I live in New York City, and these days, our numbers of COVID-19 cases are less than 1% positive among those tested. This is an all-time low, considering our number of virus cases had skyrocketed in March, April and May. We are now partially reopened, and people can be less afraid of going outdoors. Personally, I feel as though I am in a "Post-Quarantine Limbo." I can't go back to a "life is normal again" routine when such a large portion of our country currently has their hospitals overfilled with Coronavirus patients. These states didn't follow New York's example of not reopening until the cases were down. They didn't wear masks and participated in large indoor gatherings. Even scarier, some New Yorkers are also guilty of this right now, convinced that our previous high number of cases is a thing of the past. Between my own state's complacency coupled with the reality that people from all over the country will try to travel to New York City this summer, it may be just a matter of time until we New Yorkers have to go back into full quarantine. Realizing this, I think that before we crash and burn again, why don't we just have a bit of fun during this little reprieve of low infection rate and pleasant (albeit very hot and rainy) summer weather while we can?
Here is a list of 5 things we can enjoy while in Post-Quarantine Limbo:
1. Visiting Outdoor Markets, Outside Dining and a Limited Amount of Indoor Retail Shopping
Finally, we can feel safe to do small trips out. After not leaving my neighborhood for half of March and the entire months of April and May, I was hardly able to contain myself when June rolled around, and I took my first trip back to Stop & Shop! Home deliveries of food kept me fed during quarantine, but back when I gave up actual meat in the year 2001, I never thought that one day I would also have to give up meat substitutes! I couldn't find any home delivery method to get Morningstar Bacon, Boca Burgers or Amy's Spaghetti and Meatballs, so I was thrilled to load my shopping cart and freezer with all of those again. Later in June, I shopped and ate at Empire Outlets, an outdoor marketplace near the Staten Island Ferry. Fantasizing about returning to Empire Outlets kept me sane back in March. I told myself that by July 1st, I'll be outdoors at Empire Outlets, feeling the ocean wind in my hair. I assured myself: "I WILL shop and eat outside food again!" So this summer, I plan to make every minute count. I need to just in case by winter, my biggest thrill will again be the fact that my Misfits Box contains those little yellow potatoes that I can cut into quarters and microwave.
2. Reading Romantic Fiction About Pandemic Heroes
Think of how anxiety-ridden New Yorkers would have been back in March and April if we didn't have our quarantine hero, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo (the Luv Gov), to reassure us with daily Coronavirus briefings? Dr. Anthony Fauci's soothing and intelligent words were also there to comfort our souls. So imagine my thrill when I heard about a 1991 romantic novel in which its author, Sally Quinn, based her romantic hero, Dr. Michael Lanzer, on none other than our very own Dr. Fauci! You too can dig up this old book (I found it on Amazon, but you have to look every day because copies under $40 are few and far between) and enjoy escaping into steamy prose starring one of our quarantine heroes. Bearing that in mind, why not just write a story yourself? For instance, CNN host Christopher Cuomo and his frequent guest, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, can also be materialized into dashing romantic characters. Or, if you're a male, why not write a romantic story about that beautiful brunette reporter who asks Trump the tough questions on CNN? Just now, I Googled exactly that: "beautiful brunette reporter on CNN who Trump hates," and the first thing that popped up was exactly the name I was trying to remember: Kaitlan Collins! I believe we should keep up the skill of escaping into our minds through reading and fantasy so our imagination muscles can stay flexed if we have to go into full-time quarantine again. Nothing and nobody can ever stop us from reading and writing.
3. Baking Shih-Tzu Sugar Cookies
Seems like everyone was cooking, baking bread, and making their own pizza dough during quarantine. Since it's such a healthy and enjoyable habit, I think we should keep this indoor hobby up whether quarantined or not. I think I'm going to expand to buying cookie cutters in the shape of Shih-Tzus so I can bake sugar cookies from scratch which I haven't done in about two decades. I'll also continue to utilize my giant box of Bisquick purchased during quarantine because with it, I can make everything from biscuits to muffins to pizza crust. If there's anything anyone can think of that Bisquick CAN'T be turned into, please comment below and let me know.
4. Laughing at Funny Memes
Keep reading those funny memes because if you don't laugh, you'll cry.
5. Setting Off or Just Watching Fireworks, 1990's-Style
I'm still hearing fireworks go off nearly every single night, and this 4th of July, they were completely out of control! It was like the early 1990's again! This year, nobody heeded the usual fireworks warnings to not buy them because they are dangerous and illegal. But I'm not complaining, as they were truly beautiful to see, and I didn't even have to leave my house! I marveled at all their beautiful colors from my second floor window. It's something we can keep on doing even if we get thrust into full-time quarantine again because they are an outdoor activity. Plus, people will continue to socially distance while using them because who on earth wants to get their face that close to another person's flaming firework?
So while we remain in Post-Quarantine Limbo, let's just continue the fireworks show. Let's be reckless and decadent in our imaginations and indoor forms of escapism. But when the fun gets carried outside of our homes, let's just remember we must continue to stay socially distanced and Wear. A. Mask.
