Unpopular Perspective: I Kind of Miss the Pandemic
Don’t get me wrong, the prospect of getting some life altering illness sucks (and despite it tamping down considerably in both prevalence and harm, is frankly still a concern of mine), but I deeply miss the time spent during the pandemic.
I don’t know, maybe I am a deadbeat. Maybe I am just a huge introvert of some flavor. But I absolutely loved the isolation COVID imposed. If I wasn’t isolated with my wife, it would not have been endurable, I need *someone* — but having a super simple excuse to avoid every single social obligation felt amazing.
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During COVID I was able to take a deep rest from so many forms of performance. I got to skip holidays and dinners and get togethers and family functions. I never had to show my face at the office. Work was in a weird sort of lull that I will likely never experience again as we shifted to work from home. I missed some of the socialization but the ability to just be absorbed in my own life without having to account for anyone else felt so completely luxurious. But the best part wasn’t the isolation, it was the excuse — guilt free I could blow off anything I wanted, and for the first couple years nobody questioned my decision to live under a rock.
I just have this weird impatience with most social things. Like, I am fine if it is just a few hours of time, and has a concrete end, and is doing something I like. But those marathon visits at Mom’s house where she “just wants to talk” — ugh! Look, I love my mother dearly but I am not engineered to just endlessly talk, and moreover, in her case she means listen to her talk, often about the same boring or annoying topics. I have ADHD, I want to be doing something. My job takes a lot from me, every bit of free time feels precious. Sitting and talking about inane things is grating.
During COVID, I didn’t have to do any of that. I played video games. I cleaned up. I hung with my wife. I worked on personal projects. I thrived while others went slowly insane. I was thrilled by the plethora of together-alone activities that cropped up. It is a bit bittersweet to me that the world has returned to entirely in-person interactions.
I feel like I am an outsider for feeling this way, but surely there must be others. Does anyone kinda wish we could go back to those times? Maybe without the risk therein, but still isolated?
