{"id":41,"date":"2020-03-30T12:34:09","date_gmt":"2020-03-30T16:34:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/jwp.sheridanc.on.ca\/pandemicdiaries\/?page_id=41"},"modified":"2020-04-10T11:52:19","modified_gmt":"2020-04-10T15:52:19","slug":"katelyn","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/jwp.sheridanc.on.ca\/pandemicdiaries\/katelyn\/","title":{"rendered":"Katelyn"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"
\u201cme\u201d<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Day 1-March 18 <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Hey I\u2019m Katelyn. Your typical 19-year-old who goes to college and then goes home with not much in between. It\u2019s currently my first day in isolation due to the spread of COVID-19. I should technically be in class right now, but here I am, with you, writing a daily journal instead, explaining what I’ll be encountering for the next while. I\u2019ve been trying to stay home, but I\u2019m currently living with my grandfather and cousin. We’ve been giving him a hand around the house. It\u2019s been rough. I\u2019m not going to lie. It really sucks not being able to go to places I want, or having that \u201cfreedom\u201d without the anxiety and worry that I might catch the virus or let alone, worry for his health. Sidenote– if you\u2019ve ever tried to explain to an elderly person that they shouldn\u2019t do something, then you would understand how it\u2019s been for me telling my grandpa he should stay in. Good luck.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So far, days have been feeling endless. Although I\u2019m not living at home, I have been keeping busy. Whether it\u2019s doing laundry or doing my assignments, there\u2019s always something and I just need a break. Ironic, I know. But seriously, I\u2019m surprised by how far I\u2019ve managed to get. I don\u2019t cook at all. My type of cooking is whatever I can microwave. But I think I\u2019m doing pretty good, teaching myself how to cook. Picking up a pan, making things on a whim and what seems right. It\u2019s been hard, but my motto keeping me going in the kitchen has been, \u201cDon\u2019t worry if you screw up, just another learning curve.\u201d Also, can we just take a minute to acknowledge how empty some grocery stores have been? I kind of miss chicken. We only have been able to get a hold of beef so that\u2019s been my source of protein for the past three days and more to come. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This whole virus adventure has really sucked. I miss my friends, variety of foods, and I\u2019m constantly exhausted. I\u2019ve been trying to break from the news because I\u2019m simply sick of hearing stuff about the pandemic. (That was not a pun–promise.) But, yeah. I don\u2019t know what\u2019s going to happen in the next couple of weeks, and hopefully, things will turn up. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Till next time,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Katelyn<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Day 2-March 19<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

I think it\u2019s starting to set in how hard things are going to be for the next while. You see, being a second-year journalism student means the pressure is on. We have this saying in my program which is you\u2019ll \u201chit the ground running.\u201d I just didn\u2019t think it would be from a virus we\u2019re all desperately trying to avoid. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019ve heard of the saying making the best out of a bad situation, that\u2019s exactly what I\u2019ve been trying to do. Today I chose to give my grandpa\u2019s dog a bath, and here\u2019s how that turned out: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"\/
Landon vs. bath<\/em>.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Of course, he didn\u2019t seem to enjoy it but I thought it would be something nice to do for my gramps and a change from doing assignments. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

My cooking adventures have also continued today. On the menu was homemade chili.     <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Chili with beans<\/em>.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

It was actually a lot easier than I thought it\u2019d be to make. Just chop up some vegetables, add meat, throw it into a slow cooker for roughly four hours and you\u2019re set.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Besides that, the day has been quite slow. I\u2019m really starting to worry about assignments. Trying to juggle housework here while keeping up with due dates is proving to be a challenge but I am sure I\u2019ll get through it, I always do. I just hope the weight of everything on my shoulders won\u2019t prove to be too much. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Till next time, <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Katelyn<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Day 3-March 20 <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Today was an all-around rough day. It would\u2019ve been my grandparents\u2019 56th wedding anniversary if my grandma was still alive. The isolation on top of their anniversary was a lot emotionally to handle. I like to consider myself a generally loud and bubbly person but today just wasn\u2019t my day. My gramps was down and his attitude reflected upon me making me equally down as well. Cooking didn\u2019t go too well, and the whole day was just off. Despite my complete kitchen mishap of deconstructed perogies, to space out and relax I decided to deem today as one of my chill out days. So, that\u2019s exactly what I did. Watch Netflix, ate food, and did some embroidery. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s quite un-bee-lievable how great embroidery is. I never really had a craft that didn\u2019t require much brain power until I started it. God, I feel like such an old person saying this, haha. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"\/
Bumble<\/em>.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Being able to just listen to music while making a patch for my backpack has been something that\u2019s been almost therapeutic. Of course, going outside and walking about might not seem like the brightest thing to do at this current point in time. So I\u2019m glad my new hobby has been keeping me sane. I also have been teaching my cousin how to embroider. This is the patch she has been working on: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Woodstock<\/em>.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m shocked at how much more in touch I\u2019ve been with the things around me. The lockdown has allowed me to learn skills I never thought I\u2019d pick up. Who knows what I\u2019ll learn in the upcoming days.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Till next time, <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Katelyn<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Day 4-March 21 <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

I once wrote in a blue journal I carried with me everywhere, <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cLife has its ways of staying interesting. Whether it\u2019s throwing you obstacles or being able to feel like you\u2019re your best self, it has its ways of always keeping you on your feet. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maybe the difference between today and the next is what keeps us going. The possibility that tomorrow will be different than today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Or, maybe that\u2019s just the human spirit. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hope. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

What drives our ambitions and dreams. The hope that things will change.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
 Stillness in the air, and the sound of the rain.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Today has been a day of self-reflection. The photo above was taken ten minutes before my family and I got into a car accident back in October of 2018. I titled the photo \u201cStillness in the air, and the sound of the rain.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It seemed like a blur that night, similar to how these days have been passing by amid the pandemic. Although it may seem like not much is happening in my day-to-day life, still, there\u2019s so much to do but so little motivation to do it. I\u2019m close to the end of my final year in college and I keep pushing myself to stay on top of things. But, this isolation thing is starting to get to me. Not being able to see people that keep me motivated and happy hurts. I guess all that\u2019s left for me is to hope. Hope that things will change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Till next time,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Katelyn
<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 Day 5-March 22 <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Today was busy yet boring as a whole. I did school work all day. I don\u2019t know if it\u2019s just me, but doing work for hours on end without a good break in between really makes the days seem to drag on depending on the assignment. I\u2019m starting to run out of creative ideas to keep myself entertained and it\u2019s gotten to the point where it\u2019s become boring even going on my phone. I just want to sleep and have it all be over with so I can get my life back on track. I\u2019m really struggling to think; I feel like my mind is deteriorating. I know I\u2019m not \u201cstuck\u201d in the house but, at the same time, it doesn\u2019t seem worth it to go outside and get sick. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Blank stares at the keyboard<\/em>.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

In order to break up my day a tad and make it better, my cousin and I thought it would be funny to lip-sync to Taylor Swift\u2019s – I Knew You Were Trouble (Goat Version).<\/a> Despite the laughter she and I got to experience over the time it took us to nail the lip sync, I don\u2019t think my grandfather enjoyed hearing the same thing over and over. Oh well. Sorry, gramps! Other than that, with the way the last five days have been, it feels as if my life is a song but I\u2019m stuck on repeat. Who knows? Maybe I\u2019m not the only one feeling this way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Till next time,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Katelyn<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Day 6-March 23<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Another slow day, shocker. There\u2019s honestly nothing to do at my grandfather\u2019s house. So just to put it into perspective how it\u2019s been feeling: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
A meme that understands my struggle<\/em>.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

In other news, I had my first virtual class today and I strongly, am not a fan. I\u2019m trying to embrace the whole \u201cneed to move online for learning to limit the spread of the virus\u201d but it just doesn\u2019t beat learning in person and the software we\u2019re using seems quite glitchy. It feels weird to me and I\u2019d rather spend the 1 hour and 30 minutes it takes to bus to class. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Virtual classes<\/em>.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Currently at my grandfather\u2019s, we’ve run out of meat so we need to go shopping but at the same time, in all honesty, I\u2019d rather stay indoors despite how sick I am of it. Today, we had pasta with red sauce, and for someone who eats meat in their day-to-day life, it feels like food is missing something without it. Luckily, my aunt was our saviour of the day and brought some board games for us to play. <\/p>\n\n\n\n