“SHHHH!”

“SHHHH!!!!” I say as loud as I can to a room of rowdy rumblers and barking dogs, “Your father is on a conference call!!”

The statement used to cause us all to silence ourselves as we looked to the air to hear the mumble of voices from the basement below.

Trying to separate home life from work-life has been a challenge.  With Bob working in the basement, I have learned that our house has pretty thin walls above, below and all around us.

I want to thank the maker of the “mute” button who has saved me from utter “mom’s gone crazy in the background” embarrassment.  I would also like to thank the laundry room for being a sufficient “time out” room for barky dogs.

The separation has gone…okay. Only once, a stern look emerged from the basement that we all could interpret without words.  Silence granted. 

Every morning at 8:00 AM, Bob walks down the basement stairs.  Taking his medications for his ADHD, Bob has a laser focus I never realized.  When I drop his sandwich off at lunchtime, I wait to see if it is a time for conversation.  If he is “in it,” I silently retreat up the stairs.  If I really need his attention for something, I send him an email from one floor up which, is answered in a timely manner.

At 5:00 PM, Bob emerges from the basement and gets in the car.  When Bob left his job at the end of each day before the pandemic, he had a one and a half-hour commute home.  That time allowed for him to decompress and go from “Work Bob” to “Home Bob.”  Now, a brief 20-30 minute car ride allows “Home Bob” to reemerge and separate himself from “Work Bob.”

When I shush the kids now, I get a different response.

“He’s always on a conference call,” sassy pants says with a shrug.

So, the mom train pulls out.  Driving children to friend’s houses, parks, the lake, or the pool.  Anything to separate home life from Bob’s work-life.

A couple of months ago, when discussing when he planned to return to the office, Bob said, “Not until October at the earliest.”

Now, unless something big changes, Bob believes he will be in the basement for the remainder of 2020 as his office will remain closed.

Why?

“Without a vaccine, it’s just not safe.”

Hello, shush time.

Which leads to the question – if a bunch of businesspeople in a large corporation do not feel safe to return to their office building –

Why is it safe for kids, teachers, and personnel to be back at school?

Two weeks ago sports practices started again.  Catelyn was off to soccer practice, and Bobby was off to football practice.

There are rules.  Masks must be worn going on and off the field.  Players need to pack their own hand sanitizer to clean their hands before exiting the area.  Temperatures must be taken at home two hours before practice and recorded in the sports system before the player can attend.  A list of questions about physical health and travel must be answered as well.  Parents are to stay in their cars.  If parents come to the field to watch practice, they must wear a mask and stay 6 feet away from other parents.  Players must exit the field, while socially distancing, and go directly to their parents, who are waiting for them.

In reality, players leave their parent’s cars with a mask on their faces.  When they return, about half are wearing their masks.  Players return to their parents talking with their friends in close social groups.  The organizations have tried to put all safety precautions in place, yet I was reminded – kids will focus on what they want to: Feeling “cool” with friends.

As with any big decision, I go back and forth over all the pros and cons.  If I choose, I can have my kids join the cyber academy and avoid the classroom completely for an entire year.  Knowing how awful my kids were with independent or online learning, this is a commitment I do not want to make.

I am sure these, and a host of many other things I probably haven’t even thought about, are being discussed.  When the district makes its final decision, we will make ours.

Until then – “SHHHHHH!!!!”