It’s been awhile, and the world is a bit different than it was before…

As for me, I lost my job, threw myself into a job search + my novels, and then the whole world exploded and I started balancing those two things with full-time care of an increasingly active toddler. All this to say I have been doing … okay.

I was fortunate enough to be able to file for unemployment prior to EVERYONE filing for unemployment, as well as fortunate enough to have a still-employed spouse. We had been holed up in our Jersey City apartment for a month — I literally was too afraid to even leave our unit, as we had confirmed cases + healthcare workers in our building — and that was getting a bit nutty. My child needed space to move (as did I.)

So last week, we made the decision to come down to the burbs to live with my in-laws. It felt really weird abandoning my home, plus we were uprooting our cats who’ve never lived anywhere else since they were kittens. But so far, I think it was the right decision. We have a backyard! More than one bedroom! An office for my husband to work in! A whole house for my child to run through! Two more adults to help with (and by “help with” I mean, “do the majority of”) the cooking and cleaning! And I’m getting small breaks in full-time childcare to be a grown-up again, write, and look for work (not to mention exercise, something which has sadly fallen far, far to the wayside.)

And also, most importantly of all, everyone I know who has contracted this scary disease has gotten only mild cases of it and is doing fine. I still worry for what’s to come, especially as people get increasingly more and more anxious to just GET OUT. I worry about the economic fallout, I worry about my older parents and relatives, I worry about everything the future may bring.

But all in all, I feel incredibly lucky to have had this home to retreat to when the city wasn’t cutting it anymore. I’m grateful to be such an avid reader and writer, meaning the things I love I still have access to. I’m grateful for internet access, and friends who can zoom. I’m grateful for grocery stores that have curbside pickup, and not having to worry about paying for food.

I’m lucky. I’m doing okay. How are you doing? Can I help?

Photo by Finn on Unsplash