Missing Family (and Kielbasa)

Well here we are at our first holiday in quarantine: Easter.

In previous years my partner and I would first have brunch at her parents' house and then dinner at my parents' house. In both cases we would fill up on delicious food while enjoying the company of our family, hopefully while also enjoying some pleasant spring weather.

We knew things would be different this year since our daughter is a year old, but of course we didn't anticipate a worldwide pandemic and quarantine.

Fortunately we're still able to go to my in-laws' house because they're part of our 5-person quarantine group, though it will be with a few fewer guests than usual and for dinner instead of brunch.

Unfortunately, although neither of my parents are working right now and are therefore not exposed to strangers every day, they're still outside of our 5-person quarantine group. We won't be able to see them or my brother and grandma for Easter, and I won't be able to enjoy the Easter kielbasa that I look forward to every year (though we are hoping to figure out safe a way to share some food with them).

I'm sure you're all experiencing something similar. You're either lucky enough to have some loved ones you can share this holiday with in some capacity, or you're on your own and hopefully making the best of it.

I know we're lucky to have what we do, but that doesn't completely quell the loss that I feel as well. I miss my family. It will be tough not seeing them today.

In any case we're making the best of things. My partner and I dressed up for the first time since beginning to work from home, our daughter enjoyed the Easter basket she got this morning, and after breakfast we colored some hard boiled eggs together. It was fun to see what we could do with three colors on five eggs, and our daughter thought the end result was fascinating!

I look forward to dinner tonight. I just wish it could include everyone we wanted it to ... and also kielbasa.

As a side note for anyone who might be wondering why I haven't posted here in two days, the answer is simply that I wanted a break blogging every single day. Don't worry, you didn't miss much.

Have a happy Easter! Stay healthy and sane!

-Ryan 🐰

Comments

I've Been Unemployed for a Month

Sorry I haven't written here in a while. So much was happening in those first few months of the pandemic, and then it seemed like everything just kind of slowed to a crawl before it all went stale. Every day has been the same thing. People don't believe facts. People are getting sick. The pandemic isn't over yet. We need to stay home. We need a sense of normalcy. The numbers are down. The numbers are up. On and on and on in a never-ending loop. Like many people, I fell into a sort of numb depression without even realizing it. The pandemic and quarantine weren't great for my mental health, and I stagnated. I kept on going through the motions, but it was all in a sort of half-conscious way. Fortunately, a few months ago I became aware of this and made some changes to improve my mental health and overall lifestyle. It seemed like everything was going to be alright again. Then, after an incredibly stressful two months at work during which I worked and pushed myself harder t

News Updates for Posterity

As I said in my previous blog post, I'm not sure there's really anything significantly new to say about this pandemic since it's been going on far longer than it should have. That said, I still want to keep this blog updated on a somewhat regular basis for future historical reference. In the absence of any new insights to share, I'm going to share and comment on some recent news. July 14: CDC says U.S. could get coronavirus under control in one to two months if everyone wears a mask This is pretty much the thing I've been preaching from the beginning because I respect the advice of educated experts. Still, it's nice to have the CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION (spelled out, capitalized, and bold in case you forgot that this pandemic is literally what the CDC was designed to help us with) slap the nation across the face with how badly we're messing up and how quickly we could be done with quarantining if everyone just wore their damn masks. July 15

The Escalation of Events

So yesterday I stumbled upon this article in which a respiratory therapist describes in detail what the worst of COVID-19 looks like in the hospital. These disturbing descriptions were all new to me, which is worrisome given how far into this pandemic the world already is. The details of the disease shouldn't still be unknown or downplayed at this point. I began to reflect on my experience learning about this disease and how long it took for me to take it seriously versus how quickly everything seemed to go wrong. I was away on business in Boston for PAX East (a big video game convention) from February 25th through March 2nd. There was talk of the "novel coronavirus" at the time but I didn't know much about it. While I worked my booth and walked the convention floor I couldn't help but notice the (relatively small but nonetheless) increased number of attendees wearing face masks at the event. I just kind of shrugged it off, thinking it was good that peo

Ryan's COVID-19 Chronicles

Search This Blog