COVID Chronicles: The Visit!

 Until today RantWoman had not visited RantMom in person at her retirement community since JULY. RantWoman thinks there was a period of quarantine because of staff people with positive tests. RantWoman also thinks she may not have paid meticulous attention to regular emails about what is or is not allowed. In any case, recently RantMom and RantWoman finally connected, lined up our calendars and scheduled an in-person visit!

In-person means two buses for RantWoman. Both routes RantWoman needed run every 15 minutes on weekdays. Plus weekday passenger load is VERY sparse, so sparse that RantWoman always feels a little decadent--but definitely low COVID transmission risk--with few people in a big bus. RantWoman even arrived a little early for the appointment and waited outside until RantMom came down to the front door, had a staf person screen RantWoman in and showed us to our designated in-person seating area.

In-person as in outdoors. Wearing masks. Sitting 6 feet apart at a table. There were two further choices, in a pretty sheltered but uncovered garden or in a different place on the grounds with a loud heater in some kind of a tent. 

RantWoman does not remember what the emails said about foot access to the tent for visitors; RantWoman would not want a repeat of the trip along the root tangled path especially because this time of year there likely would also be mud involved. RantWoman does specifically remember that the email talking about the garden location talked about screening at the door and the need to walk a short distance inside the building. RantWoman was not the least bit distressed about the walk through the building. 

The weather was glorious: full sun, little wind. Cold of course, but bearable. The RantWomen are both used to dressing warmly. RantMom brought a fleece blanket to put down on RantWoman's bench. Next time RantWoman will either bring her own or see whether RantMom has two one for each of us. 

The RantWomen talked and talked. We talked family holiday celebrations. We talked masks. We talked vegetation and foliage at the retirement community. we talked weather. At one point we looked at clocks and realized we were over time. We were both being coy about whether or not we felt cold but we decided we would go inside at a set time if someone hadn't come for us. About that time someone came for us. We lingered, slowly making our way to the front door with promises to do it again.

Then RantWoman was off to catch her bus home. RantWoman was off to catch her bus, but the first bus went through the intersection just as RantWoman was headed out to the sidewalk. RantWoman made it to the bus shelter and decided she was glad the bus shelter was still in the sun. It's December. Even at 2:00 pm the shadows are starting to get long, and RantWoman had two more transfers ahead of her. Two transfers because RantWoman is lazy about street crossings on the return route and is lucky enough to have an option that involves no street crossings at the stop closest to where RantWoman lives.

By the time RantWoman got home, glorious sun or no, RantWoman realized she was colder than she wanted to admit. But she will gladly make the trip again sometime soon.