This is being written later than usual because my day is all wonky. Today is the first day of working from home for me due to the university administration’s reaction to #covid19, so while I got to sleep in a bit it also threw my whole morning routine into chaos.
I do not function well in chaos.
Still and all, Keely and I were out for our walk a little after 6 am, which for us is usually our weekend schedule. The thing is, on the weekends, traffic is thin at that hour, as thin as it is at 5 am on a weekday.
And no, it was not as busy as it usually is, I suppose, but it was busier than we are used to. Even with social distancing going on, plenty of people are out and about, clogging up the roadways. Since it was effectively still night time with another hour until dawn, it meant that everything was a bit brighter than usual — car headlights serving to fill in all the dark places where shadows usually hide.
And louder, given that our Lake Ella route takes us up Monroe St. to the park, where all the cars are zipping by.
(Plenty of bottled water still at the Circle K, by the way.)
I was already distracted though, thinking about the upcoming changes due to working from home, so I was dragging Keely more than walking her. Not paying attention. Unable to focus on an audio book or podcast, even; instead, just zoning out to music. Honestly the changes are not extreme for me, as my job is mostly being a desk jockey and I can do that at home as easily as in an office, but I do like my routines.
We talk about this during hurricanes, how everyone feels discombobulated even when nothing is (as yet) happening. Hurricane Time is a real thing, were you sit around waiting, bored senseless, and normal expectations are all suspended in the air like humidity.
But this is even weirder, where life ostensibly goes on “as normal” even when there is little normal about it.
The value of the morning walks is that they are, at whatever time Keely and I get to them, a familiar zone of normalcy for me. I can zone out as I always do, going for the walk we always go on, with Keely by my side being fussy and annoyed with me as always.