By Zachary Gorchow
Executive Editor and Publisher
Posted: March 20, 2020 3:00 PM

I've been struggling with what to say about how the new coronavirus has convulsed our daily way of life in just the past 10 days.

It is just so enormous, so stunning, so awful. It goes far beyond the usual matters on the Gongwer blog, delving into political analysis, cutting room floor material from our reporting or amusing moments in Michigan governance and political life.

On Thursday, March 12, after we pulled our staff out of the Capitol and other meeting coverage in the afternoon as the urging to socially distance took on great emphasis, we gathered in our office and made plans to work from home indefinitely. And that's what we have done for a week now.

Is it really only a week? It feels like months.

My younger daughter has watched "Frozen 2" enough times that I now have the soundtrack memorized.

Into the unknown, indeed.

We're adjusting to covering news remotely.

And we have it easy. We can work from home unlike so many other workers who must show up in person, who can't realistically socially distance. Nurses, physicians, grocery store stock workers, employees of restaurants trying to keep the lights on and their jobs through carryout, delivery and drive-through. You can't remote janitorial work.

We don't know where all this is headed.

What will this mean for the state budget, this year's elections, Governor Gretchen Whitmer's agenda, the priorities of the House and Senate Republican majorities, local government, the courts, etc?

Only time will tell.

Already there is a push to delay the deadline to file for office for candidates looking to get on the August primary ballot. The May millage elections could be in effect postponed to August. The big three ballot proposals could be squelched by the crisis, unable to collect petition signatures. Already one has scrapped plans for 2020.

It's hard to imagine anything at this point controlling the November election other than the public's mood about the government's handling of COVID-19. It's so hard to know for sure though.

Anyone with an interest in a new or enhanced priority for state appropriations has possibly seen that goal vanish with the massive resources that will be mobilized to respond to COVID-19.

Increasing funding for road repair seems completely far-fetched right now. From the top priority to, "Uh, about that…"

In the span of 10 days, the state went from a pretty healthy economy and a stable budget to full-on crisis mode. Programs that rely on General Fund will be in the crosshairs at some point.

Yes, there's about $1.2 billion in the state's rainy day fund that can help ease revenue shortfalls. For a while.

I remember in the early 2000s when the state had that much money in the rainy day fund, and a relatively mild recession in 2001 depleted it very quickly.

Hopefully, there's a shared spirit that shines through here. We all need it, whether it's a game of Ticket to Ride with the family (yes, I won, ha), something amusing posted on social media to get a laugh (check out Heard in the HOB's Twitter March Madness bracket), a phone call checking in on our parents (sorry Mom and Dad for being AWOL in recent days), a wave to the neighbors, providing comfort to friends whose jobs might be in jeopardy and reminding friends and loved ones to stay safe.

In the meantime, there's going to be a ton of news. We're going to keep reporting it.