It finally happened. My introverted, depressed self got what I’ve always dreamed of: a mandated 2 weeks spent at home while getting paid. The cleaning I would do! The painting I would learn! The books I would read!

I awoke around 9:30 am to a text from my roommate (who, side note: still has to go to work) saying “Are you up yet?” I texted her back “yes” to which I receive a quick response of “Good. Out of bed?” I figured I should roll out of bed and start my day. March 17-St. Patrick’s Day. I think, “hey-I don’t have to work. I’m going to make myself an Irish coffee this morning.” After rummaging through my room, which I desperately need to clean, I realize I am not going to find the baileys anytime soon. I resign myself to a regular cup of Joe.

I grab my coffee and my painting supplies and head out to the living room. I sit down and immediately our cat Rosie decides to sit directly on my chest so that her butt is in my face. Clearly she has not been educated on the social distancing rule that has been shoved down everyone’s throats. After I send the necessary SnapChats to my friends, I push her off my chest and begin practicing with water colors.

It is strange. I finally have all the lounging time in the world and I am bored of it almost immediately. I just want to go on a hike, go to work and socialize with my coworkers. The water colors take awhile to dry between layers. I quickly realize that this art form takes a lot of time and patience. After a couple of hours of rotating between painting, playing Candy Crush, and sending SnapChats about my cats to various people, I decide it is time to have something to eat. My roommates and I had the brilliant idea to order ourselves a whole pizza each on Pi Day (which was Saturday), so for the third day in a row, I sit down to a slice of pizza for lunch. (Honestly, I just had some minor acid reflux just writing that sentence.) My roommate who is working from home sits down with me and we enjoy a nice lunch together.

While eating lunch, we talk about how crazy the world has become. That this will be our lives for the next few weeks at least. The same stuff we have been talking about for days. And it truly is insane. In this day and age when everyone is connected through the internet, I would have thought that isolation would not feel so different. For my introverted self, I figured that this would be my utopia-avoiding people and curling up by myself with a good book. But now that the option of going out, hanging out with friends and family, even shopping have been taken away, I find myself uninterested in the lonesome future ahead. I literally spent my lunchtime yelling at a squirrel who kept trying to get the bird seed from our feeder. Is this what is to come from this isolation? My crazy cat lady finally coming out in full swing: talking to squirrels, wearing housecoats, having conversations with the cats.

After lunch I sit down to listen to some podcasts and continue to paint. After about an hour, I decide to take a nap. I worked hard today! Well, I woke up at a reasonable hour soooooo… basically the same thing. I retreat to my room only to remember that I had washed new sheets for my bed. I remade my bed with my fresh new sheets, put my old sheets in the washer, and climbed into a nice, clean bed. NOW I have done something productive. I am allowed to nap.

I wake up two hours later. I hear voices in the living room and realize that both of my roommates are home. I join them with my microwaveable burrito to watch Derry Girls with them while they drink their green beer. We watch two episodes together before one declares she should go to bed for work early in the morning and the other declares she is going to go into her room. I sit there on the couch, alone again. I wasted socializing hour napping. Bummed, I went back to my bedroom. I listened to my murder podcasts and played Candy Crush.

I think it is safe to say that this quarantine will be mostly murder podcasts and Candy Crush. Which is why I decided to dust off the old blog. My posts might be mundane, some days will sound like repeats. But this blog will give me something productive to do with my time. Who knows? In my many ramblings about my day, I may stumble across the meaning of life, I may find a cure to some disease, or I may just be able to relate to one of you out there reading this. Either way, this will (hopefully) keep me sane throughout this isolation period.

Maybe.