Of course, while we’re all stuck at home, it’s still important to go outside. We’re not banned from going to parks to hike, fish, and relax on the benches. Just to be safe, I won’t be headed to any parks that have lots of people in them. But, I thankfully live in a neighborhood that has private hiking trails and parks only available to residents. I live on the Ken Caryl Plains, which is just a few minutes east of Ken Caryl Valley in the foothills. Both neighborhoods are part of Ken Caryl Ranch, which means I can drive into the valley, park, and run around on the hiking trails that wind through the red rocks jutting out of the earth. Hopefully, the private hiking trails won’t be nearly as busy as the park across the street from my house, or Clement park which is a few miles northeast from where I live. 

In a couple of weeks, I hope to see my dad and Clarke again. Both guys are self-isolating at home to make sure they don’t have anything. Assuming they remain healthy over the next two weeks, I’ll probably head down to Elizabeth for awhile, if I can convince my mom to take care of the puppy alone. I’ve got a dirtbike to clean up and ride again, and Clarke’s roommates have horses, goats, and dogs for me to hang out with. Also, my dad will likely come down to Elizabeth for a day to work on our jeep. He’s decided instead of taking it off the 12-inch lift, he’ll just put steering stabilizers all over it and hope for the best. I don’t think that’s a good idea, to be honest. Steering stabilizers only do so much. They basically allow the jeep to go 45 miles per hour before death-wobbling instead of just 35 miles per hour before death-wobbling. Not great for on-roading if you ask me. 

Last time I saw my dad, we decided to get the old shitbox running again. The problem was, the battery was completely dead. So, every time we wanted to start it up, we had to hook its battery up to mine. There was a time it almost stalled while we were driving around to see when it death-wobbled. Thankfully, Dad has a lot of experience driving old manual trucks, so we weren’t stranded a mile away from the house. However, the jeep still death-wobbled like crazy. Dad was having an absolute blast. I was sitting stiffly in the passenger seat, holding onto the roll cage with all of my strength, not sure if I should laugh or cry. Looking back, it was actually really fun to rip down the dirt roads in that thing again. But, it was absolutely terrifying in the moment because of just how sketchy the old jeep really is. I still might want it as a daily driver for a few weeks in the summer, however. 

Anyway...

I need my exercise more than ever before. I crave the outdoors too. I’ve decided to challenge myself so I will stay fit and healthy during the pandemic, while I wait for my relatives to self-quarantine for two weeks before seeing me again. I’ve been doing 200 pushups and 500 sit-ups per day (not in one sitting of course), plus going outside for at least an hour everyday, if not more. I understand that there is a pandemic going on, and social distancing is crucial to curb the spread of the virus and stay healthy. But, I’ve been doing the six foot rule with pretty much everyone for as long as I’ve been alive. Covid-19 is also not very resistant to the sun. As long as I keep my distance and don't touch anything other people have touched, I'll be just fine. 

Also, unlike so many nasty people out there, I actually wash my hands frequently, and regularly disinfect the things I touch often. I don’t touch my face with unwashed hands. I carry around hand sanitizer with me wherever I go. And, I was making my own hand sanitizer long before it was cool. So, I’m not super worried about getting covid-19, or any illness for that matter. However, I do worry a lot about everyone else I know who may not be so proactive and/or cautious. I know most people have not grown up having to worry about every single little illness imaginable like I have, so they aren’t exactly the greatest at avoiding illnesses. 

Even with the proper vaccines and medicine, the flu has always posed a huge threat to my health. Lifestyle wise, covid-19 hasn’t really impacted mine. However, it has tremendously impacted everyone else’s, and most people don’t know what to do now that their lives have changed so much.

But, as someone who has lived the “quarantine” lifestyle for ages, I can assure everyone that social distancing doesn’t really mean social distancing. You can still be social during these unprecedented times. You just have to be six feet apart. We use technology all of the time to stay connected with each other. I’ve been more connected with those I love in these past couple of weeks, than I was for all of last year! 

Sure, I can’t really hug or shake hands with anyone right now. But, I’ve never been touchy-feely to begin with, so that’s not hard for me to do. But, for those who are more touchy-feely, if you live with other people, be touchy-feely with them. Nobody is banning you from hugging and sitting close to those who are living under the same roof as you. You just don’t want to share germs with people outside of your home. That’s how diseases spread.

They can’t spread diseases to other people if the entire house is under quarantine. However, diseases can spread from one house to the next if people aren’t mindful about who and what they touch. That’s why we have to physically distance ourselves and stay in our homes as much as possible. We don’t want to get everyone sick at once, and end up like Italy or Spain where the healthcare systems are severely overwhelmed. Let's wait for scientists to develop a few treatments for covid-19 at the very least, before we start living life as normal again. Then, next year, we'll probably have a vaccine for it too! Speaking of which, have you noticed just how quiet the anti-vax movement has been lately?

Also, getting sick in general sucks major ass. I know I’d probably survive covid-19 just fine. Six other people with CF have/had the coronavirus already, and they all pulled through just fine, including those way sicker than me. But, I still don’t want to spend a few miserable days in bed, and risk needing hospital care, so I'm gonna do all that I can to stay healthy. 

The last time I got a viral infection was a little over a year ago. I couldn’t move except to pull myself onto the toilet bowl to puke. I was just stuck on the bathroom floor, with a burning fever but I was still freezing, wrapped in blankets, comforters, and towels I managed to pull out of the towel basket, and surrounded by water, ginger ale, and gatorade, none of which I could keep down for almost an entire day. I felt like I was dying, and it took me three full days to recover completely. I was hit with the illness over the weekend, and I was pissed because I was supposed to do something fun that weekend. Instead, I spent it violently puking for eight hours straight, and spent another couple of days still feeling like utter trash. 

Do you want to get sick with covid-19, or whatever stomach virus I had a year ago? No! So, let’s all stay at home and enjoy our forced vacations for awhile. Getting sick sucks. You’d still be stuck at home. You’d just feel like shit, which would make everything suck more than they already do. So, let’s not pretend nothing is going on and get everyone sick at once. But, don’t panic either. Panicking doesn’t do anyone any good. Wash your hands. Keep your distance. Stay home. Don't pick your nose while you're waiting at a stoplight. And you will be just fine. 

Finally, it’s not the end of the world if you run out of toilet paper. If you’ve got a shower, you’ll make it just fine. I promise. Spend your extra TP money on video games, or art, or books, or whatever the hell you think will keep you entertained so you don’t go crazy over the next few months.