When these silicone loaf pans came out of the package, The Husband truly believed them to be bedside vomit trays. You know when a dog sees or hears something strange and their head tilts? Now picture a grown human man–sans floppy ears–doing that. Albeit, these are a little odd. I had ordered them over a month ago when we were still using Amazon (we’ve since shifted our bucks elsewhere) and I wanted them fast (we had just watched Bread Week on The Great British Bake Show) and were jonesing for home-baked bread. By this time, the rest of the quarantine bakers (who had already bought up all the yeast in America) had just cleaned Amazon out of loaf pans, but I was willing to settle in order to get baking quickly.
I didn’t know they were going to take so long to receive. And be so ugly. Plus, they’re bigger than I anticipated (9×4). I’m not always good about checking measurements before I buy. (I still have 95 extra die if anyone has a hankering for Yahtzee.) These trays came with measuring spoons that look to have come from a child’s play kitchen, or the baby aisle at Target, casting further doubt unto the intended purpose of this “bakeware.”
One last detail and you’ll be caught up on the backstory of these double-duty household trays: they were free. Two days before they arrived, Amazon deemed them lost at sea and issued me a refund (I’ll inform them as soon as I have a free moment–you know, things are super busy right now).
So, I need some inspiration, dear loyal readers. My baking dreams have waned since that first Bread Week but I’m not yet ready to relegate these versatile trays to under the bathroom sink or nightstand. Can you send me a yeast-free recipe? Sweet, savory, and oh by the way, veggie (veganizable, if possible). I just lost you all, didn’t I? Look, I’ve been veganizing stuff for ten years, so I’ve got confidence in my faux-egg skills.
The Great Be-gan Challenge. Get it? Baking . . . vegan . . . sorry, The Great Quarantine Delirium has began. See? I did it again. Ugh, sorry.
A to Z Challenge: My theme this year is NYC before and during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Q-TRAIN: We live a 5-minute walk from a large subway hub and often take the Q-train. The Q has had many different service patterns since it began running in 1920, and since January of 2017, its route covers 34 stations from 96th St in the Upper East Side of Manhattan to Coney Island and runs from 12:12 a.m. to 11:59 p.m. We’ve had a lot of strange and entertaining subway stories over the last year, and I even got myself stuck in a turnstile with my leg up in the air (I still can’t figure out how that happened), but I thought I’d share some fun facts about NYC’s subway system. (Source)
1.7 billion people rode the NYC subway system in 2016, making it the seventh-busiest in the world. Beijing tops the list with nearly double the number of riders, followed by Tokyo, Shanghai, Seoul, Guangzhou, and Moscow.
The busiest station is Times Square (not a surprise) and apparently, if it’s your regular stop and you’re late to work because of a train delay, the MTA will email or fax you a “late letter” of explanation.
In 1953 when the fair was raised to 15 cents and turnstiles could only accept one type of coin, tokens were used. Thieves would jam turnstiles with coins and then use their mouths to suck out the tokens that were stuck in the slots. Gross. Clerks resorted to sprinkling the slots with chili powder or mace.
To function as an artificial reef, 44 decommissioned subway cars were dumped in the ocean in 2008.
Living out most little kids’ dream, a 16-year-old impersonated a train conductor in 1993, driving an A train. For three hours, he safely shuttled passengers to and fro, only getting caught by accidentally triggering an emergency break.
To ensure a conductor is paying attention and stopping in the right place, he or she must point to a black-and-white striped board in the middle of every subway station. In 2013, a couple of New Yorkers wanted to liven things up and stood beneath the striped bar holding signs, one reading, “Point here if you re dead sexy.”
For a hilarious insider’s view of NYC’s subway system, check out the podcast, Everything is Alive, where they interview a subway seat.
QUARANTINE RAINBOW CONNECTION: It all began in mid-March when a Brooklyn mom posted in her neighborhood Facebook group that her two kids were “getting frustrated with not being able to go to the playgrounds or touch anything when we went on walks.” She suggested residents hang pictures of rainbows in their windows for kids to spot on their daily walks. Other parts of the world had been doing this, so why not in Brooklyn? The idea caught on and even one resident has been keeping a spreadsheet for people to post their addresses–like rainbow-caching–“a lovely reminder for all of us that, in a storm, there is still something to look forward to.” These are just some of the fabulous rainbows we’ve spotted on our walks (who said only kids can have fun playing I-Spy)?
A to Z Challenge: My theme this year is NYC before and during the COVID-19 pandemic.
ISLANDERS: We enjoy watching hockey and of course, being from Colorado, we love the Avalanche. However, tickets were always pricey and driving over an hour to Denver was always the pits. Fortunately, the Colorado Eagles, an immensely talented minor league team played games only 20 minutes from us at the Budweiser Event Center. With affordable tickets and a short drive, getting our live hockey fix was easy. Still, there’s nothing like the rambunctious cacophony of an NHL game, particularly, an Av’s game. Living a mere 10 minute walk from the Barclays Center, attending a hockey game is no sweat. I have to say, we were a little underwhelmed at the March 4, 2020 game. Compared to an Av’s game, this felt like watching golf. It could be because the Islanders were having a rough night against the Montreal Canadiens, eventually losing 6-2.
But before the final buzzer, things got exciting, just not in a good way. Islanders defenseman, Johnny Boychuk took a skate to the face. I happened to catch it when it occurred, but because it happened so fast, all I knew was that something hit his face. His hands immediately went to his face and he fell to the ice, legs kicking; he was in agony. Then suddenly, he hopped up, hands still to his face, and bolted off the ice and into, presumably, the locker room. The stadium was even quieter, and no one really knew what happened; no replays on the jumbo screen–nothing. I got on Twitter to see the replays.
Ouch.
Source: AP
If you have the stomach for it, you can see a slo-mo version. When you think of hockey injuries, you envision missing teeth, not missing eyeballs. Needless to say, an already mellow atmosphere, got even quieter. I couldn’t imagine his teammates having to continue playing after that. Fortunately, the skate just missed Boychuk’s eyeball, but his eyelid required 90 stitches! Left with some minor scarring (nothing new to a hockey player), he’s feeling damn lucky, even joking that at first, his phone’s facial recognition didn’t acknowledge him. Glad for the happy ending, but I still cringe when I think about it.
ISOLATION: Obviously, this is the newest buzzword. It’s scary and beautiful at the same time. When we traveled New Zealand in 2018, we found ourselves blissfully isolated on some of the planet’s most stunning landscapes. I would have no problem being isolated there right now. In fact, we hope to someday end up as permanent kiwis, but like a lot of plans, those dreams are on hold.
Isolation can also be very, very bad. If you’re looking for a captivating read where isolation is only one of many antagonists, check out The Ledge, by my friend, Jim Davidson who wrote about his experience on Mount Rainier. Jim is a climber who has scaled Everest and miraculously survived the 2015 earthquake during his first Everest attempt. Not the first time he cheated death, as you will read in his book.
Being isolated in NYC is a strange thing. Nothing like Jim’s experience, but it’s like static; busy and buzzing, but nothing is happening. You feel a little buzzy yourself, but with nowhere to go. However, if you have a computer or phone and WiFi, there’s plenty of ways to not feel so alone. I attended a Zoom lecture/meditation session with Yogacharya Dharmananda, whom I met in 2015 and studied under for a few years. He said not to take “social distancing” literally; physically, yes, but to reach out socially as much as possible. If you’re feeling isolated, check out Meetups you’re interested in because so many are now offering Zoom get togethers. For writers, check out Northern Colorado Writers, a writing organization (open to anyone anywhere) that is offering tons of online support through Slack and Zoom, so you can commiserate stay connected with fellow scribes. (As former director of NCW, I can vouch for its awesomeness; no bias at all.) Reach out to friends and family. Chances are, they’re feeling just as isolated and will love to hear your voice and/or see your mug. (Face paint not required, but highly recommended.)
Might I also present a case in favor of isolation. We often discount the restorative benefits of alone time, and in doing so, mistakenly link solo time with loneliness. Our busy lives tend to keep us from the important and valuable act of self-reflection. A grownup timeout has shown to create greater empathy, improved critical-thinking skills, and better decision making. I’ll talk more about this in Monday’s post, but until then, consider putting yourself in the corner and thinking about what you’ve done . . . or want to do . . . or will do . . . or just have a heart-to-heart with yourself.
A to Z Challenge: My theme this year is NYC before and during the COVID-19 pandemic.
HIP HOP DANCE CLASS: Last fall, I decided to try something new: hip hop dance classes at Dancewave, a dance studio a block from my apartment. I was nervous, but it was labeled as a beginner class, and I figured I had a decent level of rhythm and that I’d be well on my way to being a Fly Girl within the first few lessons. I could not have been more wrong. I was horrible. A humbling experience to say the least. And hard. Several of the dozen or so participants floundered like me, but I felt like the worst one; arms flailing and legs performing a hybrid of Riverdance and a Barre workout. At one point, I struggled to get out of a squat and by the time I did, I was eight moves behind. Hip hop moves fast. As a middle-aged, Scandinavian white woman, I should not have been surprised by my lack of rhythm–it showed. Regardless, I had some fun. Then the holidays came, then the virus, and so my Fly Girl dreams are going to have to wait. Check out @von_b, the class instructor, who bless his heart, deserves a medal for his patience alone. Even Elaine was better than me.
HEADSPACE.COM: I’ve had an on-again-off-again relationship with mediation. Click HERE if you’d like to read a magazine article I published regarding the benefits of meditation. If there’s any time to be meditating, it’s now. I know it’s difficult to do, but like anything, it takes time, effort, and patience in order to reap the rewards. In conjunction with Governor Cuomo, otherwise known as Saint Andrew, Headspace is offering a free, special collection of meditation sessions for New Yorkers. How cool is that? So light some incense, slow down, and take a break from the incessant news cycle. If you need some convincing, check out these studies on the benefits of meditation. Now go ohm.
A to Z Challenge: My theme this year is NYC before and during the COVID-19 pandemic.
ARTS CALENDAR: It only took me a year to figure out I needed one. New York City is a busy place, comprised with only what I can describe as an incessant plethora of activities. I shouldn’t have been surprised, given it was one of the reasons we moved here; I just didn’t realize it’d require a pocket guide to keep track.
March was shaping up to be a busy month of culture for me with a variety of new museum exhibits, poetry workshops and readings, and concerts. I can’t bring myself to the turn the page and see Elton John, Barclays Center, written under April 11. Who knew March would be the longest month of nothing.
Fortunately, most museums have opened up their virtual doors so we can at least check out exhibits from afar, but otherwise, it’s all on hold as the world grapples with a pandemic.
But hey, that’s just the way it goes. Most things will get rescheduled. It’s not the end of the world . . . wait . . . *thinks about it* . . . so anyway . . .
APARTMENT LIFE 24/7: The Husband and I have both worked from home for at least ten years, so this new normal shouldn’t be so new, yet somehow, our 800+ square foot space suddenly feels a bit smaller.
Like, why do his toenail clipping sound so much louder? Has that faucet always dripped? What’s that smell? When did that annoying tick of yours start? It’s almost time for my 10:00 a.m. nap.
We have our respective wings in our 2b/2b, rectangle-shaped apartment. At the end of the day, we’ll meet in the middle for dinner and TV time. We’re fortunate to have lots of natural light, so when we eventually emerge from hiding, our eyes should be able to withstand the daylight.
After I completed my novel, I had planned to reward myself by taking a little time to wander museums in the mornings, but that got nixed before I could say MoMa. Now, waiting for agents to respond to my queries is like watching those toenails grow.
It’s Day 1 of this A to Z Challenge and as you can tell, the snark has set in.
