Mirepoix

We have at least another month of quarantine ahead of us. I haven’t found it so terrible thus far. Maybe it’s because I have a few hobbies and am pretty good at entertaining myself? I’ve also been trying to legitimately work from home – during a normal workday I’m stuck…working…so it’s not like I have soooo much extra time on my hands. The weekends are a different story…

I’m a firm believer in finding the silver lining in less than ideal situations and one of the things I’m most grateful for during this time of quarantine is that it’s not happening during the winter. While my beau finds this frustrating (when he sees nice weather he wants to be able to hang out with friends at brunch al fresco, for instance) I’m just happy it’s not freezing. We may be stuck inside for the majority of the day, but as long as you avoid other people, it’s not just ok to get outside, it’s recommended. I’m a wuss so if it was super cold outside, I wouldn’t be able to handle being outdoors and my sanity would take a nosedive. Lucky for me, I’m able to go for runs outside, and it’s been beautiful. Workout studios have been great at offering their services for free so I’ve been using the Peloton app for some training.

Like many many people, I jumped on the puzzle train to occupy my time while we’re stuck at home. I chose a Jonathan Adler one that’s so hard. It’s been frustrating, but it’s offered such a distraction. On Saturday, we worked on it for almost 5 hours straight!

Another popular quarantine activity that I fully support is the virtual happy hour. Facilitated by Zoom or FaceTime, I’ve hopped on a video conference with friends or coworkers to chit chat. We’ve all got drinks in hand and essentially replicate a normal happy hour. I’m pretty bad about remaining in touch with people over the phone so this has been great for me. While some of these virtual happy hours have helped me maintain contact with people I would otherwise regularly see in person, the surprising benefit is that it’s helped reinvigorate conversation with people I sometimes forget about when I’m out with friends IRL.