Lockdown means good food limited, boredom in excess

My wife came into the house this morning with two rolls. She gave one to Joanna and me to share and we ate it like ... like we haven't had good bread in about a week. And guess what? ... The big issue right now with the Covid lockdown here is food. It's difficult to go shopping due to long waits in long lines – with cutting creeping back into the equation – and extremely short supplies. A few markets, restaurants and coffee shops are open for takeout only, but that's about it. My daughter and I enjoy sharp cheese, but since the Covid surge and subsequent lockdown, cheese, peanut butter and bread are tough gets ... especially cheese. I get my cheese fix from takeout pizza at Pizza Hut, not that I need a cheese fix given my weight. Vegetables were scarce early in the lockdown, but as the week went on vegetables became more accessible. Usually, you can get lettuce and carrots, but I haven't seen asparagus or broccoli in a while – it's hit and miss. Which reminds me. Hoarding is a big issue. I saw a woman filling three shopping baskets with instant noodles. Yum. Another woman bought every egg in the little market around the corner. My wife asked the woman why she didn't leave some eggs for people with kids. The woman didn't respond, which is a typical response (anywhere in the world) from people who know they're in the wrong. Peanut butter being in short supply is interesting since a lot of folks here have never, or rarely, eaten it. Hoarders can be dangerous and selfish people.
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There have been a few coronavirus cases in our neighborhood, most notably at the rent-by-the-hour (or minute) motel on the street behind us. For some reason, it wasn't shut down. It was "cleaned up." I walked to the bank on Sunday to use the ATM, and the streets were incredibly quiet for 1:30 p.m. Unreal. On my way home, I saw a group of people sitting around plastic tables in the street under an instant tent, probably for a funeral. I'm a little surprised people would do that during a pandemic and surprised officials would allow it.  But everyone had a mask on even if they were somewhat clumped together. The numbers in the country are not encouraging: from 1,000 new cases a day about two weeks ago to nearly 6,000 yesterday (July 18). Joanna and I aren't fond of math, but even we know these numbers add up to trouble.
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Being stuck indoors much of the day is tolerable given the heat here, but everyone gets a little stir crazy late in the afternoon, especially the children. That's when Joanna and I would take our daily walk to get milk tea, or coffee, or whatever. Now, our big treat is a raspberry-orange ice from the Coffee House along with a cappuccino for dad (takeout, of course). And on a rare occasion, I'll let Joanna come with me -- with mask and shield on, of course.
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Our son Elijah loves the outdoors and kicking his ball, even during the heat of the day. The park is closed and that was his favorite place to go, so he kicks a ball around the street near our house.  My wife will hit a badminton birdie with her nephew. Everyone has to be extra vigilant because motorbike traffic, while very light, still doesn't slow down for children, even kids as small and young as Elijah.
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My 5-year-old daughter pretty much gets it as far as Covid is concerned. She knows the situation is serious even if she doesn't understand all the subtleties. We still do our classes, but I allow a little more video time since she's stuck indoors most of the day. She loves drawing animals and coloring birds of paradise while adding her own drawings and creating little stories that go with the drawings. I'm pleased her imagination is so active. She'll pull material from the two books we've read: Charlotte's Web and Little House in the Big Woods. In fact, we're reading Charlotte's Web a second time and we're almost finished. We still nab stories online and when she's in the mood, Joanna will read them and do a remarkable job sounding out unfamiliar words.
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I'm in the middle of the sixth and last book in Frank Herbert's Dune series, Chapterhouse, and I run hot and cold on the Dune series, so to speak. Sometimes, I'm engrossed, but other times I'm thinking about what I'll make for  tomorrow's dinner. Pulled pork sounds good. They are long books ... Bought some new music to drown out neighborhood noise: Wooden Shjips and Spacemen 3 ... My friend in the U.S. continues to make slow but remarkably steady progress in the hospital from his series of life-threatening ailments. Incredible stuff. Maybe I should pray more often. However, that could be going to the well once too often.