In These Uncertain Times

 As I sit waiting for the results of the election, I think of how this year has been so different.  I work for the state legislature, and immediately upon adjourning for the year in mid-March, we went into lockdown and were all sent to work from home.  I've always wanted to work from home during the interim, but committee assistants have never been allowed to.  Of course, this year there was no choice.  It has turned out to be everything I hoped it would be.  For the first couple of months I saw no one but my husband and didn't go out of our yard.  I missed my daughter and grandsons terribly.

At first, I didn't think I would be home for very long and set about cleaning my upstairs landing at a frantic pace, while tracking my work email constantly.  Of course, most of what was on the landing were my daughter's discarded belongings, mainly toys.  I cleaned and sorted my way though those and other things on the landing.  I've managed to get through about half of the stuff.  We've brought bags and bags of discards to the thrift store (once it finally reopened to take donations) and I've sent a lot of stuff home with my daughter to redistribute to families that would like it.  (She only has boys.  No dolls wanted!)  My youngest grandson claimed all the stuffed animals.  I'm not sure his mother was happy about that!  

I also spent hours this spring working in my greenhouse.  It was so much fun to be out there in the warm greenhouse digging in the dirt.  I especially liked the days it would rain, but inside the greenhouse it was cozy.  I had my garden completely planted by the middle of May with all the starts grown in the greenhouse by me.  My mother would have been so proud of how I put her old fiberglass greenhouse to work this year.

I was given a sourdough starter early on (about the time flour disappeared from the grocery shelves) and played with it all spring until the weather got too warm outside to be baking inside.  I made bread, biscuits, pancakes, crackers, and pizza dough with it.  I've managed to keep it going, although I've had to resurrect it twice via the discard that I store in the refrigerator.  Once it just got too warm sitting out on the counter and molded, and then the second time I forgot it on the counter when we went on vacation and it died.  My co-workers had originally asked me what I was going to name it, and I didn't have a clue.  But I informed them this week that its name is Lazarus, since it has risen from the dead.  

The other thing I spent a lot of time on this spring was sewing virus masks.  After sewing multiples for friends and family, I was happy to be finished.  Now, though, masks have been misplaced over the summer and I guess everyone needs a new set.  That project will keep me busy next week. 

~Jane