What was most important to you before you had to social distance?
It would basically be again the health and safety of my family. What’s going on now has put things much more in perspective. Before you’re focused on your work, your hobbies, things you enjoy doing, politics–you’re focused on a lot of other things. Now, because things are more cut off, you’re more inwardly focused. I think the fact that everybody is vulnerable, and everybody is in the same boat, and everybody is staying at home social distancing , it focuses you more perhaps on what’s more important in life, and the fact that everybody’s at risk right now.
What’s the first thing you’ll do when this is over?
Hopefully give a hug to my children, and be able to shake hands and back slap with my friends. Be with people. Appreciate the fact that I’m able to be with people and not be worried about whether I touch them or they touch me, or what they touch, or breathing in the same vicinity. Just being able to give somebody a hug, kiss somebody, give somebody a pat on the back, or put your arm around their shoulder-anything like that.
What are you doing to pass the time?
FaceTiming my family, doing a lot of things around the house that we’ve put off doing. We’re taking a lot of hikes and discovering how beautiful it is to live in San Francisco. A lot of talking about things with my wife that we haven’t talked about because we don’t have the time. Now we have the time to do that. That’s something to actually appreciate now–the fact that we do have time together alone to talk. What makes you happy right now?
The fact that so far, everyone is healthy and safe. My dog, Kirby makes me happy. He seems to be the happiest person around! He now has us 24/7.
What would you tell yourself two months ago with the knowledge you have today?
Jokingly, I’d tell myself to go out and invest in a ventilator company or in Zoom! I guess the reality is that because I’m approaching a fairly major birthday, I’d already had things like mortality, and how great life is, and how fortunate I was on my mind. I was already appreciating those things, so now with what’s going on–that everybody is at risk–it just even focuses it more. I would tell myself to have some perspective on life and value the things that are important versus the small things. Everybody who lives is equally susceptible to something happening at any moment that can put an end to your life.
