New Normal and Other Possibilities of a Post-Coronavirus World

When this Coronavirus insanity ends…

When retail stores throw open their doors…

When kids go back to school, and parents return to work…

When the world at large reopens…

When devastation and isolation turn to celebration…

And we trust these things will happen.

Because, well, we have to trust. We have to assume. We must have faith that, at some point, movement and life outside these four walls will be restored. Otherwise, this really is just the end of the world, in which case, COVID-19 is the Ice Age (or asteroids) and we are the dinosaurs – just sittin’ here like, “What-the-heck just happened?”

But, I digress. Let’s just go with naive optimism, and assume that, like all good things, all bad things must (eventually) come to an end.

What then? When traffic returns to jams, and gas prices rise, when pollution finds its way back to the skies, what will the “new normal” be? Much has been and will be hypothesized and postulated. Here are some of my (albeit uneducated, completely unfounded) guesses about how this pandemic pandemonium will affect our lives, going forward (that is, assuming we do go forward, rather than reversing).

• Obesity – Doubtless, these months of being holed up with television and food… Well, do the math.

• Alcoholism – As John Lennon sang, “Whatever gets you through the night…”

• Surgical masks – Will they become standard? And if so, they will be fashion and social statements. You know how we are with T-shirts and baseball caps. One need not look far to see that many have already turned the protective wear into facial bumper stickers. I can see it. Favorite sports teams, rock stars, political candidates, social statements – all right there where your nose and mouth used to be.

Furthermore, consider how the cosmetic and aesthetic industries might be affected as a direct result of such masks becoming standard attire. I mean, how much makeup would one actually need to wear when at least, half of the face will be covered? I could also see less demand for Botox and fillers.

Another possible effect of wearing masks daily might be on Halloween. Maybe that would be the one day no one wears a mask. Oooh – scary!

The overall concept of cleanliness has definitely been revolutionized. For years, I have been encouraging others, when entering the grocery store, to first get the wipe and clean the handle of the cart, rather than putting the cart before the wipe, so to speak. It wasn’t so much that I was a germophobe. I was actually more concerned about babies whose drool and snot might linger. Actually, I was trying to avoid contact with any kind of slimy human crud – not just baby boogers.

Finally, of all the things we have learned to live without these past months, a regular paycheck is not among them. So, I have to wonder whether others will make a habit of something else I have been doing. For about the past 20 years, I have viewed every paycheck or any income as potentially the last I will ever have. As such, I approach every potential purchase with that thought foremost in my mind. It keeps me humble, and frugal. While this practice prevents me from making any impulsive purchases, it also keeps me from having many of life’s luxuries I once enjoyed.

When this imposed inertia finally ends, and the sun rises over a world that is once again in motion, whether it restores us to normal, a new normal, or whether we ever again have a true barometer for normal, let’s just hope we’re all the better for what we have survived together apart.