It’s Week Twenty since everything shut down here in Toronto. We’re still tiptoeing towards reopening…as a city, that is. Personally, I’m not going anywhere anytime soon.
As I’ve written before, I’m finding the pandemic hard to deal with, even if my personal situation is about as lucky as it’s possible to be. I mean, it’s a freaking PANDEMIC (with a side of dumpster fire). Hard not to be glued to the news; hard to find equanimity. My job has also been really intense for just about the same length of time, meaning I haven’t been getting a chance to rest or process the torrent of news.
Still, there are things that are helping, a bit. Here are a few of them…
Sunsets. My home office (where I both work and play) faces west, with a fairly unobstructed view. When the sky starts to change colour, I try to remember to stop what I’m doing and watch. We’ve had some gorgeous sunsets this summer…or maybe it’s just that I’m noticing them more.
Duolingo. I started using this language-learning app back in November, to brush up on my university Norwegian…for a family trip we were going to take to Norway this summer. Obviously the trip didn’t happen, but I’m over 240 days in and still going. (I have missed a day here and there, but Duo lets you accumulate points that you can use if you skip a day, so my streak looks unbroken.) I’m really enjoying learning a language again, and Norwegian in particular I always found fun. And it’s nice to be able to point to something I’ve been doing so consistently.
Cooking. Without a commute of an hour each way, my spouse and I have been cooking more. I spend a lot of time in my head (both for work and just because that’s who I am), so as long as I have the energy for it, cooking is an important way of grounding. We’ve been making a point of getting local produce, some of which is new to us, which means we need to figure out new recipes, which gets us out of our cooking rut. In the last month we’ve learned about garlic scapes, kohlrabi, and collard greens. Today we made baba ganoush (roasted eggplant dip), and tomorrow we’re making quinoa salad with lots (and lots) of basil from our garden.
Buying local. We’ve been doubling down on supporting our local, independently owned restaurants, bookstores, shops, bakeries, coffee roasteries, and (as noted above) farms. It makes me feel good every single time.
Turtleduck Press. The four of us here at Turtleduck Press have started having regular online chats (they’re theoretically write-ins, but sometimes they’re more like commiseration sessions). There’s always at least two of us, often three, occasionally all four. It’s a way for us to stay connected with each other, to unload and offer support when needed, and it also helps mark the passage of time. Next up: we’re trying to shift the chats back to their intended purpose so you can have more Turtleduck Press stories, sooner! Wish us luck…
What’s been keeping you grounded during these strange and difficult times?
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