Well, it’s official. My store has locked its doors. The lights and waffle bakers have been turned off. The sign will no longer illuminate the sky thru the night. I never thought I’d see the day. I worked for Waffle House in my late teens & early 20s as I finished high school and went to college. It was a good company to work for and aside from the normal drama that comes with working for the service industry, I loved my job then and I love it now. Seeing my store close, even if just temporarily, hurts my heart. This Covid-19 pandemic is getting really scary. People are tense and scared. Half of the population thinks is some sort of government conspiracy while the other half shutter if you even clear your throat.
For me, this shelter in place, which has been mandated by our governor, doesn’t cause so much alarm. No, I don’t like being out of work, or being stuck at home, but I’m not really a high risk case. I have friends and family who are. I know a large population of people that I could lose due to this virus. All I can do is hope and pray they are staying safe, washing their hands, distancing themselves and keeping as healthy as one can possibly be. It is crazy to me that the mega stores around us are running out of basic necessities. I know I have never lived through something like this. I asked mom and dad and neither of them have. My 91 year old Great Aunt says she has never seen anything like this, and she lived through World War 2!
While I am not sure where all of this will lead, I know for right now, I am stuck at home. Since my hours had been drastically cut over the past two weeks, I feel I have done nothing but binge watching TV shows and having various movie marathons. AND EATING! Since I have been home so much, I have thoroughly enjoyed baking and cooking for Igor and I, but they have definitely not been the healthiest of recipes. I have made various biscuit muffins, which we have agreed, will definitely be a staple item when we open our own eatery, however, eating mass quantities of meat stuffed biscuits may not be the best way to pass the time by. So, over the past two days, after making a tasty batch of quarantine cookies (1 cup peanut butter, 1 cup sugar and two eggs, who knew?) I decided to get out my paints and create something colorful. I saw a video that one of my friends had shared on Facebook, which was a 4 part seasonal tree painting. As soon as I saw it, it knew I had to paint it. So I did just that. After I completed that, I turned to Pinterest. I filled my painting ideas board full of fun and colorful painting that I thought I could accomplish. Through the years I have had many tell me that I am so artistic, but I don’t see it. Yes, I like crafting and painting, and I could literally spend hours inside of Michael's, but I don’t see myself as being particularly creative. It is especially hard when I am so self critical. Even though, I enjoy painting. So, I’ll be adding to my collection in the coming days, until we figure out what else to do.
What are all of you doing while staying at home? Are you crafting or cleaning? Are you playing games with your kids? Maybe catching up on reading a book you had been wanting to read, but hadn’t had the time before? Share what you have been up to. I’m going to take a break and start another painting. Until next time, stay Peachy and stay safe! - PP