Breathing

"I'm not panicked about the quarantine.  I'm panicked about the panic of the quarantine." 

That's what my sister texted earlier this evening after we both returned, in towns 68 miles apart, from the grocery store.

I had decided to stop into the supermarket on the way home from work today.  I was in need of cat food and thought it might be a good idea to pick up a few extra rolls of toilet paper and perhaps extra eggs.  I spoke with Jeen just before I entered the store.

"Toilet paper.  Hmmm, that's probably a good idea," she replied.  "I think I should go to the store and pick up some toilet paper.  And meatballs.  If we're going to be stuck at home we're going to need meatball subs."

Grabbing a cart I strolled through the produce section.  Raspberries, blackberries, and bananas were placed carefully in my cart.  A bag of spinach was thrown in before I made my way to grab some eggs.  Making my way toward the cat food aisle I felt a buzz on my watch alerting me to a text message.

There were 6 new messages- all of them from a group chat of my grade level team. 

A whole lot of things were being said but every text centered around the seemingly imminent closing of school sometime soon.  Each person in the group had a different piece of information to share--possible closings for a day so teachers can prep online learning-- iPads being sent home with younger students so they can be sure they connect to home wifi--other counties already making the call--

Every text meant more food in my cart.  Finally, I found myself in the frozen food aisle making a call to my sister. 

"What kind of meatballs should I buy?"

I'm not worried about getting sick.  I am not in a panic, but for about 30 minutes I was definitely in a bit of a panic over the panic that is sure to build in the next week.

Another Writer in the Family

Thanks to my niece- my dad, the secret writer, has been working on all kinds of writing projects over the last year and a half.  It was Christmas of 2018 that Megan gifted my dad a subscription to an online writing community.

Every month my dad receives a writing assignment, a question chosen by the gift giver or another family member.  These questions can be anything to What was one of your most memorable birthdays to the one he answered today, What was your wedding day like?

My dad is 85 years old.  Lately, he's reported having a hard time finding his words.  His monthly writing assignments give him a daily purpose as he spends time trying to get his thoughts together.  He takes the time to review files on his computer and works intently to make sure each word is just the right fit.

On the occasion of his 80th birthday, my dad sat back and smiled.  He went on to say that the one thing he always dreamed of as a kid was to grow up and have a family of his own.  His writing celebrates the family he knew as a young man growing up in Baltimore.  

I consider myself lucky to get a glimpse into those memories and am thankful that he was given the opportunity to write them down.

I Will Not Be Fooled

On this first full day of Daylight Saving Time, I must remember not to be fooled.  I can't be fooled by the light.  Even now, as I look out the window at sunlight and blue skies I'm thinking it could be 4:30 or 5:00 pm.  But. It's. Not.

It's 6:20 pm.  Perhaps that's not a big deal for many but this girl gets up at 5:00 am and knows that bedtime preparations start in just over two hours.  So, I'll keep my eye on the clock--not the daylight--to ensure a smooth start to the new work week.

Oh What A Beautiful Saturday

Oklahoma is by far, my favorite musical.  To be honest, I don't even know why.  As a kid, I was involved in many a musical- first as a member of the chorus and later as part of the backstage fun bunch.  Even with all that musical experience, I was never a part of the production of my favorite show.

I think it's that opening sequence when Gordon McRae belts out "Oh What A Beautiful Morning."

It was that kind of day in my neck of the woods today.  I was up early, feeling more rested than usual, with a shortlist of things to accomplish today.  By 1:00 pm I had been to Uhaul to have a trailer hitch installed and been to the gym for a bike ride. 

Blue skies and bright sunshine pulled me outside and I headed to a local park, Roosevelt Island, for a stroll.  Fresh air and sunshine were in abundance, as were kids, families, puppies and bird enthusiasts.  I took my time on the mile-long path that outlines the island.  I stopped to take in the shedding cattails in the marsh smiling as I listened to the wind whistle between the trees.  Traffic from the nearby highway could have been easily mistaken for rushing water, so it was easy to forget exactly where I was.

Rodgers and Hammerstein had it spot on when writing about a day just like this.  It's the kind of day that makes me feel like everything's going my way.

Joe Also Known As

My friend Kathy and I share the same pet care guy.  Kathy has known our guy, Joe, for years.  He helped her out years ago with her St. Bernard, Elsa.  After Elsa, she had a cat- sweet Wheezy, who curled up next to her while she withstood chemotherapy and radiation.  Joe was there to help out whenever she needed a hand.

In the meantime, I had gone through a number of different pet care people.  Kathy herself used to help me out but when her own battles took over her life I realized that I needed to find some pet care that I could count on.  So Joe became my guy as well.

The thing about Joe is that he can be counted on 110% of the time.  He leaves me a detailed note about how he fed the cats, changed the water, and cleaned the litter box.  His note always mirrors the directions I leave for him.

Recently, Kathy acquired a new St. Bernard- Winter.  Wheezy left us a few years ago, so she was back in touch with Joe today.  Which is how we came to talk about him over dinner at her place tonight.

"Oh, there's a text from Joe," she said as she showed me her phone. 

I noted the contact at the top of the text.

"Yea, I call him Joe Dog," she laughed.

I smiled and pulled out my phone.  "That's funny, I call him Catsitter Joe."

.25 Pounds Soaking Wet

As part of her nighttime rounds, my young cat Alice likes to gift me her "toy of the moment."  For awhile that toy was an old plastic cover to a Wii remote.  Then there were any number of small tin foil orbs.  Alice is a huge fan of a homemade tin foil ball.  In fact, the mere sound of me ripping off a sheet of tin foil will bring my ever-curious cat running to see if there will be a piece saved for her.  At this very second, there are no doubt 20-30 tin foil balls hiding under my couch.

Then there was the small, white furry mouse. That was a few months ago- every morning I would wake up to find Alice and her little white mouse next to me.  The one thing I couldn't understand was why the mouse was always soaking wet.

Early one morning the mystery was solved.  I shuffled into the bathroom and found a little white mouse in the toilet.

These days Alice's favorite toy is a small, black furry mouse.  Before I go to bed each night I always make sure to close the lid on the toilet seat.  I'd like to say I always wake up next to a very dry furry mouse, but that's not true.  For it seems, Alice has figured out another use for her water bowl.

No matter- I'll take a water bowl over the toilet bowl any day.

Reset

My students are participating in their own Slice of Life Challenge.  Some kids are posting as

part of a 100-day writing challenge that will take us pretty much to the end of the year. 

Others are posting as part of a weekly homework assignment and still others are trying

to post at least 20 times throughout the month so they can win a prize.

With a day off yesterday, a number of students posted.  They wrote about how they

slept until 11:00 and all the Tik Tok videos they watched.

Today was my turn.  

Thanks to a well-timed doctor's appointment I was off today.  I'd like to say that I slept

until 11:00 but that didn't happen.  I was hopeful that I'd sleep until at least 8:00 but

by 6:00 am my body had all the sleep it needed.  That was fine with me though because

it meant I could linger over a second and a third cup of coffee.

I had a pleasant trip to the doctor and followed that with a physical therapy

appointment for some back issues I've been dealing with.  Back PT means moist heat,

some deep tissue work and a few exercises to get me back to 100%. I left feeling much

better than when I walked in the door.

Extra time meant I cooked a real dinner tonight that included protein and

vegetables--a far cry from the cereal I ate for dinner on two occasions last week.

Tomorrow I expect I'll return to work feeling refreshed...

much like I'm sure my students felt today.