Before jumping into my weekly diatribe about life in the age of COVID, before I forget, I want to share information that Isadora shared with me — about a great (and easy!) way to support a local, volunteer-run non-profit in Mountain View: Hope’s Corner. From July 5-August 5, Hope’s Corner is trying to raise $5k in its 5x5x5 challenge. It’s a virtual challenge where you donate $5 to the organization, complete a 5k event of your choice (run, hike, walk, swim [!!!], whatever you fancy), and then get 5 of your friends to also donate and participate: hence 5 [dollar donation]  x 5 [k activity] x 5 [friends you get to do the same], the #Hope5kChallenge. 

From Isadora: Hope’s Corner is a great cause (http://hopes-corner.org). If you’re not familiar with them, they’re a volunteer-run nonprofit that provides free nutritious hot meals every Wednesday and Saturday to homeless, low-income, and vulnerable folks at their location in downtown Mountain View. Everyone is welcome – no one is turned away. They also offer homeless individuals use of 2 onsite showers and laundry services, which are expected to restart soon. (They were paused due to COVID-19.)

With the effects of COVID-19 hitting folks with few resources especially hard, Hope’s Corner has more than doubled the number of meals it serves. (In May, they provided more than 2100 meals!) More and more, they’re seeing families and laid off workers coming to pick up meals. They’re also delivering meals to day workers and individuals living in RVs – right here in Mountain View. (Thank you!)

I donated and participated on Sunday, when A completed her last day of 5k training and the day before G began hers — more on that below — and I encourage all my readers everywhere to do the same 🙂  You can donate here: tinyurl.com/5x5x5forHope). 

In what has otherwise been a pretty frustrating week, between the increasing number of COVID cases everywhere, including here in California; the uncertainty surrounding the school-year (we’re barely a month out from the first day, but who’s counting?); and my amplifying utter disdain for #45 and his complete inability to do literally anything required of a sentient human being, let alone one who is a president, being able to participate in the virtual challenge to support Hope’s Corner was like a breath of fresh air. And hey, kickoff day coinciding exactly with the last day of A’s 10-week 5k training was a pleasant surprise! 

The July 4th holiday was Saturday, and I think this year is one of the only times in recent history where we’ve actually been in California, not Ohio, for this part of the summer, making being here kinda novel but also somewhat weird. In the absence of city-sponsored fireworks displays and other typical summertime activities that are still closed (Great America, many beaches were closed over the weekend, etc.), it sorta felt like any other weekend around here: mostly just hanging out (though, to be fair, we did get to watch Hamilton on Disney+, so that was exciting). It wasn’t particularly anything to write home about, but that’s also been more or less the same story for the past four months, so … consistency? 

Since last week, Dr. Cody issued new “risk reduction orders” that will allow for outdoor dining to resume in SCC, as well as larger in-person outdoor and indoor (!!) gatherings. (Weirdly, the state initially rejected the application on 7/4, but then suddenly they okayed it on 7/7. I don’t know the backstory here, but I find it very odd, at least at face value. What measurably, meaningfully changed in three days). Anyway, the new guidelines go into effect on 7/13, assuming that the state doesn’t come out with stricter rules between now and then, but what’s wild to me is that the “risk reduction orders” are being released while our case numbers are increasing from “very low” to “low,” in Dr. Cody’s words. Huh? 

I guess we’re past the point of sheltering in place indefinitely and are now trying to figure out how to “do life” as safely as possible, but it all seems to be pretty incongruent to me. (Don’t get me wrong: I don’t want to spend another 4+ months at home 24/7, with even outdoor places like parks and beaches closed, but it still blows my mind that so many people are willing to practically snap their fingers and return to their pre-COVID lifestyles without even as much as a hesitation). How? It makes me think of what I wrote last week: what’s it like to not care? I guess part of SCC’s ability to begin implementing new “risk reduction orders” is due to its testing capabilities and hospital capacities, but still, at face value, to hear that case numbers are rising and that life is beginning to open up again, in the same breath, is puzzling, to say the least. And, ya know, the suffocatingly large elephant in the room — figuring out the school opening side of the equation — remains to be seen … deep, cleansing breath. It’s like I can literally feel the cortisol levels rising. 

So. Here we are. Fortunately, my family and I remain healthy, and like most anyone else right now, we are continuing to take everything a day at a time. Both last week and this week, we went to the beach — last week, to Santa Cruz, and today, to Aptos — and both times, especially today, it was super easy to stay very, very far away from other people. I can’t tell you how nice it was to simply disconnect for three hours today and listen to the rumbling waves and to my kids’ high-pitched squeals and shrieks all afternoon. 

This summer is shaping up to be one to remember, for sure. It’s like the scales have tipped this year, in that last year, we were in the midwest for over six weeks of the summer, between Illinois and Ohio, and this year, we’re here at home, all day, every day, most every day, like some weird yin/yang got just balanced out or something. The girls and I have been talking a lot about topics related to anti-racism, Black Lives Matter, and social justice, and it has been illustrative to have these types of conversations with them. Kids ask such good questions, and no surprise here, I don’t know all the answers. We are all learning together. I know there are tons of reading lists out there right now, but if you want a couple suggestions from me, I’d encourage you to pick up Resist and One Crazy Summer. We’re reading both right now and really enjoy them, even G, who’s four.  

On occupying time and settling mental unrest 

Listening. My listening in the past week was more heavily weighted toward running than toward anti-racism; here, I can’t recommend the 7/1 Code Switch episode enough. It was fascinating and reminded me a lot of some books I read on similar subjects in the past couple years (Futureface comes to mind immediately). Otherwise, I just listened to the original episode from Keeping Track, back in October ‘19 (slowly making my way to the present), and I began listening to the Roches’ new SWAP podcast. I have so many more to listen to, still!  You?   

Reading. I’m just about done with White Fragility — I have 16 hours to read the final 33%! — and this is another one of those must-reads for everyone and one to which I imagine returning again in the future. Initially, I thought it was fairly redundant at first, probably because I had just read Me and White Supremacy. I know there has been some recent dissent, or criticisms, about White Fragility, so once I finish the book, I want to read some of the critiques to see for myself how (and why, and what are) people criticizing about the book’s points or the actual author, herself. Next up in the immediate queue is Such a Fun Age and White Rage. You?   

Running. Ten weeks of 5k training wrapped up for A on Sunday! Silly and obnoxious mom moment here, but I’m really proud of her. Part of why I wanted her to participate in 5k training (based on a public training program I pulled from Girls on the Run) was because I wanted her to have the actual fitness and physical activity component, of course, but I also wanted her to have the benefit of something consistent and regular to which she could look forward while most everything else in our lives is in flux. It was definitely a learning process, and I think more often than not, she enjoyed it, so I’m calling it a success. In any event, she helped G get bitten by the running bug, so on Monday, we kick-started her 10-week 5k training program with coach A and me in tow.  

Things that are physically or emotionally hard to do or manage, in no particular order. Deep cleaning. Children. Unmedicated vaginal childbirth. Speedwork. Attempting a marathon PR. Marriage, sometimes. Having GI issues mid-run with nary a toilet in sight. Friendships and relationships, sometimes. Getting mystery spots out of flooring. Surgeries. Being physically away or separated from family members and friends. Dicing vegetables with subpar, dull knives. Yours? 

Things that are not physically or emotionally hard to do or manage: covering your face in public!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!   

Be safe, stay well, and continue to listen and learn. xo

PS: Sorry for the lack of pics; wordpress isn’t being cooperative, and it’s late, so I’ll post in IG what I would have posted throughout here this week. boohiss