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Monday, March 16, 2020

Blah.

Well, things are going to hell in a handbasket, aren't they?

I am trying to remain positive but it's a lot to take in. 

My kids are currently doing remote school as the Governor of North Carolina called for all schools to close for two weeks.  But honestly, I feel like it's going to be longer.  I would not be surprised if they remained closed until after Easter/Spring Break.

And when the governor closed schools he also said that there should be no gatherings of 100 or more people which meant our Bishop then canceled all weekend masses until this ban has been lifted.

We were supposed to go visit the University of Tennesse next Monday but that was canceled.  As of now, Peter's spring break trip to visit 4 colleges with his friends is still on.  I am hoping that things have calmed down by mid-April and that they actually happen.

My kids are not excited about doing remote school.  On Tuesdays and Thursdays, they will be having classes all day long at their regular times using various virtual learning platforms like Google Hangouts, discussion boards, etc.  Monday, Wednesday, and Friday students will be doing class assignments, virtual gatherings, virtual group assignments, and other work assigned by their teachers. We are a little stressed out about how all of that is going to work.

Several area school systems canceled their SATs on Saturday but the county where Peter was signed up did not.  So, he got to take that on Saturday morning which I guess is a good thing.  That's one less thing to reschedule.

This is all weighing pretty heavily on the kids.  And not just the weird school piece of it but the whole thing.  They are worried about my mom getting sick.  They are worried about having enough food.  They are upset about not being able to see their friends. They are worried about the end of the school year and worried about grades.

I am trying not to alarm them unnecessarily but they can read so they know what's going on.  Everything feels heavy and weird and just because they are kids, doesn't mean they are immune to it.

Monday is my normal grocery day so I went this morning.  Aldi had a little beef, no chicken, no TP, no paper towels, no canned food, no milk, and no eggs.  Walmart had no TP or paper towels but a little bit of everything else.  Both stores were in process of restocking the food sections so I imagine going later today would have been better but who knows.

We have food for now and I have TP and paper towels from my regular shopping trip two weeks ago.  I bought way more than I normally would on a regular shopping trip.  I did mean to do it but seeing those empty shelves sent me into a mild panic even though I could also see the shelves being restocked. 

Dan still has a trip to Seattle scheduled in two weeks and his company is still working at the office.  (They are a manufacturing facility so there's really no way to "work from home".  Technically Dan could do it, but as long as the office is open and they aren't mandating the office workers to work from home, he will go in. AT this point, I am not expecting him to go to Seattle, and he hasn't made his travel arrangements bu ti hasn't officially been canceled.

I know everyone is in the same boat and that does make me feel a little bit better I guess but y'all know I prefer ordinary time and this is certainly far from ordinary time. 




5 comments:

Madeline said...

It's so crazy! I went on Friday to Aldi and they had a limit on two of everything! It must be hard for the big kids. We haven't even told our crew yet that they aren't going back after spring break. They know about the virus but it's a little easier when they're small. Praying for you!!

Billie Jo said...

Beth,
This is something like we have never seen before and it is really freaking me out.
But, my mom, sweet 83-year old says. What can we do? We can't worry. Just do what they say.
So I will take my advice from her.
Prayers and hugs from here.
Oh. I didn't get to comment on the last post, but Morning Cup of Murder is my favorite true-crime podcast!

Gigi said...

This whole thing is insane. We are okay food and tp wise, for now. I know the stores will be re-stocking - now if the idiots that are hoarding will just stay home and allow other people to purchase these items...that would be nice.

I spoke to one of our attorneys in New York the other day and he mentioned that his kids (6 and 12) were supposed to do virtual learning and he didn't think that it would work for them (what six year old is going to sit and do lessons online?) so we shall see how that works out - particularly for the younger set.

Busy Bee Suz said...

Yes, far from ordinary. I'm fortunate that my girls are adults and I don't really have to assure or explain much to them, but still, it's weird. LInds is usually on edge about almost everything, but she's taking this better than I expected.
Praying that your family (and all of us) get through this unscathed and life returns to normal very soon. Do you remember normal? It was kind of monotonous and boring-MY FAVORITE!
Big hugs!!

Ernie said...

I keep thinking that if they have cancelled colleges - like closed for the end of the semester, then how can they have grade schools and high schools go back to the building? They have banned gatherings of 50 people or more for 8 weeks - so I am guessing kids will not be back in school before then, right? By definition, a school is more than 50 people. Most colleges I know of are closed. Maybe things are better in your neck of the woods, but how are they going to do college visits if colleges are not opened? They closed our gym tonight. That is going to impact this houseful of people in a big way. Coach says we can go to his clinic (connected to the workout facility) and use some of the equipment there. Still, not the same. If it warms up a tad, then I can walk or run outside. This is Chicago though so no guarantees there. Nuts.