By Jacob Kamaras
SAN DIEGO — Here’s the typical interaction at a coffee shop counter on June 15, the day of California’s reopening:
Customer (walks in wearing mask): “Hey, do I still need to wear a mask in here?”
Barista (wearing mask): “Well, we’re following the new local guidelines, which say that you don’t need to wear a mask. But our employees are still wearing masks. So, it’s up to you.”
Customer (slowly removing mask): “OK, sounds good. Thanks!”
Barista: “Oh, and just making sure, are you fully vaccinated? According to the guidelines, only those who are fully vaccinated can remove their mask indoors.”
Customer (mask still on chin): “Yup, I’m fully vaccinated. Thanks.”
As a remote worker for the better part of a decade, June 15 marked what I was hoping would be a triumphant return to the coffee shop circuit. Maintaining the focus and self-motivation to work from home for an entire day can be a fraught proposition, especially with the background noise of two kids and a dog. The buzz in the air at a coffee shop is also noisy, but it’s more like white noise. It actually helps me focus. And the change of scenery, for at least part of the workday, is crucial. So, the absence of my “rotating coffee shop office” since March 2020 due to the pandemic created both productivity and morale challenges at work.
But was this week’s return as “triumphant” as I envisioned? The ambiguity surrounding the mask policy did put a damper on the celebration. Rather than following through with my plan of walking in confidently unmasked, I left my mask on while ordering coffee and only removed it when I sat at a table — exactly as I would’ve done at any restaurant before June 15. It’s not like businesses are putting up new signs declaring, “ATTENTION: YOU NO LONGER NEED TO WEAR A MASK IN HERE.” Many will simply leave up their “No Mask, No Service” signs out of pure inertia, whether or not they’re still requiring masks.
This ambiguity regarding masks is indicative of a larger sense of unease surrounding the reopening. Many San Diegans who hadn’t attended in-person synagogue services in more than a year are now returning. The same goes for those who’d avoided any form of large social gatherings outside of their “circle,” “bubble,” or “pod.”
Yet the reopening comes with a disclaimer: Can we maintain the beneficial changes that we implemented during the earlier stages of the COVID-19 era? For instance, the pandemic gave us an opportunity to tighten our social circles — and consequently, to place a higher priority on our most important relationships, from family to friends. This was one of the proverbial “COVID silver linings.”
Today, seeing those you haven’t seen in real life for more than a year can be a cause for celebration, but it can also feel disorienting. While you’d hope that you can simply pick things up right where they left off, the passage of time is a bit of a shock to the system. A typical conversation goes like this:
Friend A (goes in, hesitantly, for the hug): “Hey, long time no see!”
Friend B: “I know, right? It’s been forever.”
(Awkward silence.)
Friend A: “So, how are you? How’s life?”
Friend B: “Um, yea, doing well I suppose. You know, COVID. What a crazy time.”
Friend A: “Totally.”
Friend B: “Yup. And how are you?”
Friend A: “Yea, pretty good. As you’d expect. Like you said, what a crazy year.”
And the conversation continues in circles, without covering anything of substance or meaning, before coming to a merciful end.
What’s next? As (those of us who feel safe enough) remove masks and resume “normal” activities, how can we restore the comforts and joys of life as we used to know it? For some, it’ll take courage. For others, like myself, it’ll take cutting through cynicism. Ultimately, a balance between resuming normalcy and preserving the adaptive practices of the pandemic era seems to be the most fulfilling way forward.
Although COVID-19 temporarily compelled some traumatic lifestyle changes, the virus also unmasked some of the keys to leading a more meaningful life. The ambiguities will continue for the foreseeable future. But let’s continue to take the bad with the good and appreciate each change as, if nothing else, meant to be.
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Jacob Kamaras is Managing Editor of the San Diego Jewish World.