Reading Material

A few months ago I decided to subscribe to some magazines to provide reading material during the winter and the pandemic. Something to look forward to. I had a free offer for Southern Living (can't remember how that came about) and a $6 offer for Midwest Living. They finally sent me some issues to peruse.

The Midwest Living came with some recipe booklets. I doubt I will find much of interest to me. I don't try new recipes very often anymore. I have yet to look them over, however.

 After a rainy night, we have lots of sunshine this afternoon. I plan to do online grocery shopping with pickup tomorrow or Friday since I still have some cold symptoms. I saw in the Fort Wayne newspaper that Meijer is going to be offering free pickup during the holidays with a $50 purchase. It says no membership required. I may look that over in November/December since they have non-food items that might make good gifts. I will need to see if those type of items can be included.

Negative

 My husband and I tested negative for corona virus. That's a relief. We can get back to normal activities.

I still have sniffles and a sore throat, but I guess it is a cold. Hopefully I will be well by the end of the week. I will remain home until my symptoms are gone. 

I am glad that getting tested was fairly easy, and the results came quickly. The uncertainty one has during this pandemic if colds or allergies mimic symptoms was alleviated.

I may not be as enthusiastic about eating in restaurants though. With that exception, we were doing a good job of protecting ourselves via handwashing/sanitizer, wearing masks, and staying away from large groups.

Keep safe.

Operation Christmas Child 2020

 I chose this year to build a box online for Operation Christmas Child. It was easier than going to stores to find items. It was not as satisfying though.

Grace Village collects items all year long to fill boxes in November before the deadline. I could have participated in that. They always choose a younger age group. I could have helped fill the boxes, but right now I am not allowed inside the main building. There are at least two positive COVID cases in independent living now.

Since I am not attending my church in person, I would have had to find a way to deliver a finished box. It was just simpler to go the online route.

I do wonder how they will get permission to deliver boxes during the pandemic. They do try to use local Christians and organizations, however.

COVID Test

 It has been quite a stressful week. Friday morning we received notice from Grace Village that the main campus building is closed to visitors (including the condo residents), the dining room is closed (meals will be delivered to apartments or condo residents can order by phone and pick up at kitchen backdoor), and all group activities have been stopped. I had been concerned about being involved in choir; that decision doesn't need to be made for next week anyway. All of the above is until the 21st when things will be re-evaluated. 

Thursday afternoon I heard from my sister-in-law who is in chime choir that the vocal choir director who also plays chimes received a phone call during chime practice from her son. He has tested positive for COVID. She immediately left to start quarantining in her apartment. She never wears a mask. Not only had I seen her Tuesday at choir practice, but as she was out walking Sunday, she rang my doorbell and wanted to visit. I thank the Lord that I had the presence of mind to have us sit outside on my porch. She has no symptoms so far.

When I returned from grocery shopping yesterday afternoon I found a note from my husband. He had gone with his sister to pick up her repaired computer. A man that he had breakfasted with Tuesday in the Grace Village dining room was in the hospital with COVID.

To add to my anxiety, Friday morning I started having sniffles. By the afternoon I had a swollen gland in my neck. It might have been allergies, but it felt more like a cold. I had no fever.

God is so gracious. We have two testing sites in our county but they require a doctor's referral and an appointment. On Wednesday a new testing site opened up. It is drive-thru and free. We arrived there this morning with nobody else in line. They are a little slow because they are still learning the procedures. The registration clerk said the swab test would be uncomfortable but not painful. The tester was very good about telling me to breathe deeply thru my mouth and close my eyes. But it did hurt at the end when she "swirled" it around as she described it. It made my eyes water. It was over quickly thankfully. I should have the results in 3-5 days via email. I do feel slightly unwell today. I hope it is just a cold.