"In this sticky web that we're all in, behaving decently is no small task." -- Novelist Stacey D'Erasmo

Sunday, April 19, 2020

A Day in the Life of a Coronaretiree

     Look I know this is serious business. But if we don't laugh, we cry. And besides, my life these days is pretty laughable . . .

     7:00 a.m. Wake up

     7:15         Sit up

     7:30         Stand up

     7:30         Bathroom, get dressed (same clothes as yesterday)

     7:45         Make instant coffee (too lazy for real), talk to wife

     8 - 9         Read downstairs book "The Splendid and the Vile"

     9 - 10:30  Stare at computer screen (I think I checked my email)

     10: 30      Eat bowl of cereal

     10:45       Do online crossword puzzle

     11:00       Online psychology course

     12 noon   Walk around the block

     1 p.m..     Shower

     1:15         Back exercises with podcast "You Must Remember This"

     2:00         Another online crossword puzzle

     2:30         Go to Netflix, watch "Ozark"

     4:00         Kitchen for snack, look at carrots, eat potato chips

     4:00         Turn on TV, check weather and news, talk to wife

     4:30         Facetime with one of the kids

     Just so you don't think that my wife B is as much of a sloth as I am, I should tell you that her life is more interesting. She talks on the phone to at least one friend a day. She has figured out how to use Zoom and has been attending two or three volunteer meetings per week. She did a 1000-piece jigsaw puzzle. And while I hate to admit it, we've been eating better than ever because B has more time to cook. And she likes to cook. We have access to two grocery stores that offer curbside pickup, so with a few exceptions we've been able to get whatever we need. We've enjoyed lots of good pasta dishes, chicken, salads, vegetables, even some fresh fish. She's also been baking -- brownies, peach cobbler, cupcakes. Yesterday she made a Pavlova with whipped cream, strawberries and blueberries.

     You'll notice that my daily activities do not include stepping on the scale! Anyway . . .

     5 p.m.      Back down the online rabbit hole

     6:15         Dinner

     7 - 9         Watch "Babylon Berlin" with wife

     9:30         Go upstairs, wash, brush teeth, stretch

     10 p.m.    Sit in chair, read upstairs book "My Dark Vanessa"

     10:30       Move to bed, read more book

     11 p.m.     Turn out light, go to sleep

     Tomorrow:  Get up and do it again


29 comments:

ApacheDug said...

Well it sounds like you're getting 8 hours of sleep, that's terrific! I usually go to bed around 11pm, but wind up reading on my tablet or watching Netflix until 1am. I still get up around 7, which explains why I need to take a daily nap & you don't :)

Your day hardly sounds slothful to me, just a more laid back one--that's a good thing. :)

Wisewebwoman said...

Very similar, a kind of routine to it all except I meditate and journal in there somewhere. And knit and doodle-design new patterns.

Ozark was brilliant.

Strange times indeed.

We have a winter storm here, I know April, right? Can't tell the planet anything these days.

XO
WWW

Olga said...

Sounds familiar except I have to do my own cooking. Even so I am avoiding the scale.

Tabor said...

Sounds familiar but far more regular than my routine. I do it all, but all over the place.

gigi-hawaii said...

No time for sex??? Hey, join the club.

Arkansas Patti said...

That sounds pretty busy to me. I have yet to form any discernible schedule. I kind of go with my mood.

Rian said...

We're pretty much all in the same boat, Tom... except what we do each day to keep busy and stay sane may vary. It's strange, but as we go into weeks of this 'sheltering at home', I'm beginning to adjust to it. Granted, it's just DH, my grandson, and myself... all adults and all pursuing our own interests except coming together to eat or snack... or talk about what groceries we need. It's hardest for grandson I think. Being basically isolated at home with his grandparents can't be fun. Thank goodness he has the Internet to stay connected to his friends. Lucky for us, he's a really good kid... and a big help to us.

Snowbrush said...

Why not get the coffee maker ready the night before? Really, how much more trouble is that?

Tom, it does me good to find a conservative who is taking the virus seriously when so many are openly defying the guidelines. Perhaps a major difference between you and them is that they're overtly religious, and it also seems noteworthy that the protests started when it was learned that blacks are at greater risk.

DJan said...

It sounds very boring, but not that different from what we are all doing, other than the small details. I think we are ready for a return to something else than sheltering in place.

DavidH said...

The end of the nightmare is near for Hawaii. We will be one of the first states to reopen. One of the computer models has us opening on May 4. We have done a great job in limiting visitors. Those that come are subject to a fourteen day quarantine. I am making plans to return to the gyms. (I have two memberships). What can I say, but LUCKY YOU LIVE HAWAII!

Hope Springs said...

Upstairs book, downstairs book. LOL. This schedule sounds suspiciously like ours. And we are avoiding the scale, too. No sense depressing ourselves.

Janette said...

Yup, my thirty year old group of nephew and nieces who are now unemployed are doing the same thing. At least the ones who don't have kids yet are. The rest are trying to figure out how to do Gates )Common Core) Math.

retirementreflections said...

Sounds busy to me too.
I purposely don't by potato chips...or I would ALWAYS eat them instead of carrots! :D

Linda Myers said...

Your schedule looks a lot like mine. I actually have a daily list that starts out in bold and gets unbolded as I complete a task. Otherwise I'll spend all my time online and not do my PT or get any other exercises.

I got on the scale this morning and I've gained a pound in the last month. Must be the tortilla chips my husband insists on bringing home for me.

I like "upstairs book" and "downstairs book". Right now my book is "The Fifth Risk" and the bedside read is the April issue of The Sun.

David @iretiredyoung said...

Much of my schedule is the same as before which might indicate that some would find my normal life boring...fortunately, I don't find it so, which I guess is what matters.

The things I'm missing are catching up with friends in the flesh, my coffee shop visits and doing some longer runs. But probably if someone said I could do a two hour run tomorrow, I'd be dreading it!

Rebecca Olkowski said...

I've been watching Amazon Prime videos like Fleabag and Modern Love, Youtube -- late night at home comics, and SlingTV for the news since I no longer have a TV.

Kathy @ SMART Living 365 said...

Hi Tom! I am NEVER to lazy to make coffee! It's one of the first things I do and then drink it while doing my daily journal (at least 5 days a week). After that Kloe (our dog) starts staring at me cuz she knows it is time for a walk. (dog LOVE a schedule) After the walk we come home and Thom (my husband) has my smoothie ready for me. Then I get on the computer (far too much) and once a week write a blog post. Of course this week we are working on a Vlog that will come out this Friday so that's actually a fun project that takes several days. Books yes. Netflix yes. But I'm nearly AWLAYS on a computer so I'm not that picky about what we watch. And because I'm anti-sugar we are staying away from baking and we also started the intermittent fasting about 2 months ago and that helps keep us on schedule. So when I think about it, my daily schedule isn't that different but I have been doing a LOT of Zoom calls....and I do miss getting out, seeing friends on a regular basis. I consider myself to be extremely fortunate and am just taking things one day at a time. Thanks for a glimpse into how another blogger is spending his days! ~Kathy

ain't for city gals said...

Have you seen the series Yellowstone? Pretty good.

Tom said...

Gigi -- Not every day!
Patti -- No, not very busy
DJan -- Yes, pretty boring
Snowbrush -- No, not conservative
Rebecca -- We liked Modern Love, couldn't take Fleabag
Yellowstone? Thanks, I'll check it out!

Janis @ RetirementallyChallenged said...

That doesn't sound all that different from our days. I definitely have time for real coffee, though and we don't watch anything during the day (it gives us something to look forward to in the evening). Ozark is great... I'm sorry we finished the latest series. Have you seen Unorthodox? It's really good.

Laurie Stone said...

I'm somewhere between you and your wife. I write every morning and try and stay productive. I've even made bread with my son! But I also fall into the internet rabbit hole daily and have lots more reading breaks. In some ways, my life isn't that different than before. Is that good or bad?

Madeline Kasian said...

Real coffee,read news and internet.Meditate.Exercise. Browse pantry and freezer and plan a dinner.Bake. Do an online class (taking music appreciation right now) one phone call every other day to a friend.Twice a week ZOOM meetups. A little art in my studio, an hour long bike ride with husband every other day. NAPS, Watching a lot, watching all kinds of TV series I have missed and some new ones (Loved DEVS.) Evenings are a movie with husband, or play cards or scrabble,sit on patio out back with the fire pit lit. Soon we will be swimming in pool. Sure do wish I could go out for a big GREEK SALAD. Have not had any restaurant food at all since march 5. We are staying in all of May, we decided,too. Such is life right now! Most days doing ok,some days better than others.Still scared.

Anonymous said...

you boomers are shutting down the entire economy because you're afraid of a flu. Seriously, can you boomers kill yourselves? You are the most selfish generation to ever exist. You don't give a shit about climate change, why should we young people give a shit if you get sick and die of some virus? I HOPE the virus gets much stronger and kills you all.

Do you boomers realize how universally hated you are? There is not one single demographic that does not hate you- white people, black people, asians, mexicans, indians, chinese, millennials, GenX, GenZ. Something tells me that you boomers are not going to have a very comfortable or easy retirement, especially once you end up in the retirement homes.

Can you baby boomers hurry up and fucking drop dead? Enjoy your retirement homes cause we younger people will not take care of you even if we wanted to, due to the shitty economy you boomers created. Do you boomers realize that the younger generation is simply waiting for you to fucking drop dead?

You are all going to end up in retirement homes and we all know that the elderly gets treated pretty badly in retirement homes. Well, that's what you get for ruining your own children's lives. Even if your children WANTED to take care of you, they couldn't, due to you boomers destroying the economy. So I hope you enjoy the retirement homes, boomer scum!

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Kay said...

I’ve been doing nothing but making masks for the last month. Now I’m taking a break this week because I ran out of elastic and waiting for some to come by slow boat from China that I ordered on Amazon. It’s weird but the days seem to go by faster. Maybe it’s because I don’t have a marker on each day. They just blend into each other. I feel a bit optimistic... just a bit. They seem to have a hope of a vaccine in England. I hope. I hope.

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Realitywoman said...

We are all on that same boat. I have to give my brother a shout out. We were talking about the "State of our Country" and the ever growing population of homeless people everywhere. Who knows what that answer is or will be. Fear is we've only seen the tip of that iceberg. He encountered on his daily walk a man sleeping outside a hospital.The man had a bag like the one they give you for your items after a visit(surgery, exam??) Wonder if he was just released or someone gave him a bag for his items. My thoughtful brother who is retired and on a fixed income, dropped a $5 bill into that guy's hospital bag. He stated he would have given him more but that was all the cash he had on him. If you are fortunated enough to be financially okay, share a little. Even $5 means a lot to someone who doesn't have it. We NOW have the time to notice others during this pandemic, be kind and mindful those cost you nothing.