Are you on partial lockdown, total lockdown and/or shelter in place due to the Coronavirus pandemic? We in San Francisco are on partial lockdown and shelter in place, official as of midnight a week ago, March 17th. Apparently, this means that we’re not to leave our abode other than to buy groceries, medicine or other absolute necessities, as well as for emergencies. We’re not to have gatherings of more than 10 people and are supposed to practice social distancing – keeping a distance of at least 6 feet between you and other people as much as possible. Yet they say that it’s fine to go outside for a breath of fresh air, to walk your dog, etc.
I’ve been out for groceries a few times; once was to buy initial groceries before everyone in town went into panic shopping/hoarding mode. The other time was to pick up a few little things that were needed for me to cook certain things. Combined with one of those trips was a quick stop at Staples to fax a document to Covered California (there was a time limit/due date on that) and to scan my passport to finish completing an application. As for the latter, they’d already sent me about 6 E-mails reminding me that I needed to take care of that ASAP. So those things were done.
While I was out the second time, there seemed to be quite a few people out taking the air. People were walking alone, walking with friends, stopping to talk to friends, buying groceries, walking their dogs and biking. The weather was kind of nice, so it sort of felt like people were out enjoying spring break or something. It didn’t appear to me that people were seriously practicing social distancing. There were also homeless people out doing whatever they wanted. Of course, with little to no access to the news, I doubt that most homeless people have that much of an idea of what’s going on. Even if they do, they have limited choices.
What have I been cooking, you might ask? I made chili with beans, beef panang, macaroni and cheese, chocolate chip muffins, a strawberry cake with fresh strawberries in the batter frosted with milk chocolate frosting, scrambled eggs with tomatoes, mushrooms, cilantro, parsley and parmesan and white bean/garlic/mushroom/sage/rosemary soup. Tonight I baked two thick boneless pork chops in the oven; one was with Cajun blackened seasoning and the other was with garlic and pepper steak seasoning. No, I haven’t eaten everything. I eat a little here and there all day; froze some of it already. Obviously, I haven’t ordered anything from food delivery services.
Along with the cooking, I drank a bottle of Zinfandel and finished off a bottle of vodka. The Zinfandel was my last bottle of “regular” wine, shall we say. All of my other bottles are somewhat good bottles that I’m trying to save/age. Therefore, I ordered a few bottles from my local French wine bar. Restaurants and restaurant/bars are desperate for business. They’re only allowed to do delivery or curbside pickup. That can keep their employees busy for a bit, but it in no way makes up for their regular income. Even so, it’s helping out a little. So tomorrow I’ll walk a few blocks away to pick up my two bottles of wine, avoiding people all along the way. I’ve already E-mailed the owner to tell him exactly what time I intend to be there. That should be a quick five minute or less transaction before I’m social distancing all the way home!
There’s two more weeks of this to go, with a possible extension. I’m already pretty much bored out of my mind. Aside from cooking, the first week was not motivating me in any way. On this second week, I hope to start organizing my room.
I almost forgot – I’ve discovered karaoke on YouTube. I’ve been serenading the neighbors with my musical stylings of such classic hits as Donny Osmond’s “Puppy Love,” the Carpenters’ “Close to You,” Neil Sedaka’s “Breaking Up is Hard to Do” and Edith Piaf’s “La Vie en Rose” in French, no less! No doubt the neighbors are already sick of listening to me sign off-key. Luckily, most of the tenants in this building have gone home to wherever they’re originally from to wait this thing out.
One good thing about people being bored is that several people have reached out to me to have REAL conversations, other than simply making comments on posts on social media. They’ve either called or texted with way more than one line sentences!
I’m currently sitting at the kitchen table in my loungewear, which is actually a Hawaiian sundress, sipping on my “Paris Marais” tea from Mariage Freres listening to one of my many Spotify playlists. This one has several Korean pop/love songs on it. Surely you’re doing something equally exciting. Hopefully, I’ll check back with you in a few days.