#the symptoms are pretty darn unique I must say

[5-pounds-of-carrots]

frankly im not sure what else webmd would say if u entered “turns into an animal when hugged by a member of the opposite sex or when tired” ??

[chantalkrcmar]

HALFWAY THERE!

We are sliding into the second half of quarantine and house arrest, in various states of disrepair. :-) I am overjoyed that we’ve made it though the first week of our ordeal, and am trying not to think much that we have one more week to go. Well, the full details are such: The quarantine for me is 17 days — not 14. 17 day quarantines are not a thing in the US, or most of the world. But Indian bureaucrats who take over the moment they are notified of a positive test result  like to do things in a — shall we say? — unique way. But since every medical professional we have consulted (not all the know-nothing bureaucrats we have also consulted) said that quarantine does not have to be more than 14 days, we are going with the medical pros on this one. And the Sign of Shame, despite my supposed 17 day quarantine, gets removed in 10 to 14 days, so our apartment is unsealed then. Clear as mud, right? The upshot, though, is that we all get outta jail in 14 days. And then soon after, we hit the airport. As one doctor here told Rahul, “Get the hell out before something else goes wrong.” Sound medical advice.

The past couple days, Rahul tells me, have been easier on Anamika. Less crying, more resilient behavior. He messaged me that she is being very wise and thoughtful actually. When he explains why we have so many restrictions, she now accepts it and moves on. I guess it does make sense that the beginning of this quarantine was harder on her than now; the sudden nature of it threw all of us off-kilter. One moment, we were having one final family breakfast together before our departure for the US. We adults were sipping Ambhubhai’s best-in-the-world chai; Anamika was hamming it up for her grandparents. She had been dramatically declaring how much she was going to miss Dadi (Grandma), and that she would video call with her no less than three times per day (time difference, be damned). Dadi was melting with all the warm attention she was getting from her beloved Anamika.

And then I got The Call. When the doctor at the BMC (Bombay Municipal Corporation) called, it was so unexpected that I couldn’t quite understand what she was telling me. Doctor. Test results. Positive. Any symptoms? Huh? When she could tell she wasn’t getting anywhere with me, she asked again if she was indeed speaking to Chantal Krcmar. She was utterly butchering the pronunciation of my name, so I almost sarcastically said, “That’s me. Approximately.” I had started assuming the caller was a scam artist. It took a while for her words to really sink in.

Because we still did not know that Rahul’s test results were negative, we just assumed that he was positive too, so I did not immediately jump into my bedroom and lock the door — though I did run away from my in-laws. In fact, I assumed Anamika must have COVID too, so I played a game of Snakes and Ladders (India’s version of Chutes and Ladders) with her while Rahul made calls to track down his test results, and spoke with my in-laws’ main physician.

As Anamika cheated her way through Snakes and Ladders, I felt fine. Shock can do that to a person. Anamika was afraid at first when I told her I had COVID so we couldn’t leave for Somerville now, but I reassured her that I was not sick and she seemed to relax. But then Rahul found out he was negative, Dr. D. ordered my in-laws to the hospital immediately for COVID tests and he told me, Rahul and Anamika to get into quarantine separately. That’s when I started to feel the gravity.

So of course Anamika was reeling for the first few days of this mess. We were talking a ton about all the weekend camping trips we were going to take and the friends we would see (masked, of course) when we got to Massachusetts. She had packed her Paw Patrol backpack for the flight; she had carefully chosen a flash light (which she kinda stole from her Dada :-) ), a stuffed lovey and some books. We had been talking with her about the fact that we’d have to wear masks for a very very long time (a total of at least 24 hours from the moment we got in the car in Mumbai to get to the airport, in the flights, during our layover in Frankfurt...until we got back to our home in Somerville). She was on board with all of it. But we had not prepared her for what actually happened. How could we have?!

But this morning, Anamika and Rahul were playing a game of cricket in her room. And life goes on…

I include this photo that I took while we were on WhatsApp video call this morning. Anamika’s room gets more and more chaotic. Quarantine with a 4.5 year old is no neat and tidy business.

Note on the far left hand side of the photo Anamika’s potty training potty. Poor thing is using that to do her business so that she and I don’t have to share the toilet (in case I actually do have the plague). Her bum bum barely fits anymore. But thank goodness we kept this training toilet. A museum piece being put to good use.  

Note on the far right hand side of the photo the giant teddy bear sitting atop Anamika’s car seat sitting atop a chair. The teddy bear is holding some of Rahul’s clothing. Makes perfect sense, no?! About as much sense that this whole situation makes. We had plans to be spending this Labor Day weekend in New Hampshire hiking and swimming with good friends. Alas…We’ll get there. Gosh darn it.  Just in time for leaf peeping season.

Note in the foreground Rahul’s doggy pajamas. I bought those for him at Good Will a couple years back. I think it’s all he’s been wearing since quarantine. No judgment on my part. I have entirely given up on pants while in isolation. It’s bloody hot and humid -- even with my one window wide open and my ceiling fan on high. I am confined enough and do not feel compelled to confine myself even more.

Please do not note the terrible state of my hair. I typically run pretty low on vanity, but even this makes me slightly embarrassed (but not embarrassed enough to hide). Six months ago I had a cute short haircut. Now I have...this. In the greater scheme of things, bad hair, though, is the least of my concerns!

Back in the day, I had taken a photo of this cute little sponge star that I found lying on a sidewalk in my neighborhood in Somerville. Because I knew it would make her smile, I had sent it to my best friend. A couple days ago, she sent it back to me. Smiles all around, y’all! Smiles all around.