SIL had a cute idea if anyone or their kids are big enough and obedient enough…
They met another family at a wide multiuse paved trail and went for a walk, single file, each family on one side of the path. The pictures are so cute. Also I know she would have football carried her giant kids back home if they’d made a break for the other kids.
I understand the frustration.
Mr Pancakes has major cabin fever and keeps suggesting we go out to the shops. Yes we want a little decorative pot for the plant in the bathroom but is going to the shops for that really a priority right now?
I’m exhausted from the constant “I don’t think that is what we should be doing right now”. He isn’t arguing when I say no, but the suggestions keep coming. Our state recorded 90 new cases in the past two days, we have 184 cases now. We need more people spending less time around other people.
I think we will go to the beach at some point this weekend. Not a crowded swimming beach but somewhere Mr Pancakes can get a fix of open space and Pikelet can run around and dig in the sand. I think there is enough beach along the coast that we can avoid other people.
Our biggest supply chain issues in the past 3 months have been bushfires blocking 1 of the 2 roads attaching our state to the rest of the country, and people panic hoarding which leaves nothing for those who aren’t panic hoarding. I understand the panic hoard on some level here since we actually had the government telling us we were cut off from everywhere just 2 months ago. Otherwise, yeah, I’m not sure how the US compares to Italy in terms of supply chain (for large cities, I’d guess rural italy and rural USA have differences) but they’re seeing normal stocks in groceries even during their shutdown now things have straightened out, despite the horrors in the hospitals.
I’m worrying about the coming decade or so. Historically humans have gotten over huge crises like this, but it’s never been easy. I don’t want my kids to come of age in a world struggling to get back on its feet. The long term implications are bad.
Fucking asshole kids.
I need more stories like this splashed everywhere so that I can help people make sure we keep ALL of the good shit that’s come out of this and not go back to how it was before. I need “normal people” to know that actually doing things differently makes a HUGE difference and not let them forget that after.
I am muting this thread for the weekend and have a sticky note to remind me to stay off Facebook (which I only check once a day or so anyway). Time for a mental break, as much as possible anyway.
Today would have been my brothers wedding. 
trying to figure out what I can do to acknowledge it. Brother is getting them a cake, so at least there’s that. He’s not much for big FB post type acknowledgments, although his fiancée is, so maybe I’ll do one of those.
Some sort of shelter in place (though they won’t call it that) order for Oregon, or at a minimum Portland, will be in place by the end of the weekend it looks like. https://katu.com/news/coronavirus/watch-live-gov-brown-mult-co-chair-kafoury-mayor-wheeler-giving-coronavirus-update
My gym is now doing online classes, so I started my morning with a yoga class that about killed me, OW.
As of this morning, I have teeny tiny seedlings for: 1 snow pea, 1 sugar snap pea, 1 arugula, 2 sungold tomatoes. Looks like rainbow chard and basil are coming up next, and perhaps 1 more tomato. They seem to be enjoying the heat mat, which so far has not burned down the building, thank fuck.
I was disheartened to read an email from my vet this morning saying that if we must bring our pet in due to illness or injury (routine care is cancelled) we have to wait in the car and they’ll come get our pet and talk to us over the phone while they are examined. We can’t come in and be with them. Up until now this was an option, but not required. I know this is necessary but the thought of the kitties being in there alone without us makes me so sad. Hopefully nothing goes wrong with them. I’ve had some conversations with them re having more regard for their own well-being. Found Little Miss Spiderman walking along the top of a door ledge the other day and said, “This is NOT the time to break a leg!”
Someone barfed up spit all over the dining room floor and I stepped in it. I’m hoping this is either incipient hairball or protest barf because I slept in and was like 2 hours late feeding them.
We’re having pie tonight.
Today my coronavirus anxiety revolves around technology. I got a weird popup on my work macbook last night that seems to imply it’s going to update my OS whether I want it to or not (this is not a thing with macs, unlike Windows they generally are not all "HAHAHAHA you’re getting an update now, don’t turn off your computer, if you don’t want it tough shit). That is a problem because we have proprietary software that needs to be compatible with our OS. If I have an update forced on me that causes me to be unable to work, what then? IT can’t come to my apartment. There are no Apple stores open. If the mac totally dies, I can’t even get hold of IT because that’s through a portal that I don’t think I can access on my chromebook.
See also: my phone is 5 years old and upgrading it was on my list for the near future. Add that to the list of “shit I really shouldn’t have procrastinated on” right up there with dental appointments (both of mine are now cancelled due to the shutdown) and eye doctor and moving the fuck out of Chicago.
Amusingly, I got what I assume is an automated email reminding me it’s time for my mammogram. Yeah… I’m not sure going into a medical facility for routine testing is too smart right now.
There are rumors of shelter in place being established Monday for WA. I’m working overtime until early this afternoon, then going home and gathering more things, driving up to Olympia to stay with my partner at his mom’s place.
Wouldn’t your type of position be considered essential?
HOORAY, my Chewy order shipped and it contains everything it’s supposed to contain despite 1 thing being marked OOS when I looked at my order last night. Kitties will now be set for more than a month. And I’ve been cutting down on their dry food a little, it won’t kill them to eat smaller portions. Islington is starting to turn into a chonk. I think we’ll be OK now.
It is, however I have the capability to work remotely, and have been heavily encouraged to do so (can’t even access my office at the moment).
I have what might be a dumb question. If my nonessential business gets closed, can the employees be there working and getting caught up? Obviously we can’t order or deliver anything, it’s truly just to get stuff done if we can. There are only 6 of us total and 2 would be there rarely if at all, so possibly 4 of us would be there. We’ve all traded our germs already and nobody is sick. We all have things to do, but I’m not sure it will be allowed? I am sure we will get paid no matter what because it will just get deducted from the commission from our sales, so it isn’t about money.
I’m so conflicted about doing a CSA again. I had one for 12 years, and last year we cancelled because we were traveling so much we couldn’t keep up with the boxes so it wasn’t a good choice. This year we decided to not renew again (in Jan) because of our expected travel schedules.
If SSO’s traveling ramps up again as the crisis abates, then the CSA doesn’t make any sense. It’s way too much vegetables for just me, even with some canning/freezing. But if it doesn’t ramp up, that’s likely because the crisis is still ongoing, in which case is a box pickup each week actually safe…
But the CSA doesn’t start until June 10th but runs til November 18th… Presumably by like September probably SSO’s travel will ramp back up.
It appears that overall the CSA raises our food costs. It’s very easy to see the years where we paid for the CSA in this chart (that’s our annual payment that peaks) That being said, the years that we didn’t have a CSA we also were traveling a lot, therefore consuming less groceries…
Monthly Food Cost Average April - Mar
2015: $155.03 including CSA
2016: $184.00 including CSA (why is this so high? no idea).
2017: $180.70 including CSA (why is this so high? no idea).
2018: $139.74 no CSA
2019: $133.65 no CSA
Could you donate to the local food bank what you don’t use?
They don’t accept donations of produce from individuals. There’s also just the logistics - not only am I risking more exposure, I’m also having to coordinate 2 trips in a week for 24 weeks - one to donate, or for someone to pick up, and one to get the box. Not really practical. Easier to donate cash.
My parents decided not to drive across Canada to visit us. Thank fucking god. I was going to have to sternly tell them not to, and that would have ended very badly.
They still think prayer will keep them safe from Corona (They are over 70 and in poor health), but they don’t want to travel when all the amenities are closed.
HUGE RELIEF.
<3 So glad to hear that.
