I want to make sure I'm documenting my experience through this in the hopes that one day it will be the crazy thing on the History Channel. So here's a brain dump of what it's been like for the past few weeks.
It's been 5 weeks since I was last allowed in the school building, and 7-8 weeks since I remember thinking this is a pretty big deal locally, started washing my hands constantly, and put sanitizer on all student tables, requiring them to use it in and out of the classroom, and was down 8-10 students daily in class because their families were self-isolating. I started setting up distance learning platforms to help students who weren't in class, stopped going to the gym, and only went to work and home.
So far this has taught me that... I might be an introvert. I am not struggling to be home alone. Do I miss social interaction? Sure. But I've been face timing with family, zooming with coworkers, yelling across balconies with a friend, and sending snapchats* with friends. I do want to go out, go shopping, not think about wearing a mask, etc. But I'm not feeling drained by being home constantly.
*I'm an old lady who probably shouldn't be on snapchat, and probably use it like an old lady on snapchat. But it adds silliness to interactions, and I like to post food there so that people in my facebook/instagram feeds don't have to look at food I make. *shrug*
I haven't left the house in 2 weeks, since I last got groceries. I need to go again, and am thinking of braving Costco in a few days... I should probably go start/run my car for a bit. I do go outside for walks/runs, and it's been nice out, so I sit on the balcony a lot. It seems like Washington has done a decent job of self-isolating. Streets are still really empty. People are out walking, running, biking, etc on the trails, but mostly things are quiet.
A few weeks ago when I DID leave my house for groceries, I did something really cool. I drove downtown- it took me 45 minutes ROUND TRIP, when it usually takes 30-40 minutes one way. Normally, I would obviously never get my phone out and take pictures while driving downtown, but I just couldn't pass up taking pictures of the empty streets.
I LOVE the food tours in Pike Place Market. I've been a couple times, and will continue to recommend it to anyone visiting, and I'll go with because I love it! But the market is closed for the most part- even the food stands because of the coronavirus stay at home orders. The company that does the food tours started doing weekly "boxes" from Pike Place Market vendors to deliver and pick up as a way to support the market vendors. They don't deliver out to me right now, so I ordered a box and went to pick it up on a Saturday morning. IT WAS CRAZY. Obviously I haven't been downtown since this all started. It was empty, and I did something I would NEVER do EVER under normal circumstances.
I drove right on Pike Place Street. Like, I turned right onto the brick road and drove right down it.
It was a completely contact free pick up. I pulled up (RIGHT IN FRONT of Beechers and Joe's Chocolates) and parked. They brought a bag of fresh produce from Frank's Produce (best!), and a whole bag of stuff from other market vendors and put it in my car. I got PIROSHKYS (favorite!!), pasta and sauce, chocolate covered almonds, Seattle coffee beans, Uli's sausage, Beechers cheese, hot peppers, and fresh flowers. They had an option to order food from the Mexican restaurant down the street, so I had also ordered a couple breakfast burritos for fun. It was worth the trip.
That was a highlight.
Otherwise, to be honest, work is....a lot right now. I've never had a desk job and I've never worked from home. I don't have a good system for managing all the emails I'm getting... from businesses and educational resources, the district, the school, admin, the middle school (my kids go to a different school next year and this is the time when we would be transitioning them), coworkers, everyone who wants help with something techy, parents, and...students. It's probably not even that many emails compared to other people, but they are all over the board and I feel constantly pulled in a lot of different mental directions. We haven't even moved to online teaching yet! Everything so far has been optional review instruction. Next week we start distance learning. New content. Required work submission.
Last week we put together pictures of all the teachers to send out to students. We aren't allowed to do the parades that you see on the news and social media, because we are under a stay at home order. Per our local police, the stay at home order means STAY AT HOME and going around and driving in student neighborhoods is against the order and a poor example for families. Students and families would be going outside and it would be hard to "control" gathering for kids. I get it, but I do miss them pig time.
So we've had Spring Break, which wasn't a break because I have loads of lists to work through. And I'm at home, and have been for weeks, so it doesn't feel like a break. The whole thing is weird.
I've been working hard to gather resources, make them as accessible as possible for students to navigate independently, and as convenient as possible for parents to support, for the past few weeks. I've spent hours helping coworkers/staff with tech "stuff". I put together a weekly assignment schedule for families. I've had meetings with my school team to figure out how to transfer our teaching to a completely different platform. I think we will sink into a routine. My team has scheduled weekly virtual meetings from now until the end of June to check in. We've set up a place for us to dump in resources by week to share with each other. We've tried to divide up the work of transferring student assignments to a digital platform for things we are all doing the same in an effort to take some of the work off of each other. Our first week goes out tomorrow and I'm crossing my fingers that I thought of every small detail to help make the week go smoothly.
And with my conversations with others from school, I think I'm actually handling it really, REALLY well. I'm grateful for that. I don't feel like I'm at a breaking point. I'm not struggling with being on my own. And I do have a good grasp on all the educational technology we are using. I don't feel like I need to learn anything new in addition to making this transition. So I'm doing well.
I try not to control the things I can't control. Like when I will go back in my classroom and clean out 26 student desks. How I will get everything to them. How we will return books, clean desks, and close up the classroom without students around. How much work that will be for me...and it will likely be alone in my classroom with social distancing requirements. I'm sure they will tell me what to do at a later date.
I am focusing on how I can make my home better. When I can plant flowers, or making my bed every day (hahaha). I shampooed my carpets. I have done my kickboxing every day, and I've been focusing on the heart training aspect of it rather than calories burned.
My hair needs to be done because my appointment was originally scheduled for 1 day after the stay at home order was in place, so they closed. I have gray hair, and it's getting long, but it's ok.
I took a walk a couple times last week because they were giving away fresh flower bouquets for donations for the downtown association street flowers. It was a 4 mile walk, and I had to do it 3 times (on 3 different days) because they were all gone by the time I got there. But I did finally get a bouquet to brighten up my home. She had me put my money on the table, then step away, and she took it and wiped it down with a disinfectant wipe and I grabbed the flowers I wanted. Things are weird.
I still cook a lot :-)
I made brioche bread for Easter. I thought it might make my mixer explode- I don't think I've ever had it get so hot!! I watched church online.
Then I had to eat brioche for a week or so... so I've had french toast a few times.
None of this is "ideal", but I feel like I'm doing alright. It's hard to imagine doing this for months and months, but then I realize I've already done it for over 1 month. This week will bring a new set of challenges, but I'm feeling prepared.
Today I am going to try to make face masks since I think that will be the new normal for awhile, especially once things "open up" again. Hopefully I can figure it out easily!
