culture and times

when the dust settles the definitive symbol of early 2020 will be the toilet paper roll.

mark my words.

the winds of change

will we see J and J and Y again?
when can we up and go at whim?
when will i see Paris again?

will we meet again like old times?
have dinner and a drink?
have a party?

will work go back to face-to-face?
and i go back to multi-tasking?
and teach again?

i miss the old norms.
how long will real life be suspended?
is this the new real life?

social distancing: random observations

into our third month of the outbreak, s.d. is pretty much absent in an asian but heavily westernized community, particularly in:

• coffee shops, because the more tables we can squeeze the bigger the profits
• lines, because if i stand farther out someone might cut himself in
• the train, through no fault of anyone but the people who schedule to maximize passenger load
• gatherings, because after all we are together to get together, right? right?
• church! because the mark of faith is to show up even if one is coughing one's lungs out! and 
• places of public gatherings, like the beach or the park, because it's just like the 'flu anyway

pretty much the only place social distancing is successfully implemented is at healthcare institutions, where one is socially distanced without much of an option. and even then it's only a partial victory.

mine's just a little cough; i'm not infectious!

in fact, that's why i didn't mention it earlier!

dear me, what a loud sneeze that was!

what i am starting to think is, we need draconian measures like an absolute lockdown. because appealing to our good sense and better natures really does not work.