Covid week 10

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The New Normal

Hello my friend, how are you? I hope you are safe and healthy and doing well. I am doing fine; I am healthy, completely virus free. I am writing on week 10 of the pandemic crisis.

This week I went back to work. All of us that work in the library are assigned to teams, working every other day, to encourage limited numbers and ensure social distancing. I am on the second team, and went in to work twice this week.

Driving to work this week was surreal to me. Not all of my city is open for business; as such, very few people were out on the road. It felt like it did in the early days of the lockdown, as if I were in the middle of a dystopian movie.

Walking in to work felt completely foreign to me. I have never had nine weeks at home in my life, save summer vacation in my college days.

It was nice to see all of my colleagues again. We had seen one another via video conferences; still, it felt good to be with people again. That being said, everyone had a face mask on and maintained social distancing measures of 6 feet between us.

On that first morning, we had a moment of conversation within our team. Each of us commented on how we felt uneasy leaving the safety of home. Returning to work brought home the fact that any of us could contract the virus. While we felt nervous in the moment, we knew we have a duty to serve our library and the citizens of our city.

There is a great deal of work to be done before we open to the public. We have days of returned items to process, all of which must sit for three days before handling.

We have also begun to reach out to our patrons regarding the materials they have ordered. We have five libraries that are doing a curbside pickup service, so people can get the items they have reserved. I was told that one library received 90 boxes of items for curbside pickup.

There is work to be done in our buildings as well before we open to the public. Plexiglass barriers will be installed at computer stations and at the circulation desk. Markings will be added to the floor to encourage social distancing measures.

Perhaps the greatest change for me, other than the discomfort of leaving home, has been wearing a face mask every day. In the nine weeks in lockdown I wore my face mask to pick up the mail, take out the garbage, etc, which encompassed all of five minutes. Wearing a mask 8 hours a day takes some getting used to. It can be frustrating as I always have a drink in a Tervis cup nearby. (Shout out to Tervis! I love your products!) 

The greater problem with a face mask is that my glasses frequently fog up with my breath.


I have seen stories on the news of people out in public that get combative when asked to wear a face mask and they don’t comply. 


All of the fifty states have opened up to some degree. more and more of us our leaving our homes and returning to work. Anyone that is outside the home, for any reason, a face mask is encouraged. It is incumbent upon all outside the home to wear a face covering to protect others from you.

I don't understand where this venomous speech has come from. Well, I have an idea, about the current resident of the White House, who finally wore a face mask this week, months after the pandemic began.





People are incensed on this issue, and it need not be.
“My individual freedom is being compromised! My rights are violated! 
Give me liberty of give me death!” 

Without wearing a mask to protect others, you just might get your wish.

"Wearing a mask isn't tyranny, it's saving a life. 
Why do you jeopardize the health of others by not wearing one? 
I care enough about you and your health to wear a mask to protect you from me. 
That has to be it, you just don't care."
-my Twitter post, May 22, 2020


All of these changes are simply signs of the time. For weeks I have heard people say, “I can’t wait until things go back to normal, to the way things used to be.” 

To me, that is an impossibility. Things will never be the same again. 

We have survived, and we are forever changed. We are living in a new normal.

While fears and anxieties abound, this can be a hopeful time. We can use all that we have learned to shape our future. We can use this experience as an opportunity to change our country and world for the better. 

I don’t know what will happen now. None of us do. While I am uncertain about the future, I look forward to the possibilities.

I will now leave you with some images of humor and hope, and some great music. I have hope for the future. We have survived this moment in time. Let’s use the opportunity we’ve been given to make a new normal for everyone.



























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