Covid Boredom
I’m bored. I’m way behind on writing blogs or on recording podcasts. It’s not because I’ve been too busy – because I haven’t. I sit in my office, and I try to think of inspiring things to write / talk about and I get… nothing. The reality is, my mind is stimulated through the interaction with other people. When I look back at my over 10 years of blogs and 2 years of podcasts I come to the realization that I’m typically talking about people and relationships that I observe. It’s not always through direct interaction, sometimes it’s just being in the same room with others and seeing how they interact with one another that inspires me.
I’ve not been as strict as some at staying home. We did for awhile, but I have made many trips to the grocery or to Lowes. I don’t mean to get political, but I don’t wear a mask when I’m out unless it is demanded. What I hate to see is how people relate to each other in these public places. I understand social distancing, but people don’t even seem to want to make eye contact. People turn their heads and walk to another aisle to avoid walking by. It’s not just mask-less me they’re avoiding, it seems they’re avoiding everyone.
We went hiking at a state park a few weeks ago. Strangest feeling ever. It was a nice day, so the trails were crowded. I’ve been going to this park for years. There’s always been a sort of unwritten rule that when you pass someone on a trail going the other way, you exchange pleasantries. “Nice day, huh?” or “How you doin?'” No extensive conversation, but rather an acknowledgement that you’ve encountered another person. On this day, there was none of that. Diverted gazes, hands covering faces… it was if people were genuinely terrified of each other. You would have thought we were in the midst of a zombie apocalypse, rather than a highly contagious flu.
I look forward to the day when people can intermingle again and treat each other as fellow humans. Hopefully then I can get re-inspired to write and podcast about marriages that I observe.