Austin, Ides of March, 2020

Laurence Musgrove, an English professor at Angelo State University and the author of The Bluebonnet Sutras, has started Tejascovido, a Web journal for Texans (now gone) writing about the COVID-19 crisis. He is publishing several pieces a day, both poetry and prose. I’m reading the new ones everyday. Today he published my poem, “Austin, Ides of March, 2020”, written on Friday about visiting the supermarket, seeing the panic buying, plus the closures in the Austin area in the previous week.

Yesterday the Austin mayor and a county judge closed the bars and restaurant dining area (take-out and delivery are still allowed) and limited meetings to less than ten participants. The fines in Italy for violating their lockdown are €38, soon to be raised to €135. Austin’s fine is $1000.

We are looking at our cupboards and deciding what we need for less frequent grocery store visits. We usually eat lunch out. We haven’t for several days and have largely eaten everything lunch-like.

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