John and Mark here. At John’s Crazy Socks, we are all about fun. And we love a good April Fool’s joke. John is the biggest prankster of them all; you can ask his brothers who have been the targets of many of his escapades.  Last year, we did a site takeover with “Mark’s Serious Socks,” and people loved it.

This year, we started working on our April Fool’s prank in February. We were hoping for something big like the Sports Illustrated Sidd Finch story. (Kids, ask your parents about the Buddhist, barefoot pitcher who could throw 168 m.p.h. fastballs.) We ordered special socks, John made videos and we drew up elaborate plans. But those plans will remain secret. We’ve decided to shelve our April Fool’s prank this year.

Don’t get us wrong. We are still spreading happiness. We are still doing our best to put a smile on your face, we just think that the joke we had planned, in fact, any joke we could devise, would not sit right in the midst of the Coronavirus pandemic. We have all been touched by this virus – it has dramatically, if temporarily, altered our way of life – and we have family members and close friends who are sick and now people we know have passed away. An elaborate April Fool’s joke seems inappropriate.

Life does not stop. John and our business have overcome adversity and we will not stop now. We built this business on spreading happiness and doing for others and that’s what we continue to do. Here is some of what we are doing:

• We are sharing pictures, videos and stories on our social media bound to make you smile, including plenty of scenes of John dancing.
• We are hosting the Spreading Happiness Show with John and Mark, a live broadcast on Facebook every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 7 p.m. eastern time. Our conversations and antics are bound to make you smile.
• We are fast-tracking a Medical Heroes Sock to pay tribute to the doctors, nurses and medical staff who are risking their own lives to treat others. This sock will celebrate their efforts and raise money for a new charity partner. We will share more when the details are finalized.
• And we have socks to make you smile. If you are home all day, brighten up your day with a pair of fun socks. Better yet, send some fun socks to friends and family and make their day.

And April is Autism Awareness Month which we love to celebrate. Many of our colleagues are on the Autism spectrum and we want to show the world what people with differing abilities can accomplish. We have wonderful Autism Awareness Socks that raise money for the Nassau/Suffolk Chapter of Autism Society of America and Autism Speaks. Later this month, we will unveil the second annual “Autism Can Do Scholarship.” Autism Awareness Month should bring plenty of smiles.

Yes, John’s Crazy Socks is still open for business and shipping socks every day. We are putting health first, so we have asked our colleagues not to come into the office or warehouse.  It is just John, his Mom and his Dad packing orders and making sure you get your socks. We are staying safe, going from home to the office and back. And we wash our hands all the time.  

In the end, there will be no April Fool’s joke this year, but there will be plenty of happiness and plenty of smiles. We hope you understand.