Back to "Normal" or "New Normal"

[oped]

What can't  you wait to get back to? Where do you want to go or what habits do you want to bring back? 

What things since the pandemic have you instituted that you want to take with you into the new normal, or what things do you NOT want to get back to? 

I know we've done things like this, but maybe a new spin? And I'm all vaccinated, just waiting out antibody build up, and thinking seriously about how I want to move forward. 


I want to go to the movies an live shows. I don't ever want to wear a bra again. 

I worry that I have none of my learned coping strategies for how to be an introvert in public left any more.  Twice in the last month I've had the chance to socilaize outside, distanced with larger groups and both times I rushed right in, was way over stimulated and after a short time just exhausted. I am actually a little worried about this...

[Tennesseer]

The isolation can be a bit unnerving over time.   I am somewhat of an introvert in large crowds but more extroverted in small crowds of known folks.  Often an observer which is fine with me. That isolation will hopefully soon end.

One positive thing is I have had more face-to-face (so to speak) with my siblings via WhaatsApp as we are scattered around the country.  We are all very close in age (as of the end of June our ages will be 67, 68,, 70 and 71).  And we always got along well for the most part growing up.  So it has been fun every couple of weeks getting together on What's App.

I do find these calls funny as the first thing discussed is our individual health, and any new aches and pains. Senior citizen opening conversations.

[steph08]

I want to travel. I always want to do that but I haven't been out of the country since 2012, having kids will do that, but I realized during the pandemic that there is only so much time.

[Tiny]

I cannot wait to go to live theater and live music. I am in the process of setting up a Family Picnic for July 2021 (it's outdoors at a Forest Preserve for about 20 to 25 people). I just received an email that the RenFaire is planning to be open, too.

I'm not looking forward to getting colds (and noroviruses - you know the puke-y/poopy things) again. That's been one of the best parts of WFH and not going out with other people so much -no colds, no 'stomach bugs', no weird fevery things.

I'm already NOT enjoying the traffic and crowds at the stores I've been going to. It's like people are "wandering around stores with their family and friends because they have no other source of entertainment." when all I want to do is "ninja shop" - get what I need, pay for it, and leave ASAP - I've got better things to do with my time than spend it mindlessly wandering a store or waiting in lines at stores. I'm switching my "shopping day" to Wednesday or Thursday NIGHT. Saturday and Sunday shopping takes too long. It's pre-pandemic.

I do like the "order, pay on line, and then pick up in the store" options. I hope that service continues.

I am kind of looking forward to going back to the Office. I am definitely putting in a WFH day - I didn't bother with it pre-pandemic because I didn't mind going to the office and my coworkers seemed to be fighting over days and schedules. I figured I didn't need to add to their agony. (My employer was all "WFH is bad - people won't work.. it will be like a day off! We can't do that" so my employer made it hard.) I could happily work from home on Wednesdays. No one will fight me for Wednesday.

I'm not happy about the weight I've gained. I'm not sure I have clothes to wear to the office that fit.

I'm going to miss being able to solar cook on any day I feel like it. I'm going to miss being able to take above and beyond care of my elderly cats. I think they will miss me when I go back to the office.

I'm also kind of hoping some of the "happy hour" and "we all must get together every weekend" things won't come rushing back. I kind of like not having every minute of every day /weekend scheduled.

I have to learn how to "nod in commiseration" when people talk about how much they hate being trapped at home. I've kind of enjoyed the Pandemic Year. ( we all live in a very urban area... it's not like they are totally isolated. They just aren't going to "happy hour" 3 times a week and then "get togethers every weekend" or eating out 7 days a week. I think it was hard for them to find new forms of entertainment.)

[Lizard Queen]

I can't wait to travel, and I'm gearing myself back up to go back to the gym. I really missed it, then I got really lazy and didn't feel like going back. Now I need to get back in shape.

I'm almost fully vaccinated, but added a worry about my kids with the new variants, so normal is going to be farther off for us. We did do things that we felt were safer, just the variants and preponderance of idiots out there makes more things less safe these days. For example, I thought once is adults were vaccinated, I'd feel okay flying with the kids masked. Now, not so much.

[sesfw]

Our community choir stopped for the duration and I'm not sure when it will start again.  The exchange of air with about 100 others in a rehearsal room will be iffy at best.

Church will start meeting again this Sunday but with distancing and masks.  Our snowbirds will be gone so the crowd will be small

Our community theater has been having musicals outside and have been well attended.  They are looking at November for opening the inside theater.  Time will tell.  Outside this last winter was great; portable heaters and all.

At the grocery today I noticed several people without masks even though the sign outside of the door said masks required.  Those are the 'nobody is gonna tell me what to do' bunch.

Otherwise we live a quiet life.

[teen persuasion]

The new abnormal is what one patron termed it.

I'm loving the lack of mindless running around we used to do - no sports practices at inconvenient times and places, no mandatory meetings for whatever, no religion ed in another county, etc. Those things could go away forever as far as I'm concerned.

I'm a homebody by nature, so I'm not really missing much of the stuff everyone on Twitter is whining about, like street fairs and tailgating, and otherwise gathering in big herds to annoy one another and do stupid things. One thing I really missed, though, is Shakespeare in the Park. So that's ONE special thing I'd like to do again. But it's special because we go to at most 2 nights per summer (they do multi-week runs of 1 comedy, and then 1 tragedy/history - we try to hit one of each, but might only catch 1).

We really enjoyed the slower pace we had last spring when everything was shut down, and we did WFH (pretty limited for me). I loved working one week per month, alone, last summer, too. But those conditions are not going to be practical going forward, for my job. It was a great test period for early retirement, though. We enjoyed being around each other all day, didn't drive one another up the wall, never ran out of stuff to pursue. DH is getting in better shape despite no access to the Y (he's retiring this summer, and wants to hike the AT). I'm not a deliberate exerciser, but hauling around/lifting boxes full of quarantined books means I'm now lifting weights daily. We are shifting into our next phase - his time free from work will initially be focused on fixing up delayed home projects, things we've been too busy to do, things that should improve our home life even more.

[Deleted]

I am one of those people who didn't mind the isolation with my small family.  I hate to say it, because it obviously was really distressing for others.  Camping, walking, drop off everything, no parties, that is my happy place. I am an introvert by nature, so I am not looking forward to forced interaction with people, again.

I get my second dose of vaccine in a week and plan to go out for drinks and dinner, as soon as the 2 weeks post vaccine is up.  Dh and I haven't been to our favorite dive bar since February 2020, so that is our first stop.  Otherwise I have to make a trip home to see my sister.  I have been crazy homesick.

I miss live shows and concerts, so I am looking forward to those coming back.  I like watching movies at home, so I won't be heading to the movie theater any time soon.   I enjoyed streaming shows, I am almost caught up on the arrowverse.  Stupid TV, but I would have never even started it without the shutdown.  

I want to do my own grocery shopping and buy some clothes. 

I love getting my prescriptions delivered and dog food.  We really cut down on food waste and started cooking new things, so I hope we keep that up.  

[stillmovingforward]

I love getting groceries and everything delivered. Remember 1.5 years ago when I whined about hating where I lived because nobody delivered? I can get groceries delivered now! No cooked food but groceries are good.
I'd like to eat in a restaurant for special occasions again. And to be more free to travel. Otherwise, I've been good with the limited human contact. 😌

[giramomma]

Our public libraries are still closed.  Pre-Covid. I used them a lot; either for work, for browsing books for the kids; story time; and playing with different toys time. I will be happy when that starts up again.

I miss working in a coffee shop.

I miss getting together with my stitching group,

I miss taking crafty classes.

I miss going to garage sales

I miss taking the kids to open gym type places.

I miss being able to walk down the hall to ask my coworker a question/consult for 10 minutes. Now, even for something like that, we have to schedule a zoom meeting.

[Cheesy FL-Vol]

DH and I always enjoyed dinner out once a week, so looking forward to being able to do that. We love hitting the antique stores, flea markets, and museums as well so we are eager to get back to that also.

i am seriously considering continuing to mask up in public. I usually have 2-3 colds and/or flu every year. At least one episode is a rough one. I have not been sick since masks began In spite of maintaining a weekly grocery shopping routine with occasional trips to the hardware store.

[mamasita99]

I will miss not getting sick with the “bug of the day”. I will not miss the weight I gained staying home.

I will miss WFH days. It’s not practical going forward with my job, but maybe in the future I can craft some sort of arrangement where I have a planning day from home.

I love online ordering and grocery pick up. I will probably keep that up.

I look forward to baseball games again. Travel.

[buystoys]

Our lives didn't really change that much.  We're homebodies to begin with.  Most of our running around pre-Covid was going grocery shopping once a week.  That's continued.  We have skipped a couple of shows we have tickets to because of potential crowds.  It will be nice to go to them without worrying about how many people are going to be there and how we'll distance ourselves.

[Sharon]

I have been told that my new normal will be working from home.  My employer has no plans to bring our department back on site.

[wvugurl26]

Things I want to come back and miss are tailgates, theater and concerts. We will dine out occasionally but I think we will still be heavier on carry out going forward.

It has been awesome to not be sick. I was sick when we shut down and once I finally got better I have been fine.

I hope to never return to my office again. It has become clear that the building is moldy or something and was making us sick. My migraines are gone and my manager's headaches and allergies are gone. I also do not miss the stress of the commute at all. The policy is still being worked out. We will probably have to go in one day a week?

While I enjoyed most of the activities we did, it was nice to not be on a constant run. I hope we can find a better balance moving forward. If we can avoid commuting a majority of the days, that will help.

I love that restaurants and stores have improved their online ordering and curbside options. I also love people not being all up in my space.

I think DH is looking forward to a return to the gym. I have done classes online at times and have tried to walk a lot. He has not and does not for some reason. My big annual check up with my allergy doctor is in January. Two months before lock down she warned that during certain times gyms were likely too germy for me and that I should work out at home. So my return may be slower than DH's.

Some things I have done a few pedicures, massages, and one hair cut, I'm looking forward to being able to do without being worried about how many people are around. I've only gone to a two places that are being reasonably careful and I'm very strategic in my appointment times.

We get our second dose in early May then the wait is on.

[raeoflyte]

I want to hug my parents most of all.

I doubt Ill go back to wearing makeup. Curbside everything can stay please! I like the more relaxed schedule, but miss the dojo which was our multiple times a week outing, so not sure if there is a compromise there.

And the pool! We went almost every Sunday morning and met up with my folks. Can't wait for that.

[giramomma]

Apr 15, 2021 6:57:31 GMT -5 wvugurl26 said:

It has been awesome to not be sick. I was sick when we shut down and once I finally got better I have been fine.

I hope to never return to my office again. It has become clear that the building is moldy or something and was making us sick. My migraines are gone and my manager's headaches and allergies are gone. I also do not miss the stress of the commute at all. The policy is still being worked out. We will probably have to go in one day a week?

I'm sorry that your workplace is literally making you sick. I hope your future exposure is minimal.

[TheOtherMe]

I haven't fully decided what I will be comfortable doing due to the Covidiots around here.  They plan on overtaking the Board of Supervisors meeting to get the mask mandate dropped.  Yes cases are rising in our county.  We will see if that works.

I'm an introverted homebody.  I didn't like being forced to stay home.  I found out I needed it to be a choice.

I will probably never go back to actually shopping at the grocery store.  I love ordering online and doing grocery pick up.  I am looking forward to my drive thru coffee shop opening a new location about 4 miles from me.  However, that will feed my tea addiction.

I miss live music.  It sounds like, at age 80, David Crosby is retiring.  He wrote that on Twitter a few days ago.  Said it's too hard on his body to ride buses across the country.  I'm glad I took advantage of seeing him these past years.

I hope his back up bands that are doing solo work come within driving distance of me so I can see them.  I'm  not sure what will make me feel safe in attending a show.

The only big trip I want to take is to Toronto but who knows when that can happen.

I do plan on going to Kansas City in June to see the exhibit on Auschwitz.  I have already paid $25 for the ticket for the exhibit and reserved a hotel.  If things are not good covid wise, I can afford to lose $25.

I am truly enjoying all of the online genealogy classes I have been taking--mostly for free.

[wvugurl26]

Oh the makeup thing. I like playing with it but if I'm not going back to the office, I doubt I go back to daily wear. I used to go practically nowhere without makeup. And now I'm like my mask covers the part I'm most insecure about (redness/unevenness) so who cares?

I'm really hoping that if we aren't burning 2-3 hours a day five days a week in the car commuting that we can add back in some things and still have more balance. It has been nice to get things done and I'm dreading the end of maximum telework.

[TheOtherMe]

Nephew2 works for Wells Fargo.  He said they have been told they will not be going back to the office before December at the earliest.

[flamingo]

I love WFH and the flexibility it affords to get stuff done at home at normal hours. 

I miss going to the gym, and likely will start doing that regularly soon, now that DH and I are fully vaccinated.

My DH misses our weekend breakfasts. We used to go out for coffee and bagels every weekend. The bagels were never great, the coffee was never great, I don't miss this at all. But as soon as my DH feels comfortable with it again, I'm sure we'll pick it back up. I miss the socialization piece, just not the spending money on crappy food piece.

And travel. I miss travel. Work travel, leisure travel, I don't care, I just want to hop on a plane and go somewhere. I miss it so much I've been having dreams about it. Fingers crossed that by November (when my work has a conference scheduled) we'll be able to do it in person. I know it's unlikely, but I'm going to keep hoping for it.

[wvugurl26]

I'm hoping that if enough of us were honest about the building, we won't have to go back or it can be 1 day a week. I know at least myself and my manager mentioned it in the survey we did. They currently say they are working on options and that we will remain in maximum telework status for the majority of the year.

[Deleted]

I'm going to be cautious for a LONG time although I'm almost 2 weeks past my second vaccine dose.

I'm looking forward to air travel but will still feel edgy around crowds in the airport despite my plans to wear a mask even when not required. First flight likely to be to Buffalo over Labor Day weekend. Road trips have fed my wanderlust a bit.

I've gotten accustomed to a lot of the "touchless" technology and will continue to use it. An exception is my local grocery store self-checkout where I can NEVER get every item of produce input correctly. I've given up.

Finally- I really hope the KC Ballet has The Nutcracker this year. I've taken DS, DDIL and the kids to the Sugar Plum Fairy Ball every year except last year- a fancy but kid-friendly lunch with entertainment by the student dancers. The matinee is after that and we haven't done that- there was always one kid too young to behave appropriately. The 7-year old is taking ballet and loves it, the 4-year old imitates her and their little brother, who will be 2 1/2 by December, loves watching the video of the ballet with them. Even if he doesn't last through the whole performance he should be good for part of it and the matinee will have a lot of excited little kids, anyway.

It's gonna cost a boatload of $$ and it will be worth every penny.

[jerseygirl]

I’m hoping the Nutcracker will be on this year. Took my little grandkids to Sleeping Beauty at the NY Theater Ballet Feb 2020. Small company with shortened ballets designed for kids. They loved it snd want to take them to the ‘big’ Nutcracker this year if it’s being presented - but thinking maybe won’t this year??
Hoping ballet will have seasons in 2022,
Also I’m wanting to travel but Europe probably isn’t realistic soon
Thinking about a short trip to Savannah or Charleston
Both Jerseyguy and I are fully vaccinated and have had family dinners . Feeling just more relaxed about going to stores, planning an indoor meal at very nice restaurant
Will still enjoy restaurant take outs that weren’t available BC (before Covid)

[ohmomto2boys]

I want to leave my house and not wear a mask, anywhere.  

We traveled in 2020 (drove) and have 2 trips planned for this summer - driving destinations for a week each. 

I want to go to live events - baseball, concerts, etc. and not wear a mask.

DH and I used to go to a brew pub - randomly.  Since summer is coming, we will do this outside, but really missed it during the winter.

DH and I are both vaccinated.  But we will still be cautious.   

[empress of self-improvement]

My normal went to hell in a handbasket. I guess my new normal will be finding it. Where and what that will be, who the hell knows.

[NomoreDramaQ1015]

We're going to Estes Park this year. DH and I are vaccinated. We stay in a cabin so we're not sharing space with other people. We'll still wear masks.

It's my happy place and after the giant pile of suck 2020 and the first part of 2021 has been I need it.

I miss makeup and not having a massive acne problem. Some of that is hormonal but wearing three layers of cotton 8 hours a over my major trouble spots isn't helping.

[TheOtherMe]

I will be wearing a mask for a long time in to the future and I am not close to being comfortable flying.

[mollyc]

I miss the family gatherings every month for birthdays and holidays.  My niece is due mid-May and it's going to be hard to not be able to gather and, as ODSis says, "bask in the glow of a newborn baby".

Other then that, the only thing that significantly changed in my life was not travelling with my dad to the Prairies once a year to visit with his siblings.  Right now he is hoping for early August so he can be there for his brother's 90th birthday but I'm thinking it will be more like late September, early October if at all before next year.

[jeffreymo]

We are looking forward to going to the movie theater. The Black Widow marvel movie comes out in July and we will be seeing that in the theater for sure.

Nearly all of the adults we associate with and family are going to be at max immunity in the next 2-3 weeks so we’re looking forward to getting together with a bigger group for the Kentucky Derby on May 1st. Then we will be spending an extended Memorial Day at a relatives lake house.

Lastly we’re looking forward to going on dates again and it coincides with our oldest being mature enough to handle his siblings for a couple of hours so we can get out for dinners and happy hours.

One other thing I liked to do pre-covid was make early Saturday morning grocery trips before the family wakes up. Up to this point we’ve been an Amazon/delivery and grocery pickup consumer for the most part.