Here’s how I’m doing.

6am: Wake up. Scroll through Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and the news, all on my phone. Still in bed. Doom in the dark.

6:30am: Awake and out of bed. Get 8 year old out of bed. Struggle ensues. Additional snuggles requested by 8 year old. Force him to brush his teeth.

Either shower then make breakfast or take doggo out and then shower. Depends on partner (did he sleep or did the various immunosuppresents he is on keep him awake all night?)

7:15am: Drink coffee. Forget to eat breakfast. Remind kiddo to wear pants when on video.

7:30am: Virtual school begins. Log in to Teams. Sit down next to kiddo and check email while he goes through synchronous social-emotional learning segment.

8:00am: Virtual math on Teams. Try to remember elementary school math explanations. Do that badly. Teacher is trying her best but is also at home with a 1st and 3rd grader. Spend 15 minutes troubleshooting 3 different online platforms with other parents and/or teacher and/or other kids in class.

8:30am: Independent work time. Convince 8 yo that math work is not that bad. You can do it. No need to cry. You like math, remember? Snack for 8 yo.

9:00 am: Virtual Science. Teacher is trying her best but it’s a lot. Am I working? Probably not. Trying to respond to so many emails. LMS for school district is down. Write down alternate instructions to get to kiddo’s work and turn in to teacher. Internet cuts out briefly.

9:30am: Snack for 8 yo. Reply to more emails. Try to plan day. Fight with LMS because it isn’t linking to the right GoogleSlide. Restart. Curse. Restart. Access assignment and call over 8 yo. Do more schoolwork. Remember the toast you started. Take a picture of kiddo’s work and send via the other app. No not that one. The other one.

10:15am: Virtual Reading. Spend 15 minutes following paper folding directions. Teacher is trying her best but kids are confused. Some have parents with them. Some don’t. Realize I double-booked myself and cancel a work meeting. More coffee. More snacks for 8 yo.

10:45am: Do more schoolwork. Convince 8 yo it is not that bad. You can do it. Still don’t finish in time. Does this become homework? Isn’t it all homework?

11:15am: Make kiddo lunch. Watch him eat while skateboarding in his underwear around the house.

11:45am: Setup iPad so kiddo can complete assessment. Find some time to turn off the iPad and read a fucking book. Dog Man Grime & Punishment is a hit! Hooray! Reading is fun!

12:15pm: Tag in partner. Share all of the assignments that need to be done / what’s been done / what tech systems are working / what tech systems are not working. We have at least 5 different tech access points that kiddo uses in a given day. AT LEAST 5.

12:30pm: Work meeting

1:00pm: Work meeting. Video muted so that I can eat some guacamole and chips and call it lunch.

2:00pm: Try to do some work that has been sitting all morning and NEEDS to get done by tomorrow.

3:00pm: Work Meeting

4:00pm: Work Meeting

5:00pm: Try to finish up work project

5:30pm: Make dinner while listening to 8 yo talk about Lord of the Rings as well as find time to vent/commiserate with partner. This is love. Eat.

6:30pm: Walk dog and listen to Drag Race recap podcast.

7:00pm: If energy is still present and hip is not radiating pain, run or do yoga.

8:00pm: Bedtime/storytime. Stay with kiddo until he is ok with me leaving and letting him go to sleep on his own. He has autism and just needs to be comforted in the evenings.

9:00/9:30pm: Rest in front of TV. Fall asleep in front of TV

10:30pm: Go to bed but then can’t sleep so pop some melatonin and stare at a Kindle until asleep.

Yes, my partner and I are in this 50/50. Yes, my son is 8 and there are things he can do on his own and things he can’t do on his own. Yes, my son is 8 and on the spectrum and has some attention issues and has an IEP but is mainstreamed. Yes, his IEP is out the window at this point. Yes sometimes he has Occupational Therapy and Speech Therapy in the afternoon, too.

Yes, my partner also works a full time job and is teaching 5 classes with several hundred students in each class because there wasn’t enough money for adjuncts this semester. Yes we are both working from home. No, we don’t have family nearby who are healthy enough to take care of our son. No, we don’t have money to pay a private teacher.

No, we don’t have a learning pod because my partner is a transplant patient and is severely immunosuppressed. Even when some students can go back to school ours will be home.

Yes, we value teachers. My parents are both retired school teachers who worked long days.

No, this isn’t sustainable. Yes, I am tired.