Normally in the summer, we go to visit my mother or she might come here to see us, but not this summer. My mother is 76 y/o and has an autoimmune disorder, so we are not taking any chances. But I am feeling really sad at the thought of not being able to see her, esp. since I know that the isolation is really hard on her. She's very active and social, likes to go to concerts and galleries, and loves to cook for friends. Before the start of social distancing, she would have social engagements probably 4-5 times a week. And now nothing, and she lives alone. So I feel sad for myself that I can't go see her, and also sad for her because this is much harder on her than it is on us.

I also am really missing music activities. After getting my grand last summer, I was planning to start a tradition of a summer music party this year. Also, I had plans to play with my violin and cello friends, and we had picked out some new pieces to play together, and then came corona.

There are other things I miss, but these two are hitting me especially today.

How about you?

Our May excursion to New Mexico went bye bye. Air travel right now is cheap, but ... if my wife flies, she would have to quarantine for two weeks upon returning before she could go back to work (medical clinic). That would turn a three week vacation into a five-week absence.

We're now thinking of .... driving .... out there for a few weeks next month. We have work to do on the house and we can haul some stuff out there. I can't tell you how excited I am to sit in a car for 1900 miles each way.

I always try to see all my children and grandchildren in the summertime, so I'm feeling the loss of that.

Also, I had funding to visit The Christie Archive Trust in Wales and to present at a conference in England this summer. I'm editing a reference book on Agatha Christie and will be writing a chapter in it, and I'm pretty sure I can do that with the material I got from my last visit to the archive, but missing out on the trip is a complication. Quirt and I were looking forward to touring Wales while we were there.

P*D, you're going to drive from VA to NM??? Yikes!

MA, the loss of access to archives and all of that is such a problem! I don't do any research that requires physically being at a particular library, but I have always relied on our interlibrary loan heavily, and now they can't get me anything unless it's available as an ebook, and most of what I need isn't.

Not to mention the fact that I need to do another round of fieldwork, which does require physically going to Japan. We'll see how that looks next summer, and whether I can actually get funds for it (which, pre-covid would not have been an issue).

Travel, restaurants, gathering with friends, going to the store without thinking about it.

quote:

Originally posted by Piano*Dad:
Our May excursion to New Mexico went bye bye. Air travel right now is cheap, but ... if my wife flies, she would have to quarantine for two weeks upon returning before she could go back to work (medical clinic). That would turn a three week vacation into a five-week absence.

We're now thinking of .... driving .... out there for a few weeks next month. We have work to do on the house and we can haul some stuff out there. I can't tell you how excited I am to sit in a car for 1900 miles each way.

Yeah, but you will get to see the Cadillac Ranch! and Amarillo! You could stop and take the Big Texan 72 oz Steak Challenge! Get your kicks on route 66!

Maximum Americana.



I am in truth disappointed that they let everyone come in and graffiti all over the cares. They were pristine the first time I saw them 40 years ago.

Then





Now

Yeah, not being able to travel sucks. I would like to be able to visit my kids, or have them visit, but that's not in the cards at the moment.

Locally, I miss ... and this will surprise Mary Anna, but here goes ... our dance lessons. We started doing that a year and a half ago because that's what Mary Anna wanted for her birthday. We've continued since then. And I miss that. And being able to go to the gym, because I can't replicate here what I have at the gym.

But I'm pretty much of a recluse, so this is easier on me than most.

I miss travel in all forms. Work, pleasure, both. I was scheduled to teach two classes that have been cancelled, and now I have two more customers who need classes and I can't go there and they can't come here.

I taught a class in Addis Ababa in February. I came back through O'Hare (with an eight hour layover (whine whine whine)). If it had been a week or two later, I would have been stuck in that crush of humanity where they were herding people into hallways -- no masks, no six foot bubble.

I miss a casual trip to the store to just grab one thing. We still only go out shopping once a week or less. We had to make a couple extra trips out last week to pick up prescriptions. But every trip is planned and time out and stops are minimized. Our old cliché is that a project isn't a project until it requires at least three trips to Home Despot. I got lucky that my little plumbing project in the kitchen required zero trips to the store. I removed a few chunks of rust scale and the faucet side sprayer is working again. Woo-hoo.

I miss going to a restaurant, someone bringing me food, and not having to do the dishes. Definitely a first-world problem. On Mother's Day, I did go out and fetch a very nice dinner from our favorite Thai restaurant, but it was a pain. And we still had to do the dishes. On the plus side, our food expenses are way down, not spending $300 a week eating at the company cafeteria and in restaurants. On the other other hand, prices at Costco and Kroger are going way up.

I am a huggy person. I miss hugging my friends when I see them. I miss seeing them in the first place.

quote:

Originally posted by QuirtEvans:
But I'm pretty much of a recluse, so this is easier on me than most.

+1

Garden is keeping me very busy; I have years of catching up to do in the yard.

quote:

our dance lessons

Are you dancing at home? If not, can you?

I realized I was not moving nearly enough. When the weather's nice I've been trying to walk outside, but it's gonna get hot and stay that way very soon.

So I've started dancing in my basement! I watched a few Zumba videos and a few "how to" videos of basic steps, and now most of the time I just play music and do my own thing, just so long as I'm getting a lot of movement. I have felt a lot better, physically and mentally, since I started doing that!

Canceled a couple of trips to Southern California to see my kids, and one to Portland for a party with friends so far. Major upcoming cultural events that I was planning on attending, the Scot Joplin festival in Sedalia and the Reno ukulele festival, are both canceled. It’s also not looking good for the local outhouse races or the testicle Festival this year...

I am probably more of a recluse than the previous folks in this thread claiming that title. But as a single person living by themselves in a state that I am new to, is a bit more than I am used to. It occurred to me the other day that I have not been in the same building with anyone whose name I knew in more than 10 weeks. Or had any physical contact with another human being in that same time. If this goes on much longer, I may need to get a cat.

quote:

Originally posted by Doug:
If this goes on much longer, I may need to get a cat.

What would that solve? You'd just have to feed and clean up after a thing that ignores you.


(Iz sarcasm. love cats.)

I miss having a president and administration that have an iota of competence, make decisions and policies based on science, and lead by example.

Obama would have been wearing a face mask since the first week of March. Hell, even W would have.

quote:

Originally posted by Doug:
the Scot Joplin festival in Sedalia

If this goes on much longer, I may need to get a cat.

I have wanted to go the Scott Joplin festival and combine it with riding the Katy trail for years. Maybe I can get that done next year.

Get the cat.
Have one that I never expected to miss in Colorado. I miss her. She is with Don.

I want to go to a nice Italian restaurant that is no far away. The food and the service are superb. whine

quote:

Originally posted by pianojuggler:
I miss having a president and administration that have an iota of competence, make decisions and policies based on science, and lead by example.

Obama would have been wearing a face mask since the first week of March. Hell, even W would have.

Agree on all points. Though I'd much rather have Obama back than W.

Sigh.

On the topic of trips, I was supposed to go to Minneapolis for a conference at the end of this month. I'm very sad that I can't go there now. But the conference is on schedule, to be conducted virtually. which is why I need to get off of WTF and go work on my presentation...