A (Somewhat) Lighthearted List of Alternate Stuff to Stock Up on Due to the Coronavirus

Y’all. I’m emotionally drained from all of the uncertainty around the coronavirus/COVID-19. It’s been a rollercoaster all week, and here in NYC, a city that is SO resilient, more and more of my friends and colleagues are staying at home, buying up massive amounts of toilet paper, and taking long walks to avoid public transit.

Like many of you, I’ve been feeling a bit helpless. And sad. And anxious. And when I’m feeling those things, I find that joking around with my loved ones helps just a little.

To that end, I’ve been telling H that while others are buying toilet paper, I’m going to finally invest in that washlet I’ve been eyeing for our post-apartment-renovation lifestyle. (Google tells me I am not the only person who has had this thought.) Instead of actually buying a washlet, I’ve decided that I’ll write this blog post with my list of stuff that lets you zig while others zag.

Instead of All the Sanitizer, Buy Dr. Bronner’s Castile Soap

The science backs it up (Vox and The New York Times): soap is where it’s at. What I love about Castile soap is that you can dilute it for mopping, you can use it for your laundry, you can make shampoo with it, you can use it for dishes (I do), and of course, you can use it for surfaces.

Why buy a million cleaning products when you can get this one product and do whatever you need to do with it?

Instead of All the Garbanzo Beans, Buy Freeze-Dried Peas

With all of the hysteria around your local grocery store, maybe you’re thinking you need a different way to stock up. Personally, I love Nuts.com (based in my home county in New Jersey) which has tons of pasta, flour, nuts (of course), and other cooking supplies that will keep you fed.

I’ve put freeze-dried peas on my list, because they’re a good source of both fiber AND protein, and you can both eat them as a snack AND re-hydrate them to use as a vegetable in your stir fries or pastas.

Instead of All the Wine (I’m looking at you, Sam’s Club brawlers), Buy Tonic Syrup

While one of my friends and his wife have apparently cleared out their local Costco of Chardonnay, if your local wine store shelves are empty, consider switching to Vodka or Gin & Tonics. The advantage is that you can raid your liquor cabinets (and liquor stretches farther than wine) and there are already studies underway that indicate that quinine might be valuable in fighting the Covid. I am NOT saying that G&Ts are a cure (unlike that toothpaste from Alex Jones), but it couldn’t hurt.

Instead of All the Cold Medicine, Buy Vitamin D

Let’s be honest. Your local store is probably out of cold medicine already. But prevention is better than treatment, so boost your immune system with Vitamin D. here’s what The New York Times says:

Why would vitamin D lower risk for respiratory illness? Our bodies need adequate vitamin D to produce the antimicrobial proteins that kill viruses and bacteria. “If you don’t have adequate vitamin D circulating, you are less effective at producing these proteins and more susceptible to infection,” says Dr. Adit Ginde, professor of emergency medicine at the University of Colorado School of Medicine and the study’s lead author. “These proteins are particularly active in the respiratory tract.”

So now you know what I’ve stocked up on. What are you stocking up on?

A final note: as it says in the title, this is meant to be a lighthearted post and not advice that should be taken too seriously. I am not a doctor, a scientist, or a researcher, and I have zero answers. But what I believe is that we’ll get through this together if we exercise compassion, common sense, and a little overzealous hand-washing. Stay safe. Stay health.

Yes, a few of the links here are Amazon Affiliate links, so I get a couple of cents if you purchase something. Honestly, this is something leftover from when they were actively recruiting podcasters…and I was a podcaster. I promise you I’ve never made more than a few bucks from this program, so don’t get too excited.