"What did I miss? Virginia my home sweet home I wanna give you a kiss... mwah"
Maybe because my Instagram has become more bloggy as of late. I'm getting the energy out that way. I prefer to be more myself on the blog, though. So I may pull back on the 'gramming. And round and round we go.
A few people have asked me some form of the question, "What did the pandemic help you discover that you could live without?" At first I couldn't answer it. All I could answer was: "What do you miss the most about pre-pandemic life?" And these are my answers to that one:
I miss:
-TRAVELING (particularly to see family... it's been 6 months since we saw any family, and that is a long time for us!) I do not miss airplanes; if I never got an airplane again for the rest of my life I'd really be fine with that... OK, I do want to visit other countries again in my life, and I plan to, but I would be fine with never getting on an airplane again to travel domestically.
-The pool and swim team (now that it's summer)(in the spring I missed my kids' school)
-Museums
-Close contact with people I love. Hugs, etc. This one took me a while to realize because Polly is all over me all the time, so I have a lot of physical contact with her, but I really want to hug my mom! And my dad and in-laws and siblings and cousins and nieces and nephews and friends and everyone I love. It's funny how much I miss that.
But I do have answers to the first question. What have I discovered that I can totally live without?
I don't miss:
-Target. I used to go to Target ONCE A WEEK! (Only because my kids' piano teacher lives next to a Target.) I haven't been to Target since March, and I don't miss it at all. I am really surprised about this.
-Mascara. I still wear mascara on Sundays, sometimes. (Not today.) But I no longer wear it on any other day. I'm not against it at all, it's just so much easier in every way NOT to wear it. Especially in allergy season, and when I wear contacts (which is also less frequent than it used to be; I probably wear glasses 75% of the time now). And I have gotten used to the way I look without it.
Side note about makeup in general: I had already slowly decreased makeup wearing over the last 3 years or so, inspired by Alicia Keys and Brooke White, who have both spoken and written about why they wear less makeup than they used to. Granted, it helps that they both have amazingly beautiful faces. But there is something so appealing about looking at a face without makeup, who you normally see with makeup on. Does that make sense? I just feel more connected to that person. I think makeup is awesome though, and it's a form of self-expression, and a bold lip or a smoky eye just adds something special, not to mention that I do love the effect of a good concealer. I just... don't feel like I need to wear mascara for "everyday" anymore, and I'm happy about that.
Second side note. Am I letting myself go? haha. I don't know. Feel free to tell me. A handful of people have given me the feedback that my transitions lenses are super dorky. That hasn't made me feel less inclined to wear them. I asked Matt what he would think if I shaved my head (not because I'm planning to, just because the topic came up), and he said something along the lines of, "I would think you were getting closer to your goal of maximum functionality." I see what he means. Between my sun hat, my transitions lenses, and my fanny pack... and my sensible shoes... well, I guess the writing is on the wall.
-Shopping in general. The mall. Whatever. I don't need stuff. I don't need more clothes, I don't need more tchotchkes. I do want to take a hard look at my dependence on Amazon Prime though, but that is a story for another day...
-Feeling timid. I don't miss feeling timid. I wouldn't call myself "bold" especially--and I also wouldn't say that I was exactly "timid" before--but with so much physical distance between myself and my various communities over so many months, I think that I have definitely shed any lingering sense of apprehension when it comes to sharing my opinions, or my suggestions, or my questions. I don't think I'm rude, but I definitely notice a difference that I think is linked to the physical distance.
What about you? What do you miss? What don't you miss?
I miss something and I'm not exactly sure what it is. I miss the routine that used to run my life - teaching appt at 2, HIIT class at 9, ministering appt at 4 - because I am not terribly disciplined - when I had to get to class at 9, I got up and did stuff before I left, and scheduled stuff to do on my way home. Now a whole day goes by and I've done very little - and that is a bit unsettling.
ReplyDeleteI don't miss driving all over town getting kids places. I don't miss my kids having activities every night so we struggle to have dinner as a family. I don't miss church (which is weird to me, I would have thought I would miss it)
ReplyDeleteNow that it is summer I miss things like going to the pool, or maybe Lagoon, seeing extended family. Of course, I guess I could still do those things, they are open out where we are, but we have not felt comfortable doing them yet.
Honestly, I have learned that in many ways I am a happy homebody.
Also, one of my daughters cut her hair back in April, not quite shaved bald, but pretty darn short (1/2 inch maybe?) She always wanted to try it, so she did.
Karen - I am growing out my hair - mostly by default, but it's easy to take care of long - daily ponytail!!
ReplyDeleteI MISS YOU!
ReplyDeleteI agree with the things you don’t miss and ALSO wonder if I’m letting myself go haha. It’s been interesting to see my face clear up, hair turn gray, under eyes brighten. Stress, worry and inconsistent sleep are still there but it’s different and I don’t miss commuting to work and dealing with grumbly employees in person. I much prefer that over email and text. I MISS spontaneity and the ability to go anywhere and explore without having to worry about people not keeping their distance. I LOVE having Justin as my only co-worker and asking if he can grab me a snack from the “break room”
ReplyDelete