Happy anniversary

Honey, it’s our one-year quarantine anniversary.

What did we get us?

Lobster rolls, of course.

Let me explain.

Like you, I started quarantining in March 2020.

I have no idea where last year went.

There were days that never ended in a year that never got started.

I’m still wearing the same pants.

I’m pretty sure I showered Christmas morning.

Every national holiday, I shower.

I know, stop bragging.

I remember in the beginning, I didn’t think quarantine would change my life that much. Truly, it hasn’t. I stay home and work. I have to earn a living.

But now I have to stay alive.

I know I’m lucky to be able to work from home, and Francesca is here with me, too, working away. We’re cooking together, but also getting takeout, because we want to support our favorite local restaurants, one of which even has take-out cocktails.

I’ve never seen a Mason jar put to better use than as a margarita-to-go.

I had one and didn’t go far.

Actually, I went directly to the couch.

Then, one day, my best friend, Laura, sent us some lobster rolls via Goldbelly, which I didn’t know was a thing. We bit into its seafoody goodness and felt instantly better about quarantine.

If you’re not familiar, Goldbelly is a website that will send you take-out food from restaurants all over the country.

Why cook when you can click?

For me, a binge was born.

On Francesca’s birthday, I ordered her a confetti cake from Magnolia Bakery in New York.

Nothing says I love you like zero effort.

After all, it’s the thought that counts.

The thought can be: I’m lazy.

We ordered bagels and lox from Zabar’s and frozen pizza from Naples.

We ordered Cinnabons and pretended we were at the mall.

We ordered babka and pretended we were in Seinfeld.

On New Year’s Eve, we splurged on stone crab claws from Miami.

The restaurants on Goldbelly are listed by region, so you could get muffulettas from New Orleans, a key lime pie from Key West, or deep dish pizza from Chicago.

This qualifies as quarantine travel.

Be real.

Anytime somebody takes a trip, isn’t your first question: How was the food?

Now the food comes to you.

On the couch.

Goldbelly even has diet options like Paleo or Keto.

I’m Carbo.

So now I spend hours on the website, looking at pictures of food and planning future treats. They even have a section for iconic dishes, like a Philly cheesesteak from Pat’s King of Steaks.

OK, that restaurant I’ve heard of.

But you get the idea.

What I’m saying is that we’ve all been in quarantine a year and we’ve all managed to persevere, and now that we’re coming up on our anniversary, I think we should treat ourselves to a great big pat on the back.

Maybe order takeout.

With an alcoholic beverage or two. Or five.

And we all have a very special gift coming for our one-year anniversary in quarantine.

A vaccine.

One year ago, nobody thought that was possible.

Yet here we are.

Thanks to the brilliance and dedication of so many scientists who worked around the clock to save humanity.

Wow.

I know there are problems with vaccine distribution, and we’re hitting refresh on our computers a billion times to try to get an appointment. But help truly is on the way, more vaccine is going to be produced, and the powers that be are saying that everybody should be vaccinated by summertime.

That is an honest-to-God miracle.

We’re over the dog, and we can get over the tail.

So many first-line responders and essential employees worked around the clock to get us here, in hospitals, drugstores, grocery stores, schools, nursing homes, libraries, veterinary hospitals, delivery services, there are just too many to mention.

Maybe you’re one of them.

If you are, we love you and we’re grateful to you. You got us through this, with your sacrifice.

And I think we all did our best to keep our sanity at home, to educate our kids, to support one another, and try to survive in this unprecedented time.

So many are mourning, so many lives will never be the same, in so many families.

I’m thinking of you now.

I’m sending my love.

We all are.

We made it through this year, and spring is here.

The sun is brighter and the daytime longer.

Soon we’ll be able to emerge, hold each other close, and rejoice and mourn together.

The artist Vincent van Gogh famously said, “Admire as much as you can. Most people do not admire enough.”

I think that is true.

I admire all of us, every single one of us, for persevering through this past year.

I admire you.

Happy anniversary.

Look for Lisa’s first historical novel, “Eternal,” coming on March 23. Also look for Francesca’s debut novel, “Ghosts of Harvard,” on sale now.