Quarantine: Sat. 6/6 - Tues. 6/8
Greetings, greetings. I've been lax, but it's because we're now in Pennsylvania, visiting my parents and expanding our quarantine bubble. I have to be honest, it's weird. New Jersey lockdown is a whole different beast then a SW PA lockdown. This area wasn't hit very hard, so things are much looser than they are back home. It's hard to let go of that sense of complete fear and paranoia.
Andrew and I actually ran an errand today, to Rural King. About 50% of the customers were wearing masks (of course we were among them). One woman, biker-chic and tattooed, had a mask around her upper arm. One unmasked man wore a t-shirt that read in all-caps, FRAC ON. Oh, SW PA. I've missed you. We paid for our pay-by-the-pound pig ears and hand sanitizer and got out as fast as we could. (The pig ears are for Farrah, FYI.)
Andrew stopped to buy some beer on the way home from Rural King, wearing his mask. He complimented the cashier guy on the excellent beer selection, and the (unmasked) guy said loudly, "WHAT? CAN'T UNDERSTAND YOU WITH THAT MASK ON."
We arrived on Saturday, after the fastest drive ever. There was no traffic, but that's not the only reason we got here in record time. Because we're from covid hotspot New Jersey, we're too afraid to use public restrooms, so--as I've mentioned--I invested in a "perfect for camping" workaround. But here's the thing: none of us actually want to use it. Faced with the prospect of The Bucket, no one has to go to the bathroom. So we drove here without stopping except for a quick gas fillup (with Chlorox wipes in hand). All those rest stops in trips past? Maybe they were...never necessary after all?
The kids are thrilled to be here, and we're all pretty happy to have expanded the bubble. Andrew and I had some business to take care of in Pittsburgh on Sunday, so the kids got to spend the whole day with Gra and Pop Pop. We got to have socially distant driveway drinks with friends. Yesterday, the kids did nominal school and we rode on the bike trail. Today they had a water fight with Gra, and we watched Togo (loved it).
We had a funny moment yesterday. Poor Molly had to put Zooey to sleep today, and I was talking to the girls about it at dinner last night. Greta asked if Zooey would have a headstone, and I said no, she'd be cremated. They'd never heard this word before, so I tried to describe cremation. "The vet will put Zooey into....a special oven," I said, and the look on Greta's face was one of sheer horror. I couldn't go on. My mom choked and began hysterically laughing. Dad followed and then so did I. It wasn't a funny topic but we could suddenly see how absolutely WRONG my attempt at an explanation had been. Our efforts to clarify and further explain just made it worse. I mean, there's no good way to explain it. The process is important and symbolic and meaningful but also grotesque. Parenting fail.
I took a morning bike ride around the neighborhood today. It was very strange to ride past the Soisson House and not be able to wheel my bike onto the lawn, get out a key, and go inside. Not ours anymore. THANK GOODNESS. Still weird, though.
Meanwhile, The Distance from Four Points is making its way in the world. Onward it goes. If you've read it....or will read it...an Amazon review (even a sentence!) would be much much much appreciated.
Andrew and I actually ran an errand today, to Rural King. About 50% of the customers were wearing masks (of course we were among them). One woman, biker-chic and tattooed, had a mask around her upper arm. One unmasked man wore a t-shirt that read in all-caps, FRAC ON. Oh, SW PA. I've missed you. We paid for our pay-by-the-pound pig ears and hand sanitizer and got out as fast as we could. (The pig ears are for Farrah, FYI.)
Andrew stopped to buy some beer on the way home from Rural King, wearing his mask. He complimented the cashier guy on the excellent beer selection, and the (unmasked) guy said loudly, "WHAT? CAN'T UNDERSTAND YOU WITH THAT MASK ON."
We arrived on Saturday, after the fastest drive ever. There was no traffic, but that's not the only reason we got here in record time. Because we're from covid hotspot New Jersey, we're too afraid to use public restrooms, so--as I've mentioned--I invested in a "perfect for camping" workaround. But here's the thing: none of us actually want to use it. Faced with the prospect of The Bucket, no one has to go to the bathroom. So we drove here without stopping except for a quick gas fillup (with Chlorox wipes in hand). All those rest stops in trips past? Maybe they were...never necessary after all?
The kids are thrilled to be here, and we're all pretty happy to have expanded the bubble. Andrew and I had some business to take care of in Pittsburgh on Sunday, so the kids got to spend the whole day with Gra and Pop Pop. We got to have socially distant driveway drinks with friends. Yesterday, the kids did nominal school and we rode on the bike trail. Today they had a water fight with Gra, and we watched Togo (loved it).
We had a funny moment yesterday. Poor Molly had to put Zooey to sleep today, and I was talking to the girls about it at dinner last night. Greta asked if Zooey would have a headstone, and I said no, she'd be cremated. They'd never heard this word before, so I tried to describe cremation. "The vet will put Zooey into....a special oven," I said, and the look on Greta's face was one of sheer horror. I couldn't go on. My mom choked and began hysterically laughing. Dad followed and then so did I. It wasn't a funny topic but we could suddenly see how absolutely WRONG my attempt at an explanation had been. Our efforts to clarify and further explain just made it worse. I mean, there's no good way to explain it. The process is important and symbolic and meaningful but also grotesque. Parenting fail.
I took a morning bike ride around the neighborhood today. It was very strange to ride past the Soisson House and not be able to wheel my bike onto the lawn, get out a key, and go inside. Not ours anymore. THANK GOODNESS. Still weird, though.
Meanwhile, The Distance from Four Points is making its way in the world. Onward it goes. If you've read it....or will read it...an Amazon review (even a sentence!) would be much much much appreciated.
Comments