Day 42 of the California quarantine
4/30/20. Thursday
8:45- the dog starts barking so I go downstairs and let her out. She pooped so I clean it up then go upstairs.
9:00-I listen to The Daily, Start Here, and Planet Money. I drink a 16-oz Hydroflax of water.
9:45-I wake up L. and ask for her phone, then go downstairs. I make my coffee, do the dishes, then head to my home office to record my last “poli-sci podcast” for Specialty Class No. 1 on her phone. Virtual education continues until June for my classes, but during the quarantine, I vowed that, since I didn’t have to drive to my classes and lecture for hours, I would use that valuable, saved drive-and-lecture time to create and finish my online courses by 5/1/20. Last week, I worked non-stop, primarily grading papers that I had received two weeks ago, in order to hit the May 1st target. I did it.
10:30-1:30 - I read some online news then start my poli-sci podcast on Transnational Issues - Environment and Global Health. I drink my coffee, but I don’t eat. Not hungry today.
1:30 - I take a quick shower.
2:00-3:00 - L. and I go to a 2:00 p.m. Zoom dance party for our French tutor’s daughter’s 8th birthday. It’s Brady Bunch-esque and there are numerous squares of people, none of whom L. and I know. It’s not the same, nor is it even a valid substitute, for a real birthday party and I found myself getting a little depressed. Is this what the rest of life will be like? My birthday is actually 5/15 and BC, I would have gone out to a nice restaurant, but that doesn’t exist anymore. I miss bars and happy hours…
Her daughter seemed to enjoy herself and T. (our tutor) rented a DJ via Zoom. L. and I bounced into our square periodically to pretend-dance and smile, and then bounced out, so we could sit and talk. L. logs off at 3:00.
3:15 - L. is scheduled to teach her virtual art class at 3:00 and I go back to my home office. I finish grading a paper, then post the grade and scan the paper and my comments to the student. I create the last video quiz, also for Specialty Class No. 1, which is a 10-question multiple choice quiz from two video clips and a podcast. I don’t think they’re going to like it, since it’s cobbled together from three media sources.
5:00 - L. comes downstairs and plays guitar hero. I start grading another paper, still in my office and listen to Fresh Air. L. leaves for the Starbucks drive-thru to see R., the barista she is quasi-dating. In a rom-com moment a few days ago, at the drive-thru, R. gave L. his number when she had been planning on giving him hers - she had it written down on a piece of paper, ready to go. They’ve been texting and talking these past few days as they get to know each other. We find out that he’s 25…she’s 18.
I have some novelty candy (peach bellini gummies and milk chocolate pink and white miniature “pearls”) from the Sugarfina “trunk” L. ordered for me for an early Mothers Day present. I still haven’t eaten, but I’m not hungry. I move on to my state job and check email. There’s an e-mail from the Director of my entire agency, telling us to stagger our visits to the office and practice social distancing with each other. He says no more staff meetings. I’m relieved.
6:00 -7:00 p.m. - I ask L. if she can text her Dad (he moved to the Carolinas last month) and ask him to help me with my sprinkler system. The sprinklers are not coming on regularly and I don’t know to set the timer. For the past 9 years, whenever I had sprinkler problems, M., my ex, would come over and fix everything. I never learned how to adjust my sprinkler timer because it seemed so overwhelming, but now I have too, so L., me, and M. skype and hold his face up to the sprinkler system so he can show us what to do. It’s actually really easy - I can’t believe he willingly came over to fix my sprinklers over all these years, always good-natured and never hostile. I feel guilty and really stupid.
7:00-8:00 - I finish grading the last paper, then I scan it, 2pgs at a time [my scanner is on it’s last legs], to a pdf. I listen to Fresh Air. I post the student’s grade and email him the paper.
8:00- I make a baked potato and put sloppy joe leftovers on it. Pretty good.
8:30-9:30 - I go to Canvas and check the modules for all my classes. Everything is ready to go for the next 30 days. I’m done - all I have to do is ‘massage’ the sites, logging in on class days, every Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday, and “publishing” the assignments so the students can see them. I have a few 1-2 pg extra credit essays that need grading, but other than that, I’m done until the next wave of papers on 5/11/20. I have, just now, at this moment, converted all of my classes to complete Internet with virtually no interaction needed from me for the next 45 days. I listen to Market Place.
It’s time for self-care now that my work is done. In the past, work always got in the way and I didn’t have time for me, but maybe that was deliberate??? Maybe I kept myself sooo busy because I didn’t want to think about or address my life…. I now have the time. What will I do?
9:30 - I order Garnier hair color and some false eyelashes from Walmart.
10:30 - 11:00 p.m. - I update my blog, then clean the kitchen, go through the mail, and put some boxes in the recycling. I listen to Martinis and Your Money. I head upstairs to watch Waco with L.