Dear Diary

Home for the holidays. Painting, sewing, reading, writing, and, yes, working. I love being home. I’m never bored – I have wall to wall crafts waiting for my attention. I can eat what I want, sleep when I want. My bed is set for my comfort level. DoorDash has my address. So do Dominos’, Total Wine, Spec’s, Kroger, WalMart, Amazon, WayFair and Blue Ginger (a local restaurant that delivers even though I’m out of their area) and Kohl’s. Oh…and Holt Cigars. They aren’t for me. There are other minor players but these are the heavy hitters. So, what’s my point?

How did I get here? Not here as in here, home, but here as in why do I stay in my cocoon? I’ve always loved road trips, weekend jaunts to the Hill Country, occasional shopping (no more than three stops please), visiting with friends and family, eating out, happy hour. I would never have been labeled social, but, I wasn’t a recluse either.

I remember March of 2020 very well. It was a nightmare of an experience for millions of people. We waited daily for the numbers. Number of new cases. Number of deaths. Number of people recovered. Now, most of my family is vaccinated. But they’re still getting sick. Our daughter has Covid even as I type this. It’s the holidays. It’s cold. Everyone is staying inside. And we know what that means. More Covid cases.

Then comes Covid. I’ve finally gotten comfortable after weaving my life (and my head) around the Pandemic. I don’t go to the grocery because it’s inconvenient. I don’t go out to eat cause it’s cold, hot, rainy, crowded, I’m tired – same reason I don’t go shopping. Or to the liquor store. For crying out loud, I work from home! A tank of gas for my Kia lasts me 2 months…medical appointments and hair, a trip to see our daughter, son in law, and the grands, all within 12 miles. A couple of times a year we make a trip south a few hours to see our son, daughter in law and granddaughter.

What the heck is wrong with me? This is not who I am. So tomorrow, no today, I’m gonna work on being the semi social person that I used to be. Even as I write this, our daughter has Covid. It’s the Thanksgiving holidays you know so everyone’s getting together and traveling.

Do you find yourself staying home more? Am I an oddity? I don’t know why it’s never occurred to me before but I’m interested in hearing your thoughts. Are you staying home more? Are you traveling? What are you doing this different?