Quiet house, empty streets, sleepless nights… we have all had a lot of time to think and reflect lately. Odds are we’ve learned a thing or two about ourselves, after we reorganized our shoes and our spices.
Over the years, there have been things I gave thought to, hoped for and wondered about, but life was too busy or I was easily distracted and left thoughts and feelings unfinished. I’ve moved those musings to the front of my brain and began to sort through thoughts and feelings with the same sense of bringing about order that I used on my bathroom cabinets…..
We all have ouer own list of what we have learned in this great medical, social circumstance we are in. Happy to share mine.
- I am so glad I kept the good china and crystal and pitched the everyday stuff when I moved last fall. Pizza is awesome on my mother’s wedding china.
- Endless, open ended time, was not initially conducive to creativity. But a new rhythm is settling in and I kinda like it. We’ll see.
- I’ve learned that I am a serious list person. And….
- I like routine. I’ve always wanted to be one of those easy, breezy, let’s-see-what-we-feel-like, arty people, but I’ve learned that I like structure. A lot. (Look out….)
- A list the night before of what to do the next day has been hugely helpful. Checking stuff off has a very satisfying feeling. Initially simple lists gave structure to my day and brought some satisfaction as I checked things off:
- Up before 8:00
- Bed before 11:00.
- Call your aunt
- Empty the dishwasher
- Bake bread.
- Work for 4 hours.
- Drink water.
- I can consume 160 ounces of water a day (honest to God!) and it is no big deal at all. It is my thing now. I drink A LOT of water.
- My balcony is my favorite spot. Sunshine feels wonderful and healing. A beach would be nice. But the balcony is awesome. With hot coffee in the morning. Wrapped in a blanket. #Bliss
- The email I needed to write for my kids—with instructions, passwords, names of the doctors, priests, lawyers and friends they should reach out to, etc. was easier to write than I thought. It’s in my draft folder. I’ll send it to them if I need to. I’m glad it’s there.
- The email I want to write to my kids, to tell them everything I want them to know, remember and believe…. That’s hard. And unwritten.
- Demand has spiked for label makers and wills. Both are handy.
- Those Birds are more snarky than Angry.
- My son is a damn quick study when it comes to backgammon.
- My daughter has a broader vocabulary than I thought, given our current score on Words With Friends.
- And when the coolest girl in the 8th grade (class of 1977) invited me to play Words with Friends this week, it was like grade school all over again. I actually shrieked.
- Big Bang is the new M*A*S*H. The answer for everything is in there, somewhere.
- If I have to modify my habits when things open up, I’ll go back to my favorite flower shop and bookstore. But day to day stuff, I’ll order it on line and will avoid big stores, crowds and knuckleheads.
- I am more impatient than I like (see previous “knucklehead” reference).
- I have felt blown off, and I’ve been pissed. And then I remember they are surviving too. Tho some them are asses. But mainly, they are surviving too.
- I am not a Tiger King fan… I thought I wasn’t, and now I know.
- Speaking of kings, RoomRater on Twitter rules.
- I would not have gone out on the first round of The Great British Baking show. No promises beyond that.
- I think this is still evolving and may get worse before it gets better, in ways we can’t imagine.
- Tea can’t be strong enough.
- One more picture of masks and gloves littering our streets and waterways and I’ll give up on humanity completely. I’m pretty sure we’re the worst thing to happen to this planet ever.
- I love examples of the earth healing in the midst of all this. See note above. We are a disgrace as a species.
- Getting up, getting off the couch, opening the door, taking a shower… it’s hard sometimes. But always worth it.
