April finds me in the middle of my fourth week of working from home amid the COVID-19 pandemic, where NYC has become an epicenter.
Luckily, my loved ones and I are all able to be home and isolated. My dad, a hospitality worker at a Manhattan hotel, was laid off last week - and although I am concerned about my parents' financial stability, I have to say that I felt some relief when I heard the news because honestly I'd rather him be out of a job right now than to have to commute into the city on a daily basis and risk contracting the coronavirus. Today I am helping him apply for unemployment insurance because people with last names beginning with the letters O-Z can file on Wednesdays. This staggering system was implemented for New York because the site was getting inundated; he is among many many others who have found themselves without a job due to this pandemic. (This Vox article helped me understand the broader picture of unemployment insurance in today's world.)
For me, April will be more of the same, but different. We'll continue to work from home for the foreseeable future but we'll be doing it from the new place; we're moving next Tuesday. Movers are still essential services, and while we wish the timing were better, we're taking extra precautions for ourselves and them by packing, taping, and lining up boxes in the apartment so that they can be in and out as quickly as possible. We'll also have masks and gloves for ourselves and them (should they not already have).
The move will bring with it plenty to fill our free hours with as we settle in and find new places for old things. I have a couple of first projects that I want to tackle: plant flowers and change lighting fixtures. I'll get down to work on that elusive green thumb by trying to grow flowers from seeds and I'll have to watch a couple of YouTube videos, wield a screwdriver, and get handy by installing the lights that we purchased for the top floor.
I'm not sure when the city will reopen, or when my studio will be up and running again, but I've continued to sculpt at home over these past couple of weeks. I'm going to keep working through the 50 pounds of clay that I ordered, having used about 20% of my first 25 lb. bag. Being able to continue making has been the difference in my perspective. Instead of cabin fever, I get more time to work on my pottery. Instead of idle hands, mine are covered in mud.
Lastly, I'm looking forward to watching our two dogs learn that they have a new home. My pups know the way back from our walks around the current neighborhood, and they head straight for our apartment door when the elevator doors open. They know where home is, and now they'll have a new, larger, greener, multi-leveled place that belongs to them. Part of our motivation for moving was to find a home with more room and an outdoor space for them, and I'm so excited to see them settle in.
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