I was wrong. We started hearing rumblings about the virus about mid-February. The concern started to grow. We had no reservations about going out for Tim's birthday on February 22; we went to Enrico's in Young Harris, and tried their pizza.
I baked him a Mary Todd Lincoln cake for dessert.
Then when my birthday rolled around March 12, we were concerned. Should we go out or shouldn't we? We went to Mesquite Grill in Blue Ridge, a favorite Mexican restaurant. That was the last time we risked eating out. We were supposed to go out the following week for a neighbors' dinner but the situation really started heating up, and both of us agreed, no to dinner out.
Since then we have been sheltering in place as much as possible, going out only for groceries. Most everything is closed anyway. More and more places closed as cases began to appear throughout our state and eventually in our county. Restaurants remain open for carry-out only to try to stem the bleeding of the mom and pop restaurants that make up the eateries in our county but that didn't even sound safe to me. The libraries are closed so I was reading what I had and then going online for ebooks from NetGalley that I agreed to review. I was starting to think, maybe I'll stick with just ebooks while this virus is a threat...even after libraries reopen. I've always preferred a physical book but maybe this was a good purpose for ereaders.
I haven't kept track of days or weeks of confinement. We try to shop for two weeks's worth of groceries. My anxiety is high on shopping day. Putting on homemade masks and gloves to try to protect ourselves always amps up my fears about getting this virus. From what we read, we are prime candidates for not being survivors if we get this plague. Our age is against us. We both have high blood pressure and high cholesterol. I have had auto-immune issues most of my life. Interestingly, plaquenil, a drug I took when my diagnosis was lupus, may be a drug that will combat the virus, especially if given in early stages said a news report I heard earlier today. I just do not see myself making it through the ordeal that is the treatment. At 69 and 73, we are not in a good position.
I don't mind staying at home. We have plenty to do. Tim has been active with the road committee in our property owners' association. We have plenty of books to read, TV shows and movies to watch. When the weather is nice -- read 70 or above with no cold breezes -- I'm living on our screened deck, sometimes with the cat, sometimes not. He isn't as enamored with it as he was last year. He no sooner gets outside than he wants back in. In fairness to him, he had dental surgery April 7 during which two of his teeth were removed so he hasn't quite been himself of late although he's made a good recovery. He barely moved the first two days after surgery, hiding out in his cat cube behind a chair in our bedroom. He didn't even attempt to sleep with us at night as per his usual habit.
Today Tim had to go back out after our grocery run, trying to get a light fixed on his truck. He made of total of three trips to an auto supply dealer, and in the end, had to resign himself to make an appointment to take the truck to the Chevrolet dealer as new light bulbs did not resolve the issue. So, there's going out tomorrow to do that. When we want to go out the least, something pops up, and things change. I am trying to keep track of everything so that if we do get the virus, we can document everywhere we have been.
From time to time, I ache all over, which is a symptom of the virus, but I have had this problem for years. Today, I am quite achy, and have had Advil to ease the pain. Early in the scare, I was so fatigued that I worried I had the virus. I monitored my temperature for three days, and it was always normal...or below.
Fortunately, our county has had low numbers of infection, and at this point, only one death. But we see that starting to change. The first case came from a dance at the John Campbell Folk School. The next case was linked to the Casino. The third case was linked to Lowes's, and so many people shop there. It is the nearest thing we have in this thinly populated area of North Carolina to a department store so it is likely to generate the most spread. Tim was at Lowe's during the crucial time period but he developed no symptoms. We heard through the grapevine that the affected employee had worked in the garden department where Tim had not gone while in the store. Whew!
We will continue to do our best to limit our exposure. I'm not tired of staying home. That doesn't bother me. It's the anxiety of when this plague will come to an end -- it will, won't it? -- that is tiresome. It has definitely been a lifestyle change, and it's a shame we have to fear the possibility of death just because we have to go get groceries.
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