A Point to the Pointless

It’s Friday! Happy quarantine, everyone. It’s officially been a week since school shut down and everything went quiet. So, what’s gone on in that time? Lots of stuff.

I’ve settled into my routine. Jeeze, it was hard at first. After so many years of working at schools, the shift to working from home wasn’t easy. After all, even when I wasn’t going in early this year, both of my roommates were, so life still had that familiar flow.

Now? Not so much.

One of my roommates still goes in early—providing low income childcare by official permission of the governor (yay fancy titles)—while the other is about as home-bound as me. I’m not sure how that’s going to work out, because…

I haven’t been home since Tuesday.

I went out to Hood River to see my dad. For those who don’t know (which, since my readership is zilch, is currently 0%) Hood River is a town about forty-five minutes east of Portland. 

The majestic beauty of the Pacific Northwest. The trees...the hills...Mt/Adams pointing from behind a hill...

And my dad's neighbor's llamas...who were strangely photo shy.

It’s definitely rural, and relatively calm. Part of me is really enjoying the change—especially the lack of cat—but more of me wants to get back. At least for now.

Things are just so up in the air right now that I’m not even sure what to think.

But I’m rambling, because I went into this article without focus, without a point in mind. I thought I’d just write about what I’d done this week, without asking myself why that would matter.

And it does matter a great deal. I’m just one voice of many—a growing percentage of the population is trapped inside. California now has a state-wide ban on travel. Oregon this morning said that it wasn’t on the table. Then again, they also said that schools would stay open on Wednesday last week, and we all saw how that played out.

At the end of the day, every quarantined person is going to need to find their own point and purpose. Yes, they might be working from home, but to what end? In an office, surrounded by people, it’s easy to feel like a part of a larger whole. Not a critical part—mind you, although people are more critical than they give themselves credit for—but an important part nonetheless.

At home, surrounded by distractions, it can be harder to put those ideas into perspective. 

It's a black background because it sucks everything in: light, matter...free time.

What’s the use of working on project A when streaming is so much more enjoyable? Why does holding the briefing matter when I can’t directly see the fruits of my labor?

The answer, as with everything in life, depends on perspective. Just because you can’t see the effects doesn’t mean they don’t happen. It just means that (if you’ll excuse a little joke from an almost-atheist) you’ll have to have faith both in others, and in your own ability to change.

What’s my purpose, then? What’s the overarching reason I’m doing anything? Why am I writing words that literally no one is going to read?

The same purpose as always—my kids. I’m planning out ways to give them things to look forward to. Maybe that’s setting up a gambling ring. Maybe that’s creating an afterschool activity. Maybe it’s opening up parts of my day where they can ring in and just talk and interact like everything’s normal.

Because it will be normal, one day. Either this new situation will continue on indefinitely and this is how we’ll live the rest of our lives, or things will return to a semblance of the way they were. They’ll never go back—we’ll always carry the scars, like the food hoarding from the depression that my grandparents still sometimes do—but we can choose to be better for this.

And that would have made an excellent ending, but there’s just one last little point I want to make.

In that vein, I made them something fun yesterday. I have no idea if it’s any good, but I had fun making it. I took a script and read it in my voices, and I’ve posted it below. If it’s not your thing, then skip it. But if it’s something that you enjoy, please give it a watch and give me some feedback. I love being able to improve.

Anyway, this has been another Adventure of the Austentatious. If you liked it, tell your friends. If you hated it, tell your enemies. If you don’t care either way, tell everyone. Peace out, stay healthy.

And happy quarantine.