From yesterday afternoon's email about the content of that night's NBC Nightly News:
The dishes will never be done. Ever. It's the least of our problems, and yet a constant reminder that even on the undramatic edges of a crisis, we do not have our act together. Don't worry, though — you're not alone. Apparently we're all eating cereal from a beer stein with a butter knife. (Watch the video at the bottom of this newsletter for another reminder that it's not just you.)
No, I did not watch the video. I also did not watch NBC Nightly News last night. The husband's Zoom meeting was still going on, and I was too lazy to head to the basement to watch it there.
Let's look at that blurb. Dishes? Yes, with the husband and I both eating three meals plus a snack or two at home, there are more dishes. This is not surprising considering that I have been trying new recipes. We are running the dishwasher more frequently. I can say, though, that if the dishes that could not go into the dishwasher were not washed that night, they are washed first thing the next morning.
A constant reminder that we do not have our act together? I wouldn't say that. There are certainly days on which I feel that way, but those days happened before the pandemic arrived. And even when they happen now, I don't blame the pandemic or self-quarantining here in the Hermitage. While those could definitely be factors, it could also be hormones, biorhythms, low blood sugar, or I just got up on the wrong side of the bed.
And eating cereal from a beer stein with a butter knife? Come on! It would be an exercise in patience to try to eat cereal with a butter knife. If you get to the point of doing that and from a beer stein no less, you really do have too much time on your hands thanks to the pandemic and quarantine. Might I suggest reading a book? Taking up or continuing a craft? Walking your dog? I've been doing all three of those, though it's not just one craft but five.
As for the pandemic conditions in Virginia, we don't look too good compared to other states on the site https://www.endcoronavirus.org/states The data are a bit dated, from ten days ago, but at that point Virginia was one of if not the most worrisome state. That line is pretty darn steep and showing no real sign of turning downward.
I told older son and the husband that I was actually disappointed in the governor and his talk of using science and data to inform his actions. I thought his background in medicine would help him keep things slow. Older son responded that the governor might be afraid of an armed insurrection or at least a demonstration calling for reopening. We had a quite massive second amendment gathering earlier this year, so the seeds would be out there.
Coming tomorrow: how one comic strip is slyly addressing some of the mental health effects of the pandemic.
1 comment:
I'm up at the normal time, dressed in my normal clothes, hair at a slightly hacked normal length, the kitchen is tidy, the floors are clean and the laundry basket is empty. There is an abnormal amount of dry goods and tins squirrelled away in the garage and my freezer stacking has reached new levels of skill. It's a far cry from the Time Before where I'd wander through Aldi three times a week and pick up what looked nice.
Eating cereal with any sort of utensil is a big step up from failure because it assumes that there is milk and it hasn't gone off. I am now buying milk 12 pints at a time and trying not to think too hard about who it is that's drinking it.
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