Fwd: Isolation, day 1

At 11:59pm on Wednesday, 25 March, 2020, New Zealand went to "alert level 4" requiring all non-essential businesses to close and everyone to stay home (apart from shopping for necessities or exercise). We aren't even allowed to drive (unless we're shopping for necessities).

Day 1: We ate the cat. We all agreed that we should have held out a little longer, but we all knew it was coming, and the cat was kind of annoying. The dog has been exemplary since then. He's even started doing the dishes.

Seriously, we're very lucky because we can both work from home. The kids were all laid off from their jobs, of course. The middle child was quite upset because she's saving all of her money for her gap year. The youngest was quite upset because he needs a new skateboard and he keeps destroying his shoes skateboarding - he goes through a pair every three months - and we're not buying him new ones. The eldest wasn't bothered because she's got a student loan payment of $238 each week, she's living at home for free, and she doesn't have to pay any school fees the first year.

The eldest was about to move into a flat with four other students the day they announced the lock down. She (wisely) decided not to spend a month in isolation with four strangers (and did not want to pay rent for a month while living elsewhere). She was not happy about spending a month here, but neither was her mother. 

Of course we know the lockdown will probably be longer, but we can't tell the kids that. The day before the lockdown even started -- but school was cancelled and they couldn't see their friends -- they were already telling us they were bored. (We told them anyone who says they are bored gets extra chores.)

School holidays have been moved up so they have two weeks off, then are supposed to start online learning. It's a brave new world here. I'm not clear what the university is doing and neither is my daughter - she spends the day baking and practising guitar. (Did I mention she's getting $238 for her student loan when she has zero expenses?) 

The eldest moved into my study and my desk got moved to the garage. This wasn't an issue at the time, but I didn't think I was going to be working from home for an extended period! I had to move the desk closer to the door in order to get WiFi, and if I close the garage door the WiFi is cut off completely. As a result, I can only work there when the weather is nice; the rest of the time I'm at the dining room table.

I'll save some more for day two. It's been a long time since I've written anything; we'll see if I can keep this up...