Sheltering at Home: Day Zero

Sheltering at Home: Day Zero, Monday, March 16, 2020

It’s here.  The deadly COVID-19 virus is lurking about the San Francisco Bay Area, and local authorities are telling us it’s time to be sheltering at home, starting at midnight tonight.

Today we got a legal order from public health officers in our county. Bay Area residents are directed to “shelter at home for three weeks beginning March 17. The order limits activity, travel and business functions to only the most essential needs . . . . ”

As of right now, there are 261 cases of coronavirus in the Bay Area and three deaths. That’s a lowish .01 percent mortality rate. Except that the rate is supposed to be way higher if you are in your 60s, 70s, 80s, or, God forbid, 90s.

Jon and I keep doing the math. Here we are, our creaky feet planted firmly in the high-risk population: Jon will be 79 on Wednesday. I’ll still be 78 for a few more months. Sometimes the math for people our age doesn’t look so bad — only a two percent chance of winding up dead by the end of summer. Other days, the news reports make ten percent seem like more realistic odds. Another calculation on another day produces a mere .02 percent death rate for the likes of us.

Am I gonna die? Probably not. I might be thoroughly elderly, but I’m healthy, healthy, healthy — I have none of those scary underlying conditions the news reports keep mentioning.

And, I’ve got a to-do list that won’t quit. But maybe it’s time to prioritize, just in case. Let’s see. What on my list is most important?

1. Spend time with the kids. I did that on Sunday. Both kids called to check on us. Visits have been cancelled, but weekly Skypes with the grandchildren will happen.
2. Spend time with Jon. No problem. The county of Alameda has ordered us to do that. Self-isolating here at home means Jon and I will be spending lots of time together, some of it of the quality type.
3. Finish my book (the “Erma-Bombeck-meets-Betty-Friedan” one). Big priority! Sheltering at home means lots of time to work on that. Yes!
4. Finish the house remodel. Forget it. Our contractor emailed this morning to say they’re shutting down business till further notice.

That’s my to-do list. But what do I really want to do for the next three weeks of sheltering in place ? What would make me happy?  What would be fun?

Why, getting on my laptop and writing up some blog posts, of course. Writing. My idea of a good time.

There’s more fun to be had at “Thank You, Armistead Maupin” and “The Bride Said, ‘Yes’ to the Dress.”