I went into self isolation this week; started it on Monday 23rd March at 4pm. I was not told that I had to do this, it was a choice that I made for myself and my family. The children at my work all finished school on Monday due to a mandated early school holiday break and suddenly the opportunity arose for me to remove myself from society and limit my exposure to COVID-19. So here I am, in a self chosen self isolation situation.
I do realise that I could be in a mandated lock down situation in the future that could last a lot longer than 14 days, but after this initial 14 days at least I can be assured that I am clear of any possible infection, which will then put me in a position to better care for those around me.
I currently have three elderly parents in my life. My mother who was widowed in November and is still adjusting to a single life reality and my two in-laws who both have seriously compromised immune systems due to illness and radiation therapy. What things will look like for them over the coming weeks is uncertain at best, and I would like to be able to provide support to them if things do escalate at the rate that they are predicted to over the coming weeks. I would also like to know without a shadow of a doubt that I not going to be contagious or compromise their well being when I do offer that support.
If there is anything that we can learn from the models of other coronavirus ravaged countries at this stage, it's that self isolation saves lives. Social distancing and staying at home is the only way to ensure that we are not only protecting ourselves from the virus, but also not spreading it around to others as well. With 30% of the infected population showing little to no symptoms, we really cannot afford to be flippant with our own or anyone else's well being anymore. If there is any kind of opportunity for you to self isolate then I would seriously urge that you to do that and stay at home now if you can.
And I do understand that going into self isolation for some people would be a really confronting and difficult thing to face, especially if you are used to being a social butterfly and thrive on being out amongst the people, but the bottom line now is that 'getting amongst it' is just not a safe or reasonable option any more. In fact it's actually social neglect at best. I think that if you aren't taking some serious measures to be distancing yourself from others as much as possible at this point then you are probably being pretty ficken irresponsible and selfish.
And during self isolation you do have to find ways to amuse yourself in your own little part of the world, which for some people is littler that others I know, but you just have to. Yesterday I saw kids riding around the neighbourhood on their bikes (at an acceptable social distance of course) and I even saw a couple of teens climbing a massive pine that has fallen in the vacant block across the road from us. I haven't seen kids doing things like that in a very long time because they are usually all hanging out and going places with their mates, but now they are being forced to be inventive with what they get up to. People can't engage in their usual or preferred modes of hobbies and pastimes, so they have to find other things to do now, things that are not only enjoyable but that can also be done with social distancing in mind as well, and that's going to be a real head scratcher for a lot of people.
Fortunately I have done a lot of pre-work around time filling on Spicywatch.com. Turns out that I am a bit of a time filling expert of sorts! So please allow me to recommend a couple of my previous blog posts for you to refer back to for some self isolation time filling inspiration. Please use these resources, and above all else - stay in and stay well!
https://www.spicywatch.com/blog/im-never-bored
https://www.spicywatch.com/blog/self-care
https://www.spicywatch.com/blog/namaste-for-all
https://www.spicywatch.com/blog/stuff-to-binge-on
https://www.spicywatch.com/blog/art-therapy
https://www.spicywatch.com/blog/play-it-again-sam
https://www.spicywatch.com/blog/unmissable-tv
https://www.spicywatch.com/blog/social-media-confessions
https://www.spicywatch.com/blog/subtitles
https://www.spicywatch.com/blog/objects-of-desire-aka-shiny-distractions
https://www.spicywatch.com/blog/the-best-viewing-experiences-of-2019
https://www.spicywatch.com/blog/not-just-another-movie
https://www.spicywatch.com/blog/pleasing-podcasts
https://www.spicywatch.com/blog/the-best-viewing-experiences-of-2018
I do realise that I could be in a mandated lock down situation in the future that could last a lot longer than 14 days, but after this initial 14 days at least I can be assured that I am clear of any possible infection, which will then put me in a position to better care for those around me.
I currently have three elderly parents in my life. My mother who was widowed in November and is still adjusting to a single life reality and my two in-laws who both have seriously compromised immune systems due to illness and radiation therapy. What things will look like for them over the coming weeks is uncertain at best, and I would like to be able to provide support to them if things do escalate at the rate that they are predicted to over the coming weeks. I would also like to know without a shadow of a doubt that I not going to be contagious or compromise their well being when I do offer that support.
If there is anything that we can learn from the models of other coronavirus ravaged countries at this stage, it's that self isolation saves lives. Social distancing and staying at home is the only way to ensure that we are not only protecting ourselves from the virus, but also not spreading it around to others as well. With 30% of the infected population showing little to no symptoms, we really cannot afford to be flippant with our own or anyone else's well being anymore. If there is any kind of opportunity for you to self isolate then I would seriously urge that you to do that and stay at home now if you can.
And I do understand that going into self isolation for some people would be a really confronting and difficult thing to face, especially if you are used to being a social butterfly and thrive on being out amongst the people, but the bottom line now is that 'getting amongst it' is just not a safe or reasonable option any more. In fact it's actually social neglect at best. I think that if you aren't taking some serious measures to be distancing yourself from others as much as possible at this point then you are probably being pretty ficken irresponsible and selfish.
And during self isolation you do have to find ways to amuse yourself in your own little part of the world, which for some people is littler that others I know, but you just have to. Yesterday I saw kids riding around the neighbourhood on their bikes (at an acceptable social distance of course) and I even saw a couple of teens climbing a massive pine that has fallen in the vacant block across the road from us. I haven't seen kids doing things like that in a very long time because they are usually all hanging out and going places with their mates, but now they are being forced to be inventive with what they get up to. People can't engage in their usual or preferred modes of hobbies and pastimes, so they have to find other things to do now, things that are not only enjoyable but that can also be done with social distancing in mind as well, and that's going to be a real head scratcher for a lot of people.
Fortunately I have done a lot of pre-work around time filling on Spicywatch.com. Turns out that I am a bit of a time filling expert of sorts! So please allow me to recommend a couple of my previous blog posts for you to refer back to for some self isolation time filling inspiration. Please use these resources, and above all else - stay in and stay well!
https://www.spicywatch.com/blog/im-never-bored
https://www.spicywatch.com/blog/self-care
https://www.spicywatch.com/blog/namaste-for-all
https://www.spicywatch.com/blog/stuff-to-binge-on
https://www.spicywatch.com/blog/art-therapy
https://www.spicywatch.com/blog/play-it-again-sam
https://www.spicywatch.com/blog/unmissable-tv
https://www.spicywatch.com/blog/social-media-confessions
https://www.spicywatch.com/blog/subtitles
https://www.spicywatch.com/blog/objects-of-desire-aka-shiny-distractions
https://www.spicywatch.com/blog/the-best-viewing-experiences-of-2019
https://www.spicywatch.com/blog/not-just-another-movie
https://www.spicywatch.com/blog/pleasing-podcasts
https://www.spicywatch.com/blog/the-best-viewing-experiences-of-2018
HERE ALONE
Release Date: 2016
Rating: M
Running Time: 98 mins
Unfairly slammed by critics, Here Alone is one of those zombie apocalyptic movies that is far more concerned in the plight of the characters than the actual apocalyptic event and circumstances, which really seems to frustrate a lot of people. I on the other hand, don't need to see dozens of zombie hordes to get a real sense of impending doom, and I thought that this movie quite poignantly conveys a deep sense of isolation with its touching portrayal of everyday people struggling to survive in a very fractured world.
Ann (Lucy Walters) is all alone in the wildness and struggling to survive with limited resources. A deadly epidemic has claimed the lives of everyone around her and turned the living into bloodthirsty monsters. During a raid on a property for food, Ann stumbles upon a teenager and her injured father, she takes mercy on them both and allows them to enter her camp.
For a zombie movie, this is a slow burner, and if you've come here looking for lots of rabid zombie, brain-eating action, then you have come to the wrong place. However, as far as horror drama goes, this is a terrific example of that, with Lucy Walters carrying this movie fully on her shoulders and doing it brilliantly.
FINAL SAY: We saw them before anyone knew what was going on.
3 Chilli Peppers
Release Date: 2016
Rating: M
Running Time: 98 mins
Unfairly slammed by critics, Here Alone is one of those zombie apocalyptic movies that is far more concerned in the plight of the characters than the actual apocalyptic event and circumstances, which really seems to frustrate a lot of people. I on the other hand, don't need to see dozens of zombie hordes to get a real sense of impending doom, and I thought that this movie quite poignantly conveys a deep sense of isolation with its touching portrayal of everyday people struggling to survive in a very fractured world.
Ann (Lucy Walters) is all alone in the wildness and struggling to survive with limited resources. A deadly epidemic has claimed the lives of everyone around her and turned the living into bloodthirsty monsters. During a raid on a property for food, Ann stumbles upon a teenager and her injured father, she takes mercy on them both and allows them to enter her camp.
For a zombie movie, this is a slow burner, and if you've come here looking for lots of rabid zombie, brain-eating action, then you have come to the wrong place. However, as far as horror drama goes, this is a terrific example of that, with Lucy Walters carrying this movie fully on her shoulders and doing it brilliantly.
FINAL SAY: We saw them before anyone knew what was going on.
3 Chilli Peppers
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