March 19, 2020

Day 6: Semi-Quarantined Against CoVid-19 WASTE

Yo Leute.

Today the weather here was great again. It is going to drop into a cold spell again this weekend, but this punch of fresh warmth has been very much appreciated.

You can be normal, or you can be fun. UP TO YOU!

Last night, I finally slept through the night. For the first time in an entire week, I was able to turn off my phone and leave it downstairs all night (this is my normal habit).

From Wednesday to Wednesday, I had been on my phone around eighteen hours a day. It was all about communication, not about scanning news or social media.

I had not been on my phone that much since I coached college volleyball...nearly a decade ago.

It was not a fun experience; not only was it obviously hectic to be checking and texting constantly, but the intensity of the urgency of the messages was what made it challenging. Every day, one or two new players had their seasons canceled and needed to get back to the USA immediately. Every team and league handled it differently, and we had to navigate that as professionally and attuned to cultural sensitivities as possible.

It was exhausting. But then I couldn't sleep because I was so wired with all the details to make sure they didn't fall through the cracks and worrying about my players on their long haul flights with several connections back to America.

All the players who were able to go home right away have thankfully made it home. Thank you for your prayers. One more player has to wait until this weekend because she is recovering from ACL surgery. Please keep her in your thoughts and prayers as her travel home will be much more intense and physically difficult.

The theme was "crazy hats." This is how we do Quarantine Bible Study.

So to be able to sleep last night was a huge blessing.

Three years ago, I "moved" my USA residence to Oklahoma. For the first time ever, I got mail there this week, demanding my presence at jury duty. I wrote back, "Please send me their phone number so I can explain that I work abroad and will not be able to be present due to a global pandemic."

As if ANYONE will go to that jury duty summons this month?!

I have started transitioning my closet to spring and summer clothes. This is something I always do right around the end of the volleyball season anyway, and now I can take my time and do the bulk of it when it gets colder again next week.

Marc mopped the downstairs and we finally put our red floor rug back down. We usually take up the rug if we are having friends over because, a) we don't want to do extra cleaning, b) we don't want to get mad at our friends if they spill something, and c) our friends don't want to do extra cleaning.

We also moved the bicycle I adopted on Day 1 into the living room to keep it from rusting, and why not to add some vintage charm to the corner.

I ran a bunch of sprints this morning again to take advantage of the weather and sprinting really is the best exercise for my entire body. I am just trying to make sure I don't slip on any of the weird grass lumps and the sideways slope.

While vacuuming the throw rug today, I found myself returning to the theme of "waste." Usually, when I am cleaning, or actually doing nearly anything, I am already thinking about the time cost and how quickly I need to finish in order to proceed to the next activity. Even if that next activity is eating chocolate.

I worship efficiency.

Today, I vacuumed that throw rug for a full thirty minutes. Why? Well, it was really dirty. But it was also because I thought to myself, "It's not like I have anything else to rush off and do!" I started singing songs from Disney's Cinderella and was just content to do a really good and thorough job of cleaning that carpet.

Our time has been rushed and has been wasted. We waste our money. Constantly. We waste our awake energy on things that don't matter now and won't matter later. Let's not even get into the actual resources we waste like water, food, paper, fuel, etc.

Right now, I am very conscious of how many sheets of toilet paper I am using. We have "plenty" and "enough," but that's because it's only Day 6. I don't want to end up on a potential Day 30, wishing I had used less toilet paper each time I went to the bathroom.

(I know some people are not understanding the toilet paper demand at this time, but maybe you have never ran out before! We didn't stock up on 100s of rolls, but basically doubled our normal stockage. We should have enough for at least six weeks. Yes. That means I normally have enough toilet paper in the house for three weeks.)

I am very thankful that we have drinkable water and can take hot showers. I am spending more time than I normally would outside in the sunlight because I need to pay attention to what is available right now.

That is the key to quarantining.

Paying attention to what we can do, not what we can't.

This is another reason why I am so relieved I can sleep a full night again already. I am grateful to be starting my off-season training earlier than I ever have.

We need to pay attention to our morale, both as individuals and in our communities.

We are still just entering the course of CoVid-19. We are still relatively upbeat, supply stocks are full, and we don’t miss anyone or anything too much yet.

It is now that we need to pay attention to the time we have been granted and invest in the people and activities that DO matter. Because we are going to need those people and those activities even more later, especially if the crisis continues to progress.

How can we do this?

TECHNOLOGY.

I have never been a real huge technology pusher because I really believe that interpersonal contact and communication is way more valuable. However, in a time where that kind of "personal touch" is not available to us, we are lucky enough to have multiple resources that can keep us connected.

#SGMAFIA🖤 Team Workout today.

We have the chance to not waste our time or efforts during the pandemic. We can use Google Hangouts, Zoom, FaceTime, Skype, WhatsApp, Instagram, and so, so many other free apps and programs that are now our lifelines.

Even technology is providing the answer to the question, "What to do with free time?"

So, while I do not suggest we spend every waking moment staring at our phone or computer, we should get what we need and give what we can through technology right now.

A small challenge from this post is to reach out to someone you know is alone through this quarantine. Not everyone is fortunate enough to live with a partner or family during this time. Spend some quality time with them via video call and let them know you are paying attention.


Here are also some Bible verses for encouragement during this time from a pro player in my Bible study, Andie Baguley. You can look them up via Google and please share with others!

James 1:2-3
Philippians 4:6-7
Hebrews 6:18-19
Psalm 73:23-26


You can follow all of my daily updates during the CoVid-19 quarantine here.