It’s taken me a while to write anything lately because it feels like everyone has already been saying plenty about that thing.
It’s been rattling, to say the least, to watch how COVID-19 has unfolded and changed things so quickly. It’s easy to do down a deep black hole of depression about all the things that have gone screwy. It’s easy to worry about the things you care about, whether that be your family, your favorite local restaurant, the NBA, or your job, and feel unlucky that this is all happening right now.
But as much as I have been affected through things like work, it’s also been helpful to count the reasons I’m lucky. I’m lucky I moved to Denver with Chris when I did, or we’d be stuck doing distance for another million weeks. I’m lucky I am physically able and can go on runs and keep up my body strength for when I can get back to the circus studio. It’s hard to feel bummed about the postponed baseball season when I remind myself I’m lucky to have an apartment at Coors Field in the first place, and that it will still be there when this is over. Ski season is canceled, but I’d already gone 25 times anyways. I have a dishwasher, which is pretty cool.
I know they always say to count your blessings, but this is actually the time to do it. Pick a few good things in your life right now and focus on that. Caffeine, for example. I am thankful for caffeine. At the same time, let yourself be upset. Pretty much anything you’re feeling is totally valid. But hopefully, feeling lucky can help you weather the storm a bit better.
Sharing a few more things that have been helping me below.
Tips for dealing with long distance, from being in a long-distance relationship for over a year:
Everyone has long-distance relationships now! Welcome to the club.
Use Netflix Party to watch episodes in sync.
When you talk on the phone, put each other on speaker and just sit there and hang out. Don’t feel like you need to talk the whole time. You can literally both be sitting there doing other things for hours, and just feeling like you’re in each other’s presence is enough.
Play games like Words With Friends. It doesn’t even have to be a multi-player game — Chris and I compete on who gets the fastest time solving the daily puzzle on the NYT Crossword app. A little competition never hurt.
Share things you’re reading, listening to, etc. If you share the same experiences you have something in common and it feels like you’re still experiencing it together. Examples: Bad Blood (my favorite conversation topic…I will talk to anyone about Elizabeth Holmes), Tiger King (as I’m sure you’ve already seen).
Try to talk about things other than “This sucks.” It does suck. It also sucks when all you talk about is things sucking, so move on and shift your attention over to Elizabeth Holmes.
Introducing a New Special Segment of This Newsletter Called “Pantry Meal Ideas”
Recipes that use ingredients you already have on hand, and things that are still in stock at the grocery store. Like tortillas. How are tortillas still there?
It seems my college cooking skills are back in demand, so you’re welcome. Before we get started, a few basic quarantine shopping techniques:
Get produce that lasts a while and goes well with a lot of things: Onions, potatoes, garlic, etc.
Hit up the spice section. Spices can add a lot to really basic things like canned soup, ramen and frozen meat.
Buy grains and freeze them. We have entire loaves of bread, tortillas and burger buns frozen and ready to go.
Don’t shy away from alternatives like veggie pasta noodles (we found chickpea penne and edamame spaghetti). It might be the only thing left and honestly would be better for you anyways.
Go for the meat and seafood, like shrimp, cod, turkey and sausages. It was surprising to see how much of this was left.
Butter, cheese, olive oil and eggs are the things you should buy more of in bulk. Get a giant block of Cheddar and a giant block of Parmesan.
Some of the things we’ve been making:
Shrimp quesadillas: Frozen shrimp, tortillas, cheese.
Shrimp scampi: Frozen shrimp, Parmesan cheese, butter, garlic, red pepper flakes, linguine pasta (or whatever pasta you could find).
Fish tacos: Frozen cod, tortillas, rice. Alternatively: Buy the pre-made taco platter at Costco and you won’t regret it.
Nachos: Tortilla chips, refried beans, cheese, sour cream, salsa, canned olives. You know the drill.
Gourmet mac ‘n cheese: If you have Kraft mac ‘n cheese, good job beating the crowd. Make it as usual, then add bread crumbs, frozen peas and extra shredded/grated cheese. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes at 400 degrees.
Gourmet ramen: This is one of those things we stocked up on before we even found out the world was ending. Make Top Ramen as usual. Add sesame oil, soy sauce, frozen peas, peanut butter, eggs and sriracha — whatever you’ve got.
Gourmet popcorn: Same concept as the mac ‘n cheese and ramen, just add shit from your cabinet and you’ll be good. Chris and I have tried: Paprika, French fry seasoning, cayenne pepper, chocolate (not all at once).
Grilled cheese and tomato soup: Frozen bread, cheese, butter. When you make the soup, add spices like basil and thyme to make it appear like it wasn’t out of a can.
Kabobs: For some reason no one went for the kabob meat at the store. Here’s what you do: Buy kabob meat, onions, mushrooms and bell peppers (all of those things should still be in stock). Make a marinade using basics like Dijon mustard, olive oil, garlic, pepper, Worcestershire sauce, balsamic vinegar, honey. Chop everything into bite-size pieces and marinate the pieces for as long as you can. Stick everything on skewers and use the grill at the apartment complex, which was still open until a week ago.
Ribs: Ribs were also still available! Don’t be intimidated by the prospect of making ribs. Put on a good rub and throw them in the oven all day. Perfect for when you’re sitting in the house all day anyways.
Turkey tetrazzini: Frozen turkey, peas, garlic, pasta, chicken broth, white wine (I know you have wine), bread crumbs, Parmesan.
Portabello mushroom burgers: Bake portabello mushrooms in the oven. Grill some onions. Add avocado if you have it. Warm up some frozen burger buns and make sweet potato fries with it if you’re feeling fancy / have an air fryer.
DoorDash: We keep getting coupons in the mail and also want to support local restaurants, so there’s always delivery.
New hobbies I’ve acquired:
Apparently my hobbies Before This Thing Started included going out to restaurants and going out to breweries and going out to bars, so I have recently taken up new hobbies. Also, Chris and I were baking bread before it was cool.
Roller coaster design: Okay, so I downloaded Roller Coaster Tycoon. Whatever. It’s a creative challenge.
Playing crappy covers of 80’s songs on the keyboard: Somehow I had a piano in my house and Elton John didn’t? Anyways, I’m learning piano and putting my skills to the test with Take On Me. Chris is learning lyrics so that we can form a crappy cover band. Will livestream our first show on Instagram eventually.
Attending concert livestreams: If you missed the iHeart Living Room concert on Sunday night, go watch that now and be jealous of everyone’s pools.
Journaling: Fine, fine, I’ll journal. It’s nice to brain dump for five minutes a day anyways. Trying to do 30 days of it and we’ll see how much longer this quarantine thing goes for.
Soapmaking: Not a hobby for me yet but seems useful right now? Chris isn’t sold. Might still order a soap kit off Etsy and see what happens.
Hop take: Beer of the week
Busch Light, because that is what Chris stocked up on.
Thanks for continuing to read my newsletter, and I hope this gave you somewhat of a bright spot during a tough week. Everything sucks. Also, everything doesn’t suck. Does that make any sense? Find the non-suck in our world of suck and we’ll get through this.
Also, here to talk if you need a person to talk to. I’ve got no plans other than virtual happy hours.
XO,
Alex