14 Nov Six Weeks to Christmas?!
So somebody on a Zoom call Thursday said, “Only six weeks until Christmas,” and I felt my heart lurch. With Covid surging again and predictions dire for the foreseeable future, the thought of getting a celebration together is daunting. The main question is how to celebrate when we can’t get together?
I’ve started Christmas shopping mainly online although I did venture out to my neighbourhood mall for the first time since the pandemic shut down in March. I bought Christmas cards and some books to read at Coles – also my first time in a bookstore. Three books by three female crime fiction icons: Val McDermid, Gail Bowen and Ann Cleeves. Enough good reading to keep me going into December.
We had such an unusually warm, sunny week in the Ottawa Valley that it lifted our spirits. We managed to spend a good part of it outdoors, even socially distancing with friends in our backyards late afternoons. The golf courses and patios were full as people eked out every moment of warmth to take us into the winter months. I managed to get some writing in and am starting to get back into a rhythm. They key is to forget all the things going on in the news and disappear into a make-believe world for a few hours each day. We writers are lucky to have this escape.
I wrote a blog post for 7 Criminal Minds about this week’s topic – a book conference that left a lasting impact. I wrote about my first Bouchercon in Baltimore with my good friend Katherine Hobbs in 2008 – such a fun and memorable few days.
I was hoping to get back curling last week, but my team decided to pull out of the league until it’s safer to get together. I’m doubtful that this will happen before spring as we all hunker down. I think if we all do our part by staying home, avoiding social gatherings and wearing masks when we go shopping or are in crowded areas, we can manage the virus until that vaccine is available. Some countries have kept the rate of infection low while others have not, but it all comes down to leadership and citizen buy-in. Let’s do this now so we can at least get together with our families this Christmas.
So another week has flown past – my friend Kathryn Anthonisen says time has gotten elastic – and the days are slipping into evening around four-thirty. I’m working on a video project for my Eastern Ontario region and you can watch my first interview with bestselling author Vicki Delany this coming Wednesday on The CWC Youtube channel. Subscribe to the channel and be notified of my upcoming interviews.
Snuggle in with some good books this week. Stay safe and healthy and I’ll check in again next week.