Self Sufficiency

Self Sufficiency 

Something has been on my mind for several weeks now, and today it finally hit me why it was bothering me so much. 

As you know most places are beginning to require that you wear some sort of mask out in public. Now mind you, these are not medical grade masks by any means, and everywhere you turn you are finding tutorials for DIY masks. 

This is because there are few places where you can actually purchase any type of required masks. I have noticed, though, that some Etsy businesses are now in the mask making market, and I probably should just order some. 

Not being a seamstress I was excited at first to see the simple bandana and hair tie type of mask. I quickly went to work assembling one. Unfortunately for what ever reason, I could not get the hair ties to stay behind my ears. That and the bulkiness of the bandana left me feeling quite dejected. 

In desperation I pulled out an old yard mask from the garage that Chuck claims is older than Brittany. We came across a box of these masks while cleaning out the garage a few weeks ago. At first I was elated, until I actually wore the darn thing. As I perused the aisles at Aldi searching for toilet paper my glasses kept steaming up. 

Needless to say I was not excited about having to wear that type of mask again. Last week when I ventured out to Albertsons I skipped the mask all together. Now we’ve gotten so many mixed messages along the way about the effectiveness on non medical masks that who knows what to believe anymore?

That being said I do know that some people are comforted by having others wearing a mask. Sometimes that peace of mind, unfounded or not, is important when you are thinking about others. 

What really bothered me today was the reality that I was feeling pretty helpless about this whole mask thing. I kept thinking, “Well if the government expects us to wear masks then why don’t they deliver a box to my front door.”

Now obviously that would solve the whole problem, but to be honest it would open a whole other set of problems. What has happened to self-sufficiency when you become too dependent on the government?  Our great-grandparents had to figure out ways to make do with what they had. They couldn’t just click a button on Amazon and have it delivered within fourth-eight hours. 

So where do I go from here? I need to figure out a way to get my hands on a mask. That might require a little more effort on my part. I don’t want to be held back by a feeling of helplessness. 

In fact, yesterday I downloaded a pattern where I can use an old t-shirt to cut out a mask that fits behind your ears without the use of hair ties. I just need to do it. 

How are you handling the whole mask thing?