The last day of normality ... or is it the first!?!?

Reality - today is by no means first, last or normal!

BTW, I'm posting this at 11.59 Wednesday 25th March 2020, on L-Day (Lockdown Day)!

So many tasks to tend to before SISO (my acronym for self-isolation).

Firstly, get a What'sApp from son Sam who is in London - they're now in immediate full lockdown after a few weeks working from home followed by partial lockdown. Getting cabin fever. Have had to cancel trips. It's a bugger. But this is the world today.

My SISO plan - decamp to Omaha, so I've spent the day organising things to this effect.
What to take? What not to forget?

Won't need many clothes as no one is going to see me or what I'm wearing.

Will need some warmer clothes as temperatures are likely to cool down at any time.

Better pack some extra toiletries and medical bits and bobs.

I know I can pick these up at an essential business if I need them. But just in case ...

Pack reading, writing, research, art materials (I have some projects I want to complete). Laptop, iPad, chargers etc. Work stuff. And wine. Hmm, may need more wine.

I'm taking Indi the cat up to Omaha. Need to top up the cat food supplies. Where is the cat? Can't leave till she returns, which probably won't be until around 5pm. That's okay, gives me time to finalise all my prep and packing.

Clean the house - for some reason, even though I'm not very domestically enthused, I find it hard to leave home for any length of time without giving the place a once-over and spruce up first.

Son Michael and I are heading to Omaha today, but husband Brett is going to stay home and work from there for starters, coming up at some point if he can. We'll be a "double bubble of 3". Whether we can migrate between the two houses or not is unclear but we'll find out soon enough. It is what it is. To be honest, all three of us working from one home is a somewhat daunting prospect so a 2-1 split over two homes isn't a bad thing. Plus Brett coughed and sniffled his way through all of last night to a rather alarming degree - yikes. To mitigate things as much as possible, SISO according to this plan seems a good idea.

Pack up food items. Pantry stocks are fairly good up at Omaha - although I had run things down a bit in anticipation of letting the place during Easter/School holidays (no longer an option). Throw stuff (including chocolate) into some handy supermarket bags, make a list of fresh items required. Including coffee. And wine. I think I have enough chocolate. But maybe not. Probably not enough wine.

Do work emails, follow-up, finalising. Check the latest COVID info. Watch the breaking news on TV. Water the plants. Put the iron away. Check if the cat has appeared. Not. Speak to friends. Wonder if I've forgotten to tend to something vital before heading off to lockdown. Don't think so.

I don't want to forget any important items that I won't find in a supermarket or pharmacy and will have to do without. I think I have things in order.

I'm not interested in queuing at any shop today to get just-in-case stuff I may think I need but don't. I'll stay happily away from goods and potential people with COVID.

I'm fully in que sera sera mode - because that's the truth of things.

Michael hits the road mid-afternoon, having loaded one of the TVs into his car, for personal gaming requirements when work is done. He calls into the supermarket en route. Good boy.

Indi turns up. Into the car and off we go. En route we are on a mission to pick up whitebait that Brett's brother Gregg had picked up for us during his travels. And some jet planes (the tasty coloured sugary variety, not those sitting parked up morosely at airports near and far).

Call into Vicki's, said whitebait and lollies are chucked over the deck in isolated safety with a smile and banter. I yell out a grateful thanks. The package feels thin - hey, there's only one packet, not the two promised!! Great guffaws of laughter as the second one lands in my hands from on high.

"Want a wine?"

"I've got the cat in the car." Pause. Pondering. Encouraging smiles. "Go on then, just a quick one."

Indi the cat (aged 9) has always been calm and kind, a shining example of Jacinda's message, and she waited patiently (comfortably in cage) as we captured a short window of family time and laughter before dispersing to lock ourselves down. Grab the moment, we all said.
Whitebait fritters will be a treat during lockdown, that's for sure!

And then I was on my way north. With barely a car on the road, it was a swift and easy trip with just one speeding idiot.

Let's hope lockdown brings the road toll down, and that burglars and drug lords go bust.

Oh, and just before posting this, I read that Prince Charles has tested positive ...

SHARE-NOTE OF THE DAY:

MASKS - a topical word right now, and especially pertinent for me as a mask artisan for 20 years!
This message has a few angles!

I've created Masquerade masks (not medical) for clients all around the world.

As well as hand-shaping and decorating my own masks, I also imported masks from China (metal filigree, lace, crystal etc).

After much thought, in November 2019 I decided to close down the mask creation side of my work. This was so I could concentrate on a new business offering (which is on hold right now, as it's in the travel realm - more on this in a future post),

Now here's the interesting thing - towards the latter part of last year, I was being bombarded with emails and information about medical masks from all sorts of companies in China. I'd never purchased or googled medical masks, as my work was strictly Masquerade. But suddenly I was receiving all these daily emails suggesting I purchase medical masks in bulk for a great price.
Delete.

Like the shopkeeper in Pretty Woman - boy, was that a mistake!
I should have taken more notice at the time, switched from Masquerade to Medical, bought in bulk there and then, and made my millions!

Did they know something at that time, that the rest of the world didn't?
I thought it was strange then. It's much stranger now.

I'm still getting EDMs ... even today, on L-Day! See photos!