Hello. It’s been awhile. In 5 days, I turn 40. My theme for the year is Eff it, I’m forty. With that in mind, I am coming back to writing.

I may eventually write some recipes, but really what I want to do is to write about THIS. You know, what’s happening that has literally never happened before. Covid 19. How so much of the world is being told to stay home. How we are all together but six feet apart at all times.

Guys, this is weird.

This is essentially going to be my journal of this whole experience. I don’t know who will read it or if any of my loyal readers (I’m looking at you Mom) will read it, but eff it, I’m (almost) forty. I’m not writing for you. I’m writing for me.

For me, this started while we were on vacation in Mexico. It was kind of my birthday trip, kind of just a really great excuse to travel with people we love. I talked to our friend, Matt, the most fun drunk dad ever and also an incredibly intelligent financial advisor. He told me that Covid 19 was going to affect the world as much if not more than any of world wars. I didn’t believe him.

We got back safely with no problems. Being a natural germophobe, I always have wipes on me while flying and I wiped down my area with hospital grade wipes that I just always have on hand. The only difference this time is that everyone wiped down their areas.

We got home and instantly inserted ourselves into the chaos of the life of a family with small children and a husband running his business.

That week things were starting to buzz about the virus. Things were getting bad in Italy. Would they close schools? That Monday, I was at gymnastics with the girls in the observation area that was packed with parents. I was wiping things down and insisting Gloria keep wiping her hands (germophobe people). A man sneezed and made zero effort to cover it. He was dressed like a professional (though he totally had plumber butt). I have never been more disgusted in my life. Or scared. I wanted to yell at him. I looked around and no one else seemed to care. I decided that if he did it again, gymnastic parents politics aside, I was going to call him out. But he didn’t.

That Thursday, March 12th, I met some girlfriends in downtown Madison at Graze. We drank lots of wine, ate good food, and laughed that it may be our last outing together for awhile. Little did we know….

We went to a play at the Bartell Theatre and one of my girlfriends had to leave because her son was throwing up.  Minutes later, my other girlfriend both got a buzz on our Apple watches, and this text:

Walk together on your way out. I am 95% sure I was almost mugged…

She WAS almost mugged. Just a little awhile later, we heard sirens wailing outside the theatre and when we came out, police cars had blocked off a side of the Capitol. The next day we saw the news and someone had been stabbed right after our friend left.

For me, THAT was when shit got real. Covid 19 was coming and people were getting desperate.

 

 

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