Dealing with the daily challenges and adventures of two little kids doesn’t create much of a template for the kind of monotony that some people are experiencing during quarantine. That’s not to say there isn’t something of a repetitive rhythm to life in lockdown for us, too.
One of those regular beats is the Saturday morning supply run. I will say that doing it doesn’t stress me out to the extent that it did back in the beginning, but it is still quite a process. Making the list, masking up, navigating the stores, and then doing all the fun disinfecting at home.
That being said, I generally do my shopping in Boulder these days, and at least there is a mighty nice view to take in while waiting in line to get into the store.
Those are some of the little things I don’t fail to appreciate, even in these weird times. I also appreciate the effort of the good folks at Trader Joe’s, who really go out of their way to create a friendly and upbeat environment while everyone shops. Everything is regularly disinfected, numbers of people in the store are limited, so it is nicely spaced out and comfortable. This week I was particularly impressed by a rather intricate piece of sidewalk art.
I had a few stops to make in Boulder and everything went smoothly. I will say, being a college town filled with plenty of well off hippies and a diverse mix of people, I have found that as a whole, folks there are taking safety in the pandemic a bit more seriously than some other places around here. In Boulder on Saturday, I don’t think I saw a single person not wearing a mask during my visit to three stores.
Now, had I made that statement a few months ago, that would have meant something very different and I probably would have been running from those stores in horror. But today is a different story. I am inclined to feel much more comfortable in public spaces where people are wearing masks.
As I mentioned in yesterday’s blog, I am squarely in the pro-mask camp for a number of reasons. For one, I am not a gambler. I am a naturally risk-averse guy, which is why when I go to Las Vegas, the extent of my gambling is typically sticking five bucks into one slot machine. A few years ago, that fiver turned into $35 in a Gilligan’s Island slot machine. That ranks as my greatest gambling achievement and adds to the long list of ways that Gilligan’s Island has enriched my life.
I know some people want to turn the masks in public thing into a political or ideological issue, but for me it’s just quite simply that I don’t want to die. Or get seriously ill. While part of that is selfish, honestly a lot of it has to do with the fact that I have a family. Me getting sick would be bad, but my fear of spreading it to those I love means I am way OK with wearing a slightly uncomfortable piece of cloth and steaming up my glasses here and there if it means lowering our overall odds of getting sick.
And finally, hey I’m as rebellious as the next guy. I’m all about fighting the power. I even bought a Public Enemy record once. I understand the urge to stand up to authority and I know nobody likes to be told what to do. But I find the idea of making a stand for liberty and freedom against a mindless microscopic virus a tad perplexing. A virus has no ideology, thoughts or opinions, doesn’t care who you vote for and has evolved over millions of years to do one thing: efficiently rip apart human cells. Also, andI can’t stress this enough, the doesn’t care about your rights or if you think it’s a threat or not.
So while I sure don’t like having it around, while its here I’m sure going to respect it and do everything I can to keep my distance. Yes, plenty of people survive it, but I could frankly do without being wiped out for a month. No, it is not the first or worst pandemic humanity has endured, but it’s bad enough for my tastes.
And with that, I’ll get off my soap box. By the way, it’s a big soap box because with all this hand washing, we’re buying soap in bulk now.
With all the shopping done, I was able to come home and enjoy a nice afternoon with the family. I was greeted by Amelia showing off her adorable new dress.
I also made myself a delicious and healthy lunch of blackened salmon on a bed of arugula with sautéed mushrooms and a balsamic vinaigrette.
A few hours later I negated that healthy meal with a big plate of pasta bolognese. Totally worth it, by the way.
And we wrapped up the evening with a good old fashioned haunting. Henry was running around pretending to be a ghost.
Amelia has been watching a lot of Scooby Doo lately, so she was thrilled to take that blanket off and see who the ghost REALLY is. He would have gotten away with it, too. If it hadn’t been for those nosy kids and that dog.
