Lots of traditions have been broken this year. And yesterday is another one for the books. The Super Bowl party wasn’t in vogue this year due to the pandemic. So many things missed this past year, it’s a list too long for most just to recall. And when you start to you have to stop from becoming severely depressed.

Some will be easy to pick back up. Birthdays, anniversaries, and other family celebrations, of course, will immediately go back to normal and maybe be even more special. But there is a lot of other things that might not happen. Will people who have gone to lunch together once in a while resume that? Will those who live distances from one another get on a plane as often to take that trip?

Will people return to the neighborhood bar or maybe as George Thorogood would say “I drink alone” now. Will you pick up the phone to your hoop buddies and get tickets for the coming game or season? Will your choice of where to stay or go on vacation change? Will you return to the county fair or go to fireworks on the 4th?

Will people continue to walk their neighborhoods? Will you go on a 5K walk/run or marathon with thousands of others huffing and puffing. Will we feel comfortable at a concert shoulder to shoulder with tens of thousands of people again? Will the interior space and ventilation at a restaurant now be as important as the food and service?

Just sitting here a few seconds and thinking about it the changes we may have might face and they might be endless. In some ways, they have been there all along. We are just in very lucky times before this one. There are so many things that leave us in very precarious positions. You see new life balances being made. I mean hey, an asteroid could collide with the earth and make how soon you get the vaccine kind of a moot point. So everyone is asking themselves how do I balance sanity and living with dodging daily unseen bullets of a virus and waiting for an annual shot or whenever a new strain appears for another shot?

And then I took a breathe and relaxed and set out to continue doing what I do. And that is adapt. Some of us are good at that and others not so. You can see that in the stress coming out in some. I’m not saying I don’t get stressed. Anyone who is drawing breath is aware that is a risky thing now. But adapting, living, and having a good time while supporting those around you and even strangers if you a fortunate person is my mission.

Everyone seems to be after someone for the pain. Parents are mad at teachers. People are mad at the medical profession and emergency services. People are mad at the government for lack of support. Some are mad they can’t do whatever the hell they wanted whenever they wanted as before. And as a very selfish society here in the states we attack each other instead of pulling together.

Medicine is not an exact science. But we shouldn’t make it political. There will always be new discoveries and new challenges. Look at how long they have been fighting cancer and heart diseases and others. And that will be true in the world of fighting viruses.

One very important change is taking place and both employee and employer agree on something. If your sick STAY YOUR ASS HOME. This wasn’t the norm before this virus but you can bet your ass it’s going to be part of the working future from now on. My better half was laughing at all the times we have worked through being sick. I used to take it as a badge of honor by not taking sick time from work. Those days are history unless you’re working from home.

I’m not saying people won’t work through something they might be fighting and treated for that isn’t contagious. That is what keeps some people going. Doing the thing they may love like life itself. But working with something that might be contagious like a cold or flu or more lethal virus is going to a be a big NO NO.

I had a bout of bronchitis last year. I didn’t want to leave the house with all the people that would look my way if I coughed even with mask on. It made me uncomfortable making others that uncomfortable.

So I don’t have all the answers yet. Hell, I don’t even have all the questions yet. All I know is I evaluate, think, adapt, and act as best I can each day. I take advice, I try to listen to various points. I try to minimize risk and maximize fun.

Random Thoughts of the Day

• Work can keep you sharp. But if you overdo it, you will become dull.
• Why does someone need a cannon to make a baby announcement? What happened to just sharing hugs and screaming and tears of joy with each other? My condolences to the person killed by this recently.
• I’m inspired and tired.
• Take a day, any day. Pick a card, any card. Choose what to do, all the time.