We're leaving St. Louis!!
What should have been a day of pure elation and off the walls celebration for Noah and his classmates was underscored by the same constant uncertainty and anxiety.
In 3 months, everyone will move (and how do we even more if states are on lockdown?) and jump straight into the war zone to help fight this war. What will it look like? Will they have enough supplies to keep them safe? Is it going to be a little better by then? It’s hard to say.
Also, it looks like I’ll be going back to work… at least for as long as the state isn’t on lockdown and we’re still open. Many of my coworkers are laid off, and I should be grateful to have seniority and the hours I have. I feel pretty divided about it. Part of me is guilty that I had planned to be off anyway and am pretty anxious about going outside unnecessarily. But on the other hand, with all this uncertainty if my alternative is to be out of work for three whole months, I’m still choosing to go back to work for as long as I feel it’s safe enough.
Anyway, we’ll be heading back to Chicago!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And then after one year in our favorite city on earth, off to Philly!!!!!!!!!!!! Feels like going home.
Minerva drew this for us on her paper, with her markers, at her house.
Friday morning, I was so nervous I could barely move. I was probably more nervous than Noah about staying in St. Louis for up to 5 more years. Everyone else got into amazing programs, there was lots of cheering and shrieking. It was nice to have a day that took everyone’s minds off the world’s current state even if just for a few minutes at a time.
For lunch, a small group of our neighbors celebrating ordered Cate Zone and boba with their “celebration allowance.” Milk tea and lychee jelly never felt so special and tasted so good.
For dinner, Noah wanted to host an even smaller group of his medical school cohort. I blurted out that I’d cook dinner for them too in a moment of drunken boldness, except normally I spend at least a day putting together a cohesive menu, shopping, and cooking.
In the end, I made a “I’m supposed to be in Asia but instead this is hard times Match Day” dinner of:
Stubby pasta in a sauce of thai pork & tomato dip (which I made the day before)
Medium boiled eggs glazed in dashi (oden-style)
Hot vinegared cabbage
Pantry corn fritters (with thai shrimp did I just made yesterday), dipped in kewpie/coconut sriracha
Drunken pickled cauliflower and broccoli (was not a hit)
The rest of the un-pickled blanched cauliflower and broccoli, dipped in Union Loafers buttermilk dressing
Just some stuff I had on hand and could pull together in under an hour.
We drank, we ate, I browsed coronavirus news while listening to everyone’s passionate discussion about literally anything. Pedophilia never fails to weave its way into the conversation, as is the tradition at our dinner table with that crew.
Glad yesterday was a little quieter. I played the flute, played Stardew, and today I am working on the recipe post. Tomorrow, work…