Adaptation
It’s interesting to notice just how much attitudes have changed in a few weeks. One person I know was furious just a few weeks ago because visiting elderly relatives in care homes was forbidden. Now they are equally outraged because some people are still trying to sneak in. My mom’s oldest friend, who lives in a seniors’ home and just last week complained bitterly about not being allowed to go outside, even for a walk around the grounds. This week she is being served meals in her room and is glad to be isolated because three people there have tested positive for COVID.
I went to the office today to pick up SIM cards for employees evacuated from Asia. I saw fewer than 30 people and felt uncomfortable. Going back to work, eventually, with the building full, will take time to get used to. Then I felt like some sort of a drug dealer, meeting people to hand oer the cards in parking lots, across from closed schools, dropping one package with a stranger (my colleague was on the phone so her husband answered the door), and even having someone come to my house and step inside while I wrote down some essential information stored only on my phone - the horror! The nice thing about that little outing was that I got to see the plant wall in our cafeteria while I waited for the SIM cards to be ready for pick-up. Someone has collected every single plant in the building, carefully labeled which office or cubicle it came from, and gathered them on rows of tables where they can get water and light.
I ran into a couple of friends while out for a walk this evening and we all automatically adopted behaviour that was noteworthy just a couple of weeks before. We chatted across the street from each other, moving up a driveway as required to ensure maximum distance between ourselves and who ever was passing along the middle of the street, or along the sidewalk. Every single person went through this little dance, without even thinking about it. Even my son and his girlfriend are shifting their views. He initially didn’t see why he should hurry home from his ski vacation, and she didn’t care about him finishing a full period of self-quarantine upon return. Tonight, they both proudly showed off the masks they will use when they eventually venture out to shop.
I went to the office today to pick up SIM cards for employees evacuated from Asia. I saw fewer than 30 people and felt uncomfortable. Going back to work, eventually, with the building full, will take time to get used to. Then I felt like some sort of a drug dealer, meeting people to hand oer the cards in parking lots, across from closed schools, dropping one package with a stranger (my colleague was on the phone so her husband answered the door), and even having someone come to my house and step inside while I wrote down some essential information stored only on my phone - the horror! The nice thing about that little outing was that I got to see the plant wall in our cafeteria while I waited for the SIM cards to be ready for pick-up. Someone has collected every single plant in the building, carefully labeled which office or cubicle it came from, and gathered them on rows of tables where they can get water and light.
I ran into a couple of friends while out for a walk this evening and we all automatically adopted behaviour that was noteworthy just a couple of weeks before. We chatted across the street from each other, moving up a driveway as required to ensure maximum distance between ourselves and who ever was passing along the middle of the street, or along the sidewalk. Every single person went through this little dance, without even thinking about it. Even my son and his girlfriend are shifting their views. He initially didn’t see why he should hurry home from his ski vacation, and she didn’t care about him finishing a full period of self-quarantine upon return. Tonight, they both proudly showed off the masks they will use when they eventually venture out to shop.
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