Joshes and Joshettes, I’ve held my youngest long enough about this new virus outbreak. I currently live in the epicenter of the outbreak here in the United States, New York City. Not only has this virus affected my wallet but also my way of life and here’s how.

I know I haven’t been posting much but I’ve been working on some new endeavors, one of which was taking some classes. Earlier this month, I attended my first college class in over a decade. I decided to try to earn my degree especially since my job was going to reimburse me. A couple of days before my next class I received a text message stating the college was now closed and switching to online-only learning. For most people, this sounds like a good change but I am the type who learns better in a classroom than I do through self-study. To make matters worse, I was taking two language classes which relied heavily on class participation. Essentially the grading scheme that was in the syllabus is no longer in play. So I decided to withdraw for this semester until things settle down and man, am I getting the run-around. Even though my job reimburses my tuition, I still have to pay the entire tuition out of my pocket. After reaching out to various departments to complete my withdrawal, I finally received a response yesterday evening. But for now, I am still enrolled and I haven’t gotten my money back.

Another endeavor I was working on was to bring back my weekly book review video series. The first book we were going to review was The Millionaire Next Door but then NYC starting shutting down everything. This meant my Friday plans were dead in the water because the theaters were closed and restaurants could only do take out and deliveries. This might sound unrelated to the book review but whenever I do video book reviews, I make a day of it and plan out the day. The virus has been spreading like wildfire and people don’t want to leave their homes. The only place available to record is inside of a person’s home but unfortunately, it’s not possible. Why, because recently it came to light that some of my coworkers had the virus. The thing is I work in a building with over two hundred employees and we share coffee and water machines we also sit only a couple of feet away from each other. Although I don’t have any symptoms, I don’t want to risk infecting other people. So there goes my social life.

Now that we’re at the end of the post, let’s talk about how the Coronavirus is affecting me financially. Let me start by saying I am grateful that the company I work for is an essential company and thus I have a job. Like I stated in the previous paragraph, there were some confirmed cases in my office and we shut down for a couple of days. My schedule is now different and my commission is now capped but I am still able to earn an income. Now with that out of the way let’s talk investing. Just like most of you reading this post, I have taken a huge hit on all of my investments but I’m not selling, I’m buying. Let me state this one disclaimer before I tell you about what I’m buying. I AM NOT A FINANCIAL ADVISOR TAKE WHAT I SAY WITH A GRAIN OF SALT. Unlike many people who are out chasing the puck and investing in cruises lines and airline companies, I haven’t changed my investment strategy. I’m investing in companies with a long track record of paying dividends and also have been around for decades. Yup, I’m doing the Buffett. I’m investing in companies like Coke, J.P. Morgan, American Express, Geico and many other similar companies. Sure I can buy up shares of Southwest, American or Virgin but many of the airline companies stock price before the plummet were inflated. Many airline companies were buying back their stocks to increase the price and provide their CEO with a bigger paycheck. Not all airlines did this but why would I invest in an industry with such shady business practices. I am a long term investor and I’m not looking to make a killing short term and leave the market. Because of my year off, my cash reserves are low so I’m unable to invest as much as I would like but at least I’m able to invest.

One good piece of advice a mentor of mine gave me the other day, “keep your head up and don’t but dumb shit.” That’s it just go out there and try to survive this pandemic. Sure making money is nice but make sure you stay healthy.