So, 2020, huh!? That was something.
Its departure evokes the same feelings one has when your brother-in-law — not the non-threateningly good-looking and successful one, or the simpler, albeit charming one, but the perpetually condescending, between-jobs-and-wives-again, food-stealing, beer sneaking, dish-leaving, faintly stinks like cigarettes one — leaves after spending the holidays with you even though he only lives in Irvine. It’s not like he lives in another country, the East Coast or even the Bay Area. It’s Irvine!
Nevertheless, horrendous years, like horrendous house guests, can leave us with lessons and insights we may not have realized had we not suffered the experience.
Obviously there is the realization and appreciation for how good life was before the darkness descended upon the serene routine of living.
Before COVID a trip to the supermarket was a mundane weekly task spent ambling down aisles deciding between umpteen choices of pasta and looking for toilet paper with talking bears.
After COVID store runs were a life or death proposition, one that necessitated a plan of action, a Plan B and an exit strategy. Looking for the right brand of food or the softest roll of tissue was a luxury that gave way to take-what-you-can-get-from-bare-shelves endeavors. You got in and out as quick as you could while holding your breath and hoping no one breathed in your direction, much less came within your six-foot bubble.
The inconvenience of going to a restaurant and having to wait until 8:07 while they cleared off a table for your 8 p.m. reservation was now something you would willingly endure given that restaurants were forced to limit seating or close altogether.
Bars were shut down, meaning the small talk and gin-soaked ramblings of harmless luminaries with all the answers to life’s problems were forced to stay home and vent their opinions online, where the rest of us were forced to confront the realization that it wasn’t just the booze talking.
Surviving the year gone by, like surviving that brother-in-law, was a challenge. And now that it’s gone maybe we can find some relief and hope we don’t ever have to suffer through that again.
