Originally posted on Facebook HERE
Foggy out there today… but the dumpster is gone. Nice view of the guard chicken through the fog. Funny to think that the whole world is basically on lockdown right now. No sports. Restaurants & bars closed – only take out if they’re open at all. Streets are empty. Like we’re living in one of those “doomsday” movies. No hugging, no shaking hands… go to the store, everyone is suspicious. God forbid you get sick at all with anything right now because the first thing going through everyone’s mind (most likely including yours) will be “it’s the virus”. A good portion of us are out of work with an indefinite time table to return. One of my questions throughout this whole thing has been – what will that “return to normal” look like? Isn’t it weird being holed up watching shows where people do all the stuff freely that we can’t do right now? For crying out loud, they’re shaking hands, hugging, going out to eat, watching sports in a stadium filled with people… who ever really thought that any of that would ever be taken away? Yet here we are. For how long?.. undetermined. But even when we get some sort of a green light again – will you be comfortable going to restaurants, malls, bars, plays, sporting events, and anywhere else there’s a group of people? There will be a new normal, at least for a while. Maybe a long while. Maybe there will just be a “new normal” forever after this. In the meantime, life goes on. The pace is different. Stress levels can be higher, too. This can be a great time to declutter a bit. Or maybe revisit a passion you’ve left behind. Just those two things could keep me busy indefinitely. Clutter? Everywhere. Even something as simple as books – I usually have several going at once, and eventually I land on a good one that takes over that I read all the way through. That leaves many books half read, though. Eventually I’ll go back and decide whether I’m going to finish them or give up, but in the meantime there they sit on the “someday” shelf. “Someday I’ll go through and organize that”. And, I often don’t just throw things out right away. Like – I’ll get new luggage, but keep the old luggage out in the garage in case I need it for something in the next twenty years. It’s how we build up the stuff that sits in boxes in our attics and basements. I have plenty of that to go through. It’ll feel good to declutter. And one other thing that I’ve been doing is playing music just for the fun of it again. I’ve wanted to do an all bass album for years, well – this is a perfect time to work on that. And the ideas are just flowing right now. I’ve also started working on improving my technique using instructional books (I’ve recently found some great ones) and apps that just weren’t available when I was learning how to play. And it’s been awesome. So much fun. Brings me right back to that place I was in when I was fourteen years old and just learning how to play. I’m also using the time I can’t go to the gym (one of the places that’s closed) to get back in touch with yoga and running again. And… when things do get back to “normal” – there will be a new normal for me because of all this. Certainly we’re running our lives at a different pace now. I’m hoping to create a new normal that will benefit me going forward once this is all done. Maybe we can create that not only for ourselves, but our families and communities as well as we move forward. Where are your opportunities right now? What can you do today to create a better tomorrow? What will your new normal look like?…
