6.324: Where to Next?

In the age of corona, we often find ourselves pondering the next steps. (Well, those of us that are being responsible human beings and not risking the lives of others simply because we want a haircut or we want to eat at some second-rate dining establishment.) What happens once this is over? Will it ever be over? Where am I going to go once this is over? Well, today, I'm going to examine the latter by exploring a topic that I will admit I have little experience in: travel. During my nearly 37 years on this planet, I have only been beyond the borders of the United States once, when I was a infant or toddler, and I do not recall any thing from the alleged excursion; so it does not count. Also, it was to Toronto so not even that far from the U.S. border. So, let's actually examine trips that I have some sort of recollection of:

1. I have traveled beyond the Southeastern United States, three times and only one of those trips was longer than a day trip. I went to Ocean City, MD twice and Kansas City, KS/MO once.
2. I have only been on a plane three times: going to and returning from Washington D.C. and once when my mother went to retrieve me from Arkansas.
3. The city I have "visited" the most is Smyrna, GA for Anime Weekend Atlanta.
4. The place beyond the state line I have been to most is Manassas, VA because that was where the majority of my aunts, uncles, cousins, and various other relatives resided.
5. I have only gone on overnight trips to six states (not counting GA) and the District of Columbia.

So, let's just say that I have lived a very bound-to-home life. It is not that I have never wanted to travel, I once considered teaching English in Japan and I have dreamed of going to San Diego Comic Con, Anime Expo, and New York Comic Con for years but I have never had the means of doing so until this year and well, then COVID-19 struck and I got stuck (at home). Prior to the onset of the current pandemic, I had seriously considered making arrangements to travel for away matches for Atlanta United but now, we don't even know when the Major League Soccer season will resume and whether or not matches will be played in front of crowds. Now, I don't know what happens next or whether or not I would even be in a position to be able to travel if I wanted.

6.322: Life in the Age of Corona

Huh? It seems as though Blogger has a new design--it's interesting. I suppose I'd need to write more in order to figure out whether I like it or not. Well, I can already tell you one thing that I do not like about the new Blogger interface is the inability to align text the way you want without having to break out the ole HTML coding knowledge. Anyways, I'm not here to discuss the new Blogger design and layout; I'm here to discuss how things have been since COVID-19 arrived in America and made its presence felt to the masses.

In private, I have been keeping a "pandemic journal". I started late but I've been keeping it current (unlike this site). It's been an interesting few months to say the least and in a way, I feel comfortable in saying that the world will never be the same despite all of idiots protesting scientific research and researchers. We live in a time where greed is as prevalent as ever. We live in a country where news of nearly 2,000 deaths daily does not even faze people anymore. We live in a period where inconveniences are deemed as a threat to Constitutionally-granted rights.

And to be frank, it wears me down. I had wanted to write more at this time but I am exhausted so I'll go ahead and end it here.

6.266: Self-Preservation through Selfishness

Okay, here's the thing: I do see the COVID-19 pandemic is a deathly serious matter and I understand the importance of social distancing and making genuine efforts to "slow the curve". Unfortunately, I find myself incapable of abiding by the #StayHome (or #STAYTHEFHOME) mantra that has dominated the social discourse on Twitter and other social media networks. I'm fortunate, I work at a job I love and my job does not feel like a job at all to me. As I have heard it said, "Find a job you love and you'll never work a day in your life," and for me, this job is that job. I'm also fortunate that I work at an organization that genuinely wants to do right by its employees and in the spirit of wanting to stem the pandemic, allows its employees to work remotely (or home). I cannot adhere to this recommendation--I need to be in the office (or more specifically, I need to be out of the house). I personally believe that while I may be leaving the house each morning to come to the office, to grab a bite to eat, or to run an errand; I do practice good social distancing. When at the office, I am generally the only person in the office suite and I keep myself isolated within own office. When I go out to eat, I make an effort to go through the drive-thru and if I do have to go in to carry-out, I limit my interactions with employees as much as possible. I drive by myself, I shop by myself, and I try to do all manner of business in public by myself. In truth, I have been practice social distancing and personal isolation are of my adult life but what I have not been able to do is stay at home. From what I observe, most people would love to work from home; they prefer to work from home--not me. Home is where the distractions exists, home is where I'm expected to divide my attention between work and family, and home is where I'm the least happy. I love having a place to call home and I do care for my parents but at times, they are my happiness's worst enemy because home is where the drama exists; it is where the misunderstanding of my profession exists. When I'm home, there exists the possibility of me being asked to do something that I don't want that does not benefit me. Home is where the possibility that I have to endure one of the greatest sources of personal displeasure exists. So, despite my best efforts while in public (or not at home) to socially distance myself from others, I'm made to feel like I'm trash because I'm fighting to preserve my mental health, my productivity, my joy. I have a lot of anxiety about coming by the office each morning to work but that anxiousness has nothing to do with my job or the ongoing pandemic; my anxiety is agitated by the fear that I will be judged harshly by my fellow progressive peers for not adhering to the #StayHome mantra. All I want to do is come to my office and work in peace.

6.234: 3 Years, 7 Months, and 15 Days Later

HOLY $#!+, AM I BACK? The answer is maybe but most likely: NO. I was going through some of my old accounts—deleting obsolete accounts or updating compromising passwords—and I stumbled upon this account and this site. To be honest, I’m not on some sort of nostalgia trip, I haven’t re-read any of the my old posts (which is probably for the best) but I felt like writing something and here it is.

I have always enjoyed writing but I’m the worst at putting pen to paper or in this case, finger to keyboard but tonight I felt the itch and this is how I’m scratching (also, Trae Young bowed out early in the 3-Point Shootout so I’ve lost interest in this year’s NBA All Star Saturday Night festivities). Anyways, I may from time-to-time drop in and write something if I’m in the mood but I realize that I’m not going to ever be capable of writing consistently. I may write in bursts but I can’t keep it up continuously over an extended period of time.

So, you may see a few more posts from me in the couple hours or days or weeks, or you might not see another post for another three-plus years. Regardless, I’ve decided that I’m not abandoning this site but I’m also not going to try to keep it an active thing. That’s where I’m at the moment and I’m fine with it.