It’s wild to think about how much has changed in just five years. In some ways, COVID was a wake-up call for me. I used to be someone who focused solely on my career, but during the lockdowns, I had a lot of time to reflect. I realized that my mental health and relationships needed more attention than I was giving them.
I am constantly bummed out by how few people I see when I go places like downtowns or malls. It just never picked back up nearly to the level it used to be.
I look at my fellow citizens a lot different now. When people started refusing to wear paper masks to save others and rejected science and vaccinations, it opened my eyes to how stupid half the population truly is. I have lost so much respect and trust for people.
For the worse all around. Things are not the same, never will be. Life has a different feel, and it’s amazing how people were so easily manipulated and herded by abuse of power from our governments. I still see people driving around cars by themselves wearing a mask. Once the next plandemic hits, I’m going to live in the bush until my life draws to an end.
COVID gave me an easy out with the restaurant job I had. It had become extremely stagnant but I was too nervous to make a change on my own. COVID forced me to make the change and now I’m making 6 figures working M-F. I will never work nights, weekends, and holidays again.
I was in high school when the shutdowns happened and now I’m a year into a PhD program. Big change was coming for me anyway. I might’ve played sports in college if I had my senior season in HS, might not have. Who really knows?
My childhood best friend’s mother died (I believe from covid) during the pandemic so that was hard.
I hate everyone more. Realize friends can be family more than family. Question why people wear masks outside. Question those who wear masks now about what they’ll wear when the next pandemic hits. Learned to question everything and learned politicians are not medical professionals and have zero business speaking about. Wish that the media spoke more about the vaccine being a protection against the severity of the virus and not some magical shield people still think it is/was.
Me, I’m great. I cut my expenses in, got closer to my family, bought 2 houses, managed to goose my retirement savings and had a great past few years. Although the financial success is now vaporizing at a breakneck pace.
I really look at people differently now, though. I was misled into thinking that we were a community that could be counted on to do the right thing in a crisis. Then I watched grown adults throw a cataclysmic tantrum over being asked to wear a mask and avoid eating at Olive Garden for a couple of weeks. Completely told science to fuck off in the midst of a national health emergency. Totally changed my perception of my neighbors.
Ironically I’m a lot more confident now because the abject stupidity and malice of most people has been revealed and I can easily say I’m better than they are as a person.
I don’t get out as much. I actually love to get out, but my own personal life saw me almost get paralyzed in 2020 so a LOT changed for me. I order from Door Dash now instead of getting out (maybe a little TOO MUCH).
I sort of miss the quietness of 2020 though. One thing is for certain, some people I was friends with prior to this… really aren’t friends with me and the group I’m close with anymore. I think it’s a combination of the scare from COVID days and getting sick + major political differences (I’m not political, very middle of road, but some people just can’t interact with each other normally now since 2020)
It has changed my life enormously. I lost my daughter, after that my wife and I could not stay in the house we raised her in so we sold it. We now live full-time in an RV. We work half of the year and travel the rest. We took part of our proceeds from our house sale and went in on a house in a completely different part of the country with our remaining child and his wife, that will be our eventual exit plan from the RV life.
COVID taught me a very valuable lesson. I spent much of my life trying to achieve the ultimate stability. I had, for the most part, achieved that. I had a house in Southern California that I owned outright. I had 2 wonderful children that were doing well. I had a successful business that at the time of COVID I had been running for 15 years. Then COVID hit! I was within days of losing my business (Luckily a contract came through at the last minute that saved it.) I did lose me daughter because of it. That secure little world that I thought I had control over was just a facade, in the span of 2 years it was all gone.
When that all happened I thought “Why the hell am I trying to control something that I obviously have no control over?” It was COVID that made me realize I needed to start living the life I wanted to live. Luckily my wife felt the same and so here we are now. We’ve seen 46 of the 50 United States and will continue to keep traveling for as long as we can.
Yes, a certain amount of stability is required, but don’t let that one thing be all consuming, it can be taken away in the blink of an eye and is completely out of your control. Go live life.
Comments
Back as per normal just be more cautious about hygiene in public
It’s wild to think about how much has changed in just five years. In some ways, COVID was a wake-up call for me. I used to be someone who focused solely on my career, but during the lockdowns, I had a lot of time to reflect. I realized that my mental health and relationships needed more attention than I was giving them.
Still WFH-ing, which has its pros and cons.
Post-Covid inflation, an inevitable consequence of all the money-printing, has been a massive kick in the nuts.
I am constantly bummed out by how few people I see when I go places like downtowns or malls. It just never picked back up nearly to the level it used to be.
Other than paying twice as much for everything, and watching the country freak out for a couple years, my life has been completely unaffected.
I wish places in America being open all night long.
The pandemic ruined many things and caused a shift towards greater greed from companies and dissatisfaction with government.
I look at my fellow citizens a lot different now. When people started refusing to wear paper masks to save others and rejected science and vaccinations, it opened my eyes to how stupid half the population truly is. I have lost so much respect and trust for people.
Im now wearing a mask when im sick and in closed places (supermarket, doctors office)
Also we got to keep home office… so far.
Can’t believe it’s been 5 years since we all learned what essential worker meant and then immediately forgot about them.
For the worse all around. Things are not the same, never will be. Life has a different feel, and it’s amazing how people were so easily manipulated and herded by abuse of power from our governments. I still see people driving around cars by themselves wearing a mask. Once the next plandemic hits, I’m going to live in the bush until my life draws to an end.
COVID gave me an easy out with the restaurant job I had. It had become extremely stagnant but I was too nervous to make a change on my own. COVID forced me to make the change and now I’m making 6 figures working M-F. I will never work nights, weekends, and holidays again.
My social skills went from ‘awkward’ to ‘NPC glitching in a Bethesda game.’
I was in high school when the shutdowns happened and now I’m a year into a PhD program. Big change was coming for me anyway. I might’ve played sports in college if I had my senior season in HS, might not have. Who really knows?
My childhood best friend’s mother died (I believe from covid) during the pandemic so that was hard.
I hate everyone more. Realize friends can be family more than family. Question why people wear masks outside. Question those who wear masks now about what they’ll wear when the next pandemic hits. Learned to question everything and learned politicians are not medical professionals and have zero business speaking about. Wish that the media spoke more about the vaccine being a protection against the severity of the virus and not some magical shield people still think it is/was.
life’s way better than it was prior
Me, I’m great. I cut my expenses in, got closer to my family, bought 2 houses, managed to goose my retirement savings and had a great past few years. Although the financial success is now vaporizing at a breakneck pace.
I really look at people differently now, though. I was misled into thinking that we were a community that could be counted on to do the right thing in a crisis. Then I watched grown adults throw a cataclysmic tantrum over being asked to wear a mask and avoid eating at Olive Garden for a couple of weeks. Completely told science to fuck off in the midst of a national health emergency. Totally changed my perception of my neighbors.
Ironically I’m a lot more confident now because the abject stupidity and malice of most people has been revealed and I can easily say I’m better than they are as a person.
COVID forced me to lose my job and move back to my home country.
Then I met a hot guy at my new job back home, got married, and now I’m napping next to our baby.
So, my life changed quite drastically.
I got covid for the first time this week.
So that’s nice
I don’t get out as much. I actually love to get out, but my own personal life saw me almost get paralyzed in 2020 so a LOT changed for me. I order from Door Dash now instead of getting out (maybe a little TOO MUCH).
I sort of miss the quietness of 2020 though. One thing is for certain, some people I was friends with prior to this… really aren’t friends with me and the group I’m close with anymore. I think it’s a combination of the scare from COVID days and getting sick + major political differences (I’m not political, very middle of road, but some people just can’t interact with each other normally now since 2020)
America is great again.
It has changed my life enormously. I lost my daughter, after that my wife and I could not stay in the house we raised her in so we sold it. We now live full-time in an RV. We work half of the year and travel the rest. We took part of our proceeds from our house sale and went in on a house in a completely different part of the country with our remaining child and his wife, that will be our eventual exit plan from the RV life.
COVID taught me a very valuable lesson. I spent much of my life trying to achieve the ultimate stability. I had, for the most part, achieved that. I had a house in Southern California that I owned outright. I had 2 wonderful children that were doing well. I had a successful business that at the time of COVID I had been running for 15 years. Then COVID hit! I was within days of losing my business (Luckily a contract came through at the last minute that saved it.) I did lose me daughter because of it. That secure little world that I thought I had control over was just a facade, in the span of 2 years it was all gone.
When that all happened I thought “Why the hell am I trying to control something that I obviously have no control over?” It was COVID that made me realize I needed to start living the life I wanted to live. Luckily my wife felt the same and so here we are now. We’ve seen 46 of the 50 United States and will continue to keep traveling for as long as we can.
Yes, a certain amount of stability is required, but don’t let that one thing be all consuming, it can be taken away in the blink of an eye and is completely out of your control. Go live life.
I no longer have a sense of smell.