Like it is for most people, the lock down is unnerving for our family. The only reason I have left the property since this all started has been to walk the dogs. But even walking the dogs is strange…I wave to the neighbors…but none of us get close enough to chat. It has been going on for almost a month now…it still doesn’t feel real…its like one big bad dream.
Every day that the sun shines the girls and I go “hunting for beauty” on our walks…and there is plenty of it in Spring time in Kentucky. Spring flowers and the flowering trees are every where. I never get tired of the magic that dirt and sun make all around us.
There are only a few things that seem to bring any feeling of normalcy to our days right now…nature, the daily routine that dogs demand and keeping busy around the house in my shops.
I have a new appreciation for how much the Misfits force my days to be normal. Even though there is little work…there is no where to go…seems like there is no reason to get out my jammies some days…the Misfits are up every single morning at 6 a.m without fail. They are ready to go. They want some breakfast. They want to play and go for walks…they want their yard time. Rosie needs daily swim therapy. Most of my girls need daily laser therapy. Half of the crew needs daily meds. Every thing we do for them has become the benchmark for the passing hours and days.
For some people this quarantine just means staying at home and not going crazy from boredom. For others, like us, it has been that but also watching our businesses dissolve in front of us with little to nothing we can do to save them. It is an unwelcome reminder of just how fragile any sense of “security” we might have is. The American Dream now feels more like the American Nightmare. If anyone would have told me the business I worked my butt off building the last 6 years was going to vaporize in a matter of days….I never would have believed them. I was not expecting to have to pivot and re-invent at this age..but here I am doing just that.
The last month I honestly think I have been in some sort of shock…so stunned I haven’t been able to really process everything that has happened. I have been angry in a way I have never been before. I have broke down and cried more times than I ever have in my life. It feels like a deep wave of grief…and rot in my stomach. The last few days it seems like the fog is lifting, reality is setting in and my energy is returning. Now I just have to figure out what is next. My vacation rental business is going to close, that is without question. Until the last few days I have not even been able to think about what could possibly come next…how do I salvage anything out of this. But now the ideas are percolating. And thank goodness for the Misfits who lift our spirits and make us feel needed and important and remind me daily that there is still so much to be joyful about.
So many of my friends are like us, self employed/business owners, watching big parts of our lives burn down. Those same people also seem to be the most generous and thoughtful. My shops and art commissions have experienced a really nice uptick the last few weeks..most of it coming from people who are also being pinched by this mess. The irony of who shows up to help others…not lost on me.
For now, I am working my a** off painting and adding new pawty items to my stores. It does seem that people are passing the boredom of quarantine by having pawties with their dogs…how awesome is that! When the news broke earlier in winter about how this virus was affecting the people in China I ordered a ton of supplies to build my inventory in case some of my suppliers shut down for awhile or there were long shipping delays…didn’t ever imagine what we are experiencing now of course…but thank goodness I have what I need to keep my shops running for now. Little blessings every where.
I hope you are healthy and finding as much joy as possible during this strange time.
Nancy & The Misfits
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I ordered a special card from Nancy, the card was so beautiful . My friend whom received the card loved it and was so happy . Nancy also mailed it for me , which i found to be such a big help. I give a 5 star
thanks again,
sandra