FIRST AND FOREMOST THANK YOU
During this crazy challenging time I'd like to take a moment to thank all of the healthcare professionals that are putting their lives and their loved ones lives at risk every day to help others. It is unimaginable to me what they are experiencing and I am so grateful to them.
Some of the other unsung heroes that need to be acknowledged are the workers and staff at restaurants, grocery stores, pharmacies, and nursing homes, in New York City and around the world. They are all out there working hard to ensure we at home can get what we need in order to survive. Delivery people, cleaning crews, airline staff are all putting themselves at risk but are a key and essential part of our survival in quarantine and we THANK YOU ALL!
RONNIE’S STAY AT HOME UPDATE
I left NYC March 10th and came to New Jersey to be with my parents. We are spending each day with a routine which has helped with structure and left little room for boredom/negative thoughts. We are up at 6:30 AM as we would normally be with breakfast for the baby as the first task. I check emails and reply to emails after her breakfast as I normally would do. (Real estate update: we had a closing last Friday!) Around 10 am I workout for one hour, I have been using the SWEAT app but also follow several health and wellness instructors on instagram that are providing free live workouts. Staying physical has been essential for me since when I am bored and have nothing to do, I tend to snack! If you follow me on instagram (@ronniekalra) youll see Lyanna joins in on the workout fun too! Around 11 am I make myself a healthy breakfast. Around 12 my daughter takes a nap and I catch up on client calls/emails and social media brand marketing. The rest of my day consists of coming up with what is for dinner, taking a walk and cooking followed by cleaning. This quarantine has brought out my creative cooking side and I’ve managed to try some recipes I’ve always wanted to try but never had the time to. There has been a recipe exchange going around and I’m loving the challenge of trying new things. The best advice I can give is to create a daily routine and stick with it!
Last Friday we had a quarantine birthday party! Although I was super bummed my daughters 2nd birthday party with her friends was cancelled I am very grateful that my entire family was around us and we were able to spend the day together and make it special for her. I attempted to make Elmo cupcakes and by the picture below you can see they were a hit!
Some real estate updates from New York City: We can still close! The seller must sign all documents in front of a notary (typically the seller’s attorney) then the documents are sent to buyers broker for signatures. The title company and bank is able to do everything via email and wire. Commission checks or wires are being processed.
VICTORIA'S STAY AT HOME UPDATE
While everyone has been freaking out about how bored they are at home, I can definitely say I’ve had an interesting quarantine thus far.
March 28th, my wedding day, was supposed to be straight out of a fairytale. Everything was set in stone thanks to my mother, Denise, planning everything down to a T. as the special day approached, the Coronavirus took us down a different path. Instead of having our 150 closest friends and family members celebrating with us, we were down to our immediate family. Not only was our guest list drastically altered, but our venue was as well. Our dream venue was replaced by my childhood home. However, we weren’t going to let that get in our way. I still was able to put on my beautiful gown and have a great time.
My day was still super special and will definitely make for a great story and memory, even though my nails weren’t done. I am humbled by this experience, and am so lucky to have gotten to marry my best friend.
BRENDA’S STAY AT HOME UPDATE
What did I do first? I prepared by calling my mom to discuss meals and my grocery shopping. I grew up sailing up and down the coast each summer with my parents and siblings. Before we left for our several weeks-long trips each summer, my mother would plan-out meals that could be cooked without having to rely heavily on grocery store outings. (you never know if the town you stopped at had a grocery store that was close to the marina.) So armed with her suggestions, I went to the store and stocked up on a wide variety of goods that could be stored and cooked over the weeks to come. What have I cooked so far? My favorite so far has been a rosemary roasted potato with a roasted chili and tomato sausage and chicken crockpot dish. Tomorrow I am making Foccacia from scratch.
Exercise has become a new hurdle. I admit it; I liked going to my gym. Spin classes, Yoga, my beloved arc trainer...I didn't have to think about what exercise I needed to do or when to do it. Now, I have to do yoga classes at home via an app grudgingly, and I power walk with my dogs, which they enjoy most days. (weather being the factor) And I used Amazon Prime to purchase a Bosu balancing ball and a weighted bar. I don't like this routine as much, but I will carry on in the fight against gaining the dreaded quarantine 15.
Work? Besides analyzing the current NYC real estate market and selling my real estate listings, I have added an ongoing analysis of the Paris and Milan property markets. Paris is one of the top three worldwide real estate investment locations for 2020. The sales market at specific price points in Paris is still moving quickly without discounts, but the incoming inventory has slowed overall. Milan and Italy, as a whole, are seeing discounts throughout the current rental and sales real estate market with very few new listings.
For fun, I have added several French tv series to my Netflix viewing rotation. Since I am studying French, this helps me to learn the language while enjoying their shows. It is fascinating to me the different standards of beauty and fashion when comparing these shows to US series. The French shows I have been watching have actors from every age group, all of them uniquely beautiful and not heavily made up. They appreciate true beauty and have an understanding that even at age 80, one has value to society and the telling of fascinating stories.
NANCY’S STAY AT HOME UPDATE
I’ve been hearing about coronavirus since the end of January. With little-to-no understanding or guidance yet, I proceeded with new real estate showings, going to the office, and working real estate as I normally would. It all became real in early March when Ronnie told us all to stop visiting the Manhattan office and work from home. As a member of a team that spends a large amount of time at our home base- 575 Madison Avenue- this is when I knew it was real. I tried to make it normal, working and living solely in the confines of my 600 square foot apartment. After a weekend in the new normal that New York City was facing, I immediately hopped on a plane and came down to Palm Beach.
Although Florida has shut down beaches, restaurants, and all the same establishments as NYC, having the sunshine has drastically improved my quarantine.
With limited work to be done on account of the halted real estate market, I began to spend a minimum of 4 hours daily working towards my Florida Real Estate License. The RK team is expanding to the sunshine state! On top of that, I’ve started doing at-home workouts. The irony is that prior to quarantine I didn’t do workouts anywhere- the walk to my uber was my cardio- let alone in the living room.
I know this unprecedented time is confusing, boring, and at times scary but let me be an example that you can use this quarantine to better yourself. Like everyone and their mother is saying.. stay home! And hopefully this will be over soon.
REAL TALK WITH RONNIE
As we all do our part and stay at home, I welcome you to take a break from Netflix and checkout my Youtube series: #RTWR . Now is a great time to catch up on following what our favorite influencers are doing (Rita Linkner, Jennie Monness, Hilary Matt) and find out some fun personal facts about them while we're at it! Each week a new episode is released and I am more and more amazed that over 2-3K people have been watching on YouTube! THANK YOU! This all started out as a fun side project, and has been an incredible platform to connect and create new relationships. Coming soon: (Jen Silverman, nutritionist, Olivia Cinque aka Hairgoddess and Amanda Munz, the owner of the Fashion Foundation)
Not a fan of YouTube? all episodes are now available on Spotify podcast! Check it out here!
