On Monday, it was announced that California was going to be shutting down some public spaces again. And several counties, including Los Angeles, were going to shut down even more things than what was being done throughout the state. A lot of things on the shutdown list were things that I didn’t know if they had opened at all in LA (like movie theaters or indoor restaurant seating). But there were some things that I know had reopened that were closing again. Mainly gyms and personal care places (nails, waxing, hair salons).
I haven’t been going to any of the places that are being shut down. For the most part, the only places I have gone in the past 4 months have been grocery or drug stores to get things I need or to doctor and dentist appointments. I haven’t gone anywhere for fun or entertainment. I haven’t been out and enjoying the city even as things reopened. And I’ve been having very mixed feelings about pretty much being a shut-in inside my house.
I know that the virus is serious and needs to be taken seriously. This is not something that isn’t a big deal or as simple as the flu. Even if you have a mild case or no symptoms, there is nothing known about the long-term effects. And from what the research has shown so far, it does appear that there are long-term effects and people might have health issues in the future. But we won’t know until it happens. So I am staying home to stay healthy and make sure that I don’t get sick. For me, it is more about keeping myself safe than protecting others since I don’t really interact with anyone else. But to keep me healthy is a good reason to be home. And I do take every precaution when I go out in public. I wear a mask. I stay away from others. I keep a distance. I don’t do anything that isn’t necessary.
But as things were reopening, I was starting to worry that I was using the virus as a reason to isolate myself from others for another reason. I don’t know why I would be isolating myself, but it was starting to feel like I was doing that. I saw people posting about going out still keeping a distance from others while being out of their homes. People have been going to parks, doing more than just the essential errands, and starting to live their lives again. I was worried that I was too scared to do all of that and what it meant for me. I don’t want to pick up new habits that make me not want to go out and be around others when it seems safe to do so.
And I still don’t know if that was the right choice or not then, but now I feel a bit better about my decisions since things were shut down. Nobody is really going out and doing much anymore. I know we need to do this because the numbers are rising again and we cannot just sit around and hope we don’t get sick. We need to take steps to make sure we aren’t getting sick and a big part of that is having a safer at home order. Things aren’t as strict as they were in the beginning, but they are stricter than what they were a week or two again. To me, it doesn’t really make much of a difference unless they decide that dental offices have to fully close because I still need to go back to finish my appointment.
With things shut down, I no longer have to think about if I want to try to leave my house and do something. I am just going to stay home and keep myself safe. And hopefully either this closing will bring the numbers back down or something else will happen that will help keep us safe and healthy. I am ready for things to be open again and to be able to feel safe to be out and around others. But we are not there yet and I’m not willing to rush things and take a chance. Waiting until things are safe isn’t easy or fun, but it does seem to be the right decision for me.
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