Two condos in the age of covid
Chicago
Morning again. I rose from bed with a slight headache, and sore muscles. Not from a great workout the day before, but more from a lack of doing anything. My wife beat me out of bed. Trudging to the living room, I gazed at our sliver of Lake Michigan between the tall buildings. A silver streak from the sun painted a line across the water towards our condo bulding. I muttered to my wife in the chair behind me, “Our million dollar view.” My wife didn’t look up, just added sarcastically, “From our ten cent prison.”
I walked over and flipped on the TV. Immediately, the screen was filled with a scene of the Michigan protesters brandishing long guns at their state capitol. I sighed, “Imbeciles!”
There’s something happening here
What it is ain’t exactly clear
There’s a man with a gun over there
Telling me I got to beware
“More accurately, Nimrods,” my wife corrected.
“Ok, English major, why nimrods?”
“Well, there are two sides to the story, and nimrods has two meanings. Besides the modern American meaning, a nimrod originally meant ‘great hunter’. That is until Bugs bunny called Elmer Fudd a nimrod in like… 1932.
I had to muster a chuckle, “Ok, ya got me. That additional history major pays off again. Nimrods it is.”
There’s battle lines being drawn
Nobody’s right if everybody’s wrong
Young people speaking their minds
Getting so much resistance from behind
It’s time we stop, hey, what’s that sound
Everybody look what’s going down
My wife disappeared while I watched the news, to reappear dressed to go with an N95 mask in hand, “I’m going out.”
“Wait,” I pleaded, “It is dangerous as hell. We just got groceries delivered yesterday.”
“Yeah, they didn’t bring the yeast, orange juice or bread flour. I’m going to go out and see what I can find.”
I protested further, “ None of that is essential. it just isn’t safe. The elevator. Living on the 42nd floor, you will never get one that isn’t a crowded covid brewery.”
“Goddammit! she glared back at me, ” I got to get out of the condo, I have to get out of this building or I’l go crazy. Great choice for us to move to a damn high rise in a city of nine million with people infected everywhere.”
She cracked open the door, peered up and down the hallway, then quickly exited, slamming the door.
Damn.
I woke up. Thank God I wasn’t in Chicago.
Grand Haven
“Sorry!” my wife yelled, “Wind caught the door.”
My wife had still beaten me out of bed. I was in our Grand Haven home. The sound of the pond fountain undulating in the breeze a pleasant reminder. No headache, but my muscles were still sore. Too much hiking the day before.
“Heading to the store, maybe we can go to North Beach when I get back?”
“Sure, I’ll just take a shower.”
Out of the shower and dressed, I saw my wife was putting away the groceries. “How was the store,” I asked.
“Good. Not too busy. And oh wow. There was an old woman, like in her 70’s just running down the aisles. A checker told her to slow down. The woman yelled back that she had to get in and out fast, so the virus didn’t catch her.”
I nodded, “So sad for her, the fear is out of control. Was everyone wearing masks?”
“Yep… the paranoia is crazy. Oh, and i heard there is a protest at the state park beach later. Probably another Trump rally.”
What a field-day for the heat
A thousand people in the street
Singing songs and carrying signs
Mostly say, hooray for our side
It’s s time we stop, hey, what’s that sound
Everybody look what’s going down
North Beach
Off to North Beach. Our quiet beach still. We were almost alone. The sound of the waves adding to our already peaceful feelings of a morning ever so relaxed. As we eventually drove off, a sign caught my wife’s eye.
“One-way trails thru the dunes now?”
I backed the car up. Took a picture. “Paranoia,” I muttered.
My wife offered, “They are just trying to keep people safe. An over reaction for sure. But people even here on the beach are scared.”
My mind wandered back to my morning dream. “Imagine living in a Chicago sky rise. Then they would have something to fear. But here, outside? On lightly traveled trails. There is virtually zero possibility of catching the virus. People panicking instead of listening to science and living their best life.
Paranoia strikes deep
Into your life it will creep
It starts when you’re always afraid
You step out of line, the man come and take you away
We better stop, hey, what’s that sound
Everybody look what’s going down
Then we drove away. The warm buzz of a beautiful day coursing thru our bodies. Still living in paradise.