Whine & Jeez

VOCAL

My 13-year old WhatsApped us this morning "Hey Mommy and Daddy, you should check out Vocal. Submit a story. You can get PAID for it!" He's always noticing cool things and sharing them with us. So here I am!

After a day of sitting in front of my laptop, typing away, I just submitted my first story. A love letter to ex. And it was, well, cathartic. Getting lost in memories from half my life ago brought a smile to my face. Writing my love letter even got me doing a bit of researching to look up a few historic facts as well. And... I scheduled an edited version for my blog. Repurposing. How efficient. The writing juices were flowing, yay! Feeling like a writer!

Then I started exploring Vocal. I noticed great stories and interesting topics, like Letters to Donald, as well as a curated approach, like Collections and Staff Picks. What a cool concept, I thought, I am curious what their business model is.

BREAK

Taking a short break, I pulled out the bottle of Bodacious Cabernet Sauvignon that my husband bought last night and the Balderson Extra Old Cheddar that we love. Ooh, I hope Bill doesn't mind that I've gone ahead and opened a new bottle without him!

Hubby has been busy today with editing videos for his channel and my podcast for my website. The boys both (but individually) hosted Halloween movie parties online for their classmates. There was a lot of shrieking and laughing. Lots of technical difficulties too, but what else is new these days?

I looked down... I was still in my PJs! I'm a bit ashamed to admit that I didn't shower either. It's 9:45 pm on Halloween and I'm still in my PJs! Not, I'm ALREADY in my PJS... it's I'm STILL in my PJs! What a day!

COVID

Actually, I started thinking, what a month! No, really, what a year!

My 50th was at end of March and I was scheduled to take a trip with a close friend. Well, that went out the door real quick. But not with a refund, of course. Oh no, just a credit that isn't going to help me at all. The boys had a March break that went on and on and on. Online learning was more like homeschooling. Getting ready to go out the door or grocery shopping became a huge rigmarole. Masks, wipes, masks, wipes.

Summer was a total write-off in terms of being productive. But it felt like if you weren't learning a new language, cultivating a sour bread starter from scratch, or taking a course on data-analysis, you were falling behind and wasting COVID downtime. Shame, guilt, shame, guilt.

Today is Halloween during COVID. We haven't seen my mother-in-law in a few months. The boys have been stressed about COVID and school. The numbers in Toronto are going up and the upcoming US elections plays nonstop on all channels, social media and radio. We haven't had friends over to hang out and enjoy wine and cheese since March. Social distancing, social distancing.

YUMMY

Which brings me back to my break. I took a small bite of the cheese and a little sip of the wine. The rich flavours exploded in my mouth. The warmth from the alcohol spread through my body. As I swirled the wine in my glass and enjoyed the fruity aroma, I closed my eyes and relaxed.

Leaning back in my chair, I enjoyed the mix of old cheddar and rich red wine in my mouth. I could feel the Asian flush start on my face and the stress melting away. The feelings of yum in the mouth and relaxation in the brain brought me back to the fun times with our friends sitting here in our living room with us... laughing, teasing, dancing, singing, arguing, ranting, cooking, eating, drinking, and enjoying life.

My perfect pairing of wine and cheese transported me from my whine and jeez to a memory of enjoyment.

STORY

Then there I saw it on the Vocal site at the bottom: The Perfect Pairing Challenge! How could I NOT share this story? It's my perfect pairing on COVID-ween that takes me back to a time when Halloween would have meant the kids going out to trick or treat while the adults were here in my living room, imbibing wine and inhaling yummy food.

I'm not sad. No, I'm reminded how much fun we had and how much fun we will have in the near future.

Because we will figure and we will evolve.

And we have wine and cheese.