It’s week 9 of isolation for us, so today I wanted to share some of the things I’ve learned about myself during this time, and what’s been happening lately. So here it goes…

It was the first week of March, when, in anticipation of this outbreak - yes, I was expecting it to get bad - we went grocery shopping, after settling in our new [temporary] place. No, we have not cleared the shelves, but have bought a little more food than usual so we don’t have to go out again: things that would last like lentils, pasta, rice, nuts, etc., some canned goods like a variety of beans, artichokes, olives, sundried tomatoes, some frozen and fresh veggies - all things that already make up our diet. Since we acted before things got more intense here, we were lucky to find the essentials like hand sanitizer, soap, toilet paper, and cleaning supplies. However, we only bought our usual quantity of these (about a package/container of each), definitely not anticipating that those items would get cleared out for weeks (or months).

That marked the beginning of our isolation. We did go out the week before Easter to grocery shop and replenished our food supply so we don’t have to leave our home for another while. At that time we were able to find the most-coveted flour and even TP; we haven’t gone out since.

As I write this post, I realize that our isolation might be different than yours. We’re staying in a neighborhood where we haven’t seen many people out and about even before the stay-at-home order, so we’ve been able to go for walks whenever we felt like. We also have a yard that we can enjoy, even though my dislike of bugs and lizards (which are plentiful here) have mostly kept us inside in the evenings when the weather turns lovely as the heat of the day subsides.

Overall, our lives haven’t changed much during this quarantine. As I shared over a year ago, we consciously made the decision to go for a big change. We made sacrifices, but the only thing we refused to give up on was our happiness and our well-being. Life has been nothing but an interesting ride ever since, and more than a year later, we don’t regret making the move to give up our “established” life for the pursuit of a more fulfilling one. The COVID-19 outbreak has halted some of our hopes and plans, but looking back, it’s more than clear to me that the decisions and actions we took, were to bring us to a better place.

On a personal level, this quarantine hasn’t affected our relationship at all. It’s been over a year since my husband and I have been together 24/7, and even before that, we have always been very close. That’s not to say that we don’t have our fights, like the majority of couples, do… we just always keep in mind what brought us together in the first place, and we don’t allow ourselves to forget about the good the other one has, and what we are together. We’ve come to know ourselves and us as a couple well, and try to be appreciative of each other, the things we do for one another and for us as a whole, as well as give each other the space we need.

This time has also reassured me of something I have already suspected… I’m perfectly fine being “forced” to introvert; I don’t like the unnecessary drama between people, and I’m perfectly happy staying away from it. I get bored yes, and I miss meeting with people from time to time, especially meeting new ones, something we were hoping to do during our stay here.

So yes, we’ve mostly been cooped up inside, working, reading, discussing, spending time together, and cooking. We purposely limit our TV “intake”, and frankly, I don’t miss it that much, but there are some TV shows we still watch regularly: The Blacklist on NBC, and Riverdale on CW (which has been a bit of a disappointment this season so far). A few days ago we started watching Doc Martin on Roku (our rental comes with it), which I have been enjoying greatly, and recommend if you need something feelgood and funny. As far as movies, we watched some old ones, like The King’s Speech (I haven’t seen it before) that I loved, and some others that were so terrible, IMO, that they aren’t worth mentioning.

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I said on my IG that I wasn’t going to make any purchases during this time to allow for essential deliveries, but I gave in for one dress, of course. I have seen pants in this lemon pattern, and I have immediately wanted them, as I have been wanting something in lemon print. I was debating if I really needed a pair of pants though, as I don’t wear them much, and there are slim chances I would in Florida’s weather. So between going back and forth on that, the pants have sold out.

As I was perusing (I do a lot of that, yes), I found this kaftan dress (here as a sundress), and I decided to buy it as a B-Day gift for myself. I bought the dress last Tuesday, and it is yet to be shipped, which amplifies my guilt, and apprehension of making that purchase during these times (I have had no issues with deliveries from them before).

This above has reminded me of how I don’t like to shop online - I really don’t - and, I truly hope that stores, as we all know them, won’t go extinct. I only buy what I like, and I prefer to try things on first, as well as get a feel of the fabric when it comes to clothes. I don’t do returns, and obviously, I don’t have the patience to wait for a purchase to come to me.

So this is what’s been going on around here during this quarantine. The photo above was taken about a week ago (maybe more - I’m really not keeping track), on one of our neighborhood walks, and is a good image of how I’ve really been looking for the last few months: makeup-free, earrings-free on most days (saaay whaaat?), with some better hair days than others, and always in a dress (because it’s been so hot).

How has quarantine been for you and what have you learned about yourself during this time?

As always, stay safe and be well.

Until next time.

xoxo,

Em