Edit: I seem to have lost track of the days since this all started; when I posted this yesterday, I wrote day 35 – it was actually day 37.

Even if you’re not going anywhere, pandemics are exhausting. I can’t even imagine being on the frontlines or being an essential service worker. Because I am just living a different-ish version of my normal life but at home and today, I am tired.

This week I’ve learned to make a podcast and start getting it distributed, I’ve edited videos and had an amazing phone call. Also my internet was failing and had to have MTS out this morning to fix it—thank god the problem was outside the house and they replaced a corroded wire and they were done by 9:10 AM, I was pretty impressed for the most part other than the guy on Twitter who told me he was not detecting any problems with our line yet the person on live chat told me there sure was an interruption in an outside line!
ALSO It’s only Tuesday.

I’ve had reasons to smile – a lot. Last Wedneday, Steve surprised me getting cookies and cinnamon buns from San Vito Coffeehouse delivered (also coffee for my parents). If you’re in the Peg and haven’t had San Vito, give them a call (or an instagram and check out Geordie doing Kitchen Karaoke). They’re our usual Thursday stop and having not had archery in 4+ weeks it has been a long while. People, they drive around with a coffee urn in there so it stays hot – brilliant! Thanks for continuing to be great, San Vito.
I’ve seen the good continuing to come out of people – like all the people on the MAS Mutual Aid Society Winnipeg group who have stepped up with no judgement to help a woman whose partner is getting out of prison in a few months, while she is 7 months pregnant and trying to get together what she can for his release and reintegration—people opening their closets for men’s clothing and shoes and baby clothes for this family as they prepare to start a new chapter. At a time things are chaotic for many, people are really doing their best to come together and that is incredible.

And then there is the sadness that goes beyond this virus. The families and communities left in turmoil after Canada’s worst mass shooting over the weekend in Nova Scotia. The people killed senselessly in a place where we have heard community is everything. The full impact of the shooting, and information about the 22 victims, is still unfolding. We are changed as a country in more ways than one—especially in Nova Scotia.

And yet, in the heartbreak, moments like this happen, a pilot in his single engine plane tracing a heart-shaped flight pattern in the skies above Nova Scotia.

Image from Huddle

We will be a different country, a different world after this is over.

I hope we will be a better one as we learn to care for one another and pay attention to the good things in the midst of chaos, heartbreak, pain and loss. I hope we continue to give as we can to one another—whatever that may look like.

Here we are, three weeks in.
I truly meant to update last week but apparently I became very busy while self-isolating, which means as usual, I forgot and/or was uninspired.

I have discovered I need a hobby, I learned this week. Well, other than baking – I am not sure if that is exactly a hobby, because if I do it all the time we have to eat everything and um yes that is a self-isolation problem. Yesterday, I pulled out my Nintendo 2DS again and have spent an ungodly number of hours this weekend playing Pokemon Alpha Sapphire while watching Border Security: Canada’s Front Line. I have so many questions about the agriculture brought in by people, honestly. I’ve also made a pandemic playlist, thus far consisting of:

  • Look Happy, It’s The End of the World — Matthew Good Band
  • One of Them Years — Matthew Good Band
  • Panic Prone — Chevelle
  • Blue Vacation — Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness
(That last one, for the many now pandemic-appropriate lyrics. Self-isolating on an island maybe? Little southward politics? Y’know. But at least it’s not super depressing?)

I still, most mornings, am watching Justin Trudeau’s morning press briefing. I am no longer watching the province of Manitoba’s reports because I am staying the hell home anyways and I hear all the statistics later anyways. They are, like everywhere, predicting this week is pivotal. I presume if this week ends up not being pivotal we are just waiting for another one, but I honestly don’t know.
I still feel like, even though Trudeau has been good at instilling hope in these “unprecedented” days, this may still instil more panic as we question our access to medical supplies and I slowly freak out about maintaining long-term access to asthma medications as talk of shortages continues; and I think of this in the context of a hospital certainly being the last place I want to go. And then I try not to think about it.

Monday we had backyard six-feet-away coffee with my grandma. We sanitized the Starbucks cups which is probably unnecessary but you know what? If we are too careful, who cares. (Are we all going to have lasting issues after all this? Yeah, probably.)
 

Wednesday I got the call about my Tuesday doctor’s appointment. “Hi, how are you — good, you’re self isolating?”—it appeared my doctor’s assistant could not ask me quickly enough about my staying home for the past zillionty days. As previously announced, it will now take place by phone. This means I can stay in bed, and answer my phone at 8:30 rather than have to go downtown. Also, maybe this can happen forever because that would be convenient. Although, Steve and I had planned to go to the Canadian Museum For Human Rights after my appointment April 7, and clearly, that is not happening (though you can do a tour on their website. Does not help all the tactile things I wanted to show Steve).

Wednesday (Wednesday? Yes?) we played Jackbox games on Google Hangout with Dean and Jackie and Mary (and my mom and my aunt and I). I’ve also played quite a few games of Ticket to Ride with Dean and Jackie and their friends. Because what else are we supposed to do?

Thursday I made these cookies. Highly recommend.

 
 
 
View this post on Instagram

Day 17. #StayHome. Bake cookies.

A post shared by kerri (@kerriontheprairies) onApr 2, 2020 at 6:51pm PDT

Then I made the fancy internet coffee last night (officially Dalgona coffee or whipped coffee, less officially quarantine coffee and internet coffee). I also may have lost count of days as I previously had this labeled as Day 19, not Day 20, but today definitely should be the 21st day.

I don’t even know anymore, time is an endless circle. I am still in a constant state of disbelief, honestly.

It was pretty good, but very hard to stir. Don’t make it as full as the videos do or the stirring part will be terrible even though it will look nice.

I finally got my final flight of 5 cancelled this week, and got my Airbnb credit. Astounding a month ago we anticipated we’d be in Minneapolis right now. The world was a much different place then, even though this had already all more than begun.

And, I finished my first self-isolation project. After procrastinating since September, I ordered a damn green table cloth and set up my green screen. Which, thank God, because I spent 6.5 hours on Zoom on Thursday, so I had to do something to entertain myself. (Many of these pictures are from playing around with it earlier in the week, save for the top two and the lion from Thursday.)

IMG 8553

So now, to go full-circle, I need a hobby.
Or at least a new self-isolation project. 

Drop me your suggestions in the comments.

Oh also, jump on it early: Kayleen and I have a Youtube channel we’ve done nothing with yet. But we plan to record our successes and failures in making internet recipes while in isolation. So subscribe to Delicious or Disaster (and feel free to send us dessert and/or other recipes, preferably vegetarian for me, thanks.) 
I was going to say maybe that’s my hobby but recall, it may be crazy if baking things is my hobby because we still have Christmas baking in the freezer.

Plans for this week: work more hours as per my new contract (beyond lucky—yay!), clean my personal email inbox, make a Youtube video, don’t lose my mind.
AND ALSO A NEW PIZZA PLACE OPENED IN MY AREA. So, order pizza.