Another day, another shutdown

I've lost count of the number of shutdown days.

It's okay.

One of the first things I brought up on my computer was the poster below put up by a former housemate. It is how I felt, feel and hope to feel.

I am happy with my days at home, albeit they are very different.

When we venture out on our allowed excursions we still can get good food. The butcher, the green grocer and the baker are all within a few minutes walk. Lines form with people keeping distance. Today the Muslim couple who are butchers, had roasted chickens. Lovely aroma.

We see people we know for brief and distant exchanges. They become more meaningful.

Back at home we made peanut butter cookies together. I burned one batch. My oven seems to have a mine of its own. I had not changed the temperature setting. Good thing I like burned cookies. The other batches were fine.

Worked on the final edit of DayCare. It is going well. The artist doing the drawings for the book showed me some of the early work. I love them.

I so enjoy puttering around my home.

Reaching out on the internet, there's a poetry group and I sent a poem. Hope to get one.

My Geneva landlady is using our stuffed animal, Sanders, the Bern Bear, for some of her photos.

What people are creating during the shutdown is so enjoyable to see.

We are allowed out on walks with Sherlock. When I rounded the corner, I saw one of the Brit summer people. She had become trapped here on March 12, but as she said, it is a good place to be. I hadn't known she was locked in too. Her grown daughter, Georgia, whom I've seen periodically from the time she was seven, was with her.

We chatted at a distance. I mentioned we loaned Sherlock for people who wanted to check the dog walking box on the permission forms.

Georgia's eyes lit up.
 
She'd been looking for a dog to walk. I handed her the leash.

When I got home, I told Rick that I'd given the dog away. Once he realized, it was temporary he relaxed.

They did bring Sherlock back, well spent from his run in the woods with promises to come back again. This is a win-win.

We passed the Mamie  (one of the old women who have lived here forever) on the street, and she had a leaf bouquet tied with Catalan colors for good luck for me. We passed it without touching. So different from the cheek kissing and hugging of a few weeks ago, but it is okay.

We play on line with a friend who wants us to guess what out of ten jobs listed, she never did. So far we haven't. There are many of these lists on FB and we are getting to know some friends we thought we knew even better.

Rick has been concerned about face masks or lack thereof. Even if we are in no close contact with people and spend 99% of our day in the house he is worried.

For the first time in his life, Rick has sewed something. First he learned to cook, now he's learned to sew. The masks are really quite pretty, and I will wear them. It makes him happy. Mine has a butterfly on a blue background matching my jacket. He knows what buttons to push to get me to agree with him. Shelock isn't sure.

Despite some levity, I do take the lockdown seriously. I do know it could go on indefinitely. I know our lives can forever be changed. The heartbreak of people who have lost loved ones can only be imagined. We too lost one friend.

But still, I am safe at home like the poster says and I refuse to do anything but make this time, no matter how long it lasts, meaningful.