The New Normal
I don’t know about you, but when I hear people saying the pandemic is changing how we live and interact as “the new normal” it kinda ticks me off. Not because it isn’t true, but because I was sorta happy with things as they were.
Like finding a comfy spot on the Malecon to watch college kids enjoying spring break, doing their best to spend half of their parents’ retirement savings on tequila and tacos. Like wandering the narrow aisles at Mercedes, bumping into starry-eyed shoppers while I look for a new set of glassware to go with the other 16 sets, I bought there over the years.
Social distancing is relatively easy and really smart, but six feet is a hardship when a lady with a fashion model body decked out in a red satin bikini is asking me for directions to JJ’s Cantina.
I can’t imagine not being shoulder-to-shoulder with other diners at La Curva, singing along at the top of my lungs with a mariachi favorite, or yelling at the person next to me to be heard in the crush of folks eating and drinking and enjoying the wonderful closeness and tremendous food.
Then I keep in mind, it’s a big ocean out there. Jet skis can be solo, if you’re so inclined. The vast miles of beaches are made for sequestered roaming. And even a charter fishing boat can allow a bit of distance, except when you are high-fiving a great catch.
The important thing is, when this is over, we will have learned how to be a bit more careful of our personal interactions. Mindful of other people who, for one reason or another, may continue to distance and mask because their compromised health issues depend on it.
One thing we have in common, is we can adapt to change, even when we would rather not. Rocky Point beckons. Cap’n Greg says to answer the call. The new normal is not as difficult as it may seem.
