Journal Entry #2- Pollution

I grew up on a beach, I lived in a major city just off the west coast, summers were spent on the beach,

outside working, we had BBQ's and pool parties. The sky was always a pale blue and we spent our

evenings roasting marshmallows and sitting by bonfires.

We had perfect weather, winter's were sometimes cold, but not unbearable.

Here in the dessert, between mountains that I am sure look pretty, is nestled a large industrial factory town.

One with large refinery's, with huge steam pipes that fill the air with gray/black smoke. There are so many

people packed into this city that apartments reach high into the sky, the tops get lost in the smog.

People used to travel from around the world to see the historical district in the heart of down town with it's

large temples, ornate architecture, beautiful gardens, and visitor centers, giving in-depth history as to the

people who founded and built the town. But now that district is dead, the building are covered in inches

of grime and the air is so toxic that 1940 WW2 inspired face masks have to worn at all times outside.

There is no wind here, the air is dense, it lingers on your skin and clothes, it makes you feel dirty.

Thankfully I live on the outskirts and we avoid the heavier smog.

I miss the sun, cool breezes, and the blue sky. This smog which was created by mans greed to make

bigger and better material items, as taken this things from me. My kids have never felt the sun on their

skin, they have never heard a bird chirp, or seen a blue sky.

When I say I was working the ground for a garden, there is not much "gardening" I can do. With it

being always over cast and dark we can only grow root vegetables, carrots, beets, radishes, and

potatoes.

Anything else take a lot of time and usually a green house to care for. We our meager means and our

way of life, we don't have such luxuries.

We have to have 90% of our food imported, most is to expense to eat. Eggs, milk, and cheese are

about the only thing we buy fresh. We make our own bread and by a lot of canned goods, it is cheaper

then buying fresh or frozen. I remember a time when I could go to my friends house and pick a avocado

off of their tree and eat it fresh, a few years ago when I was pregnant my husband splurged and bought

my 3 avocado's, they cost us $7, and we ate them slowly enjoying as much of them as we could.

When the mandatory quarantine was issued I couldn't see how it could help me, our industrial town

was hit hard and the sickness was spreading fast.

It has been about a week since the order went into affect. It rained yesterday, and the rain wasn't as polluted as normal, it smelled fresh and not like its usual chemical smell. Normally when it rain we are shut in doors for days because we could tread harmful chemicals into our homes from the ground.

But yesterday I opened a window and smelled hope.

Today when I stepped outside went outside I started to see the effects of the order I noticed the sky was a light gray, not its usual dark stormy color. Maybe shutting everything down is a good thing after all. By the end of this, my kids might be able to see a blue sky for the first time.

Mardi Gras

   I have learned that not all holiday's are as they seem. I was never taught about this paticular holiday because it was considered a "bad one" growing up. It wasn't until a few years ago when I want to a Mardi Gras party that it wasn't what I thought. I held great judgement against my friend because I didn't understand why she would celebrate such a "bad" holiday.

   Skip ahead to February 25th, I had spent many hours doing lots of research, pouring over tradions and cultureal celabrations on it. I learned a lot, and learned that it is a very sacred holy holiday, brought over by french imagraints, and celebrated in a much more boorish, and eccentric. It has morphed into something crude, offensive, and dare I say evil.

    I wanted to turn this holiday into a learning experience for my kids, I have also been trying to "Celebrate" little holidays to mix up our Home school schedule.

   I planned out a lesson, an activity, and a snack. I left plenty of time fore everything because sometimes things go fast, and sometimes they are slow.

   I invited some other home school friends over in the neighborhood that I thought would like to participate in this educational experience.
   We started with a brief lesson on the history of it, moved into a craft making masks, ate a colorful snack (all food was themed Green, Purple, and "gold")
While snack was happening I gave a information about the holiday and asked any questions they might have. All in all, everyone enjoyed themselves.

 I made Jambalaya for dinner and we had king cake for desert.

   Can't wait for next year!

Journal Entry 1- Quarantine

     It was a normal day for me and the kids, I don't even remember what we were doing, but that doesn't matter. I saw it, the order telling us that all residents were quarantined for the next 2 weeks.
    I had heard about the virus that was starting to run rampant through the US, when I tried researching it more, there was a lot of mystery and botched information. Because the reporters in China were going missing. They would start to get someone when their research and then disappear, some of them never showed up again, others were found in hospitals infected with the same virus that they were researching, in such a critical state that the families were told they might not live through it.

   I feel like I am now apart of a science fiction novel, living in a world that got turned upside down within a few hours. Soon after the quarantine order was issued all schools and bars were closed, church meetings were cancelled, and restaurants can only have carry out options.

   As I read the different news articles I could feel my heart sink, the pain of loss started to creep into my stomach and left me feeling sick. With a large family full of little kids I never got out of the house often, when I did it was to parks and such, I didn't meet up with other friends, and I don't have a social life, with church gone I felt like my heart was ripped out, I felt like God did care for me.
 
   Quarantine life feels like a normal day to me, I cook, clean, and take care of my kids, for the first few days I worked in our yard, getting it ready for spring planting, the hard labor took my mind off our the current world troubles, and excising my body felt amazing.

   Quarantine sounds like most peoples dreams, being locked in their homes for days on end, but for those of us with kids, it feels like we may go crazy.
 
   Lots of people have questioned if this virus was created by the government, while others say it is a act from God.
   I guess only time will tell.