A terse history of my life so far.
The Best and Worst of One Year of Quarantine
One year into a global health crisis, I sat down to think about the best and worst things about the past year in trying to continue living normally.
How it’s going…
It feels like the last thing that happened was the election, followed by the massive rejection of the election results, followed by Christmas, New Year’s, and an frenzied assault on the Capitol. Oh, and despite all our efforts to be safe when going out, we managed to catch COVID.
Walk It Back
We’ve all seen them, starting around the middle of 2016 and slowly growing, at least around here in the middle of rural Pennsylvania. Those red hats. The large hand-painted Trump signs on the side of the highway. And those jacked-up coal-rolling trucks with like 8 flags bolted to the tailgate. And you think to yourself, how is this a thing?
Vote
Everyone’s been saying the same thing. I’ve never seen a year like this. I’ve never seen the country so divided. This is so weird and stressful and I don’t know what’s going to happen.
Final Command
The party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command… and if all others accepted the lie, which the party imposed, if all records told the same tale, then the lie passed into history and became truth. George Orwell, 1984
Blue
Zoom.
You know, I think people are clinging to the idea that they can simply continue to work and block out all the shit that’s swirling around us daily. I think they want to forget about the pandemic, the systematic racial violence, the people who can’t go to work because they had to close or their… Continue reading Zoom.
‘I Wish I Could Do Something For You,’ My Doctor Said
This sounds horrendous. You really don’t want to get it. Wear your masks. Keep each other safe. Don’t be so eager to get back to big crowds… I am one of the lucky ones. I never needed a ventilator. I survived. But 27 days later, I still have lingering pneumonia. I use two inhalers, twice… Continue reading ‘I Wish I Could Do Something For You,’ My Doctor Said
It came out of nowhere
It was only meant to be a short drive. Pop out to Dunkin’ for a quick coffee before my daughter’s weekly Zoom call with her class. The drive out there is maybe 3 miles and should have taken like, 15 minutes, tops.
That Discomfort You’re Feeling Is Grief
“There is a storm coming. There’s something bad out there. With a virus, this kind of grief is so confusing for people. Our primitive mind knows something bad is happening, but you can’t see it. This breaks our sense of safety. We’re feeling that loss of safety. I don’t think we’ve collectively lost our sense… Continue reading That Discomfort You’re Feeling Is Grief