COVID-19 Quarantine Day 310 - 01202021
We have been on this quarantine for over 300 days. Sometimes I think about it and I can't even believe it's true. And on that note, it’s been a while since I’ve shared an update of our COVID-19 Quarantine life. It’s been 20 weeks to be exact. Why? I don’t know. I wish I could say it’s because we’ve had so much fun going places and doing things that I’ve had no time to write, and that’s in part true, but I’ve also just been very detached from my writing lately and I think it’s about time I get back to it.
So much has happened since the last time I shared an update. I celebrated my 39th birthday, I went to Grand Canyon National Park, I went backpacking on Catalina Island, I took a road trip to six California National Parks over Thanksgiving week, and I celebrated Christmas and New Year’s Eve at home. In no particular order, I also went camping a few times (once in Arizona with Mary), went to Big Bear for the day, house-sat for the Gerskis and the Gardners (not at the same time), ran the virtual Marine Corps Marathon trifecta, finished my Run Across California virtual race and signed up – and completed! – the virtual Race to 2021, drank lots of wine (and lots of water too), took Jess to Julian to celebrate her birthday, hosted Maggie’s virtual baby shower, visited Fred, Ali, and Alia at Campland (and they took us out on their boat!), had double dates with the Gerskis, attended the Retirement Ceremony for LtCol Flatley, who was my Series Commander in Boot Camp, revamped the website, supported Ron on his virtual MCM, went to the Burns’ house for our annual sleepover and admired their amazing Christmas lights, visited the Valdez’s a couple times, got my first (and only!) mani and pedi during the pandemic, sent out Christmas cards and received some too, ran a virtual half marathon under 3 hrs, made flour tortillas with Jess for a delicious Baja Dinner, video-chatted with Andie, saw Rachel – in person!!! – twice, hosted Lisa and Jackson overnight, went to the gym on base (once), logged lots of miles, lost some weight (and gained some back and then lost it again), did lots of decluttering, got a new planner and started planning some fun adventures for 2021, celebrated five years with Jacob, and watched the Inauguration of President Biden and Vice President Harris on TV. Whoa! If we’re friends on Facebook, or you follow me on Instagram, then you already know all of this. If not, then there it is. :-)
I know exactly what you’re thinking: “Man, she’s doing a lot for someone living in California where they’re supposed to be under a Stay At Home order!” And you are right. I am. But everything I’m doing is done following the rules. I should say everything we are doing, because Jacob has been with me for pretty much everything I mentioned, other than my visits to Rachel and camping with Mary in AZ. We are always home, except when we’re not, and we wear our masks all the time when we leave the house. We only hang out with the same people (I’m sure they are tired of us!). We hardly ever visit anyone else and when we do it’s just us. No large gatherings, no parties, nothing against the rules. I guess the one thing you can say I’ve done that is “against the rules” is eating inside a restaurant in California. They had a sign stating that they were a space “being used as a peaceful protest” and it’s a local sports bar that I like, and we wanted to support them, so we went. Their tables were socially distanced, the waitresses and bartenders were wearing their masks, and you had to wear a mask when you were not sitting at your table, so we felt safe. Besides, I feel like we did a good thing supporting a local business and I don’t feel bad about it. Not one bit.
In spite of all that, it hasn’t been easy for me during quarantine so if I get the chance to do something – while being safe and not breaking any rules – then you bet I’m doing it. Don’t get me wrong - I love being home, I enjoy spending time on the couch reading, watching TV, or scrolling on my phone, I don’t mind being alone and I like spending time with Jacob, but it’s been 10 months now. 10 months of doing that day in and day out, and it’s not good for my mental health. I’m not stupid – I’m not going to go to a super spreader party or stop wearing my mask – but if I can do something fun and get out of the dullness and monotony that I’m living in right now, and I can be sure I’ll stay safe and follow the rules while I’m doing it, then it’s gonna happen! My mental health needs the respite.
Adding to the detriment of my mental health, December did not go as planned at all. When the new Stay At Home order was given at the beginning of the month, all campgrounds were closed. I had not one, but two camping reservations for December: Julian and Pismo Beach and they were both canceled. I also had a reservation to spend a week in Napa and celebrate our anniversary. Well, that was canceled as well. And last, but not least, we had plans to spend Christmas at South Coast Winery and, you guessed it, that was also canceled. By the last week of December I was in such a bad mental health state that I, like many other hopefuls out there, was just waiting for 2020 to end as if the simple fact that it would be 2021 meant everything would be better! Spoiler Alert: it’s now 2021 and things are still the same.
Lucky for me, I was still able to make lemonade with the lemons I was handed. Since I couldn’t camp in California in December, and Mary was in Arizona for work, I drove to Yuma to go camping and spend some time with her which was great! It was her first time camping and I’m proud to say she had a good time! When I came back, Jacob and I celebrated our anniversary at home with a little picnic on the living room carpet. Jess helped me make t-shirts so Jacob and I could continue our tradition to have matching pajamas on Christmas. Jackson and Lisa came to visit and we had lunch together. Johey and Evan came to spend New Year’s Eve with us, and then we went to see the Valdez family on New Year’s Day. I want to believe that even though all our plans were canceled, everything happens for a reason and, in the end, it all worked out and I enjoyed spending time with my loved ones. Our next adventure is a weekend in Big Bear for Jacob’s and Evan’s birthdays. We are going to follow the rules, wear our masks, and not do anything we’re not supposed to do, so let’s just hope that the trip goes as planned and we all stay safe and don’t get sick!
Here are some photos of our adventures!
LtCol Flatley's Retirement Ceremony
Double Date with the Gerskis in Old Town
Marine Corps Marathon - virtual
Mani + Pedi
Camping at San Onofre Beach
Crafting with Jess after I hosted Maggie's Virtual Baby Shower and drank way too much!
The Burns' Christmas Light Display
Camping with Mary in Arizona
Mermaid Series Half Marathon
Christmas Pajamas!
New Year's Eve with My Little Family
New Year's Day
Now that there’s a COVID-19 vaccine I feel more hopeful that this will end in the near future, but it is still disheartening to see the numbers in our state, in our country, and in the world. A lot has changed in the past 20 weeks, so here are the stats on COVID-19 as of today in comparison to my last post twenty weeks ago:
Worldwide: 96 million (over 70 million increase)
USA: 24.5 million (18 million increase)
California: 3+ million (over 2 million increase)
San Diego County: 217k (an increase of almost 180k)
My City: 3084 (more than 2000 increase)
I want nothing more than this to be over soon. But the only thing we can do is to continue to follow the rules, wear a mask, and get the vaccine when it becomes available to us. Hang tight – I can see the light at the end of the tunnel! Can you?
(Please Note: the above numbers are current as of 20 January 2021)