--- title: The 2020 Quarantine – Dr. Thomas J. Donahue description: This poem about COVID-19, authored by dentist Thomas J. Donahue, focuses on the experience of the pandemic quarantine. image: https://pages.ada.org/hubfs/Covid%20Monograph/CM_TDonahue_square.jpg --- [![American Dental Association](https://pages.ada.org/hs-fs/hubfs/101520_ADA_logo.jpg?width=50&height=50&name=101520_ADA_logo.jpg) ](https://www.ada.org) [![American Dental Association](https://pages.ada.org/hs-fs/hubfs/101520_ADA_logo.jpg?width=50&height=50&name=101520_ADA_logo.jpg) ](https://www.ada.org) ** ## In It Together A community sourced archive, documenting COVID-19’s impact on dentistry ***Sponsored by [Patterson Dental](https://www.pattersondental.com/)*** #### Many in the dental community have been affected by COVID-19 and want to share their stories. As a result, the ADA is launching the JADA+ COVID-19 Monograph—a digital collection of stories, reflections, and accounts from any perspective, in any format, including articles, essays, podcasts, videos, graphics, and photos—that is open to all contributors. [Submit your COVID-19 story here.](https://pages.ada.org/jada-plus-monograph-submissions) Stories by Region [Outside the US ](https://pages.ada.org/en/covidmonograph/tag/outside-the-us) --- # The 2020 Quarantine – Dr. Thomas J. Donahue The 2020 quarantine. It’s positively byzantine. Cooped up just like a submarine and doing things quite unforeseen. The window view’s the same old scene: the tree out front’s an evergreen. Not buying so much gasoline. Long walks are now a new routine. It’s interesting what you glean by staring at the TV screen: I’ve watched some tours of Aberdeen, Saint Augustine, and Bowling Green. I learned to cook trout almondine, repair a floor with travertine, and how to get clothes really clean with tetrachloroethylene. I watched a film with Steve McQueen, stayed up to see The Wolverine, then, surfing channels, caught a scene from Gettysburg with Martin Sheen. I went to get the attic clean and found my grandma’s soup tureen, her Royal Doulton figurine, and diary from age sixteen. I tried to vary my cuisine and ate my very first sardine. I chased it with a nectarine then finished with a tangerine. ![CM_TDonahue_1](https://pages.ada.org/hs-fs/hubfs/Covid%20Monograph/CM_TDonahue_1.jpg?width=496&name=CM_TDonahue_1.jpg) I’m eating junk food in-between; it does no good for staying lean. What’s better: more or less caffeine? Or should I stick with Ovaltine? I telephoned Eileen, Charlene, Christine, Kathleen, Rebecca Jean, Joaquin, Arlene, Eugene, Marlene, Maureen, Pauline, and Josephine. I’ve looked at every magazine. I’m finding books I’ve never seen. I clean so much the floor’s pristine; it has a lovely mirrored sheen. I watch the cat eat, sleep, and preen. I counted forks. There’re seventeen. My hair’s all set for Halloween. My money’s from a cash machine. This craziness is rather mean; I need some calm to intervene. I wish I had a time machine; I’d like the past to reconvene. *__________ *Dr. Thomas J. Donahue *Stock photo credits: Malte Mueller/Getty Images * Topics: [Region–Midwest](https://pages.ada.org/en/covidmonograph/tag/region-midwest), [Creative writing](https://pages.ada.org/en/covidmonograph/tag/creative-writing) - [Tweet](https://twitter.com/share) ### Stories by type - [Practitioners (58)](https://pages.ada.org/en/covidmonograph/tag/practitioners) - [Personal Essay (35)](https://pages.ada.org/en/covidmonograph/tag/personal-essay) - [Region–Northeast (23)](https://pages.ada.org/en/covidmonograph/tag/region-northeast) - [Region–West (22)](https://pages.ada.org/en/covidmonograph/tag/region-west) - [Clinical Observations (17)](https://pages.ada.org/en/covidmonograph/tag/clinical-observations) - [Region–South (16)](https://pages.ada.org/en/covidmonograph/tag/region-south) - [Region–Midwest (12)](https://pages.ada.org/en/covidmonograph/tag/region-midwest) - [Art and Photography (10)](https://pages.ada.org/en/covidmonograph/tag/art-and-photography) - [Multimedia (8)](https://pages.ada.org/en/covidmonograph/tag/multimedia) - [Students (8)](https://pages.ada.org/en/covidmonograph/tag/students) - [Creative writing (6)](https://pages.ada.org/en/covidmonograph/tag/creative-writing) - [Patients (4)](https://pages.ada.org/en/covidmonograph/tag/patients) - [Region–Outside the US (3)](https://pages.ada.org/en/covidmonograph/tag/region-outside-the-us) [See all](https://pages.ada.org/en/covidmonograph/the-2020-quarantine-dr.-thomas-j.-donohue#) ### Most Viewed Stories ***Sponsored by: [![CM_Sponsor_Patterson_2](https://pages.ada.org/hs-fs/hubfs/Covid%20Monograph/CM_Sponsor_Patterson_2.png?width=250&name=CM_Sponsor_Patterson_2.png)](https://www.pattersondental.com/)***   ### Subscribe for updates [![JADA+_logo_rev](https://pages.ada.org/hs-fs/hubfs/JADA+_logo_rev.png?width=200&height=80&name=JADA+_logo_rev.png "JADA+_logo_rev")](https://pages.ada.org/) Contact us at [JADA@ada.org](mailto:JADA@ada.org) Visit the [ADA Coronavirus (COVID-19) Center for Dentists](https://success.ada.org/en/practice-management/patients/infectious-diseases-2019-novel-coronavirus?utm_source=hspage&utm_medium=link&utm_campaign=CovidMonograph)   --- *The JADA+ COVID-19 Monograph intends no endorsement of the content of the entries, or the views or opinions of the authors that are expressed therein. 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