"It's JUST a Tickle, promise!"

Well, I thought I would struggle to post more than two times a week with my writing class starting this week, but I feel the need to touch base.  Plus, Kari has requested more posts, so here I am.  Besides, I was a gold star student this week working feverishly to turn everything in early and read ahead.  So . . .

How is everyone?  What changes are cropping up for each of you?  How tired are you of talking about 'the virus'?

Remember how I was unconsciously stock piling hand sanitizer recently? I am feeling like I might have a super power that I was unaware of.  I joked about an impending super bug.  Oops.  This is a very delayed response to Ali's question on her blog 'Bibliomama' a few weeks ago about whether or not any of us are psychic.

Another sign that I might have telepathic powers . . . I have been mass producing mountains of dinner food and freezing it in preparation for how busy I might be during my class.  What do you know?  Now if the national guard shows up to force us to stay in our homes, guess who will be serving delicious, recently thawed meals?  That's right.  Your telepathic blogging friend, Ernie!

Of course at the time of my meal multiplication mission, I was NOT factoring college kids being home with their grown-men appetites.  Depending on the duration of our possible lockdown, we might be waving the white flag and begging Nice Mr. National Guard Man to deliver us some sustenance.  Sustenance minus gluten for one inhabitant, if you please.  Hoping it doesn't come to that.  

Are you envisioning Mary Ann and I arm wresting in the street for a can of tuna?  Have no fear, friends.  I would win.  No doubt.  If you all get bored, just let me know.  I will roll a can of tuna into the street right where she has instructed us not to park our cars and have Tank video the ensuring scuffle.  Can you say viral?

Speaking of college kids, Lad goes to school in the city in New York that has the highest concentration of Corona.  Yep.  His school closed down on Monday.  I offered to switch his flight to Monday night.  Ahem, I must admit I was not freaked out about his health but I WAS thinking about the errands and workouts I could accomplish with a warm body here during nap time.  It's an occupational hazard.  Lad worried about meeting with a group for a group project.  He also is concerned about being evicted from his apartment.  Long story, which will be featured in an upcoming post.  To sum:  he lives in a pit and pays $$$ and the landlord is unresponsive.  A lawyer is now involved on our behalf thanks to one of Lad's connections.  I think this kid should go into sales.  He can get things going.

I changed his flight to Wed. at noon instead of later this afternoon (Friday).  Thank you, Southwest.  Love that airline.  Wednesday morning I was watching the news, as I always do.  I froze when I heard that they were quarantining a one mile radius of a synagogue that had served as a source to many of the confirmed cases.  Lad's apartment was in the radius.

I called him.  Told him to get out as soon as possible and get to the airport before he was stuck.  He walked away from his apartment and grabbed an uber from his girlfriend's apartment down the street that was not included in the quarantine.  He is home.

Eddie goes to school in Indiana.  I enjoyed Mom's weekend there last weekend (more later, but SUCH an enjoyable time!!!  Extra exclamations totally warranted)  He was set to attend a mission trip over break leaving tomorrow.  The group was going to Houston by bus.  He kept insisting that it would not be cancelled.  They cancelled it late afternoon yesterday.  Such a bummer.  His school has moved classes to online for two weeks after spring break.  Yowza.  He is beside himself and he believes firmly that he will NOT be back at school until the fall.

My kids are positioned on three sides of the playpen.
 They put blankets over it and had their
 fav baby in there.  It was like a baby haunted
 house or more appropriately a peek-a-boo house.
  The 8 mo old little guy was giggling as they
 peeked at him from various angles
by lifting the blankets. 
Who needs school?

Our high school and grade school were cancelled yesterday, because a student at the high school was being tested.  His sibling attends 8th grade with Reg, thus the grade school closure.  I was relieved when they announced that this student tested negative, because his 8th grade sister has type 1 diabetes.

Today the kids went to school.  Praise God, because aside from a trip to the grocery store guess who got NOTHING done yesterday?  Lots of guessing in this post.  Trying to keep you on your toes.

This afternoon I got alerts on every phone and device I own from the high school and the grade school.  The schools are moving to E-learning for three weeks as of Monday.

Tank is worried that he will miss his volleyball season.  Mini doesn't care much about missing her badminton season, enjoyable but her least favorite of her three sports.  

My heart breaks for our high school basketball team that was supposed to play in playoffs last night.  Our team is amazing and we were so looking forward to cheering them on.  I have no kid on the team this year- just super-fans.  It is gut wrenching to listen to the interviews of the athletes in high school and college who miss out on the end of their seasons.

I am waiting to see if  World Championships of Irish Dancing will be canceled.  I assume so, but I have no idea why they haven't yet.  Poor Curly.  She has worked so hard on her steps.  There would be no way to postpone it, because they learn all new dances the minute it is over to get ready for National Championships in July.  We are supposed to fly to Dublin on March 31st.

A typical cart for me. 
I have on occasion taken
 two carts, but with college boys
 away I can manage with one cart.

In normal life news, I visited the grocery store yesterday.  I had not been to the grocery store for weeks.  Not since I bought all the stock-up-and-cook-dinner food.  We were getting by with me ordering kids to pick up these 3 things, or Coach to please buy no more than 5 items.  Today people stared at my cart thinking I was being hysterical.  I wanted to carry a sign that read:  NO REALLY THIS IS HOW MUCH WE EAT.  The bagger asked me if I was feeding an army.  I was like, essentially.  I spent $488.  A big shopping spree for me averages $400, so that was just me being me plus grabbing a few things extra and bracing for the college pie holes.

Another moment of me being me:  I got a tickle in my throat while in the grocery store.  Kind of an unusual occurrence for me, but it happened.  I kept dry coughing.  Ever so slightly.  THE LOOKS I GOT!  I wanted to yell loudly to the hundreds of people lining the isles:  "IT'S JUST A TICKLE, PROMISE!"

A small portion of the Costco line.
  I am nothing if not a great planner.

This morning I went to Costco.  Um.  I was ill-equipped for what I saw.  Pandemonium.  While the grocery store yesterday was busy, but this was total chaos.  The line wrapped around the interior of the store from the pharmacy (just a stone's throw from the registers) to the back of the store down the water isle (rear of store) and back up to the front.  I would guess there were over 100 people in front of me in line.  Again, it was just me stocking up on the normal Costco purchases.

People who are unaccustomed to pushing overflowing carts through the store - welcome to my world.