That's Gneiss! #125 ~ Waiting for the lockdown
Also: a darkly humorous game show, and things to fill your time
Hello friends,
I do believe we are in this for the long haul. All indicators point towards weeks, months, and possibly longer cycles of social distancing, as we have come to call this new way of living.
It sure hit us fast, didn’t it?
I have spent the last week dealing with my own mindset, and observing how others are coping. This peek at a comic by one of my favorites, Tom Tomorrow, sums things up quite well:
It’s only the first week for many of us. It seems like a weird eternity already.
The situation is forcing us to slow down, and many are finding it difficult to do so. I see people trying to do all the things right away, without pacing themselves. This applies to people working from home, and people trying to fill their time. I worry what will happen when week three hits and the manic energy is gone. People are trying to make the best of an abrupt change to their daily lives. Nobody is spared from having to adjust in some way. I really liked this post from kottke.org - Some People:
Some people feel helpless & anxious.
Some people are bored.
Some people are self-quarantined alone and are lonely.
Some people are realizing that After will be very different from Before.
Some people are really enjoying this extra time with their kids and will miss it when it’s over.
Some people just got off their 12th double shift in a row at the hospital and can’t hug their family.
Some people visited their favorite restaurant for the last time and didn’t realize it.
Some people have died from COVID-19.
Some people can’t stop reading the news.
This is just an excerpt, and it goes on for quite a bit - you’ll likely see yourself more than once in the list. It’s a great reminder that each of us is experiencing this in a different way - but we are all experiencing it.
Some people are doing silly things.
We’re coping all right here. Most importantly, we’re both feeling healthy and are taking measures to stay that way and not spread the virus. Other than walking the dog, we haven’t left the house for any reason.
Until today.
We decided to pull the Challenger out of the garage and go for a drive - no stopping, no getting out of the car. Just a few miles to exercise the engine and look around.
Oh dear.
So many people were out and about, and I’m pretty sure most of them weren’t doing what we were doing. During the course of our short drive we saw a plant sale, a golf range full of people smacking little white balls, and a jam-packed parking lot for a trail by the river. It is going to take a “shelter in residence” order from the governor to make people STOP IT! I liked this bit in today’s the collected ahp:
Overreacting is just reacting as if someone you care about could suffer if you didn’t. Maybe that’s what all of us need: one high risk person, whether a family member or a medical professional, to think of each time we consider taking an unnecessary risk. Think of that person now, and then think of them not just sick, but intubated. Think of the worst case scenario so that we can hold that sliver of hope that it will not happen.
Michael is old enough to be classified as vulnerable, and so of course are my parents. Then there’s various younger friends who fall into vulnerable categories for different reasons. I’m sure you can think of many people in your life as well.
The mandates to stay home are coming, if they haven’t hit you yet. Our mayor has ordered everyone in the city of Everett to stay home unless absolutely necessary starting Monday at noon UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE.
This isn’t a bloody joke.
Anyhow, we’re here adjusting to the reality that this will likely go on for a long time. Working from home will sort itself out. So will the best way to obtain food and other necessities, and how we entertain ourselves.
I will admit that I like being home every day.
My clothes don’t have to match!
NO RULES, GO WILD.
Silver linings, eh?
The flowers are starting to bloom, and they help to brighten things up a bit. I took advantage of the sunny days to get outside and pull weeds. Everyone is going to have tidy gardens this year!
The currants across the street are blooming. They’re one of my favorite flowers. I won’t get to see any of the native growing currants in the wild this year. Sigh.
This is so weird.
Last week I talked about some of the psychological aspects as this thing settled over us. Worry about symptoms, and the stress of waiting to see what would happen next and whether we would be sent home from work. Now that I’m home, the mental games have taken on a different tone. As I see reports of people not practicing social distancing and still gathering together, I have a growing desire to stay away from all people. I don’t want to have anything to do with them, as I don’t know where they’ve been or whether they’ve been behaving responsibly. The invisible menace is now outside of my mind, and could be on anyone. When this is all over, we will all be dealing with the mental toll of isolation and worry that we may infect or be infected by somebody else. There will be no switch flipped that suddenly makes everything okay.
This will be hard, but I know we can care for each other at a distance, and learn to live in different ways.
Please take care of yourself.
Tidbits
Here’s a list of things you can do to fill your time at home.
Start a newsletter for keeping in touch with friends and family
Go for a random “drive” on Google Street View
Watch a webcam
Free or low cost classes
Lynda.com - check your library for free access
Start journaling
******************************
Recently eaten: scrambled eggs with leftover salmon on toast
Making: the art bug is taking a break, but I’ve been working outside a bit on the sunny days and cleaning up my garden. I’m already getting to spots I never made it to last year!
Reading: A LOT. Here are the books I’ve finished this week…
Videos of the Week
A little dark humor…
But wait! There’s more.
Who will win? Peter or Sheila?
And if you want to go even darker…
Question of the Week
If you feel like answering the question, hit reply to this email. Answers will be shared in next week’s newsletter - anonymously. Don’t be shy! General public commenting is available too.
Let’s go with something easy this week. Not so much a question as a quick activity.
Grab a nearby book and share the first line and the title. I’ll create a little matching game with all of the entries.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Nobody answered last week’s question, and that’s okay. We all have a lot on our minds.
Current Temperature: 47.8 F (8.8 C)
Current Humidity: 84%
Wind (max gust): 12.5 mph
Precipitation: 0.00 in
“I Heard of Man.”
‘Leonard Cohen’
Thank you Anne sorry I missed the last question but happily I’m dug in and I’ll have more time for the things I love like this Zine. Thank you for it. Cheers xoxo