Here we are in June in the third month of quarantining or self-isolating, and/or social distancing, whatever approach we're taking to try and stay virus-free. That's a little over two months of working from home for me, and closer to three months of treading carefully.
We are being fairly careful in the Blake house because Patrick is immunocompromised, and I hate being sick, especially since I already have allergy and sinus problems. Staying home constantly was a little weird at first, but we've really gotten into a groove here and only leave the house about once a week, most weeks.
When we do leave, it's usually for a big grocery store run but I've also filled up on gas (just once in two months! It's amazing!), stopped at the craft store with a mask on and only 10 people in at a time, and I went to an outdoor distanced memorial service graveside for my great aunt who passed from COVID at a nursing home. Those are just a few things I've deemed worth leaving. Other than that, my only trips out are walks with the dog around the neighborhood where we rarely encounter other people. We also get to-go food about once a week, where I wear a mask to go in and get it or someone brings it curbside.
Masks Do Not Inhibit Your Freedom, Idiots
One of the hardest parts of this quarantine is seeing how horrible people are acting about masks of all things. People who think that not wearing a mask is a protected class. I'd love to hear how those calls to lawyers offices go. But seriously, freedom does not mean anyone is allowed to do whatever they want, whenever they want, just because they are American.
I'd love to drive a monster truck over cars driven by people playing on their phones while driving, but I can't — that's not a freedom I am allowed as an American, even though I really want it. Asking people to wear masks isn't stripping them of their freedoms any more than asking me not to crush people with a monster truck is stripping me of my rights. It's just common sense and the right thing to do.
When people say things like "Soldiers didn't die fighting for my freedoms only for me to be forced to wear a mask!", think about the freedoms those soldiers gave up. You cannot even compare yourself to them. Those military members gave up several years of their lives, 24/7, to become soldiers. And you can't wear a mask for 20 minutes in Publix? Who do you think you are?! If you're interested in being the kind of person who can protect others, it's simpler than ever. Strap that fabric on your face while you're outside of the walls of your home or car. Quit acting like it's hurting you. You certainly wouldn't want your doctor or dentist to go maskless when they are working on you, so you can do the same for others, for a much shorter amount of time, might I add.
I dislike having to wear a mask too and I can tell it's going to suck that much more the hotter and more humid our South Carolina summer gets. So when I decide that mask wearing sucks more than getting what I need, I order it online and tip the person who brings it to me (when appropriate). Other times, I crave seeing other walls, and I strap on the mask. That's that.
Quarantining
Like I mentioned, we are pretty much staying home. And pretty much liking it. I spend so much less money, it's fantastic in that regard. Plus, we are homebodies anyways, and I've worked hard even since before the pandemic, to make our home the best and most comfortable place for us to be. I've never enjoyed my home and springtime so much as an adult.
The other day when I was lazing about on Memorial Day weekend, it reminded me of that summer before I could drive, but some of my older friends could. I knew there was a whole lot out there and I wasn't able to get to it. And to make it worse, this may have also been in the time of 50 minutes a month of AOL. That's like, less than an hour, for 30 days! I can spend 50 minutes online in a row now, in the blink of an eye. So now, much like then, I'll find myself just lolling around the house, doing nothing for small stretches of time. It's actually quite nice, especially when it follows days of great exertion like the day I removed the flagstones from our backyard and was sore for the next whole day afterward.
Social Distancing Is Gonna Be Awkward
Some social interactions were weird before this. Do you lean in for a hug when meeting a friend's friend? Does this work person warrant a handshake? It's hard to tell what someone new to you expects to fulfill your end of the social contract, so sometimes situations can get awkward. It's going to be even more so now, because we have to be bold and just ask what someone else who we may not know, or not know that well, what they are comfortable with. Perhaps they don't even know themselves yet.
We're going to have to assess how they feel about the virus and its effects, and how we want to interact with them based on it, or ask. A friend you used to hug a lot who doesn't practice social distancing may become offended when you no longer want to embrace them. People can feel hurt that you don't want to let them into your house, even if you've relaxed to the point where you're okay with sitting on a patio several feet away, drinking your own drinks and conversing in the afternoon sun. It's going to be strange, but we have to get comfortable letting people know our own comfort levels instead of trying to guess and gauge.
In fact, I saw this chart online the other day that may help let others know where you are on the "avoiding COVID-19 scale", and as time passes it can and probably will change. According to this one, I am an 85-percenter and Patrick is a 95-percenter. Maybe putting it out there to your friends and family and discussing where you are on this scale and why will help people come to a mutual understanding more quickly than just guessing.
In the End...
We're starting to see the effects of the country opening back up, especially in South Carolina. At this point, it's every person for themselves, since we cannot (and seemingly should not) rely on the government to be a source of sanity, stability, and truth in a time when we need it most. Protect yourself the best you can, and if you don't want to — fine. I really don't care, unless you're my parents or close friends.
You can't fix stupid, as they say, and a tragedy that runs this far-reaching is showing us just how true that statement is. Once a flippant remark casually tossed out to poke fun at people doing silly stunts, its proving itself to be all too useful of a phrase for our new normal. A "normal" in which most people 's dumbness (through little fault of their own, since no one taught them to think for themselves) is reflected from sea to shining sea.
