Life in Lockdown: Cassius Tossavainen Edition

I remember first hearing about the corona virus on CNN. I remember thinking, “wow, another super dangerous virus that will never affect me.” As usual, I was very wrong.

Here I am, week four into quarantine. I was ready and accepting of school being canceled, it made sense: 850 young adults close together, 5 days a week was a ticking time bomb for our aging community. It wasn’t until other aspects of my life started getting affected that this pandemic started to annoy me. All of a sudden I had 6 weeks to do whatever I wanted, except I couldn’t ski or sail or hang out with friends. All I could do was my extra credit for history (thanks Mr. Welk) and go kayaking.

Every day, I wake up, walk downstairs, play Minecraft for a while, eat breakfast, shower, and figure out what I am going to do that day. My mom was kind enough to make a mandatory schedule for me — that I do my best to ignore.

I have taken up a few new projects though. I finally got around to setting up my sound studio so I can start a podcast or record music. My dad also decided to clean our garage, and I did my best to lend a hand. Kayaking has become another great escape for me; I try to go out at least once a day. My mom enjoys running, so I will often go for a bike ride while she runs. I’ve also found video games from my childhood that I am re-playing. Every night my dad and I watch a movie and Formula 1 highlights until we get tired. So I do have a routine of sorts, and it’s nice.

One thing that will be taking up most of my time is our dog. For my birthday last year, my parents told me we were getting a dog! Because the last dog we rescued had severe emotional issues and destroyed part of our house, my mom is very careful with what breed and who we get our dog from. We decided on a Shiloh Shepherd that is being raised on a farm in Canada. It’s going to be brought across the border for us and we will soon have a new family member! I cannot wait to spend my days at home with my dog.

Overall, I have been trying to keep my attitude as positive as possible. I can use this time to better myself as a person, learn a new skill, find a new band to listen to, or try to tolerate my parents. It’s important to keep in mind that as tough it may be, we will get through this.