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How is the coronavirus pandemic affecting your life right now? Tell us about your experiences, feelings, and thoughts.
This is a picture of the whiteboard on our fridge this week. We started the whiteboard when trying to problem solve a conflict after couples therapy a few years ago. I need things to be out where I can see them so I don't forget, and my wife wants everything put away. So we compromised with putting things to remember on the whiteboard instead of having piles or pieces of paper lying around. Over the years it's morphed into a place we put notes for each other and appointments so we know what's going on in each others lives. This week seemed so quintessentially of this time with COVID tests, vaccines, and Zoom meetings. We're both vaccinated now and for once in a long time, we both had more than 5 days off in a row, so we decided to get tested and do a small trip to Hawaii. It's really starting to feel like the end now. I know we still have a long way to go but now almost everyone I know has been able to get the first dose and we're all counting down to "hug day" - the two week day after the second vaccine where we can actually hug each other again. It's a hopeful time. I still see the numbers each day in the NYTimes and can't believe how many people are still dying. It's such a surreal feeling when the end seems so close. Hoping this summer the numbers will be double digits and the white board will look a little different. Looking forward to seeing everyone again, but hoping we can preserve some of the good things from this year - slowing down, appreciating things, and checking in and caring about other people.
March 27, 2021
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During the pandemic, has anything changed in how you get food, prepare it, or eat it?
The pandemic has changed the way we buy food, but not drastically. The main differences are that we wear masks to shop, stand 6 feet away from others, wait in lines to get into some grocery stores, and wait in long lines to check out. Also, since my husband is over 60, he is eligible to shop during Senior Citizen hours and I tag along. This helps us to avoid the long lines I encounter during regular hours. However, we are able to buy the food we want and need. I realize that this is not the case for many people, and the fact that both my husband and I are able to continue working is a huge factor in this. I hate that the pandemic has created and intensified food insecurity in our country. The pandemic has changed the way we cook food, in an unexpected way. My father died 3 months ago. Although his death is not counted in the death toll from the pandemic, I believe that Coronavirus contributed to his death. After he had Coronavirus in the spring, he went rapidly down hill and many of his organs were greatly weakened, leading to his eventual death in September. For most of my adult life, he would cook extra food and send some home with me when I visited my parents. After my mother died, he stepped this up and contributed many meals - at least 1-2/week. Since he got ill and then died, I have been cooking more than I used to. Many nights, all I had to do was heat up something he made and make vegetables to go with it. I really miss his cooking. I miss the food he used to make, much of it Italian. I also really miss how much it helped us out with planning and making weeknight meals. It wasn't until I started thinking about this prompt that I realized what a difference the loss of my my father has made in this aspect of my life.
December 25, 2020