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Key points
- The CDC might say it's safe for you to take off your mask if you're vaccinated, but you have to decide how safe you feel.
- When it's time to get dressed up and go out again, each person must decide how comfortable they are being among those who may not be vaccinated.
- There's no real "new normal" waiting for us; we are going to have to create it.
I usually have nightmares before talking in front of a crowd. That’s just the way I’m wired.
I recently had an event at Quail Ridge Books, a local independent bookstore. It was the first in-person event I had done in more than a year and the first in-store author event the bookstore had hosted since COVID. The stakes were high on both sides of the fence.
My fourth novel, The Inevitable Past, came out just as life was locking down in 2020, and every in-person event for that book was canceled. So, I decided I would piggyback The Inevitable Past onto the launch of my latest novel, A Musical Affair, and make it a literary twofer.
Quail Ridge agreed to my idea of a dual launch and settled on a date we both felt might be safe, or at least safe enough. I wanted to be sure I would be fully vaccinated for the event, and they wanted their entire store staff to be vaccinated, as well.
By the time the event rolled around, the CDC had declared it was safe for vaccinated folks to take off their masks and step back into the world. This announcement upped the ante on anxiety for everyone involved.
The bookstore limited the number of attendees to 25, suggested people wear masks if they felt more comfortable, and announced the event would observe social distancing. To accommodate social distancing, attendees had to register and were assigned seating, with several empty chairs in between self-designated groups.
Before I tell you that 32 people showed up eager to buy books and listen to an author talk, let me tell you about my pre-event nightmare. It went something like this and replayed throughout the night in case I didn’t get it the first time around: After I was introduced and started speaking, a group of rowdy men in hockey jerseys came into the store, took possession of all the empty chairs, turned the chairs around so their backs were to me and sat down. One of the staff members then rolled a large television set to the back of the room and turned on the hockey game. I asked the staff member what was happening. She told me the Hurricanes, the local professional hockey team, were in the playoffs. She added that this was an important game, and the bars were closed because it was Sunday, so there was nowhere else for these men to watch the game. She suggested I should continue with my presentation and just talk a little louder.
Let me break the nightmare down for you.
1. The Hurricanes were, in fact, in the playoffs that Sunday afternoon. I would never ever kid myself that a book launch would or could demand a larger audience than almost any sports event excerpt perhaps competitive shuffleboard. A literary event on the day of a major sporting event didn't have a chance of drawing a large enthusiastic audience.
2. It had been more than a year since I had done an in-person event. It was also the first time in a very long time since I had been inside a building without wearing a mask with anyone other than our family and, most recently, a few doubly-vaccinated friends.
3. I was pretty darn sure, masked or unmasked, that a roomful of Caniacs, as the fans are called, did not fit neatly into my comfort zone.
Bottom line: Even if the CDC says you might be able to take off your mask and attend public events once you’re doubly vaccinated, it is going to take some time before many of us are going to find a comfortable place back in the world of unmasked strangers.
I’ve taken off my mask but carry one in my purse just in case the situation at hand calls for one. Whenever I go somewhere, I sit in my car before getting out so I can determine if people are wearing masks, or are going about their business as though the world is fair and square and safe again. Even if no one is wearing a mask, I often decide to put one on if I’m feeling at all uncomfortable or vulnerable.
Feeling safe is an individual thing, and it strikes me that we are going to have to be tolerant of others as they too try to figure out what works for them. It won’t be the same for everyone.
This task of going about our business as usual is going to take time, and maybe a few more nightmares.
