Day Five of our quarantine. My family made the decision to self-isolate when my son returned from San Francisco this past Monday. His work took him on the subway, he was working in a restaurant downtown, and he took a cross-country flight so it seemed like a no brainer. Certainly, it is a little easier to self-isolate in rural Vermont than in downtown New York, or even Burlington, Vermont.

We are certainly in strange times and unchartered territory for most of us – even those of us whose job is risk management! I have found myself rationalizing that things can’t get that bad and that it will clear up soon, even with the reality slamming us in the face. It is hard for any person, company or government to jump to more draconian measures, even when we see what is happening in other places hit by the virus before the United States. A little dose of paranoia might make us, as a society, get a little ahead of the curve. Maybe its time to trust your inner Cassandra*.

That being said, my wife and I joined a few friends of ours on a virtual cocktail hour last night. I opened a bottle of wine, brought out some cheese, and then connected with the two other couples through videoconferencing. It sounds a little silly, but it worked great – and we were able to get a dose of social interaction at our kitchen table!

It still doesn’t explain why for some reason I stocked up on potato chips and Ben & Jerry’s last Sunday…

Thank you and stay safe!

Rich Smith
VCIA President

*Cassandra was a woman in Greek mythology cursed to utter true prophecies, but never to be believed. In modern usage her name is employed as a rhetorical device to indicate someone whose accurate prophecies are not believed.