Amazing
what a bit of sunshine does for your
disposition! I woke up to sunshine, and it stayed all day. This evening it was
positively balmy—80+ degrees—and we sat on the patio with wine and talked to
our neighbor, who is self-quarantining in their guest house. He sat in his
window, and we sat on the patio. A jolly visit, except of course I could only
hear half of what he said, even with my hearing aids on.
And I
had a terrific supper. Our neighbor Margaret, across the street, sent over a care
package of corned beef, cabbage, carrots, and potatoes—they had a belated St.
Patrick’s Day dinner. She has her hands full these days of quarantine with both
her sons home, one a recent A&M graduate whose job the quarantine has put
on hold and the other a college junior who has been sent home because of the pandemic.
But Margaret appears to be coping well and cooked the best corned beef I have
ever had—tender, flavorful, better than the local deli. Vegetables were also
done just right.
Another
bonus to the evening: Jacob came out to visit. We talked about the pandemic, of
course, but also about neighborhoods. He recognizes the community spirit in our
wonderful neighborhood but is bothered that everyone knows if he screws up. I
tried to explain how much I value the community support of our close-knit
neighborhood, but he kept saying he valued his privacy.
We
also talked about school. Today he and his mom got his school-issued computer,
but so far, he has no lesson plans to go with it. I asked what he was doing in
English—actually called English Language Arts—and got the answer of basically
nothing. I’m trying to be helpful here—after all, I have an advanced English
degree—but it’s hard, because I don’t know where he is. He says he knows
grammar and he knows about the beginning, middle, and end of an essay—I’d sure
like to see an example. My suggestion that he read Catcher in the Rye
has fallen on resistant ears. Apparently, literature is not part of the local
ELA curriculum, and Jacob is not a natural reader, as I was and some of my
children were. Yikes! I may tear my hair out, which is okay because it needs
cutting anyway.
I find
these days settling into a routine. I get up about eight and make myself tea,
doing whatever else it takes to get my day going, from washing my hair to
putting away dinner dishes. Pretty much I work during the morning, and it’s a
blessing that I have plenty to keep me busy. Though I confess that catching up
with the news takes a chunk out of my morning—I tell myself when the pandemic
is over and trump is out of office, I won’t spend so much time on Facebook and
related sites. Morning is also the time I pay bills and do whatever business-related
tasks are on my desk. With time out for lunch, eaten at my desk, I work until about two. And then I nap—sometimes for
two hours, which sounds like more sleep than it is. Napping for me often
unleashes my mind for creative work, and I come up with lots of ideas.
In the
late afternoon I piddle at my desk with whatever has come up during the day
and, with a fierce dedication, I watch the news. I am of mixed emotions about
the fact that the local news now pre-empts the corona task force briefing.
Today I was glad to see Dr. Fauci back but chagrined not to hear what he had to
say.
Jordan
comes out for happy hour, dinner follows, and I write my blog and read in the
evening. It’s a comfortable routine, and so far, I’m okay with it. I don’t want
to spend my life this way, but I have faith life will get back to normal. Not
as soon as trump promises, but some day.
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