"Is life back to normal?" Well no not really as the world has changed a great deal since 2020 (at my job it's pretty clear we are never going back to 5 days in office) but I've stopped making major changes to my life due to COVID, so in that sense it's normal. In a way "back to normal" is kind of the wrong question as we'll never get back to "the way things were" but if you want to stop living like there's a big pandemic going on you can feel free to do so, in fact most people are doing that.
I mask in stores, etc. Spouse and I cut back on our outings in 2020 and still haven't fully resumed our old schedule. I suspect we won't, advancing age (81/72) and caution are both factors. We still mask in stores, but not elsewhere.
I'm 75, vaccinated & boosted, never had Covid, and I notice that all my docs and their staff are masked & require me to be masked. So I mask any time I'm in public: at the gym, on public transportation, shopping, etc. And I plan to do so for the rest of my life, if only because masks also provide protection vs seasonal flu & colds.
I isolated etc for more than two years. There was always going to be a weird phase. The disastrous part remains that polarization (rather than access) has left us here. It’s also telling that we cannot rely on many governments to enforce restrictions (do you really think the police and sheriffs will do so, much less Texas or Florida. If compliance is impossible and the costs are hard to bear, then eventually individuals bear little responsibility.
We went to a Colorado Rockies game the other day and things were pretty much normal. It rained during the game and 23 runs were scored in total. The rain and the number of runs scored were abnormal, but otherwise things moved along. You have some examples like doctors offices and airports where people are still being careful.
It's a pleasant fiction for those without compromised immune systems or do not live with those individuals. Risk calculations these days seem to stop at the individual and little to no consideration is given for how our actions may impact others (e.g. service industry workers and their families, or the people being forced out of regular societal participation due to the increased risks).
"Is life back to normal?" Well no not really as the world has changed a great deal since 2020 (at my job it's pretty clear we are never going back to 5 days in office) but I've stopped making major changes to my life due to COVID, so in that sense it's normal. In a way "back to normal" is kind of the wrong question as we'll never get back to "the way things were" but if you want to stop living like there's a big pandemic going on you can feel free to do so, in fact most people are doing that.
I mask in stores, etc. Spouse and I cut back on our outings in 2020 and still haven't fully resumed our old schedule. I suspect we won't, advancing age (81/72) and caution are both factors. We still mask in stores, but not elsewhere.
I'm 75, vaccinated & boosted, never had Covid, and I notice that all my docs and their staff are masked & require me to be masked. So I mask any time I'm in public: at the gym, on public transportation, shopping, etc. And I plan to do so for the rest of my life, if only because masks also provide protection vs seasonal flu & colds.
I isolated etc for more than two years. There was always going to be a weird phase. The disastrous part remains that polarization (rather than access) has left us here. It’s also telling that we cannot rely on many governments to enforce restrictions (do you really think the police and sheriffs will do so, much less Texas or Florida. If compliance is impossible and the costs are hard to bear, then eventually individuals bear little responsibility.
We went to a Colorado Rockies game the other day and things were pretty much normal. It rained during the game and 23 runs were scored in total. The rain and the number of runs scored were abnormal, but otherwise things moved along. You have some examples like doctors offices and airports where people are still being careful.
It's a pleasant fiction for those without compromised immune systems or do not live with those individuals. Risk calculations these days seem to stop at the individual and little to no consideration is given for how our actions may impact others (e.g. service industry workers and their families, or the people being forced out of regular societal participation due to the increased risks).