A Love Letter to Chinese Food

I barely got anything done today.

These days it feels as if my to-do list is never-ending and no matter how hard I try, I am barely making a dent in it.

You can’t help but wonder, how someone who barely leaves their house, might have a to-do list as long as mine?

How, can someone, whose social life consists of FaceTiming with friends who live less than a mile away or drinking alone on the couch to the glow of Fraiser, have a list of looming tasks that can’t seem to get done?

It’s not laziness.

It’s not for a lack of trying.

I am simply put… busy.

In quarantine, I have not taken up sewing or baking bread or planting a garden. Instead, I have taken on work - I have taken on tasks that are outside of my normal comfort zone.

At the end of the day, when daylight starts to leave my office, and the city light outside my window turns on, I know that it is time to start thinking about feeding the kids.

I might make a nice meal, that includes veggies and protein.

But more often than I care to admit, I order food from our local Chinese takeout.

Greasy. Fast. Delicious.

I love the salty and savory taste of Lo Mein. The veggies coated with oyster sauce. The salty shrimp paired with big chunks of pork. Its always exactly what I wanted but more importantly what we needed so that I can get back to work.

Why has work been so comforting to me during Quarantine?

Keeping myself busy has also kept me distracted. I am not listening to podcasts or radio, something I used to do during my morning commute.

I am not reading the news (as often) as I used to, because I have chosen to work or watch TV during my free time.

When I went to an office every day, I separated myself from my work. When I got home, my computer was rarely opened. I would work in the office and maybe (based on deadlines) I would open my computer at night and do light work but it wasn’t like it is now. I used my time at home to read articles, listen to podcasts, cook meals, and scroll Facebook.

Now, I open my laptop and instead of going right to the New York Times, I open up my email and start responding.

Which one is better? In this moment, I am getting more pleasure out of work.

And of course, I thank the convenience of Chinese takeout for allowing me to give up cooking a couple nights a week.