How To Survive The Pandemic & Keep Your Sanity

Folks, believe it or not, but it's me again. Your favorite retired blogger's retired blogger. Yes, this site does still exist, and yes, on rare occasions I use it when I've got no place else to say what I need to say.

This yeah, obviously, has been like no other. Vacations are a thing of the past. The concept of "quality time" with your family doesn't really exist because you're literally spending all your time with them. Like everyone else (I hope) me and mine have simply adopted to the smaller world inside the confines of our residence. We only venture out for groceries and essential stuff. Recreation is a thing of the past. Zoom schooling is in, playgrounds are out. It's a harsh new reality and one highly unlikely to change anytime soon. The current abnormal will likely just become the new normal, until there's a vaccine. And even then, who the heck wants to be first to get said vaccine?

I don't mean to get all Andy Rooney on ya'll, but keeping your sanity in the midst of all this containment can be a challenge. I'd love to go to Nats game, spend a day at the Bay, or maybe a weekend at the beach. All of those things have to wait, because they mean nothing if you're dead. So, we adjust, we adapt, we pivot. But that doesn't come without a price.

~

Assuming you're a longtime reader, you'll know this blog is nearly a teenager at this point. I kicked it off in 2007, because I loved reading other people's blogs and figured "how hard can that be?" Turns out, it was hard AF, especially in the first year or so when my daily readership consisted of my then-sister-in-law and me. Over time, I caught some fortunate breaks, some people told other people and before long, AB.com was a full fledged daily community with guest posters, several thousand daily unique viewers, and a comment section that felt like the neighborhood watering hole, assuming such a thing still exists. I made friends here that I still speak with daily.

Of course, social media changed the landscape of where people went to exchange opinions, and blogs quickly fell out of favor. This one is no different. I keep the lights on here because, well, there's financial incentive to, but my daily thoughts have migrated elsewhere along with the rest of the world.

~

People keep talking about how awful 2020 has been, and there's some truth to that. A lot of beloved people have died, the economy has cratered, people are protesting (and getting killed at protests) continuously, and of course, there's the elephant in the room that's taken many lives and altered others permananently. But the overarcing menace here is the same one that's been around since 2016. And I sincerly hope that part of this horrible year ends, come November 3rd.

Be good to yourself, and those around you.

-Jay