'We Have Lost It All': The Shock Felt by Millions of Unemployed Americans (NYT)

[underpants]

2. I feel so much empathy for them. And there's a lot of them.

We went for a drive yesterday and the "essential business" thing really hit me. Everything is shut down. Sitting in our house you just don't "get" it. We went to a big fancy mall that usually has no good parking spots anywhere near the entrances ALL DAY LONG. The running joke is for those of us who, say, go to a business lunch during the day "Who ARE all these people? What do they DO?"
The parking lot was vacant. A few cars - there are restaurants there - maybe the maintenance crews but that was it. A ghost town.

We know all the numbers on how many people live paycheck to paycheck or less. Can't afford a sudden $400 expense. I've been there. We've been there. When my daughter was really young we had this one period where we were Bbbbbroke! The weather wasn't right to go to a park or the river so we went to a Bass Pro Shop. My daughter was amazed at the fish tank. It killed some time and we had a good time.

My wife and I are lucky. We are still working - teleworking - and that looks to continue. I can't see either of us being laid off (especially not her) or furloughed.

Those of us making jokes about spending time at home, Look it's something we have in common and it's truly bizarre, don't get that this is going to be the ruin of many people and many businesses that employ them. Restaurants and stores will re-open but that's a ways down the road.