Sunday, 10th May
So here we are, it is 00.10 on the 11th of May 2020 and I can go out freely in the streets again. Not to say that much will change, otherwise there would be no point in the last two months: I will keep avoiding crowded places, avoid public transport, keep a distance and generally use my common sense – and a mask when required, though I really don’t want to wear one. But I will out of respect for others.
I have the luxury to do all this for now, as the work I do allows me to for now – either working from home, or keeping a very safe distance from others when working in studios, and traveling by bicycle or car.
My daughter will be going back to school for approx one day a week for the rest of the month. My son starts again in June, probably just two days a week. Which means much will be the same – homeschooling, and spending a lot more time than usual together. I will definitely make use of it to sort out a few priorities when it comes to education, behaviour and my relationship with my kids in general – but that’s a whole new chapter…
The kids were so excited about de-confinement – my eight-year old son wanted to wait up and then symbolically tear up the darned “attestation dérogatoire de déplacement” at the stroke of midnight. I said that wouldn’t be necessary! But I, too, am relieved we can return to a world a little less absurd than the one we have been living in for the past two months. To celebrate, and as it was pouring with rain, we watched a cartoon and ate popcorn this afternoon. And a neighbour came over for a beer this evening – sitting 1.5 metre away from me on our large couch – and the kids put on a show.
I hope Otherhalf will soon be able to go back to his newsroom in St Etienne, which has been closed like many other local newsrooms during the crisis. Working in Lyon makes him grumpy. He, too, needs to go back to his routine.
For now, we need to be patient.
The next stage will come in three weeks’ time, when the government will reassess the situation, and decided whether we can travel beyond a 100 kilometre radius. Maybe, in the meantime, individual towns will be able to reopen some museums, cafes, restaurants or beaches. I will keep writing in this diary as I am curious to see and want to remember how it all unfolds.