Friends, it’s getting harder, these days of distancing. A friend posted on Facebook that we should check on our extrovert friends because they are not okay. I would submit that introverts may also not be okay, especially if they are not used to all these people in the house all the time. I’ve got three days of our life to share with you today. May it help you to know you are not alone.
Day 4: My alarm was set for 6:15 a.m. because I want to try to keep to some kind of schedule, but I haven’t been sleeping well, so I turned it off and let my body wake me up. It was closer to 7 when I felt like I was awake for the day. There’s a balance between wanting to keep to a schedule and needing to listen to my body.
I told the kids screens until 8 o’clock. It’s 8:08. I’m still in the kitchen working on my blog, and I can hear the YouTube still going. Sigh.
They transitioned to math aka Prodigy which is a game with math problems in it, I guess. I got dressed (this is an important part of my day.) and worked on more dishes while listening to a podcast on the existence of hell. (Be jealous; you know that sounds like a good time!)
The kids are supposed to be doing active time now and because it’s a little rainy outside, they’re maybe dancing? I don’t know. Our house is not that big, yet I’m not 100 percent sure what goes on here. They were playing Shaun White snowboarding. I talked to my mom on the phone and folded laundry, then I worked on the puzzle a little more.
Our daughter made brownies from scratch while our son did a Hot Wheels tournament. I made myself available in the kitchen and sorted through the accumulation of papers on the counter. I found my insurance card that was available to be activated on January 1 if that’s any indication how 2020 is going. We made lunch and watched The Price is Right. If ever a nation needed the pure, unadulterated joy of this game show, it’s now. It still freaks me out to see people hugging, though.
Our son went outside to pick weeds and dead grasses out of the garden so we can start to think about spring while my daughter and I worked through her at-home lesson for Girls on the Run. We did a matching get-to-know you game and some fun movements. We skipped to the mailbox and danced on the porch and did jumping jacks. Then, we made self-portraits using only the arts/crafts supplies we had on hand. I like how they turned out. And we talked about what makes us the same and different.
I struggled to get the kids to do more academic time. I’m a part-time teacher’s aide when the world is functioning as usual but to transfer those skills to home is hard for me. At the same time I was trying to get them to do academics, I was putting the corned beef in the pot for dinner and getting ready to do my own workout for the day. That’s a lot of multi-tasking for me.
They chose a couple of things they could do online and I asked them to tell me what they learned after I finished my workout. Now, it’s screen time for everyone until 3 p.m. when I’m crossing my fingers and hoping they’ll do band practice. Daughter practiced band; son pulled more weeds in the garden. I made dinner–corned beef and cabbage–and read a book while I waited for the vegetables to cook.
When Phil got home from work, he wouldn’t touch anything before showering after being in contact with so many people. He was extra vigilant about taking these precautions, even if it seems a little paranoid.
We started planning for a possible hike on Wednesday because Phil is off, and we’re going to need to get outside. And we watched a BBC program about monkeys. (About 5 minutes of news was all we could handle.) The rest of the evening was kind of a blur. The kids went to bed around 8 and Phil and I followed soon after, exhausted from just existing in these times.
Day 5: I didn’t set the alarm again and woke up around 6ish. I listened to Pray As You Go, an app that offers music, a Scripture reading and time for meditation, and then scrolled the socials. I don’t think the latter makes me feel better, but I do it anyway. I ran out of coffee yesterday, but I ordered some over the weekend and it’s supposed to arrive today, so I made a cup of chai with my breakfast of French toast. The kids are doing math on Prodigy again, and we’re arguing about what time we’re going to head out for an adventure and when we’re going to video call with the grandparents. I’m tired already.
They did the video call and then we just started getting ready to leave. Dressing in layers and packing on-the-go lunch food. There was some weeping and gnashing of teeth but we were all ready to leave by 11 a.m. and our attitudes were mostly good. It took about 30 minutes to get to the park we’d picked out, and the parking lot was fuller than we expected. Two people passed us at the trailhead and then it was a while before we saw anyone else again, and it was always at a distance.
Ah, nature. I’m breathing easier just thinking about it.
The park is called Money Rocks because legend has it that farmers used to hide their money in the rocks in the mountains, and it’s not hard to imagine when you walk the limestone outcroppings. The trail itself is pretty rocky. We meandered for more than an hour, eating our lunches, until the kids started to complain of their legs hurting. We had a talk about the benefits of exercise and how we were going to keep doing this kind of thing, no matter what the coronavirus did, and it would be longer each time. This was the point of tears for one of our party who could not imagine hiking for more than an hour, even though we have done this numerous times in our life as a family.
For the good of everyone, we turned around and hiked back to the car, where we found the parking lot fuller than when we arrived. We still did not encounter many people, and when we did, there was plenty of distance. We came home to eat brownies and ice cream, but one of us did not approve of the size of the brownies offered and pouted until the brownies and ice cream were put away. (This family member relented later and ate brownies and ice cream before dinner.)
Oh, this is the life right now.
We’re back to the screens and the jigsaw puzzle. I made coffee to go with my dessert because my coffee order arrived just before we left. Afternoon coffee has never tasted so good. I took a shower while Phil made dinner, his Wednesday tradition.
Phil made a French toast casserole and breakfast sausages for dinner, which is not in any way healthy but is the kind of comfort food we’re gravitating toward these days. We thought about a family movie night but the kids actually got excited when we suggested a game night. So, we played Trivial Pursuit, girls vs. boys. Phil and I have a long tradition of boys vs. girls Trivial Pursuit. We may have actually fallen in love with each other playing this game with friends. We cycled through decades of music on Pandora while we played, starting with the 50s all the way through the 2000s. My time to shine was when the 80s and 90s music hit. We girls lost the game soundly, but we all had fun. It took us till almost 9 o’clock to finish the game, at which time we all went to bed.
Day 6: I did not want to get out of bed today. The days are spreading out in monotony, and I am struggling to find purpose in each day, although I know there are things I can do to add meaning to our days. We have video calls we can schedule. I could write letters. I have not done much cleaning or tending the garden plot or the flower beds. Today is my “rest day” in my workout schedule, which is both a blessing and a curse right now. I cried before I even got out of bed. I said the word “depression” out loud. It would be so so easy to sink into oblivion right now. Our county has its first case. The VA has its first case. I worry about other sicknesses not being able to be treated. I worry about getting my second injection for my endometriosis treatment in a timely manner.
Today, I think I need to apply for unemployment and maybe do the Census questionnaire. Dishes need attention, too. Podcasts will help me feel less alone, I hope. I need to buy stamps online so I can send some letters. And we have to take a loan payment to the bank. I will admit that I’m afraid to go places, any places.
I had breakfast and worked on the puzzle while Phil did his at-home workout provided by his gym. The kids played a Brain Pop! game that had them simulating government leadership. I washed dishes. And applied for unemployment. Maybe I should have done that first thing in the week but I just couldn’t get up the emotional strength to do it. I have some past stress involving government benefits and unemployment. Phil applied once when he was in between jobs and his employer disputed it. We fought it; Phil had to show up at a hearing to plead his case. And it was just an overall icky experience. Our family also spent a lot of years receiving food stamp and medical assistance benefits. For some reason, needing those assistances is less acceptable than filing for unemployment. I don’t remember as many people being so encouraging about applying for food stamps as they’ve been about applying for unemployment.
I signed a contract for some freelance work that will occupy me for the next several months. (Don’t get too excited. Freelance work doesn’t pay in a timely manner. I’ll celebrate at the end of the year.)
We spent about 40 minutes as a family reading in the living room. The quiet was calming. We ate lunch and watched part of another episode of the monkey documentary. Phil left for work, and I filled out our Census survey. I ordered postage stamps online and signed up for a coffee subscription from my favorite local coffee roaster. Two of my favorite bags of coffee guaranteed to come to my house every month. Maybe I can get through this.
Daughter and I did another at-home lesson for Girls on the Run, creating an obstacle course on our porch and a song about what makes us feel strong.
I watched another episode of Jamestown and started thinking about dinner. I read a little and put some more of the puzzle together. The monkey is taking shape. My goal is to finish by Saturday so we can have our dining table back.
Phil brought home flowers for me. I asked if they had any at the farm but wasn’t sure if they would. He brought a flat of pansies and one primrose. I’ll be planting flowers outside tomorrow. I don’t even care if it snows this weekend. I need to see spring and beauty. I did notice buds on the lilac bush already. What will the world be like when the lilac blooms? I take some comfort in the rhythms that remain.
I made dinner: tortellini with sliced sausage and frozen broccoli in a homemade marinara sauce. (Need dinner ideas? I can probably help you out. Nothing fancy. Totally doable.) The kids went outside after dinner. I was going to and then the governor closed all non-life-sustaining businesses and Phil and I wondered what exactly that meant. We turned on the local news, again only able to handle about five minutes of that. I sat outside on the porch for a few minutes, but it was a damp day and even though temperatures were in the 50s, I was chilled. Back to the puzzle.
Both kids took a bath. A few weeks ago I bought some epsom salt bubble bath for my muscle recovery ,and I’ve told the kids it’s magic bath water for their sore muscles. After yesterday’s hike, they were both interested in a magic bath. Can’t say I blame them. I might take one myself yet tonight.
Now it’s back to screens with a side of ice cream before bed. We made it through another day.
