Self-isolation, and COVID-19

Self isolation, quarantine, lockdown or whatever you’re calling it all means the same thing, staying well away from others for as long as it takes (as an introvert nothing much is changing for me!!).

Now we'll fully admit that we are putting a self-imposed ban on outings, sport, and visitors.

We're doing our bit to slow the spread, flatten the curve and alleviate some of the strain on our amazing medical services. It’s to try and do our part to ensure that if my immune compromised daughter, or older parents with already compromised health need access to an ICU bed that one will be available.

So apart from panic buying and stockpiling, what are we going to do with all that time?!

Retro is SOOO in at the moment (I mean cords, mullets and flared pants?!!), and while some of us have already done the 70s and 80s once, let's get old school and party like its 1999 - you know, like before we had smart phones and the interweb?!

Here's what we'll be doing...

Getting outside - as long as we head somewhere isolated, we are still self-isolating! So pack a bag, don't forget the camera, get outside and soak up some rays.

Netflix/Foxtel binging – There’s no ads (win!!) and if you choose something with a zillion seasons - queue the Walking Dead which is my editing go-to right now, nothing like a constant stream of zombies and end of time gloom to really freak you out in the current circumstances - then you can sit, set and forget, don’t forget the popcorn!!

Taking up a new hobby – photography (I could actually pick up my camera for fun!!), fishing, sketching, bird watching, read a book, learn a new language, needle point - so many options!!

Eat, sleep, nap, repeat!! Take advantage of the lockdown and close those tired eyes.

Cooking up a storm – If you’re a doomsday prepper then you’re probably in your element here, and once you’ve finished with all your “I told you so’s” then this is probably right up your alley, after all, what else are you going to do with all that flour? If you’re not paranoid about this being the start of the end of the world then cooking up a bunch of freezer friendly meals will just save you some time in the long run, especially when you do eventually get back to work.

Trading our hard earned points for wine!! “I can’t blow the petrol money, we don’t know what’s going to happen in the coming weeks” Never fear, we’ve got you covered, remember all those years ago when we all signed up for Fly-bys and every Coles trip sees you mindlessly handing over that snazzy silver card? Well why not cash in some of those points, if you’re stuck at home it’s always 5 O’clock somewhere and those points can be traded for wine…

Completing all those unfinished projects – It’s true, we are all pretty time poor these days, so maybe take advantage of the extra time at home and get those odd jobs done. The hallway that needs a fresh coat of paint, that garden bed that’s a little worse for wear, or the cubby house you’ve been promising your significant other you’d finish off, now is a good a time as any.

If you’re a parent then you’ve already seen the helpful “schedules”:

8am-9am – breakfast

9am-10am – academic time

10am-11am – morning tea

11am-12pm - outside time

And the list goes on and on until 9pm when every parent everywhere is exhausted, busting for a wine and craving at least 20 minutes of peace (the toilet isn't a safe place), rubbish adult television (MAFs here we come) and praying to God that Peppa Pig is served up for tomorrow's breakfast.

In the no bullshit department it takes us at least 40 minutes to mentally prepare for anything resembling craft, a further 15 minutes to drag out the crafting box and set it all up, only to have the kids in a full on nervous breakdown because the glue is stuck to their fingers and the bloody glitter won’t stick to the paper and that’s the end of that, craft is over, while the family room is covered in glitter. Puzzles around these parts are worse and the frustration levels just prove that none of us are mentally prepared, and the puzzle ends up abandoned half-done on the dining table for the next week.

So with the c-bomb (craft) written off, puzzles out the window, let's head to the kitchen for the other rewarding adventure with kids – cooking. “Lets make biscuits”, drag all the crap out, wash everyone's hands, get started, someone knocks the flour onto the floor, pours the milk all over the bench, eats the sugar straight out of the packet, gets bored, wanders off, while we're left standing in the middle of a war zone. Wondering how the heck little people can make so much mess in such short period of time. We get the biscuits into the oven (we tried to pick the glitter out but alas the biscuits are sparkly) before we hear a scream from the bathroom..."Muuuuuuuuum - looook, I'm pretty" - oh crap, heaven help us.

Schedules be damned, at the end of the day if everyone is alive, clean and fed then we'll take it as a win, even if the entire lounge room currently resembles a tent and all the stuffed toys are taking pride of place on the lounge, there is even a cheese sandwich squished into the beanbag. This is what life is like with kids, one chaotic mess to the next and that’s ok. So if you’re in isolation and it’s not going to the “Instagram plan” and your day isn’t panning out like that Mother of the Year that you follow then that’s fine too, we all might be in isolation, but we are in this together.

We should start a movement, instead of together at home, lets be honest , I propose we set the record straight and call it for what it is - in the trenches.

Good luck and may the Force be With You.