COVID days - notes on a smaller, personal scale

Ideate / Innovate

Early on in March, when we had all collectively just started on this very unclear, confusing and scary journey, I was surprised and awed by people who had the presence and strength of mind to come up with some really useful ideas to make the situation a little better. 
Mask making from non traditional materials, DIY alternatives to hand sanitizers, restaurants going take out only or altering their entire menu for their survival, brick and mortar book stores upgrading their models to offer free shipping or publishing list of #quarantinebooks online to retain their clientele are such wonderful and successful ideas that we would have thought impractical in the normal world. 

Seemingly insignificant things like seeing posts from my culinary genius friends on how to use the neglected ingredients on the pantry shelf give me ideas to think creatively while menu planning. It broke the drudgery of daily cooking and put these ingredients to good use in a time of food rationing.

Back in the last Friday of February when covid was ravaging a Seattle nursing home while the rest of the US was still in happy denial, our art class went online so we could comply with social distancing rules even though it was a very new concept at the time. 
We were all a little skeptical and maybe slightly intimidated by how this would work, being so used to the studio setting and camaraderie that comes with it. But over a couple of weeks we adapted to creating and sharing art through distance learning. We continue now as that became the new normal for all kinds of education all over the world.

Share
While this is the time to share and care, sometimes we are sharing more than we intend to while people in so many professions have started working from home!  I particularly remember the young reporter on live TV whose dad walked in into her frame while putting on his shirt with his middle aged dad belly on display, or Jimmy Fallon´s kid walking in and climbing over dads back during his live telecast
On my work conference calls I have heard more than my fair share of kids crying, dogs barking, discussions on grocery lists as people forget to mute their phones :) Then there are home security alarms going off at 3 pm because people never leave the house anymore and just forget to disable it as part of the morning routine. 

Grow
With my walks now restricted to around the neighborhood only, I was getting bored, and started listening to podcasts so I could finish my 5 mandatory rounds, and really got hooked on to playing short stories from a wide range of authors and discussions about them.
But, I would never imagine that I would be able to listen to Haruki Murakami podcasts and discuss his very abstract and alternate reality storylines with my 25 year old on a Friday night! 

In exchange I was given a demo of the very convoluted process of millennial coffee making. Honestly, I had no idea that making a cup of coffee needed that many steps or gadgets! Needless to say, my attempt to replicate was disastrous 
Still can’t believe Friday nights with Mom is not a banned concept anymore! 

Count My Blessings:

• My indoor plants, caring for and staring at which give me immense joy. Also the familiar sight of my tulips and rose bushes springing back to life while the world is on hold is comforting. 
• A more or less sunny March and April, which gives a transcendental sense of hope and security.
• Social media- I know, I know, I am supposed to hate it, but I don’t . The interactions on social media give me food for thought, and I liked getting so many different perspectives and thoughts about how my acquaintances and friends are dealing with this situation. Even things like the recent dalgona coffeee or now vs then challenges are sincere attempts to recreate the more normal times. And who can deny its a great pastime.
• My wfh setup - It is by the window and by my favorite bookshelf, both can be stress relievers when deadlines and hours of meeting stare at you.
• Friends and family- Now almost regular weekend zoom sessions with my various groups of friends are super fun. Doesn’t substitute the in person gossip sessions, but definitely the next best alternative.
  Exchanging texts with my dear friend and coworker with updates on our lives and pictures from her daily walks has become somewhat of a ritual I look forward to.
  So many friends and family members from all over the world, who I am not in touch with regularly, have called or messaged and it is really comforting to know that people care about each otherś well being in these times of crisis.The immediate family has been ok too   I cannot deny the lunches assembled and brought to my work desk by the husband when I am buried in meetings for hours.