A day in the life — COVID-19 style

Dan Janisse/Postmedia News

       Several days ago, I went to the city, for an eye exam, brunch,  and grocery shopping. Each stop involved various components of social distancing, a phenomenon that is going to be around for some time to come; to be safe, we are obliged to accept this new way of conducting daily life. Wearing a mask is NOT that difficult, folks. Not wearing one risks lives, maybe our own. 

That being the case, is it absolutely vital that each and every one of us observe the protocols set out by the Department of Health. That is our DUTY as citizens of the world!

At the eye doctor, I walked in on my crutches, masked. A quick stop at the  hand sanitizing station. Done. Eye exam done. I get to spend more money; new lenses! On the way out, another shot of sanitizer and a scrub of the hands. Then to Vogue Optical. I was allowed to pass through the door between the two businesses, a concession to my mobility disorder. I always appreciate it when I am able to conserve energy with the help of others. Being a frugal Scot, I recycled the frames for the 3rd, or is it the 4th script change. In a few weeks I’ll be seeing a whole new world. No, I won’t sing!

Next, off to enjoy brunch. Kudos to staff at Pizza Delight who diligently wiped down tables, chairs and booth seats as they were vacated. It seemed so strange to be dining at lunch time without the usual banter coming from several tables at once. My friend commented that the outings are no longer fun. I had to agree. Is what we enjoyed for decades gone forever?

Off to the grocery store — I’m concerned about the complacency with which so many of the young function. No longer can they think themselves invincible when they’re out and about because what they do from now on until COVID is gone, impacts everyone  around them as well as everyone not around them. COVID doesn’t distinguish. It attacks the most vulnerable first, but it can and does attack the seemingly healthy high school football player or the yoga-practicing ballet dancer. COVID doesn’t discriminate between genders.

Littering the highways and waterways with discarded masks and gloves has got to STOP. Wildlife is struggling to survive at the best of times and for us supposedly intelligent humans to destroy their homes is cruel and inhumane. We have a DUTY to protect our environment, so that it will continue to provide us with so many of the good things in life, most notably enjoying all the beauty it brings to our lives. We take photographs of flower, of birds, of bears and deer. What are we thinking when we litter the places where they live and hunt for food? That makes no sense. Just stop it!

COVID-19 has altered so much of how we live and what we are able to do and what we are no longer able to do. It’s a huge adjustment, that’s for sure.  But one thing is clear — so long as people don’t follow the rules and wander around without wearing a mask and without observing the rules of social distancing, COVID cases will rise. More people will die. Will the next one or the one after that or the two after that be people we know?  Perhaps. Do we want to be THAT person who didn’t wear a mask or maintain distance? 

Pushy, needy, greedy ME people are challenged by rules at the best of times but COVID-19 has shone a light on their deficiencies to purposeful and effective interpersonal interactions.  Do they  have it within themselves to make changes? For themselves  and for those around them? For those with whom they come in contact on a daily basis?

In doing our part and not becoming complacent we can ensure that as businesses reopen and a level of normalcy to daily living returns; we can ensure it stays that way by OBEYING the rules of social distancing and mask wearing.

To reiterate, masks are CRITICAL to limit/eliminate spread. That cannot be stressed enough. In not doing our part, we are risking the lives of every single person in our community. That is the reality of our current situation. We truly are in this together.

As more and more businesses open and more street vendors attached to eat-in restaurants  pop up to  recover their lockdown losses, it is important for us to strictly adhere to ALL rules that each of them outline for us. They have to earn a living to support their families just as we do and one person steps outside the rules, others will follow, thinking it’s okay. It’s not!

Tomorrow’s a new day. Make it a safe one. Wear a mask.

Carla MacInnis Rockwell is a freelance writer and disability rights advocate living outside Fredericton, NB with Miss Lexie, a rambunctious Maltese. She can be reached via email at carmacrockwell@xplornet.ca

Memorializing pets who have passed away

Mr. Digby Rockwell, the feisty Australian Silky Terrier

 (8 May 2003 - 5 June 2020)

Do pet obituaries belong in the paper alongside notices of the passing of  people? Hmm!

Ask me and I’ll say yes! To assign value to an animal's life actually enriches our own. The true friend of animals great and small would never for a moment consider doing them harm and anyone who injures an animal has a broken moral compass. Many are damaged souls with deep seated emotional problems that play out in acts of violence towards animals as well as other humans, but that’s a discussion for another time.

Understandably, there would be many who would say that an obituary for a dog, a cat, a turtle or a hamster has no place in the newspaper on a page where the passing of humans,  fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, aunts and uncles were listed.

Stop and think about this for a moment. Many of those who died very possibly had a dog, a cat, a turtle or a hamster; creatures that they loved and to whom they provided daily care. How often do we see reference to a Fluffy or a Clancy or a Ben in the obituary of Mr. Jones or Mrs. Smith? The  companion animals left behind when their human passes away do, indeed, feel the loss. Unlike humans, they’re not able to express grief in words, instead acting out anxiety, sadness and distress in physical ways — not eating, not sleeping or sleeping too much, destroying things like shoes and pillows. Some will even lose house training and soil indiscriminately but rarely where they sleep.

Because they openly announce that a pet was part of a family, bringing legitimacy to mourning the pet as a family member, obituaries for animals push against what defines ‘family’ in ways that may offend some people. 

Look at the broader implications. Newspapers featuring pet obituaries are actually contributing to the health of the community, particularly with the senior populations for whom pets were a significant part of daily lives. Those isolated by circumstance rely on their pet as an emotional connection that replaces the human ones they’ve lost; children moved thousands of miles away,  a spouse has died, ability to get out and about easily is difficult and they don’t want to impose on friends, local family or neighbours. So they ‘hole up’ with their steadfast canine or feline companion.

 Across this province and across the country, many have experienced pet loss but don’t share about it, feeling that it’s silly, or that people would laugh at them with the totally insensitive “he was only a dog.” For those whose companion dog died, whether through old age, accident or disease, Barkley or Ben was never “ only a dog”.

In this age of modern technology with with access to all manner of information, how many of us  googled the name of a celebrity dog; Lassie, perhaps — played by Pal, the Rough Collie. Go ahead. I know you want to.

There are lots of online venues where people freely share about their pet when he passes away, Sites such as Rainbow Bridge can give others a chance to see the love you have for your dog. Equally important is that someone who is struggling with the grief over the loss of a pet may find comfort in it as well. And so, I share with you now.

In Loving Memory of Mr. Digby Rockwell (8 May 2003 - 5 June 2020): Mr. D, an Australian Silky Terrier crossed the Rainbow Bridge  after running the show here at Chez Rockwell for the past 13  of his 17 years. A refined little hairy gentleman, he provided many years of companionship to the crazy old baker lady. In recent years, Digger tolerated  the rambunctious Maltese, Miss Lexie, who stole his toys and I think, a bit of his doggy heart.

Mr. Digby got his start in Quebec, though his 2nd language was not French but Yorkie yap, given he was a cross between the Yorkshire Terrier and the Cairn Terrier. Sadly, that beginning was in a puppy mill.

In 2003, he was purchased from a Montreal pet store by a woman who clearly didn't 'get' the terrier attitude. They came to New Brunswick, but he was removed from her home, finding his way to me through my vet, in November of 2007, just days after I said good-bye to Mr. Jake, the Cairn Terrier. Pre-ordained? I think it was!

It was only fitting that, at the end, Dr. Shawn Smith of the Main Street Vet Clinic in Fredericton would help Mr. Digby on his way since it was through his clinic  that the D-man  and I were glued together.

Losing a pet is never easy, but Mr. Digby told me in many little ways that it was time to go. I would have been selfish to let him stay a day longer than he could.

Rest In Peace, little man.

Carla MacInnis Rockwell is a freelance writer and disability rights advocate living outside Fredericton, NB with Miss Lexie, a rambunctious Maltese. She can be reached via email at carmacrockwell@xplornet.ca

Caring for ourselves during COVID-19

My friend Kathi with a pepper to be pickled

What would make you want to care for another person? Love? A sense of responsibility? Cash? In reality, all  could be motivators, but in these times, the first two are stressed when the third, the cash, the resources, is lacking.

During  the COVID-19 pandemic I and many in like circumstance have been self-isolating to a greater extent than most by virtue of a since birth disability and comorbidities. I have no children to guilt trip into taking care of me should my ability to independently live go sideways. So far, so good.

Since I’ve always taken good care of myself because of my medical status, the immediate need for a stepped up level of assistance via the health care system isn’t warranted and may not be for at least another decade. Wishin’ and hopin’. My independent living, health and wellness is sustained as I’m not a victim of self-destructive lifestyle habits like smoking, drinking to excess, over-eating the ‘wrong’ foods. In fact, I make a point of cooking foods that will carry me from week to week, 3 meals a day. Lots of water.

Staying healthy also means being agreeable with other  people  anticipating that they will reciprocate. Don’t be too needy so as not to abuse assistance of friends and family who know that you are not always able to meet some of the demands of daily living. I can’t do ladders, so don’t ask me. But  I will ask you. If I do, I’ll pay you with a loaf of homemade bread and a few bucks.

Lots of folks are expanding their vegetable gardens as food supplies have been interrupted. With that comes community growth,  especially helpful in rural settings where  lots of ‘old school’ farmers and children and grandchildren of farmers still live with their own families. Many teaching opportunities are found in that rich soil.

My friend, Kathi Dunphy, former librarian in Stanley now living in St. Martins, told me that she had planned to downsize her garden this year. Instead, she’s doubled it with the help of neighbours with whom she and  her husband will share the harvest. According to Kathi, “there will be a lot of freezing/canning/ pickling ahead!”  Won’t you be my neighbour?

The COVID-19 pandemic has forever altered the financial health of many among us with lots of businesses not surviving; those who had a dream years ago, decades ago, saw it all disappear in a matter of months. Some may have had a sufficient financial cushion and a back-up plan that  will allow them crawl back up, to stand and march on. Others will need ongoing supports from government for months to come. Yet again, a call to explore the viability of universal basic income, if only in the short term.

Seniors who were planning to sell homes are no longer able to do that. Can they safely age in place? Will they need help to do that? A “what do I need?’ list is helpful with CHMC’s Residential Rehabilitation Program being a place to start discussions.

Staying engaged during times like these, particularly for those who were isolated before the pandemic visited their lives, is vital and letting people know you’re having struggles is important. They want to help. Not everyone has internet access, so it’s important for our governments to look at ways to broaden coverage and make costs accessible to all. For equal access of education of our children, technology must be more fully developed in rural settings and fee structures established that include those on the financial fringes.

As people begin establishing their own ‘new normal’ and redefine themselves with a new job, whether as part of a new team in a different career, or a dream fulfilled with brand new start, they can start standing securely on their own and lift themselves up, with an ability to lift another up. The building block effect has potential to reshape and solidify a new  economic landscape and all that underpins it, effectively redefining a community, especially for those who were previously struggling.

It’s important  during these unique days and months ahead that we be RESPECTFUL. Tossing used masks and gloves on our roadways, along with those empty coffee cups, food wrappers and other such waste is not only rude, it’s wrong! Our wildlife came out from their own confinement to enjoy their world free from human abuses to the environment; we need to remember that what’s outside our 4 walls is not our home and we have a duty to not abuse it. I’m sure you’ll agree and encourage those in your world to do the same.

  Safety is a mutual priority, folks.

Carla MacInnis Rockwell is a freelance writer and disability rights advocate living outside Fredericton, NB with her geriatric Australian silky terrier and a rambunctious Maltese. She can be reached via email at carmacrockwell@xplornet.ca

Silver Linings from the COVID Pandora’s Box

Photo: UNSPLASH

As the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic rages on, left in Pandora’s box after all the death and destruction, there is hope. Though many of us will think it pointless to hope for the best when things seem so bleak, what we can do is hope for ‘the better’. There is no doubt that this global event has brought forth our ‘better angels’, as we can now more clearly see life around us. The lives carrying on right under our own roofs; lives from which we got disconnected when work and the busy grind of the day to day took us away from family, from spouses/partners.

While there seems no escape from the pain and suffering, we find hope in the resilience of our children as they adapt to this new normal. A normal that finds them really getting to know their Mom and Dad, as they shelter and stay safe in place. Mom and Dad find hope in acknowledging that the shift in their circumstances has reshaped how they think. What used to be important, the ‘stuff’ of life, isn’t so much. They’re finding reinvigorated joy in the small things. the things that create memories.

Within each of us is the capacity to hope for better days though some may not be able to return to the job they once had, venturing out to find something different. Paying the bills is obviously the prime motivator, but finding ‘job joy’ is also important.  Perhaps people will explore self-employment drawn from a long abandoned hidden talent. Lots of bakers were born during the pandemic. So, too, many among us revisited hobbies of our youth. How many Van Goghs brushed off their smocks and berets? Maybe there are folks who got back into sewing, quilting, knitting and crocheting. Hand crafted smocks and berets could be big sellers. And then  there’s gardening - both vegetable and flowers. 

  Because of interruptions in food supply chains, there will be a need for fresh  fruit and produce. Might there be men and women  out there thinking bigger, with a resurgence in the age of the gentleman/woman farmer? Dairy farming. Beef cattle farming. Getting back to the basics of daily living. Up at dawn to do old fashioned chores, out in the barns. in the fields. Think of the possibilities. Might the COVID-19 pandemic have the silver lining that New Brunswick has been  looking for? Technology turned  us into emotionally isolated ME people, as we Facebooked, Snapchatted, Facetimed our way through our days. Self-isolation taught us a lot — mostly about ourselves and our need for that  people connection.

The hope left in Pandora’s box turned our attention to our children and what would become of their turned  upside down worlds, as many schools will be closed for the rest of the term, and those that will open in September will be changed — possibly for years to come. That, my friends, may not be a bad thing. Many parents are looking to the Little House on the Prairie schoolhouse days as a guide to educating children. What children learn and how they learn it doesn’t have to be tethered to technology, to high speed internet. COVID-19 family time found parents and grandparents revisiting their own distant past with the resurrection of board games, puzzles, story telling, reading. Cooking, baking, music and art appreciation can all be enjoyed as a family, all the while being teaching tools.

Speaking of Little House on the Prairie, I learned that a storyline from that series actually predicted what we are experiencing today. In 1975, Little House On The Prairie aired an episode called 'Plague', which sees Laura's father Charles Ingalls, played by Michael Landon, attempt to control a breakout of typhus in Walnut Grove, Minnesota.   Charles is left isolated as he doesn't want to spread  disease; he turns the local church into a hospital to look after those infected.  In a 1977 episode, ’Quarantine', the whole town goes into lockdown after there is an outbreak of mountain fever.  Earning power/bartering came to a  standstill.

Today, we have different ways of earning an income, of providing for our family, but all of that came to a screeching halt and we were actually thrust into a pared down life, a simpler life. I suspect there will be many who say they’re enjoying the slower pace in spite of the impact not working is taking on their bank accounts. There will be so many who are not financially equipped to function without a sustained source of income -  enough to cover ‘necessities of life’  would be the ideal for the disenfranchised and struggling.

A universal basic income, even in the short term will brighten the light on hope, so that people can make new plans, or tweak the old ones. While our federal and provincial governments strategize, we all know one thing   — how we educate children could benefit from the ‘old ways’ more than we realize.

Carla MacInnis Rockwell is a freelance writer and disability rights advocate living outside Fredericton, NB with her geriatric Australian silky terrier and a rambunctious Maltese. She can be reached via email at carmacrockwell@xplornt.ca

The COVID-19 pandemic blew the lid off Pandora’s box

The COVID-19 pandemic is not going away any time soon so people need to accept this new reality if we are to overcome and get on with things. The co-operation of every single one of us is critical to that end.

What the pandemic has done is blow the lid off Pandora’s box with evidence of all manner of inequalities spilling out; front and center are the deficiencies in the lives of our children — they are our future, right? Why are we not doing more to ensure that they get the future they deserve — the kind the ‘haves’ don’t worry about too much because they’re already on track to a life that won’t experience a lot of worry about where the next meal is coming from, can Mom pay the rent this month? or will Dad still have a job in the fall?  Children in financial crisis, because their family lives on the edge day in and day out, worry about things young people should not have worry about.

My brain is boggled. Yes, it is! I just cannot understand how so many people are stuck on the notion that a universal basic income is  tantamount to paying people to do nothing. How very wrong they are.  Frankly,  it’s an insult to those who, very often through circumstances out of their control, have lived on the financial edge for years; for decades. You’ve heard the  statement — most people don’t have $400 to cover an emergency.

The single mother working two minimum wage jobs trying to keep a roof over her head and food on the table for herself and 4 kids is the one working for nothing, if we define working primarily in dollars and cents. Stop and think  about that. After all the costs of necessities of life are met there is very little left over for even one of the things most of us take for granted. Her 4 children are missing out on lots of experiences and tools that could enhance the quality of, for example, their learning life. How many children in this province do not have access to the internet let alone a computer, laptop or tablet? The call for organizing distance learning so children can keep up during the COVID-19 pandemic effectively shuts out huge chunks of our population - not just in this province, but across the country. 

We’re too quick to make the bold statement that  women (and men) who don’t work outside the home to earn money are not working, are lay-abouts, are milking the system, are abusing resources that they  don’t deserve to access. That self-entitled attitude espoused by those who already ‘have’ is insulting on so many levels. It’s got to change if we have any hope of coming out the other side of this hellish nightmare with our souls and sanity intact. All of us are in this together. Let’s not forget that now, and let’s not forget it when some semblance of normal starts to return to our world.

Our  current social assistance programs essentially put recipients into a forced/government state of poverty out  of which there seems to be no climbing. There’s no incentive to rise above when even basic needs are not met on a consistent basis, with the underpinnings of stress and fear driving every move.  No way to live, it’s not surprising that people living in poverty are sick, physically, emotionally and spiritually.

During the weeks of  being tossed and tumbled in the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown, there have been lots of kitchen table discussions about guaranteed basic income also known as universal basic income. More and more people are coming to the conclusion that it may be the most efficient/effective way to assist those who are trapped in poverty and living on the fringes. Fortifying their financial base will improve health and wellness which will reduce stress on the health care system. 

Based on a 2018 study, providing a nationwide safety net for low-income Canadians in the form of a guaranteed basic income would cost roughly $43 billion a year, a report from Parliament’s fiscal watchdog suggested.  “The guaranteed income for disability would range between $3.2 billion and $3.5 billion.”

The school closures across the country  very clearly illustrates huge gaps between the haves and have nots as breakfast programs, school lunch programs, after school programs, designed to offer relief to families of limited means, were stopped. As best as they could corporations, local businesses and community groups came together to ensure that children didn’t go hungry, while they, too, are struggling to make family and business ends meet. Some will not be successful. That’s the reality of what COVID-19 has  done to our world, our lives, our sense of self.

In the coming weeks, perhaps representatives of the various branches of government will do the math on universal basic income and say YES to success.

Carla MacInnis Rockwell is a freelance writer and disability rights advocate living outside Fredericton, NB with her geriatric Australian silky terrier and a rambunctious Maltese. She can be reached via email at carmacrockwell@xplornet.ca

COVID-19 pandemic shines a light on medical ethics

John Wood, Order of New Brunswick recipient lives With Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy 

(Photo: Savannah Awde/Legislature Bureau]

Persons with disability across the globe have been keeping an eye on trends in various countries with regard to how clinicians on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic are treating, or in some cases, not treating persons with pre-existing disabilities that may impact survival.

Has this pandemic brought us to the point where a doctor might decide which life is more worth saving if one becomes infected with COVID-19? 

There’ve been various reports on social media that people with learning disability and older people with various comorbidities are having DNR orders applied to them with little discussion with family or other designated caregivers. Various reports out of Ontario and one document in particular, The Clinical Triage Protocol for Major Surge in COVID Pandemic, are disturbing at best. 

Robert Lattanzio, executive director of Ontario’s ARCH Disability Law Centre, a specialty legal clinic that practices exclusively in disability rights law, said the document provides three levels of triage for health-care providers based on demand and resources. Using the “frailty scale,” the framework doesn’t just look at who would benefit most from the care, but also calls on health professionals to consider factors like the quality of life of those with a disability, he said. “That is where we cross a line that we cannot cross,” he said.

How at risk of not receiving timely treatment are persons in nursing homes, group homes, independent living residences? Are GPs conferring with patients and encouraging the signing of DNR orders for those who are at greater risk of complications and death? I am inclined to think not.  

In fact, any anxieties I might have had have been assuaged, as Premier Blaine Higgs has assured citizens of New Brunswick that persons with disability will receive the same level of care as all others  with regard to treatment should they contract the COVID-19 virus. That is absolutely as it should be.

Will the COVID-19 pandemic bring about or force changes in attitudes as to how persons with disability, the frail and the elderly are treated? I certainly hope there are huge changes that will improve their lot in life. What I’d also like to see is universal basic income. Let’s just get that done. In other countries, it’s already been shown to break into the poverty cycle by allowing the poor and the working poor to accumulate a float/savings to support costs of improvements to quality of life and improved health.

In staying home, we are protecting others, notably the health and wellness of doctors and nurses who put their own lives on the line treating COVID-19 patients. The quality of the life of persons with disability is front and center as the health care community is focused on treating those infected with COVID-13. Many clinicians often have a years long relationship with patients who live with cerebral palsy, spina bifida, MS, MD, Parkinson’s, dementia and so on; they’ll be doing all that they can do to ensure quality care.

Recently, I received a letter from the Vice-President of our Extra Mural Program which outlines their protocols when making home visits. In the event that testing is required, the visiting clinician will arrange it. Since my last visits from Extra-Mural were rehabilitative in nature, I will not be requiring a consult as I have no active medical complaint that would require attention. I’m gratified to know that they are out there caring for patients during these challenging times.

As the days and weeks have passed during my confinement, I am really doing nothing differently than I had done before. Now, as then, my goal is to keep myself healthy by staying well hydrated and eating well. Given that there’s not been and will not be a lot of people traffic in my home, I am confident that my environment is safe.

It’s not likely that I will find myself in a position that so many persons with disability find concerning   — the ‘what if’ question that the pandemic poses with regard to treatment  should they become ill. Thankfully, we have the Human Rights Act that protects us broadly. Will it be taken narrowly in these times to ensure that, for example, the vent dependent, spastic quadriplegic child who presents with  a few symptoms of COVID-19 will receive the same level of care that a 12 year old non-disabled presenting with those same symptoms receives? Our Premier has ensured that it will. Persons with disability have nothing to fear.

Human rights, set down internationally, and put into our domestic law through the Human Rights Act, belong to every single person in the Canada, whether they have disabilities or not, whether they fall into COVID-19 vulnerability or not.

Such legal standards and protections will make it easier for medical care providers to do what they know they need to do. That being so, I am confident that families who are concerned about whether their relative with pre-existing, life altering disability can relax. Their loved one’s care will be equal access.  Sit. Stay. Safe.

Carla MacInnis Rockwell is a freelance writer and disability rights advocate living outside Fredericton, NB with her geriatric Australian silky terrier and a rambunctious Maltese. She can be reached via email at carmacrockwell@xplornet.ca

Confinement during COVID-19

From the Chez Rockwell Kitchen: Cream of Asparagus with Salmon Soup

with Toasted Herb Bread
(recipes available upon request)

A recent email from the Iowa cousin: “You have years of experience in self isolation. I consider you somewhat of an expert in this area. Have you considered writing an article instructing newbies the best procedures to follow? With so many world wide now requested to self isolate, you could be a very valuable guide for their safe  survival.”

Wow! It’s official I’m an expert on the hermit life! Who woulda thunk that my bulk buying, bulk baking and cooking would come in so handy and actually be quite necessary tools to my continued health and wellness during these past weeks and going forward.

  No, I don’t have a stockpile of toilet paper in the spare bedroom, so don’t even bother thinking about showing up at my door with your hand out! What you can do, though, if you do go out and about from time to time, is to check on neighbours. Most city dwellers have a mailbox beside their front door, so leave a note, offering to collect a few essentials if they need them. It’s a great way to get to know those who have been isolated for years and you never knew. 

Prior to these very serious and yes, deadly times, I didn’t ‘self-isolate’ in any real sense that suggests I am a hermit. Admittedly, I do enjoy being alone but I also enjoy being out and about. Alas, I don’t drive and after the death of my husband in 2007, I relied upon the generosity of neighbours to include me on outings to the city when their own schedules allowed. Sometimes, a few neighbours would actually make themselves available to take me to Fredericton to pick up groceries at Victory; groceries that were waiting for me because, for years, the kind staff there have done my shopping based on an email I would send them a few days before I showed up at the market. I cannot thank them enough for their generosity. No doubt you’ve read about their expanded services during COVID-19. They are owed a huge thank-you, people! They’re making the lives of seniors and shut-ins so much safer. 

I’m glad my bulk shopping has not been a problem for one friend who has been amazingly support of my needs. Sometimes, the dogs are with us, crated, to be dropped off at the groomer — on those occasions, I can’t get a lot of groceries. My current wheelchair won’t fit in the back seat as my old one did. Accommodating my needs within the parameters of my disability poses some challenges particularly as my friend is older than I and I cannot help her get the chair in the trunk; I feel like such a slug at time, but she reassures me that she’s happy to help. Before we left the city, we’d swing by Victory to grab the grub and hit the road to booniesville. For now those outings are on hold.

For those with children who are singing that ‘I’m bored, Mom’ song, consider turning this isolation time into something like the Olympic Games. Organize the days based on things each person in the home is good at and enjoys doing so that everyone will have his/her day. Hold a competition to see who’s prepared the best dinner meal. For younger children, turn baking and cooking into a reading and math lesson. Yes, it’s do-able with a bit of creativity. I’ve come across many articles about folks actually embracing home baking and cooking. What is sort of sad really is the number of young adults who actually don’t know how to cook. It wasn’t  part of their growing up the same as it was for me and others of my generation. Now is their time to shine, learning how to make an exquisite braided bread, baked to perfection. Hey, that’s an idea. Home made pizzas with a medal awarded for the most creative. Pizza dough is really easy to make and is weird topping friendly. Get in touch and I’ll give you my favourite dough recipe.

Try to keep to a routine of personal care and go with 3 different sets of PJs - your work at home jam-jams, a  pair for when you’re curled up on the couch binge watching favourite shows, and the ever popular ‘I’m stylin’ in my dinner at the table jammies’. Don’t become a total slob. That’s so unbecoming.

Remember! If you don’t HAVE to go out, STAY IN. Lives depend on the co-operation of EVERYONE during these trying times. Binge watch BritDrams; Darling Buds of May and Rosemary and Thyme are very good.

Take care and be well, all.

Carla MacInnis Rockwell is a freelance writer and disability rights advocate living outside Fredericton, NB with her geriatric Australian silky terrier and a rambunctious Maltese. She can be reached via email at camacrockwell@xplornet.ca