If you are new to my blog (or just haven’t paid close attention), you should know that my hubby and I are big supporters of small business. We prefer local restaurants to chains, we try to do a lot of our Christmas shopping on Small Business Saturday on the nearby Northshore, and I buy from Etsy when I can instead of other online retailers (although I still do plenty at Amazon — always with a donation going to charity through Amazon Smile). During this new way of living with the COVID-19 social distancing practices, we have found new ways to support small business while avoiding face-to-face interaction. Today, I went to our favorite local bakery to get some supplies, and they are taking every possible precaution for the benefit of their customers (requesting we order online, offering curbside pickup, asking people to maintain 4 customer limit in their small space, and wearing gloves); and I wore my 7-layer carbon filter mask, purchased from my friend’s local quilt shop, for extra security. We are also using Uber Eats and Doordash to get food from local restaurants, which supports both the restaurants and the drivers (some of whom we know personally). Of course, we are both also cooking some of our favorites at home (which I have dubbed the “Quarantine Cafe”) by using what we have and what we’ve been able to find at grocery stores. So we are managing well with a minimum of disruption to our previous routine, which is a blessing; I know many people for whom this has already been a struggle, and will continue to until things have found their way to a new normal.

In addition, I have found some links with helpful information regarding supporting small businesses, both here in Chattanooga and nationally:
CBS
HuffPost
Chattanooga Chamber of Commerce
NoogaToday

If you have or know of a small business, feel free to post the website in the comments!