Pandemic sheltering - week one random thoughts

I love having dogs through this thing.  They are my only sanity sometimes.

Along with gardening.  Digging in the dirt makes me so darn happy, especially on a beautiful spring day.  Even with all of the crazy.

Jav had the thought about how valuable this time is, especially with the oldest who will be driving (!) and jaunting off to high school soon.

I am a cooking and baking FIEND.  Still enjoying it for now because we are normally so busy it is a hectic rush all the time.

We all are getting more exercise than ever before.  I'm starting to feel much less flabby - more yoga and Gabriel's running club workouts.  I'm trying to strengthen Joel's core and improve flexibility for both of them.

We have time to watch movies - we started the Lord of the Rings trilogy yesterday and the boys loved the first one.

This is making us want to continue to have a little more free time even after the Pandemic settles down.  I will have to give serious thought about helping out as much next year.

So far we are getting along pretty well.  Just some outbursts from the teenager, which is to be expected.

Small acts of kindness are so much more noticed these days, and appreciated.

Pandemic 20 - Nightmare Come to Life

3/31/20

Four weeks ago we had barely heard of it.  I think a little over a month a Yahoo story popped up about a killer virus in China spreading like wildfire.  And that it might make the jump into the US.

And it did.  The speed at which our lives have changed forever really just takes my breath away sometimes.  

It's called Coronavirus, or Covid-19.  It is somewhat flu-like, but this monster infects your lungs, as in pneumonia.  A dry cough and fever, and that's all if you're lucky.  But for some reason certain people start to have real trouble breathing.  Even perfectly healthy people.  The biggest age group at risk are folks over 60, especially those over 80.  This virus does not seem to affect children adversely, other than making them carriers that make other older folks sick.  It affects men slightly more than women for some reason.  And it is a master of contagion, having first appeared in October 2019, and already shown up as of today in almost every country in the world and infected over 163,000 people in the US alone.  People are dying at a much higher rate than the flu rate.  It's already developed another strain, making the rush to develop a vaccine even more difficult.  It's been called a virus of "droplets".  

And it is really scary because of how contagious it is and how it doesn't affect everyone the same.  

Within one week of finding out it was hitting the US, mostly in CA and NY, we heard rumors that UNPRECEDENTED actions were going to be needed to slow it down and not overwhelm healthcare facilities and workers.  Sure enough during Spring Break week we started hearing of school districts in TX adding several weeks to Spring Break.  We got the announcement via Text on Friday March 13th.  School would be closed until 3/30, another two weeks.  The teachers would be contacting us the following week regarding online teaching.  

Now that date has been extended.  First to April 6th, then Sunday to April 17th, both decided by the Catholic diocese and in congruence with FW school district, and now the TX governor has extended to May 4th.

So the boys have not been to school since March 6th.  They will have TWO MONTHS of long distance schooling. Maybe more.


But the stress of this thing is overwhelming.

More to come.