So, I had to go into Walmart last week. The first time I’ve been in there since early 2020. I have been super-abundantly cautious for 3 years, and have avoided Covid entirely so far. But my wife was just hospitalized for a non-covid health issue, and I needed something from the pharmacy last-minute.
So, masked up, I went in. And it was weird. Just a Saturday afternoon at Walmart, like I remember from 2019. Nobody wore a mask (I was the only one that I could see). I felt like a time-traveler or something. Like a WWI doughboy complete with gas mask suddenly popped into existence in aisle C. I got some weird looks — their problem, not mine — but got what I needed and got out.
But what struck me was how strange it was, seeing bare faces all around me. If/when Covid is over for me the way it’s over for other people, I will probably have to completely re-socialize.