Disappointed, but not surprised, that the release date of No Time to Die has been pushed back to November. I’m guessing that the many, many companies with various promotions, merch and collectibles released or releasing to coincide with the original release date are not happy. But, as much as anything, this probably says a lot about how important the international box office is for these big blockbusters now, particularly the Chinese market.
Also in virus related news, I read that an Amazon employee at Seattle headquarters has tested positive for the virus. That is not far away at all from where I work (though fortunately I haven’t been down that way for a while because they are currently replacing a bridge on the road that connects the two neighborhoods). I haven’t heard about anyone in our office testing positive yet, but I do notice that the garage is a lot less full than it normally is – I suspect a lot of people are working from home (and I found out today that, informally, we're allowed to work from home indefinitely if we feel it is safer). I also suspect that we might get quick access to our experimental treatment for the virus should we ever get affected. The commute has also been somewhat better – but I can’t tell if that is due to some combination of half-term, better weather, or more people staying at home. But considering that Amazon has about 55,000 employees in the Seattle area, with one person affected then that could quickly escalate to a lot more. But I don’t think we’ll ever get to the extreme of Chinese cities – which are on lockdown and have drones patrolling everywhere and shouting at you to stay inside if you happen to venture outside. Big Brother is watching you indeed.
I’ve been feeling under the weather recently – but I don’t think it is flu-related. However, I am more conscious than ever of just how much touching of my face I do. I rub my eyes and pick my nose all the time – both of which are highly not recommended, especially in the current climate. I don’t even think about it, it’s just human nature. What am I supposed to do – wear gloves all the time? That is not exactly going to help me do my job – which involves a lot of typing.
I saw some video of Trump and Pence meeting with pharma executives a few days ago, including our CEO, to discuss the virus. It was embarrassing how clear Trump was bored and didn’t understand or care about anything – just some token reading of notes that someone else had obviously prepared, feigning interest and displaying shameless self-promotion. And the sucking up of Trump’s cronies to Trump was beyond cringeworthy. And since this was on YouTube, I made the mistake of briefly looking at the comments on the video - and they were about as offensive and polarized as you might imagine. My takeaway, this was a ridiculous charade for the press to make it look like the government is doing something and will have no meaningful impact to accelerating any prospective treatment or vaccine for the virus.
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