Category: Isolation Diary

Isolation Diary: The life ahead of me. Taking into consideration my age…let’s just say over 65….by some….when can I expect to comfortably share a lunch or dinner in a restaurant? Never? Maybe not. Or never meet a new person? I am chatting with a friend in a bar (The Plunge) and I am introduced to a new person and we have an interesting encounter. Or…..hey, what about the Running Charades parties we had, often including some new players, no more of those? I did not lead a madcap life but now it sort of seems that way. Now that I hardly go anywhere. See only my family in person and one careful couple. Aaaaarrrrggghhhh! My cry of sadness and frustration.

I did eat at a restaurant over a year after this post, to celebrate Duncan’s 12th birthday on August 1, 2021. We were separated from other diners, all the staff wearing masks. I still wasn’t completely comfortable but no harm came to any of us.

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Carl G.
I share your pain… how long, oh Lord, how long? But I do enjoy reading your journal. Don’t stop!

Julie C.
I miss dancing with people the most. I didn’t really do it that much. But I’m going to start.

Laura E.F.
Right there with you Ruth. People are the BEST. I just keep tuning in to Fauci and hoping for a vaccine.. and can’t wait to play Running Charades!

Ruth Silveira
Running Charades is a great game!

Heatherlynn N.G.
I miss hugs.

Ruth Silveira
Yes!

Matt A.
We’ll know we’re through it when we’re back to running charades.

Kathi C.
I miss seeing people, hugs, in person conversations, not feeling fear every time I shop. I don’t think we are meant to be alone like this. I haven’t had human contact in person since March. My friend dropped groceries by once and I was elated seeing her through my fence. This isolation is really wearing on me.

Ruth Silveira
We aren’t meant to be alone like this, you are right.

Isolation Diary: The news and the FB posts have reached a level that leaves little room for satire. In 5 years (I first typed 10, but I don’t think it will take that long) simple re-enactments of Trump tweets will provoke hilarity. 5 years, assuming we are rid of Trump next January and because the pendulum will not be wrenched back to the other side after 4 years. So, as jokes are at present too painful, on a more personal note: Something I did because I have time on my hands. Several years ago…maybe 3…who knows now?….probably 4…an opossum died in my garage. I recall seeing an injured opossum in my yard and then, maybe a year later, saw the carcass of an opossum behind seldom used tools in my garage. Oooh, interesting, I thought. An opossum skeleton is hard to come by. But it wasn’t really a skeleton, yet, and I did nothing. Until I was trapped in this house. And one day…why that day?…I gathered up that carcass, now sort of fallen apart, and so dirty, bones still covered in some leathered skin, the teeth showing perfectly. Yesterday I tried to clean the remains. Just in water. I don’t know how to manage this! I’ve got a curled tail. An eyeless head. Some paws. Is this weird? Hey, I have a 10 year old grandson, almost 11, he might like this ! There is a spine, some skin….. Hey, I’m fine, really, no worries…………

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Jeremy A.
Sounds pretty cool to me…

DeAnne M.
You’re brave!!

Carl G.
A little dedicated googling should show you some taxidermy techniques for getting a clean skeleton… quite an art project!

Claudette W.
I say…why not? Sounds interesting. I’d be too creeped out to touch it, I think. Your grandson will most likely love it.

Christie M.
Boil the bones and the stuff will just fall away, I bet. Do you have a large kettle? Is it in one piece? Pictures when it’s done please!

Susan J.
Um…I’m in the “cause for worry”camp.
Actually, it seems to me that you’ve just taken the next step up from all those jigsaw puzzles.

Ruth Silveira
Actually, I haven’t laid out a single puzzle although I have two in the queue. To accommodate my desire to put things together I’ve been sewing. No cause for worry.

Susan J.
Ruth Silveira Whew!

Nick U.
When I was a little kid. I had an uncle who was a keeper at the London Zoo. He taught me to take dead animals and bury them in the ground for six months. Then when we’d dig them up, only the skeleton would be left. Ah those were the happy days.

Richard L.
Ruth The daily news right now is just too raw and sad and after several times around the track it seems satire doesn’t have the power of shame that it’s supposed to. Maybe the shameless are incapable of being affected anyway. And laughing just seems cruel.
I well remember at the height of the Vietnam War a Michael O’Donoghue piece in the Lampoon called “The Vietnamese Baby Book.” It was stunning, on point, vicious and dumped the horror right in the homes of comfortable Americans. Probably didn’t move the needle at all.
And I certainly agree..why write anyway when you have Trump doing it for you?

Ruth Silveira
Yeah. I’m imagining us in 5 years, having weathered this disaster, finally being able to just giggle at the absurdity of the whole thing. Yes, jokes can be made now, cartoons, but the response, in my case anyway, is maybe a painful forced chuckle, not real laughter.

Carol A.
I sense the beginnings of a screenplay here. Woman living alone begins to find “things “ buried in her garden……

Ruth Silveira
I like it!

Mandi M.H.
I think you’re badass for wanting to save those opossum parts. I think you have to boil them. I have some friends who know about these things, I can ask if you want.

Ruth Silveira
please do!

Tegan A.C.
What an amazing opportunity. Ruth, please research this and take safety precautious, even after all this time, to avoid bacteria and disease. If it’s decomposed this far you can probably move onto maceration before cleaning with hydrogen peroxide. If cartilage remains, then filing/picking/sanding. Finally cover it all in sea salt or borax until completely dried.
Bleach will turn the bones to powder. Boiling will weaken them, I’ve been told, but again research!

Maggie M.
Mother. Let this possum go! Its horrifying!

Maggie M.
We all know she’s gonna do whatever it is she’s gonna do.

Jeff W.
Beginning to have some concerns…

Ruth Silveira
Previous encounters with opossums: One died tucked into our foundation, smelled terrible. I had to crawl under the house, quite a ways, with a flashlight, a garbage bag, gloves, and I must have had something to grab it with. Then there was the time that Captain (our dog) brought an opossum into the house, at least I think that’s what must have happened because there it was curled up on a shelf of the TV stand. And when they play dead, they do it extremely well. One of us, me, Richard, I don’t recall, with sticks and a broom, maneuvered this dead possum out of the front door, down the front steps, and left it lying on the path to the front door. Dead. Except that 15 minutes later it got up and walked away.

Ruth Silveira
And besides…..what’s the matter with bones? Ever broken a wishbone with someone? Relished a chicken leg?

Jeff W.
I see now that you have a history with these creatures.

Mandi M.H.
Ruth, I adore you so much

John A.
Satire goes in waves; when things are in crisis, that form fades while people cope, then it always manages to slip back in as time and distance progress further along… as for the bones, well to quote WC Fields, probably “very fine with mustard!”

Jeff W.
“Alas, poor O’Possum — I knew him well, Horatio.”

Terry W.
Uh, you do have a trash receptacle, right?

Rick C.
make soup……

Ruth Silveira
Eeeeuwwww.

Isolation Diary: I am going to try to ignore a lot of what I read on FB tonight (spending much too much time) and remember the fun I had today playing Dungeons and Dragons with Jessie, Duncan, and Maggie, then eating cake, then watching Fig, now walking, trundle proudly back and forth and back and forth.

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Allison F.S.
I’d love to know more about your D&D character!!

Ruth Silveira
We are playing the starter game as I was a complete newby and Jessie and Duncan had only a slight introduction to the game. This starter game provides the characters, 5 or 6, but we are a band of only 3 adventurers. I chose to be a Human Fighter, pretty straight forward, no spells to learn, thought it good for my first time. I decided to be a woman disguised as a man. Name is Corin or Corinne Fletcher depending on how I am presenting myself. (So far there has been no reason to dress as a woman) I kept this a secret from my fellow adventurers until just recently. I told my secret only after the Rogue in our company (a Halfling embodied by Duncan, age 10 almost 11) told me an important secret. Didn’t know if I could trust him until then. My specialty is the longbow, hence the name ‘Fletcher’. Also, I sold the great sword I was provided with because I considered it too heavy and I replaced it with a rapier. I also sometimes fight with a slightly magical longsword. Sometimes with a shield. My gender was nearly discovered by accident when I ripped up my shirt to make a bandage for my fallen companion, Thorgrum the Dwarf Cleric. I tore a bit too much off my shirt and revealed my chest bindings. Thorgrum was concerned about my disfigurement and tried to heal me. We determined that this condition must have been because of the volcanic eruption that destroyed Thundertree where my family was living when I was just a baby. Only recently have I been able to complete a battle without throwing up at some point, either during or after. Now that I am more experienced and am no longer hiding my identity, I am less likely to throw up after cleaving a skull. Cor, as I am known, is determined to be a hero. Ready to jump in front of my small companions even when Rindle the Rogue is being needlessly provocative. My alignment is lawful good. I am sincere. A horrible liar, bad at deception, lacking in charisma but unaware of that. Now that my secret is out to my two companions, at least the jokes about being beardless will stop. As soon as I had some extra coin, I bought myself a hat with a plume, like a musketeer. After our band, with the help of a wizard we were temporarily traveling with, killed two owl bears, I made myself a large collar out of the feathers and fur. I also made accessories for Thorgrum and Rindle. My collar is quite fluffy but I maintain it is strategic. We had some difficulty with the owl bears and I posited that their fur and feathers made them look larger than they were and I was shooting and swinging at nearly vacant air. Anyway, that’s my story. I don’t think Thorgrum and Rindle believe me. And there you are, probably more than you wanted to know.

Allison F.S.
I was happy to read every moment of that! thank you

Isolation Diary: Working in the garden today. Took some pictures of bees to send to the World Bee Count (an app on my phone). The bees today were especially passionate about covering themselves in pollen, sometimes two at a time in a large flower. I hope I wasn’t intruding, being indiscreet. Skipping over other news and reactions to events: I have been sewing garments for myself. I have a lot of fabric that I bought with the intention to make something but then did not. Bought some time ago. Pulled out every spring, along with some patterns. But maybe the pattern isn’t right or I’m not attracted to the fabric in this moment, so I went shopping instead. But not now. No shopping. Been using this fabric and these patterns and presently working on a third garment. Having to improvise. Can’t go out to get the perfect buttons. But I have a bunch of buttons. Sewers, you know what I’m talking about. So one garment has buttons of different colors. One is lacking in buttons. And one has surprise red buttons. I mean they took me by surprise when I decided they were the best choice. We sewers have buttons but not always 6 of the same kind. Work with what you’ve got. This garment was supposed to be a dress but I think it’s more like a long open jacket type thing. With red buttons. Would never have happened if I hadn’t been alone in my house and without access to ‘the right buttons’.

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Christie M.
That whole “Necessity is the Mother of Invention” thing didn’t come from nowhere! Pictures!

Corey K.
There’s a jacaranda tree next to my balcony and the bees were having quite a time last week with the blossoms.

Ruth Silveira
download the app, take a photo!

Isolation Diary: Not just isolation now but the racism bloom. By that I mean the issue has undeniably manifested. Began the day by spending several hours looking after Fig while Maggie and Adam worked and wrote. then…. There was an essay in the LA Times today titled “What does it mean to be white?” by Frank Shyong. The “In America” is implied. He didn’t have any good answer. But I thought about this question off and on for the rest of the day. And I don’t have any good answer either. The only thought I had that I have any confidence in is that SOME white people of my generation and perhaps the one after me, grew to ‘maturity’ in a culture, while varied, lacked imposable input from other cultures. I mean by ‘imposable’ that other cultures, races, ethnicities were not invisible, just not necessarily pertinent. And then I stopped musing and listened to a D and D podcast and sewed on the dress/coat thing that is developing in its own way.

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Maggie M.
Thinking about race, talking about it. Uncovering and examining our own biases. That’s a big part of social justice work.

Ruth Silveira
Keeping in mind, I grew up in Sacramento. Going to San Francisco was a long and exciting trip. Heck, a trip to the library was a treat.

Isolation Diary: Tonight I felt truly isolated when nothing loaded when I clicked ‘Home’ on FB. I found a way to switch back to the old, the classic, version and there are all the alarming posts that I have come to dread every late night. And yet…I keep reading. But some good news today. Supreme Court not a disaster. In other news: I have put aside the finishing of that dress/coat thing I was sewing to make more masks for the family so proper washing can happen. And because I have lived in this house for so long and been involved in so many different projects I have fabric, I have elastic, and I have wire. Armature wire. Why do I have that? Because I built a horses’s head for the show ‘Bukowsical’ How can I ever again throw anything away?

As of September 4, 2021, the Supreme Court is a disaster, as the Court let stand, by refusing to support an injunction, a draconian Texas anti-abortion law that deputizes anyone anywhere to sue anyone in Texas who helps a woman obtain an abortion once cardiac activity is detected (not even a heartbeat). Doctor to a passerby who pointed in the direction of a women’s clinic. The Federal DOJ is suing Texas. The stress of the last year will not abate.

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Jen D.
Ruth, at the beginning of all this (99 days ago for us) I told Bob I was never going to run out of projects because I’ve squirreled away so many small craft things!

Julie C.
Haha…we have some more armature wire if you run out! Sigh. Wish I could deliver it in person and eat cookies in your house.Kathi C.I loved them too. They were not only beautiful but super functional as they were light and quick to get on and off.

Kathi C.
If you think you might toss it, I’ll take it!

Ruth Silveira
I don’t have the head, don’t know what happened to that. Just the left over wire.

Isolation Diary: My own musings seem so trivial given the drama in the streets and elsewhere and some nights I can’t bring myself to post anything . But tonight I am hopeful. And hope is always good. And a good thing to share. I don’t think anyone was killed in Tulsa today. Not that I’ve heard, anyway. Might seem like a sad and small reason to be hopeful. Still there it is. I am grateful for all those who have been marching and protesting and supporting. May they all be well! I have stayed home. I cannot face the possibility of being separated from my family or endangering them. And as for endangering my own health….there are a whole bunch of things I’ve been putting off that still need doing. Take care

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Paul B.
Never trivial. Yes it was a blessing that all that anger didn’t turn violent

Isolation Diary: Two things–I visited some friends today. A backyard visit. Backyarding we call it. They have been careful. I have been careful. We kept our distance. Still, it felt almost normal. Such a good thing to have a few people one can meet in person. Second, you remember I mentioned the desiccated opossum I retrieved from my garage? Well, through a variety of processes which I will not describe I ended up with the bones. Photos attached. Anyone who knows about animal anatomy, please excuse my near ignorance. My main question is “Where does the creature’s brain lodge? You and I have a sort of helmet skull. We have a two sided brain but the sides are connected. This animal has a bone structure right in the middle of its head. So even though Maggie finds this all at least questionable and at most repulsive, I’m glad I did it because…..where is this creature’s brain? And how much brain does a creature need? Humans have a lot of brain. I guess a Mind is what is imposed upon a brain, or is using a brain. But I think the brain also exerts it’s influence. Habits, for example, are brain patterns. Reactions are often brain reactions. At first, at least. Two different things: the brain and the mind.

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Ruth Silveira
Oops, forgot the photos.

Ruth Silveira
skull from above

Ruth Silveira
skull from the side

Ruth Silveira
Is this weird?

Guy P.
Ruth Silveira Weird is currently appropriate. I’m glad you have found something you can be interested in.

Ruth Silveira
Oh, I won’t go any further with this. the bones, I mean. I will probably still wonder about the brain and the mind. This small encounter was just something the universe offered that I accepted. I will pass the bones on to my grandson, Duncan, 10 almost 11. Maybe his school will want them.

Corey K.
I think you should make the bones into a marionette and then write a show around it.

Ruth Silveira
Corey K. Maybe i could get Joyce to help me.

Sandy R.
You are amazing and you make me smile! Yes the brain and the mind, two different things.

Kathi C.
After hearing about this creature decomposing in your garage I was intrigued, slightly terrified but the bones look pretty cool and I’m betting Duncan will like them. I would not have had the guts to clean him or her. I’d be the one screaming upon seeing that in my garage and calling for assistance. You are very brave and very inquisitive which are lovely qualities to have.

Ruth Silveira
Duncan thought they were cool.

Karen I.L.
!!
!!
!!

Isolation Diary: Today I visited a friend. In person. Yes, we could have talked on Zoom or FaceTime but an in person visit is so much better. And not just because she shared with me a delicious treat from TJs. No, because we were sitting outside, at distance, and as we talked we were delighted by hummingbirds and dragon flies. One hummingbird dipped below the umbrella we were under and hovered just feet away so we could admire it. Just a little gift. And the conversation flows easier in person. And goes places that are unexpected….because, perhaps, of a hawk soaring overhead. Or some small or large change she has made that wouldn’t come up in a remote chat. We talked shop–she is a fellow improvisor. We played. A delightful 3 hours. I see my family frequently but I miss the stimulation of encountering a variety of humans. I am going to continue judicious, select, and careful ‘backyarding’.

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Carolyn K.
Been trying this lately. Soothes the soul!!

We were beginning to figure out how to live with this pandemic.

Isolation Diary: Okay, okay, I finally changed the water filter. I do not like this job. It requires delving into the under sink cabinet. Everything needs to come out, the mats need to be cleaned. Water gets on the floor. The whole chore is awkward. Strength is required, and turning things that are too big for my hands. I always end up shouting, “I hate this!” Twice or three times today. I left the kitchen in a mess and the mats drying while I went off to play D&D, which is always fun but today a little frustrating because I ended up in a deserted tavern making a ladder while others went and got in big trouble and I couldn’t help them. We are playing in person now. At the end of our session I did pass the opossum bones on to Duncan. Later, back in the kitchen, under sink stuff safely stowed, while washing the dishes I had KCET playing on the TV, a folk music rewind, a fund raiser, of course, but i found myself, in my salmon colored too large rubber gloves, as I washed cookie cutters, tearing up as I listened to Barry Mcquire sing “Eve of Destruction”. Because….I was there when this song was first being sung. And here we are again….!!! Although….I am not pessimistic. I feel we will progress. But our country is rather crazy right now, being helmed by a crazy person who is encouraging craziness in others. Because I got so emotional listening to the protest songs, I did, in fact, call in a donation to PBS. So….wear your mask! Please. We have no leader, but we have information. Love to you all.

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Holly B.
Thanks for your words of inspiration, Ms. Ruth.