Life after Project Quilting- Think Big

Social Distancing

   I sit at home, day after day, listening to the news from New York which is so far away from my location. I hear it's bad there and here cases are slowly creeping up, one here and there in towns nearby and finally, one in our county. I'm trying to do my best by staying home and keeping away from anyone but my husband and son. 

  All three of us are out of work and have applied for unemployment. For many people who are trying to navigate unemployment for the first time, it's maddening. There is a disconnect between what the news is saying is coming and reality. No money is coming. We are all just waiting through the filing week, the waiting week, the week we should be getting money (but it could be 10 days?) and none of it shows the increased amount the congress spoke about. No big cash amount, no unemployment and no paychecks. None of it reflects the years of loyalty to a company and how often the job came first. It's been shockingly easy for employers to just drop you to save themselves. The lifeline for small businesses is just as chaotic and will be weeks before it all shakes out, if ever. The wheels are turning very slowly, folks. 

  Our state hasn't even declared a state-wide emergency, despite a marked increase in cases. While my family is  social distancing, we do have to shop occasionally and no one is distancing themselves there. I don't feel like enough people are taking it seriously and ever time we go out to shop, we are in danger. 

 

I have been trying to keep myself occupied with quilting. I have been making one small house block a day. My husband likens it to a prisoner making hash marks on the wall. He's not wrong. It's a diary entry of sorts. 

I've been finishing some ongoing quilts and quilt tops. Finished the Cherrywood Challenge, finished a quilt about bees. I made this one for the challenge, "Big". I do not have any batting or backing fabrics, nor do I have a longarm, so I'm not in a position to finish this one.  Even though the "rules" are to finish it, that's my concession to the Social distancing of the moment. This was a layer cake I won last year from PQ. I added a lot of white (and a few darker pieces) to make it more modern, which is not the sort of quilting I normally do. 

I just don't feel up to my normal quilting. Mindlessly sewing pieces is the best I can do right now. I'm just trying to keep going without adding to my husband's feelings and I'm sure he's doing the same for me. 

 I've been trying to just keep busy and upbeat, but it's getting harder. Be well, people.