I went out this morning to be at TJ’s when they opened at 9:00 am, on this 36th day of our sheltering in place.

The crowd was much thinner than two weeks ago — I think most people are past the panic-buying stage by now. This early crowd was mostly older, of course, in the store’s limited opening hour.

TJ’s was well stocked. All staff were masked and gloved, and I saw only one customer going maskless. People were being very careful to keep distance. The cashiers’ stations had their plexiglass shields installed. All in all a stress-free experience.

On the way home I stopped to top up the car’s tank. The last fillup, at $2.29 per gallon, had been before social distancing began. This time: $1.75. For prices in that range we have to go back over 4 years, when gas briefly dipped below $1.60 per gallon in the Twin Cities (and before that to 2004, pre-Katrina).