We knew I would resort to this eventually.
My pandemic-related buying started a few weeks before the NBA suspended its season, which for me and many other people was the day all of this became real. If you are Very Online for a while, and especially if you spend a lot of time on Twitter, you tend to be – for better or worse – on a slightly fast-forwarded news cycle. Anyway I won’t count those because they were mostly things I’d buy in a non-pandemic situation (toilet paper, pasta, laundry soap).
Anyway:
Steam mop (boil away that ‘rona)
Humidifier (supposed to be good for your lungs, keep you from getting ‘rona)
Pulse oximeter (in case you get ‘rona and need to decide when to go to the ER)
Cough syrup and Tylenol (for treating the symptoms of ‘rona)
So the pulse oximeter seems insane in retrospect. In fairness to me, I bought it early on when things were still very confusing and the news was changing by the minute rather than by the day. And just like the Robitussin and Tylenol, it seemed better to be prepared than not.
Also pandemic-related, but not pandemic-exclusive:
Sewing machine
Fabric, thread/notions, elastic
Quilting supplies
The idea of making masks prompted me to buy the sewing machine, but I’ve wanted one for years; hence the quilt stuff. I’m delighted with the sewing machine, except when I have to mess with a bobbin. At the time I bought the sewing machine it also seemed insane, but I no longer think that. It’s certainly less weird than a pulse oximeter. What am I, running a M*A*S*H unit?
What else? I use mascara pretty much every day and I went through a whole tube of it while shut up in this house. We also went through a large tube of toothpaste, a whole bottle of laundry detergent, several bags of dishwasher tabs (god the amount of dishes we’ve washed since mid-March). I’m not going to count how many bottles of wine we’ve consumed but I will tell you that when we take our recycling to the curb on Monday mornings I would not be surprised if our neighbors think we have A Problem. Suffice to say I joined Wine.com’s free shipping program. That’s that on that.
I still feel like I haven’t spent as much as I would have in Before Times. There have been no cocktail outings and no trips to the liquor store either, for that matter. Many nights of leftovers. No “recipe shopping” where I go to the store and spend $65 on a bottle of wine and highly specific ingredients for one meal. I haven’t filled my gas tank in more than a month. No work lunch outings, no Target wanderings, no CVS trips just because.
Buuuut maybe that’s all been balanced out from orders with FoodIreland.com and the Irish meats place and the pet food home delivery, I dunno. I’m not saying being at home has taught me a Life Lesson about needs vs. wants, I already knew that lesson. It’s just a matter of telling yourself “it’s not necessary” before you click “Place My Order.” Just because you can doesn’t mean you should etc etc. I also know I’m lucky to still be buying anything at all, let alone anything that purely falls into the wants category.
One thing I’ve enjoyed about this period of time is that I haven’t once worried about a package being stolen or not being here to sign for something. I’m always home! You need signatures, you got ‘em! Need to see ID? Here’s my birth certificate!