Things I've grown to appreciate during the pandemic (2 Viewers)

[Carlo_M]

Thought I'd start a thread on this. Yes, this pandemic has severely altered our way of life, and has brought out some things in humanity that we'd hope weren't true. But it's also brought out some good in people that I've seen and grown to appreciate over the last few months. So here's a list of things I've grown to appreciate in the Era of Covid.

• Online communities focused on hobbies. Obviously we've all leaned a bit on each other here at HTF, and that's been a great source of support. I'm also part of a guitar and a cycling forum and both have been very active and supportive during this time. We've found strengthened camaraderies based off of our common passions.
• Music/guitar shops. I've made several high end purchases with money I'd saved up for things that were canceled by COVID. When things started to open up even slightly, many local shops allowed for by-reservation auditioning. But what was fantastic there wasn't the trying or buying of the instrument (though that was a blast). It was the genuine human interaction between customer and proprietor. Because we'd both been starved for human interaction (that wasn't our close friends and family) I ended up staying hours at certain shops just shooting the breeze and talking about life with the proprietor, even if it didn't result in a sale.
  • Related to this, there was a NYT article on how guitar sales are through the roof and new people are picking up the hobby in record numbers. I hope that pays off in the long run with new music coming out in the following years. I know people ruminated how guitar driven music might now be dead, but it seems like COVID, ironically, gave it a boost.
• My local small restaurants and coffee shops. Even in the best of times I ate out too much, and developed great relationships with the wait staff, baristas, and in some cases owner/chefs of smaller, non-chain restaurants near me. Since the pandemic, I've become even closer with them, including bringing my guitars by and playing in parking lots just to lift peoples' spirits. They alternate taking breaks and sitting physically-distant with me (and each other) and we do a mini-campfire singalong.
• Zoom. Yes, we hate it for work. But I've been able to use my Pro account for family and friends, and you quickly learn to re-appreciate what it (and similar tech) was meant to do: connect people who can't be physically together.
• New, even fleeting, acquaintances. So anyone who lives in Los Angeles knows it's a bit of a standoffish city. People keep to themselves. It's not like the town I grew up in, where I knew all my neighbors for several blocks. I hardly know my neighbors in all the apartment buildings I've lived in during my L.A. life. But now, people are being more talkative to strangers, not just in the building, but on the street, in shops I'm unfamiliar with. People are striking up conversations in a way they did not pre-COVID.

This is by no means an exhaustive list. And yes I can't wait until things return to some form of normalcy. But with all the doom and gloom out there, I thought I'd post something to show that not all is lost.

What things have you all been thankful for, or become more appreciative of, in the Era of Covid?

 

[John Dirk]

Great idea, Carlo! Here are some things that come to mind in no particular order.

• For awhile anyway, traffic was much lighter. Where I live that has mostly returned to normal.
• My wife and I are talking more. This can be painful in the short term as we're also getting on each other nerves but I believe it ultimately results in a stronger bond.
• Perspective - The pandemic has caused me to take a closer look at all of the things I took for granted such as family visits, full service restaurants and even sports.
• Seeing people respond to adversity in thoughtful and creative ways such as John Krasinski's SGN

 

[Jeffrey D]

Great idea, Carlo! Here are some things that come to mind in no particular order.

• For awhile anyway, traffic was much lighter. Where I live that has mostly returned to normal.
• My wife and I are talking more. This can be painful in the short term as we're also getting on each other nerves but I believe it ultimately results in a stronger bond.
• Perspective - The pandemic has caused me to take a closer look at all of the things I took for granted such as family visits, full service restaurants and even sports.
• Seeing people respond to adversity in thoughtful and creative ways such as John Krasinski's SGN

Traffic is so much decreased during this, which makes my job a lot easier (I drive a tractor trailer). Amazing how I can get through downtown Cincinnati at 7:30 AM, and not even have to slow down.

The one thing I really have come to appreciate is having my favorite restaurant/bar to visit. I was worried that the lockdown would have forced it to close.

 

[bmasters9]

The one thing I really have come to appreciate is having my favorite restaurant/bar to visit. I was worried that the lockdown would have forced it to close.

I went to a taco restaurant with my brother in my hometown recently, called Tipsy Taco; I had a few tacos and a couple of beers, and had a great time (and it took my mind off what we went through at Wal-Mart earlier that day [influx of customers for Labor Day, and only 2 checkouts open; my brother wanted to self-checkout, but could only use a credit card because of the coin shortage]).

 

[Clinton McClure]

It was nice not having heavy traffic during my daily commute for about a month and a half, but it’s slowly returned to normal with a clogged interstate every afternoon.

 

[DaveF]

We (HTF moderators) have intentionally kept the pandemic threads to a specific few. This thread is *very* similar to the existing "How are you dealing..." thread. But I take this one as meant to be specifically upbeat and positive. So, let's give it a go.

But I'm saying now, that Moderators will simply delete posts that don't comport with the thread intent. (I just removed four posts.) We've got enough to do, so we're not going to waste time moving comments to relevant threads. Post accordingly or have your comments disappear.

If the thread veers, we'll move it into an existing thread, or just close it.

 

[Johnny Angell]

Retirement. Because I didn’t have a job to lose.

 

[Carlo_M]

Thanks Dave. You nailed the point of this thread, I'm trying to find a place where we can all put our silver linings.

 

[Johnny Angell]

I’ve grown to appreciate the medical professionals who are still providing great care at great risk.

 

[Richard M S]

- Curbside Pick up - I hope stores survive and if they do, I hope this is maintained.

- Many small jazz clubs and performing arts organizations may take decades to re-build their physical audiences, but many arts lovers throughout the world have become devoted patrons of on-line concerts and events that would have reached 100 to maybe a thousand patrons on one night only.

- Proper handwashing is now the norm and many more people are now practicing it - hopefully going forward as early as this Fall, there will be fewer cases of the flu.

 

[KPmusmag]

I have come to truly appreciate my home more than I could have imagined. Since the bulk of my income goes to the mortgage, that is a good thing. It is not lavish, but comfortable. and I find myself happier to be home than I ever have. I have a separate room just to project movies, and, since cooking at home has become more necessary (fortunately I enjoy cooking), the kitchen serves me well. I am very grateful.

 

[ChristopherG]

- the simple things in life
- my family
- my mortality

 

[Josh Steinberg]

Meal planning.

I’m the cook in the family and prior to the pandemic, I’d figure out most meals the day I’d cook them, either running to the market during the day if I was off, or stopping on the way home from work. There was always something nice about being able to plan meals around what we felt like that day. And when my twins arrived last fall, going out to the supermarket was a nice 20 minute break from the daily childcare routine.

But obviously I don’t want to be doing to the store every day in the current environment, and supply chain issues have mean that it wasn’t always possible to get the exact ingredients I had in mind.

So now I do a combination of in-person shopping and grocery delivery and am planning a week (more or less) at a time. I tend not to plan every detail of every meal, but instead gather a bunch of ingredients that can be assembled in a bunch of different ways.

It’s been a fun challenge to have a fridge full of ingredients all on a clock, and trying to use them all up before they spoil. What I’ve lost in spontaneity I’ve made up for in convenience and simplicity.

 

[ChristopherG]

Thought of a another one and I do not mean to rub it in to anyone, but I am really appreciating that both of my kids are grown and not requiring my wife or I to run the home school.