You know, when it comes to this plague, we’re all alike. That is, we’re cooped-up at home looking for things to do with the most fervent prayers that this nightmare will end r e a l l y, r e a l l y soon. Well, our truly most fervent prayers are for the good health of those we love but the end of the nightmare comes a close second.
It’s funny how under certain conditions the “nesting” instinct pops up; it’s usually the woman of the house – usually, but not always – who feels “What a wonderful time to clean, straighten up and throw out!” I’m not saying someone with whom I’ve been married for fifty years has EVER said that, but I’d hardly recognize the place now were I not one of the Merry Maids Clean Team. (It reminds me of the time my mother said she was retiring. I said, “Mom, you love what you do. Why are you retiring?” She said, “I’ve got closets to clean!” So I said, “And what are you going to do the next day?”)
It’s not that I’m a hoarder because I’m not. After all these years one accumulates stuff, and in addition to the stuff we’ve accumulated we also are the guardians of the stuff our three children chose not to take with them on their journeys through the wilderness of life. And it’s not that we would think of parking our cars in our garage; we never did, nor would we ever. One of the reasons, though, is that due to the stuff, there’d be no room for even one car. Anyone out there want some stuff?
We take walks. It’s hard to believe looking at me (not Suzy), but we both have trainers, the same guy. Unfortunately (yeah, right) his gym is closed. The neighborhood streets aren’t though! I once said to another trainer I had, “Dan, I’ve worked with you for seven years now, but look at me!!” He replied, “Just think what you’d look like if I HADN’T worked with you!” Good point, thought I.
We’ve taken ballroom dance lessons for years. As I tell everyone, I remember the steps I knew when I was a teenager, but in the subsequent years I’ve developed the new affliction called Danceheimers. Anyway, we’re not taking lessons until the coast is clear.
A friend of ours said she and her husband was now “officially bored.” I suggested they watch certain programs on the usual networks, HBO, Netflix and Amazon Prime. If you’ve subscribed to them, watch Kim’s Corner and The Kominski Method (with Michael Douglas and Alan Arkin). Let me know if you can recommend others. I’ll try to include them in subsequent “Words.
We also eat ice cream.
(Stock Market update: Helium was up, feathers were down. Paper was stationary. Fluorescent tubing was dimmed in light trading. Knives were up sharply. Pencils lost a few points. Hiking equipment was trailing. Elevators rose, while escalators continued their slow decline. Weights were up in heavy trading. Mining equipment hit rock bottom. Diapers remained unchanged. The market for raisins dried up. Balloon prices were inflated. And toilet paper touched a bottom yet again.