Recently, I was on Interstate 81, and I noticed the traffic had increased since the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak and eventual country shutdown.
Tractor-trailers were outnumbering cards by 2 to 1, which to me is a sign the country is starting to slowing reopen.
There’s so much controversy from the national level right on down to municipalities and unfortunately, it seems a medical issue is also a political issue.
For me, I tend to lean on the side of the medical experts, but I totally get why people want to get back to work. It’s a very tough situation we are in. Let’s not forget, it’s not just us in the U.S.A., but it’s all over the world.
With activities in workplaces growing and Pennsylvania counties going from red to yellow and hopefully and finally into green, we will be back to the hustle and bustle once again.
When the pandemic is over, do you think you might long for the early days of the coronavirus crises when everything was shut down?
Will you miss less cars on the road, more families out walking, and most towns shutting down pretty much after 6 p.m.?
Another annoyance I noticed as time has passed since the beginning of the shutdown, those irritating sales calls have increased. It was kind of nice not to see “unknown caller” or “1-800-something or other” calling me at all hours of the day and night.
This past Wednesday, I was woken by a text message at 3 a.m. from Uber asking me to confirm my ride. The odd thing is, later in the day I went to check that message again and it was gone. What kind of trick foolery was that?
So the truth is, we are all over the place with this virus – our minds, our hearts, our wisdom, our knowledge – if the medical community can’t put their finger on COVID-19, how are those in charge on the federal and state level going to figure it out?
As of this past Wednesday, all of Greater Pittston had a total of 133 confirmed COVID-19 cases in the 18640 through 18644 out of the countywide total of 2,467 cases. And the county has a whole has suffered 123 deaths due to the coronavirus.
I feel the general consensus in Greater Pittston is we seem to be insulated from the rest of the county because out of the approximately 45,000 residents that make up Greater Pittston, we have a total 133 cases, again, as of this past Wednesday.
Perhaps people on Greater Pittston are adhering to the rules and regulations set by the CDC and Commonwealth of Pennsylvania with our low numbers.
Also on Wednesday, it is reported statewide we have recorded 3,943 deaths from COVID-19 and to put that into perspective, it is estimated the Borough of West Pittston has 4,750 residents.
I’m doing what I have to do to comply such as taking part in Zoom meetings, wearing my mask in public places and staying my six-feet from others, and like most of you, I’m not fond of it – but I do it.
Some folks are getting into wearing handmade printed masks, designer masks, or just the scarf over the face. How about the handkerchief over the nose like robbers in the old west?
I did hear an interesting fact the other day on the news, home package deliveries are up and home garbage has increased. That makes sense since a lot of people are working from home producing more garbage, but as far as home deliveries, I guess people are still doing plenty of shopping off the home shopping channels or their favorite Internet store.
You hear the term, “new normal” and the fact is, nobody knows what that normal will be three-months, six-months or a year from now. When that normal happens, it’s possible that too will be another stage until we recognize what our life was pre-pandemic.
We will get back to packed restaurants, concerts, movies theaters, sports stadiums and arenas, college campuses and much more. I believe we will be hungry enough for entertainment, for gathering in mass, celebrating life and celebrating so much so it just might be hard to find a seat in a restaurant or movie theater.
Never again will any of us take for granted the luxury of the things we did prior to COVID-19. We will appreciate the freedom of roaming and going out to look for a new car, or going to a beach without social distance rules in place.
I don’t think anyone will complain because it’s 25 minutes until you get a seat at a restaurant.
It will be fun, once again, to jam into the F.M. Kirby Center to see a live performance or going to your local pub of choice to sit at the bar have a few beverages and chat with someone sitting next to you.
There’s nothing like standing in line for an ice cream on a hot summer night and maybe earlier that evening, you caught Railriders game.
Let’s not forget sitting and waiting for a haircut or a salon to get a cut and color, no more complaining there.
This whole pandemic, if anything, has humbled us all and I, for one, won’t take another day for granted. Having cancer and a pandemic are enough for me.
Quote of the week
“Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people.” – Eleanor Roosevelt
Thought of the week
“Be how you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind.” – Bernard M. Baruch
Bumper sticker
“Strive not to be a success, but rather to be of value.” – Albert Einstein
