you need 144 rolls of toilet paper for a
Day 2 without sports: Found a young lady sitting on my couch yesterday. Apparently she’s my wife. She seems nice. ~@IsoJoeJR, tweet, 2020 March 13th
I know that things are scary and hard. And I also know that during a crisis is usually when we remember the important stuff — when the rest falls away and we remember what matters is taking care of each other and ourselves. And we're going to do that. Together. ~Glennon Doyle, @glennondoyle, Instagram post, 2020 March 12th
The Poor went about their Employment, with a Sort of brutal Courage... ~H. F. (Daniel Defoe, 1660–1731), Memoirs of the Plague, 1722 [Great Plague of London, 1665
It’s very difficult when giving talks on
Take a breath, stay present, be kind. So many of our daily "doings" have been canceled, allowing us to simply be "beings." This call for solitude is no coincidence. Reevaluate your habits during this time. Focus on radiating kindness. Check on your loves. Let this be a teacher. ~Jordan Younger, @BalancedBlondie, tweet, 2020 March 13th
Wars, fires, plagues, break up immovable routine... There is a tendency in things to right themselves... The sharpest evils are bent into that periodicity which makes the errors of planets, and the fevers and distempers of men, self-limiting. Nature is upheld by antagonism. Passions, resistance, danger, are educators. We acquire the strength we have overcome. Without war, no soldier; without enemies, no hero... All the glory of character is in affronting the horrors of depravity, to draw thence new nobilities of power... ~Ralph Waldo Emerson, "Considerations By the Way," The Conduct of Life, 1860
Been homeschooling a 6-year-old and 8-year-old for one hour and 11 minutes. Teachers deserve to make a billion dollars a year. Or a week. ~Shonda Rhimes, @shondarhimes, tweet, 2020 March 16th
Keep Calm and Panic ~Internet meme, c. 2014
I'm a garbageman, I can't work from home and my job is an essential city service that must get done. It's a tough job, from getting up pre-dawn to the physical toll it takes on my body to the monotonous nature of the job, at times it's hard to keep on going. Right now though, right now I am feeling an extra sense of pride and purpose as I do my work. I see the people, my people, of my city, peeking out their windows at me. They're scared, we're scared. Scared but resilient. Us garbagemen are gonna keep collecting the garbage, doctors and nurses are gonna keep doctoring and nurse-ering. It's gonna be ok, we're gonna make it be ok. I love my city. I love my country. I love my planet Earth. Be good to each other and we'll get through this. ~Jester D, @JustMeTurtle, tweet, 2020 March 13th
Days feel obsolete. You're measuring your life in new units — tracking the time between grocery runs, haircuts, and explosions of bottled-up emotion.
And the world came together as the people stayed apart. ~Author unknown
Clouds, all unknown to us, were gathering in our horizon. There was no marked indication of the coming of any season of particular sickness. But before long, it made its appearance in our district. At the outbreak of the epidemic, how well I remember that busy anxious time! Busy and anxious at first, gradually becoming more and more so, until at last, amidst the heavy pressure of many cares and fatigues and fears, the power of connected thought seemed almost lost. Hasty calls had become appallingly frequent, and at all hours of the day and night hurried bell rings announced that another stricken one required aid. We could plainly see how the disease was making its rapid way from the hovel of the poor to the abode of the comparatively affluent, until at last it reached the houses of the rich, and into all these habitations made so sadly equal by the stroke that levels to dust the vain distinctions of earth. These labours, torturous images, standing beside sick-beds to frail and young victims combatting death seemed all too heavy for any human frame or mind to bear. But smiles and words of sympathy and acts of generosity made our way smooth and happy; and now, in this hour of fear and trial, shone out yet more purely and cheeringly rays of peace, and we could bless God and take fresh courage. ~"My Brother's Friend," in The Young Englishwoman, 1867 [a little altered
A pandemic will lead to permanent social, economic, and cultural changes. The key is to create good from a bad situation. ~Wayne Gerard Trotman, Goodreads post, 2020 March 17th
So if the Corona Virus isn't about beer, why do I keep hearing about cases of it? ~Internet meme, March 2020
In an unsettling reversal of my teenage years, I am now yelling at my parents for going out. ~Brigid Delaney, @BrigidWD, tweet, 2020 March 15th
I feel like I'm 16 again — gas is cheap and I'm grounded. ~Internet meme, April 2020
87% of gym members don't even know their gym is closed. ~@SarahSurgey1, tweet, 2020
It’s been 3 days, the children are now feral, and I have a beard that would make John Muir envious. ~Zachary Peterson, @znjp, tweet, 2020 March 18th
China sent medical masks to Italy and wrote on the boxes a quote of a Roman poem: “We are waves from the same sea.” Japan had donated supplies to China, and wrote on the boxes a quote of a Chinese poem: "We have different mountains and rivers, but we share the same sun, moon, and sky." ~Mohamad Safa, @mhdksafa, tweet, 2020 March 14th
All disaster movies start with the government ignoring a scientist. ~Protest sign, Brussels climate crisis demonstration, January 2019
The mayor from Jaws may have kept the beaches open but at least he let Chief Brody bring in a shark expert. ~Matt Oswalt, @MattOswaltVA, tweet, 2020 March 12th
You can’t fight a fire with a blindfold... We cannot stop this pandemic if we don’t know who is infected. ~Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization, @DrTedros, @who, March 2020 #testing
When the emperor is wearing no clothes, you have to say loud and clear that the emperor is wearing no clothes. It is not enough to stand on the podium, behind the emperor, looking appalled. ~Robert Brault, @RobertBrault18, tweet, 2020 March 22nd
Just tested positive for claustrophobia. ~Internet meme, March 2020
In around 2020 a severe pneumonia-like illness will spread throughout the globe, attacking the lungs and the bronchial tubes and resisting all known treatments. Almost more baffling than the illness itself will be the fact that it will suddenly vanish as quickly as it arrived, attack again ten years later, and then disappear completely... The year 2020 will mark the end of the U.S. presidency and the executive branch of the government. Let’s just say the American public will finally be fed up by then and leave it at that... ~Sylvia Browne, “The End of Days Through My Eyes,” End of Days: Predictions and Prophecies about the End of the World, 2008
There's a more traditional appeal to Defiance... a genuinely entertaining "immersion" play in which you'll find yourself sucked into the experience of life at the quarantine station during the 1881 smallpox epidemic, the 1901 bubonic plague, the 1918 Spanish influenza pandemic and a projected Avian flu epidemic in 2020. The two acts are performed in buildings where some of the events depicted took place. ~The Rough Guide to Australia, 2011
The sudden and near-constant stream of news reports about #COVID19 can cause anyone to feel worried. Get the FACTS; not the rumors and misinformation. Facts can help to minimize fear. #coronavirus ~World Health Organization, @who, Instagram post, 2020 March 14th
Contagion has this illness widely spread:
And, I feel sure, will farther spread it yet...
~Juvenal, translator unknown, quoted in Heinrich Oppenheimer, Medical and Allied Topics in Latin Poetry, 1928
It was about the beginning of September 1664, that I, among the Rest of my Neighbours, heard in ordinary Discourse, that the Plague was return'd again in Holland. It was brought, some said from Italy, others from the Levant, or Turkey, Crete, Cyprus; it matter'd not from whence it came, but all agreed, it was come into Holland again. It seems that the Government had a true Account of it, and several Counsels were held about Ways to prevent its coming over to London; but all was kept very private. Hence it was, that this Rumour died off again, and People began to forget it till December, when two Frenchmen died of the Plague at the upper end of Drury Lane...
The People show'd a great Concern at the Increase of the Bills of Mortality and Burials in successive Weeks, and all over the Town people were dying of the same Distemper, in the same manner. Terrible Apprehensions were among the People, yet they had still some Hopes: That which encourag'd them was that it was chiefly among the People at that End of the Town, and that it might go no farther. We continued in these Hopes for a few Days, but they found that the Plague was really spread every way, and that many died of it every Day: So that now all our Extenuations abated, and it was no more to be concealed, nay it quickly appeared that the Infection had spread itself beyond all Hopes of Abatement...
The Weather set in hot, and from the first Week in June, the Infection spread in a dreadful Manner, and the Bills began to swell. All that could conceal their Distempers, did it to prevent their Neighbours shunning and refusing to converse with them; and also to prevent Authority shutting up their Houses, which though it was not yet practiced, yet was threatened, and People were extremely terrify'd at the Thoughts of it.
The richer People were all hurrying away in Coaches. This was a very terrible and melancholy Thing to see, and as it was a Sight which I cou'd not but look on from Morning to Night; for indeed there was nothing else of Moment to be seen, it filled me with very serious Thoughts of the Misery that was coming upon the City, and the unhappy Condition of those that would be left in it. ~H. F. (Daniel Defoe, 1660–1731), Memoirs of the Plague, 1722 [a little altered
I am pleased that lying on the sofa being a slob is finally considered the responsible thing to do. ~Matt Haig, March 2020
But, soft! what day is this? ~William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet, c.1594
Does anyone know if we can shower now? Or should we just keep washing our hands? ~Internet meme,
QUARANTINE DIARY
Day 1: I have stocked up on enough non-perishable food and supplies to last me for months, maybe years, so that I can remain in isolation for as long as it takes to see out this pandemic.
Day 1 + 45 minutes: I am in the supermarket because I wanted a Twix.
~@Michael1979, tweet, 2020 March 12th
Am I the only one who ate my two weeks of quarantine snacks all on the first day? ~Internet meme, March 2020
On average a panda bear feeds about 12 hours per day. This is the same as a human adult at home under quarantine — which is why we call it a PANDEMIC. ~Internet meme, May 2020
I need to do some social distancing from the refrigerator. ~Internet meme, March 2020
Quarantine is going straight to my hips. ~Keith Wynn, @ravens_rhapsody, tweet, 2020 March 20th
I took a nap today just to stop eating. ~Internet meme, March 2020
How many calories are you guys burning per day? For me
adding "showed up to work during the apocalypse" to my resume ~@dltoots, tweet, 2020
For us fellow lovers of control, certainty is gone. Mourning its loss is appropriate (please don’t eat or drink or numb your way through it). The only thing we CAN do is settle in, allowing everything to crumble that was meant to crumble. I believe deep in my heart — rather, I know — our economy needs a reset, it’s 2020 and people around the globe should not be dying from hunger. We will emerge stronger and more authentic than ever before in life, business and economy… in the meantime, meditation during the storm is the best medicine. ~Maya Nahra, @mayaenahra, Instagram post, 2020 March 21st
Stay up in yo hizzle or you'll get the coronizzle. ~Internet meme à la Snoop Dogg, March 2020 #stayhome
A gathering of covidiots is known as a covfefe. ~Internet meme, April 2020
The World Health Organization announced that dogs cannot contract
Debating where to go on holiday this year. I think maybe upstairs. ~Matt Haig, 2020 March 21st
I ran out of toilet paper and started using lettuce leaves. Today was just the tip of the iceberg; tomorrow romaines to be seen. ~Internet meme, March 2020
Gordo: Oscar found an app that lets you date while social distancing.
Ed: What's it called?
Gordo: Hinder.
~Alex Hallatt, Arctic Circle (comic strip), 2020 June 19th, AlexHallatt.com, ArcticCircleCartoons.com
Better six feet apart than six feet under. ~Internet meme,
Some people are so sensitive that they feel snubbed if an epidemic overlooks 'em. ~Kin Hubbard
canceled, isolated, distanced
dazed, befuddled, harried
rationed, washed, disinfected
zoomed, homeschooled
furloughed, fired, scared
impoverished, subsidized
learned, helped, sacrificed
inspired, respected, thanked
hospitalized, intubated, died
lied, gaslighted, denied
masked, tested, untested
endured, abided, accepted
annoyed, outraged, protested
anticipated, waited, voted
~Terri Guillemets, "2020"
The best defense we currently have against this virus are the important mitigation efforts of wearing a mask, washing your hands, social distancing and being careful about crowds. #COVID19 ~Dr. Robert R. Redfield, @CDCDirector, tweet, 2020
If you won't wear a mask, then don't hold your breath waiting for the virus to pass, although that might work, too. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com, July 2020 #MaskUpAmerica
FYI... Wearing a face mask with your nose sticking out is like wearing a condom with the tip cut off. ~Fred LaPoint, @fyrmanfred, tweet, 2020
After seeing how some people wear masks, we now know why contraception fails. ~Internet meme, 2020
COVID spreads mainly by nose and mouth but scientists warn that the greatest danger is from
I haven't cut my hair since the quarantine began. Today I stepped on the scale for the first time in a while. Who knew that hair weighs so much?! ~Author unknown, summer 2020
End of Day 2 on lockdown and the dog is looking at me like "SEE? This is why I chew the furniture." ~@emaymcnicks, tweet, 2020
As we practice social distancing, let’s not distance ourselves from books. They will keep us company and connect us back to people, back to society. ~Ibram X. Kendi, @DrIbram, tweet, 2020 March 12th
You don't have to go to the party. Stay in with a book. Reading saves lives. ~Matt Haig, @mattzhaig, Instagram post, 2020 March 11th
Ynstead of 'social distauncinge' wherfor not 'Emily Dickinsoning'? ~Chaucer Doth Tweet, @LeVostreGC, 2020 March 11th
My advice to parents wanting to homeschool during the school shutdown — don't. It's going to be stressful. If things get worse you're going to be stressed, your kids are going to be stressed. Your kids might be scared of things they've heard or seen on TV. Arguing with your kids to do work is not what anyone needs right now. Instead, cuddle up together and read, read, read. Take turns reading. Read them your favorite novel (yes, you can read novels to kindergarten-age kids). Do a puzzle. Build a fort. Bake. Watch TV together. Set up a tent in your living room and camp out. Look at photos of when you were a kid. In other words: Don't stress about them forgetting. Don't stress about homeschooling them. Just spend time together. Your kids won't learn much if they're feeling stressed. Though this is a scary time, it could very well be a time they remember as the best time in their life. ~Author unknown, March 2020
It seems ridiculous to me that people are so afraid that their children are going to miss a month of learning. How about using this month to teach them how to plant, cook, do taxes, basic first aid, handle stress, critical thinking, etc. Not all learning is done in a classroom. ~Mohamad Safa, @mhdksafa, tweet, 2020 March 16th
Homeschooling going well. Two students suspended for fighting, one teacher let go for drinking on the job. ~Internet meme, March 2020
Which wine pairs best with it's day 63 of quarantine and I'm about to lose my [f@%ing] mind? ~Keith Wynn, @ravens_rhapsody, tweet, May 2020
The Quarantini — any martini imbibed in solitude during coronavirus lockdown ~Internet meme, March 2020
Quarantini — just a regular martini, but you drink it alone at home ~Internet meme, March 2020
The Quarantini — just add
Quarantini recipe — 2 parts whatever alcohol you have lying around and
How to make a quarantini: Add
Blowing on the wine in your coffee mug to convince the rest of the zoom meeting that it is tea ~Madeline Hayman-Reber, @MadelineHayman, tweet, 2020
It’s about putting people and families first. Everybody can have a complaint about this or that, but save it for another day. Right now, we have to find our common ground, work together to get this done as soon as possible because we have other needs. ~Nancy Pelosi, press conference, 2020 March 12th [a little altered
Isaac Newton was a college student at Trinity College, Cambridge when the Great Plague of London hit. Away at his family estate and without professors to guide him, Newton apparently thrived. The year-plus he spent sheltering from the plague was later referred to as his annus mirabilis, the “year of wonders,” and allowed him to develop his theories on calculus, optics and the law of gravitation. ~Gillian Brockell, The Washington Post's history blog Retropolis, WashingtonPost.com, 2020 March 14th
Just a reminder that when Shakespeare was quarantined because of the plague, he wrote King Lear. ~Roseanne Cash, @rosannecash, tweet, 2020 March 13th
I think the reason Shakespeare managed to write King Lear while a plague was going on is primarily because he didn’t have Twitter. ~Matt Haig, @matthaig1, tweet, 2020 March 15th
The “just remember, Shakespeare wrote King Lear during the plague” people know Shakespeare wrote pretty much everything during the plague right. Including the really boring parts of Titus Andronicus. ~Jennifer Tepper, @jenashtep, tweet, 2020 March 14th
Further reminder: King Lear is about an unfit leader who loves to be flattered, makes a lot of bad choices… and then everybody dies. ~Ron Marz, @ronmarz, tweet, 2020 March 13th
If I see another tweet about how great things were accomplished by geniuses during quarantine, I will start unfollowing people. Those ‘great things’ were done on the back of others, mostly women, who took care of everyday life for them. ~Emilie Champagne, @EChampagnePhD, tweet, 2020 March 15th
...and where there is death in a thousand forms, we die of fear itself. ~Richard de Bury (1287–1345)
How is it that health is less contagious than disease...? Or are there epidemics of health? ~Friedrich Nietzsche, Human All-Too-Human, translated by Paul V. Cohn
I used to cough to cover a fart, now I fart to cover a cough. ~Internet meme, March 2020
Coughing is the new farting. ~Internet meme, March 2020
Now that I've lived through an actual plague, I see why Renaissance paintings are full of naked fat people laying on couches. ~Internet meme, summer 2020
When this is over, please continue to stay at least six feet away from me. ~Internet meme, March 2020
We used to think the apocalypse would be anarchy and zombies. Turns out it's home offices and no toilet paper. ~Internet meme, March 2020
Your quarantine nickname is how you feel right now + the last thing you ate out of the cupboard. Me: Battered Cracker. ~Jerry Saltz, @jerrysaltz, March 2020
We are dying
How many years did you live this week? ~Eric Swalwell, U.S. Representative, @RepSwalwell, 2020 March 20th
After all the stupid things I've done in my life, hope I don't die just because I touched my face. ~Internet meme, March 2020
9-1-1, what is your emergency? Hello, there are eleven people hanging out together and one of them has the sniffles. ~Internet meme, March 2020
So, do I get this right American friends? You get health insurance through your job. But you can lose your job if your employer cuts costs due to Covid19. Which then means you’ve lost your insurance which would help you get treated for the health crisis you lost your job for… ~Stu Cameron, @stucam7771, tweet, 2020 March 21st
Kyndenesse, care, patience, helpinge each othir, bookes, cattes, dogges, and rocke and rolle. ~Chaucer Doth Tweet, @LeVostreGC, 2020 March 16th
Ah! there is nothing like staying at home, for real comfort. ~Jane Austen, 1815
The generation of babies born
To the nurses, doctors, epidemiologists, social workers, orderlies, researchers, and all the others around the world rushing in to combat the coronavirus at risk to their own health, thank you. You are heroes and we are all indebted to your service and sacrifice.
You know who are also heroes? Those working the checkout counters and stocking shelves at supermarkets and pharmacies. Their work, at some risk to their own health, is vital to the health and safety of our country. ~Dan Rather, @DanRather, tweets, 2020 February 28th and March 14th
In light of current events, I hereby would like to nominate grocery store workers across the world for this year’s Nobel Peace Prize. ~Keith Wynn, @ravens_rhapsody, tweet, 2020 March 15th
#WhenThisIsAllOver we need to have a global party and establish a global holiday that praises healthcare workers and all the other workers (IT, medical scientists, truckers, delivery drivers, grocery store workers, garbage collectors, ag industries, etc.) who kept society running. ~Nick Janusch, @NickJanusch, tweet, 2020 March 21st
Coronacation 2020 begins. ~Internet meme, March 2020
The Earth just sent us all to our rooms to think about what we've done. ~Author unknown
Due to the supply shortage of disinfectants and cleaning supplies, dirty deeds will no longer be done dirt cheap. ~Internet meme,
Did you know there's now a coin shortage? Yes, America is literally out of common cents. ~Internet meme,
I think there has never been a better time to stay in than in this century. We have Netflix and books and home delivery and Skype and social media. If we can stay in, we absolutely should. We can delay this thing. We can get it down. And we will make our sacrifice on sofas. ~Matt Haig, @matthaig1, tweet, 2020 March 13th
So there is no cure for a virus that can be killed by soap and sanitizer?! ~Internet meme, March 2020
Half of us are going to come out of this isolation as amazing cooks and the other half as drunkards. ~Internet meme, March 2020
I used to spin the toilet paper like I was on Wheel of Fortune. Now I turn it like I'm cracking a safe. ~Internet meme, March 2020
So after this is all over, do the producers of My 600 Pound Life find me or do I need to find them? ~Internet meme, March 2020
Remember wishing the weekend would last forever? Are you happy now?! ~Internet meme, March 2020
Remember back when we used to eat cake after someone blew all over it? Man, were we wild! ~Internet meme, May 2020
I am a homebody, but dang! — I did like going one or two places. ~Internet meme, March 2020
I'm so excited, it's time to take out the trash! What should I wear? ~Internet meme, March 2020
COVID-19 has literally gone viral. ~Internet meme, March 2020
Roomie saw a nurse pour some M&Ms into her mask, and we’re just like “go girl”
I have been self-isolating for 20 years and finally I am on trend. ~Matt Haig, @mattzhaig, Instagram post, 2020 March 3rd
Social distancing. Or as those of us who are INFJs call it, Tuesday. ~Keith Wynn, @ravens_rhapsody, tweet, 2020 March 17th
Who knew the soundtrack to the apocalypse was going to be eternal hold music ~Steven Kreamer, @stevenkreamer, tweet, March 2020
Have yourself a merry little Christmas
Let your heart be light
Next year all our troubles will be out of sight
Have yourself a merry little Christmas
Make the yuletide gay
Next year all our troubles will be miles away
Once again as in olden days
Happy golden days of yore
Faithful friends who are dear to us
Will be near to us once more
Someday soon we all will be together
If the fates allow
Until then, we'll have to muddle through somehow
So have yourself a merry little Christmas now
~Hugh Martin & Ralph Blane [a mix of original and revised lyrics to the classic 1944 Christmas song
#COVID19 is the most significant public health challenge to face our nation in more than a century. Help protect your family, community, and Nation by social distancing, wearing a face mask & washing your hands frequently. ~Dr. Robert R. Redfield, @CDCDirector, tweet, 2020
Listen, you can't make wearing a mask a law any more than you can make wiping your butt a law. You just try to hang out with people who do. ~Robert Brault, 2020
There is no subject, and no feeling, in their nature incidental, of which the mind will not tire after a time. Even danger itself will cease to be dreaded, after it has been to a certain extent thought of and talked about. ~C. Nestell Bovee (1820–1904), "Epidemics"
1918 October 11 — How changed are all these things was illustrated last week when the general epidemic of Spanish influenza and the outbreak of a number of cases among the students necessitated prompt and rigorous steps to prevent an epidemic. At a meeting of the University Emergency Council held last week, matters connected with preventing the spread of influenza were discussed. The proposals met with the unanimous approval of the Council and of the medical officers. It is necessary to cancel meetings, concerts, lectures, and other gatherings. Sunday Chapel, the only traditional ceremony now possible in a crowded week, should be out of doors. It is felt that the prompt adoption of these regulations will prevent the spread of influenza at the University. The Cloister Club was speedily converted into an army and navy emergency hospital for students.
1918 November 1 — The kaleidoscope of events since the University opened this fall gives a bewildering picture to the chance visitor, unprepared for the changes. Yet these changes are only the natural results of an unprecedented broader situation of the war and the prevalence of influenza. Yale, as an educational institution, temporarily has ceased to exist. The fraternity houses are closed. There is a temporary absence of organized intercollegiate athletics. The Cloister house is an influenza hospital, and St. Elmo and Vernon Halls are convalescent hospitals. Nor has the situation been without its changes to the allied Campus institutions. The book shop has been affected by a condition under which a uniformed student
1918 November 8 — How menacing are the dangers that may spread among troops in camp or in the field, if not effectually checked, has been too well illustrated in the epidemic of influenza and pneumonia which has presented such serious problems within the past few weeks. As more well-trained men master the science of preventing the spread of disease we may look confidently for more effective strength in our fighting forces.
~The Yale Alumni Weekly, Vol. XXVIII, 1918, New Haven, Connecticut, The Yale Publishing Association, Inc., Edwin Oviatt, editor [A little altered. Cover stories: "A Military Yale," "Yale as War Training Center," "Prompt Steps Taken to Check Spread of Spanish Influenza Among Students," "The Yale Army Laboratory School: Army Learning How to Combat Diseases and Epidemics," "University Financial Report in a Time of Extraordinary Needs and Opportunities." School Year: October 1, 1918 to June 26, 1919.
It seems to be unfortunately true that the epidemic of world lawlessness is spreading. When an epidemic of physical disease starts to spread, the community approves and joins in a quarantine of the patients in order to protect the health of the community against the spread of the disease. It is my determination to pursue a policy of peace. It is my determination to adopt every practicable measure to avoid involvement in war. It ought to be inconceivable that in this modern era, and in the face of experience, any nation could be so foolish and ruthless as to run the risk of plunging the whole world into war... War is a contagion, whether it be declared or undeclared. ~Franklin D. Roosevelt, 1937
Meanwhile, as the virus rages, the experiment goes on to see how many people can be packed together in an enclosed space before their collective IQ
Warning: This month starts with changing the clocks, has a Friday the 13th, and ends with a full moon. Good luck, people!
If this virus has taught us anything it is the ominousness and the lack of common sense people will go to when desperate. Next time you want to judge refugees, boat people fleeing war torn land, camp people, migrants fleeing starvation — remember you fought over toilet paper. ~Mohamad Safa, @mhdksafa, tweet, 2020 March 16th
Imagine if the media reported on the climate crisis like it does on the coronavirus. ~Mohamad Safa, @mhdksafa, tweet, 2020 March 5th
If you’re upset about the people hoarding all the hand sanitizer wait until you hear about the small group of people hoarding 99% of the wealth. ~Mohamad Safa, @mhdksafa, tweet, 2020 March 16th
...No mask
He wore, not he, whate'er the task...
~Timothy Thomas Fortune, c.1915 [out of context
He would not wear a mask... he had injured others... It was murderous. ~Report of the Debates and Proceedings of the Wesleyan Conference, 1849 [out of context
So many unforeseen changes have come along. It seems almost impossible to get back in the old routine. ~Amy Powell Livingston, journal, 1918
2021’ish. —
Just had the Pfizer vaccine.... I pfeel absolutely pfine so pfar ~@Trudski2012, tweet, 2020
Making a 2020 comeback even stronger than the
It seems that, due to travel restrictions imposed by the covid situation, this year
2022’ish. —
CDC in 2020: mask up
CDC in 2021: get vaccinated
CDC in 2022: it is what it is
~Ralph Anthony, @RalphTheMouth81, tweet, 2021
In 15 years, all the jackets you buy at a thrift store will have a face mask in one of the pockets. ~Travis Sheridan, @TravisSheridan, tweet, 2022
I think we are stuck with COVID in some form or another for the long haul. Humans have pissed off the world and it's thinning the herd. ~Anonymous, personal communication, 2022
Schools are failing, kids don't know jack,
COVID never left, and also it's back...
~Saturday Night Live, "Blocking It Out for Christmas — Cold Open," 2022 December 10th
Home About Contact Donate Terms Privacy | ||
|
published 2020 Mar 16
revised Sep 2020, Jul 2022
last saved 2023 Sep 10
www.quotegarden.com/coronavirus-covid19.html