NOT Social Distancing

Walking home from the park, we meet a small scrum of children coming down the sidewalk the other way, their parental escort in tow.

Because we're trying not to accidentally kill anyone with diseases too small to see, we give them a wide berth by standing off to one side, hugging the fence, and they pass us by.

Except for one of the children, a thin tow-headed kid bringing up the rear, who, ignoring the path the others took, blithely ambles within inches of me as I press up against the wrought-iron gate to a looming brownstone.

When I make eye contact with Katie, she says, "I saw that kid at the grocery store yesterday - I recognize his jacket."

More Social Distancing

We lay out our blankets in the triangle of grass at the confluence of two park paths, Katie and me on one and her cousin and his girlfriend on the other, a few feet away from us. We don't even hug like we usually do when we meet, but the urge and desire to share food prove impossible to resist, since we brought cheese.

We talk and laugh until the sky gets gray and dark, and we watch the dogs walk happily by with their blank-faced owners who seem to have forgotten how lucky they are to have a dog. A blonde women in a gray tracksuit walks by, eyeing us suspiciously, until she makes eye contact with me, realizes I've caught her staring, and quickly looks away.

How To Cut Slack

“Excuse me,” the voice says behind me in the grocery store, but in that way that clearly means, “Get out of my way, idiot.”

I’m somewhat of a big dude, tall anyway, and I’ve always been a bit self-conscious of my size, so without thinking I take a step closer to the produce to let her pass (even though there was plenty of room), and she does without making eye contact or acknowledging me in any other way.

It’s right afterwards, of course, that one’s politeness passes and one is left with that sense of having been pushed around, when the resentment rises and one begins rehearsing all manner of scathing replies, each more devastating than the last, none of them sufficient to cool your umbrage.

But then I look around: at the empty shelves, at the stock people furiously restocking, the tension in everyone’s shoulders and the worry in their eyes, the six feet everyone is trying to keep from everyone else; and I take a deep breath, then another, and try to give that lady the benefit of the doubt.

Not Possible

The governmental requests for the public to isolate seem to have been largely successful, because the store is really empty today, so when two people and their dogs come, our relief at seeing anyone not directly working here translates into them being treated like celebrities.

The dogs seem perfectly thrilled with all the attention - Minnie the Dalmatian, and Goldie the Golden Retriever - especially Goldie when I rub her outrageously soft ears.

When I remark on their superlative fluff, her owner agrees, noting, "They were washed in angels' tears."

I look at the dog's beatific smile as I continue to rub her ears and I ask, "What could this face have done to make an angel cry?"

Capitalism Twists Us

"Hey, can you send me that article you were talking about?" a manager from another department asks me at the bottom of the escalator.

"Sure," I say, texting him a link to an article I found quoting several City Council members calling for the mayor to shutdown New York City before the pandemic spreads further.

"I'm hoping they don't really shut things down until Wednesday, 'cause it's Saint Paddy's Day, and my wife's makes like, half her money for the year bartending that day," he says.

"I'm not one to take away from anyone's money, but... you hear yourself, right?" I ask as gently as I can.

Work Ethic

"My boss is in Florida, so I think I'll stay out on Monday," she says when I ask if she's been able to work from home.

"But I can walk to work," she continues as I box up the shoes she's buying, "and there are people who live way farther from work than I do, and they came in. So I kinda had to."

"Well, if guilt at the cost of our health isn't the capitalist protestant work ethic in action, I don't know what is," I say, standing to walk her to the register to ring her up.

Social Distancing In Action

The store has been mostly empty all night, and the vibe has been a little subdued, but here I am. An older couple come down the escalator, chatting blithely away, and I give them a big smile as they walk past.

"Where's all the people?" the gentleman asks with a grin, boggling comically at the empty floor.

"Oh, I think you know," I reply gently.