REAL COOL STORIES (week ended 3/14/20)
What a week it has been! I returned to the US on Thursday from a 10-day cruise thru Central America and Mexico. The world changed a lot in those 10 days!
As we left Miami, we were concerned about COVID-19 especially considering past cruise ship events. However, as the cruise went on, we were just having fun, drinking too much and eating well in our little bubble.
Reality hit when we got to Miami International Airport. The airport was a bit on the quiet side, but you could see the angst on many passengers and workers faces. The pandemic was REAL! Our flight to LAX was fine and we had pilfered some wipes from the ship’s fitness center, so we wiped down our armrests, tray tables and surrounding area. We were a bit late so our connection changing terminals was quick. By late afternoon, we were home. I had already washed my hands 20 times that day!
Home was nice, but we quickly realized we had virtually no food and no wipes. Plenty of toilet paper though! Oh, and our washing machine was leaking! We made a quick trip to the local grocery store which looked like a Florida store just before a hurricane. No meat for you! Or wipes. Or paper products!
Day 2 (Friday) – We went to the laundry mat to finish laundry from the trip (and bought a new washing machine – no delivery until Monday!). We babysat our five-month-old grandson. It was awesome. I did wonder if my wife or I had been infected. It would devastate us if we infected our grandson. We had a wonderful day and had dinner with family and friends that night. Total hand wash count – 25.
Day 3 (Saturday) – We went to a spin class early Saturday morning. We wiped down our bikes both before and after class. It was not a full class, but I don’t think we met the “6-foot” rule. Later in the day, we walked the beach. It was 60 and cloudy. There was as many people on the beach as a very busy summer afternoon. It was a bit nutty. We may have met the 6-foot rule on the beach. I went with family to the movie “The Way Back” in the evening. The theatre did not sell all of the seats. It was a pretty good movie and I REALLY enjoyed being out of the COVID mania. It was two whole hours that I didn’t think about it! The 6-foot rule was probably met! Total hand wash count – 29.
I am still stunned by the changes this week. Since I was gone, I have seen a sporting event in over two weeks. That is DEFINTIELY a first since I was real young. I will miss my annual trip to Vegas for the first round of the NCAA March Madness. My calendar for the next few weeks was crowded with many fun activities. Now, I am not sure about almost ANYTHING!
It has been a REAL (maybe not so cool) week!