Things slowly appear to be drifting back into "normal" territory as far as all the quarantine measures go. This is although COVID-19 hasn't actually gone anywhere, nor have people stopped contracting it or dying from it. No vaccine has been developed, nor has any concrete plan been put in place to avoid a second wave. It's almost like the government and everyone else more or less decided to shrug and go "oh well".
That makes me nervous. You'd think it would be making other people nervous too, especially if they work outside their homes or have to interact much with the general public to earn a living. I am exceedingly grateful that I don't have to and, to be honest, this whole pandemic has shown me just how right I've always been to simply be my naturally reclusive self to whatever extent I can. At this point, something about me others have always thought of as a personality flaw might literally mean the difference between life and death.
This has given me some food for thought in regards to how other people's minds work as well. I don't think I realized just how dependent others are on being highly interactive with the rest of society. They apparently count on others for everything, so not being able to go out and consort adds up to a complete disruption in their lives.
For instance, I don't think I realized just how many other people -- especially other women -- don't manage their own grooming routines. I knew I was unusual for insisting on cutting and coloring my own hair, but I don't think I fully realized everyone's also paying people to do their nails (even if they don't wear acrylics), groom their eyebrows, extend their eyelashes, keep their bodies free of unwanted hair, and so much more. No wonder everybody complains about being broke all the time.
And people eat out so fucking much. People really don't seem to know how to cook or have any idea how many groceries you truly need to feed your family at home for a certain period. They have an incredible amount of trouble staying amused and keeping themselves company as well.
Of course, this isn't everyone. Some people have been rising to the occasion on a level I find impressive. They're learning new things and discovering new hobbies. They're actually connecting with their families and forming meaningful bonds with children, spouses, or both. Many people have taken this opportunity to learn how to cook, or bake, or take care of themselves if they didn't already know. That side of all this has found me realizing I have more peers out there than I previously thought and that's a very good thing.
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To be honest, I've always thought people in general needed to stop working so much, rushing so quickly from thing to thing, and trying so hard to make sure every single minute of their schedule is accounted for. Something wonderful happens when they do. They start to see the world around them and get to know the people they claim are most important to them. They become better, smarter, more capable. They start thinking for a change and deciding how they really feel about things.
That's something I didn't expect when I first made the jump from working outside my home in retail to freelancing from out of my home full-time. I knew I wanted to be home a lot more than even a part-time traditional job allowed me to be, but I don't know that I expected it to enrich me much as a person. That's exactly what happened though. I became highly productive creatively again. I became better at everything I'd always loved doing too -- cooking, painting, writing, you name it. I read more. I taught myself many new things.
At the time, I think I chalked all those changes up to being in a new relationship with a fellow creative who was my own age instead of my poopy, nay-saying ex. Now I realize that firing one partner and replacing him with someone I liked better may have helped, but it wasn't really the reason I went through any of those changes. It was the peace and stillness that came with getting to stay home as much as I wanted, as well as my own eagerness to make the most of it. That said, I'm slowly learning to give myself more credit where it's due instead of assuming that everything going on with me -- positive or negative -- is all about how well my relationships with other people are going.
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Quarantine life remains mostly business as usual for me since nothing much about my day-to-day routine has changed. Shipping can still be touch and go when you order things online, although it's getting better a little bit at a time. The grocery stores seem to be more reliable as far as having essentials on hand when you need them. We had an Instacart delivery yesterday and hardly anything was out of stock -- certainly no more than usual.
I've been somewhat creative since the pandemic hit, but not to the extent I would have thought. I really haven't posted much of anything on Medium lately, which surprises me. I've been really productive at work though. I've been private journaling on a daily basis the entire time as well, so maybe I'm just in a more introspective place right now. Like a lot of writers, I get like that sometimes.
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