What I did during the Government Shutdown, Day 4

Day Four, Friday, October 4, 2013.

Disclaimer:  The thoughts and feelings expressed in this post are solely the author's and do not represent the official position of any government agency.

When I started this Shutdown Diary a couple of days ago, I thought it might be a fun/funny way to pass the time and document what I thought, felt, and did during the shutdown.

But now I'm tired.  I'm bored.  I'm frustrated.  The anxiety of the past few days is going away and acceptance of the cynical reality is sinking in.  Today's entry is, therefore, less fun to write. But I'm doing it because (a) I want to document it and (b) gotta finish what you started, right?  (Unless it's a bad book, movie or relationship. Those you can freely bail from mid-way through. You have my permission.)

Meanwhile, while I fretted about whether writing this blog about my daily activities and random thoughts during the shutdown was a risky endeavor, other furloughed federal employees are up to even more, um, adventurous pursuits during their forced time off.  (Thanks, friend who knows who she is, for tipping me off.  Wow, just, wow.)

So . . . uh . . . yeah.

Today, I filled out unemployment paperwork. Doing that actually made me more anxious, not less.  I sort of wish I hadn't done it.

I called my brother and wished him a happy birthday.  Talking to him made me feel better.  He has been through a lay-off before, for a lot longer time (although how long this one might be, who knows?).  I was supposed to be wishing him well today, but he's the one that did me some good.  He's a great guy.  Love him lots.

After I talked to him, I got a little bit of comfort from this article, circulated by a fellow furloughed employee.  My favorite quote:

“Hardworking federal employees did not cause our fiscal crises, nor did they contribute to the legislative gridlock,” [Senator Ben] Cardin said in a statement. “It is our responsibility to assure these public servants, mostly middle class and struggling to get by like so many other Americans, will be made whole again when it finally ends.”

Yes.  This.  We didn't start this.  We want be working.  Our families, our kids, should not have to pay for Congress's inability to play nice (particularly given that they still get paid).

I did some sewing, and I went for a long walk, and I ate meals, and I did my 15 minutes of BB time, and I hung out with my husband and my kid.  (The boy and I watched Daniel Tiger in the morning today, instead of Fireman Sam.)

I made myself a root beer with the Soda Stream (and wished that I had the ice cream to make a float).

I took a math pretest on Khan Academy and discovered that, with math, indeed, if you don't use it, you will lose it. If I start studying now, I might be able to stay ahead of The Boy as he progresses through school. Right now, he sometimes skips numbers when he counts ("one, three, six, eight, eleven, sixteen, seventeen, eighteen...."), and I can still do long division and simple algebra in my head, so I've still got a good head start. 

Also, I gave myself a pedicure.

Practiced guitar.  (Did I mention that I have my first recital, of sorts, coming up in less than a month?)

Oh, I also made cinnamon brownies!  (In a muffin tin, as ya' do . . . more crusty bits, which we like around here.)

I weighed myself:  I've lost two pounds since the furlough commenced!  (Silver lining.)

I wrote this blog post . . . .

On the way to pick up The Boy from school, I heard on the radio that someone had set himself on fire on the National Mall.  What the heck is going on in this country?

I'm kind of glad that Day 5 will be a Saturday, so it will feel kind of normal....

Did the normal evening rituals with the family.  Hubby once again made an excellent dinner.  And I'm sticking with the camomile tea again tonight.  It does me a lot better through the night than the boxed wine.

Have a great weekend, y'all.