We’re personally pretty much back to pre-Covid normal. We still carry masks in case a business or person would like us to wear them, but in the past couple of weeks we’ve only done so at a large grocery store. We always ask when we go inside restaurants, smaller stores, or even the laundromat yesterday (since we’re on a longer vacation and needed to wash clothes). No one has wanted us to wear one and almost always no one else inside is.
I’ve totally lost fear. We’re eating inside, shopping in person inside - all types of stores, hugging relatives/friends, and enjoying the company of new people as they enter our lives.
The only real abnormal thing is I’ve been sitting on the cottage porch staring across the river at Canada and we can’t actually go there as we always would have before (sigh). 2020 was the first year in my life that I haven’t set foot on Canadian soil. I hope 2021 isn’t the second. We will be up here one more time in the fall. I hope the border is open by then, at least for vaccinated people. Time will tell.
At the BLM marches there were LOTS of masked folks. Same with the spontaneous gatherings that happened on the Saturday after the election when most networks called the election. And these took place when there was no vaccine yet.
I wonder if someone could sue over that? If someone who does not feel comfortable walks in wearing a mask and is asked to remove it or leave?
My SIL was in Florida very recently (visiting his parents). They went into a place and that was the rule - no masks allowed! SIL has been fully vaccinated for awhile but he was not comfortable with that rule.
I’m pretty sure if a place banned masks during Covid times I’d turn around as soon as I knew about it and choose somewhere else to eat or shop.
I’m fully vaccinated, and as stated before, haven’t worn a mask in quite a while now outside of a large grocery store, but if a place is banning masks their views aren’t mine nor something I want to support with my spending dollars.
Several states have said individual businesses cannot require masks. Most are leaving it up to the businesses.
At the very beginning, when some businesses were just opening up again, to get into my bank I had to have my temp taken, pull down my mask, look into the security camera, and then proceed in with the mask back in place.
I don’t know what banks will do. Most don’t allow masks during business hours, even on Halloween.
Not requiring masks and banning masks during Covid times are two completely different things. The first makes sense as we’re coming out of the pandemic. The latter is merely showing differing values than ours and we have plenty of places we can spend our money - we don’t need to go to those places. Banning masks is essentially a political statement at this point in time. They can make their choice. I can make mine.
We refused to go to places that didn’t enforce the mask mandate when it was “hot,” (just putting up a sign wasn’t enough if the sign could be ignored at will) and we’re still not planning on going to places who didn’t require masks (even with a sign) when our state said to do so. Again, we have different values and I don’t need to support theirs when I can choose elsewhere as most are restaurants or shops.
When Covid is a thing of the past, it makes sense for banks to ban masks. I’m not really sure why other places would need to, esp during cold season. Most won’t likely choose to wear them anyway, but if someone sick or medically fragile wanted to, why shouldn’t they be able to?
My fully vaccinated daughter (all her coworkers are also since she works for a healthcare company) is going to meet her coworkers in person for the first time this week for lunch (she changed jobs last May and has been remote this entire time).
They are supposed to return to the office in September.
I met some friends yesterday for happy hour that I have not seen for a year and a half. We are all former coworkers and normally get together 3 to 4 times a year. One of my friends now lives in Arizona so we get together when she is in San Diego. We were at a restaurant by the beach which has a large outdoor dining area and it was pretty busy. Afterwards I walked to another restaurant in the area to have a glass of wine with H and D2 who were having dinner together. This restaurant was very busy and service was slow. The waiter came by several times to apologize because they were short staffed.
My son’s good friend was in the hospital for a year, and he almost died (pre-Covid). He has had to wear a mask in public ever since. How dare anyone deny him or anyone else the ability to wear a mask to protect themselves?
Banks aren’t the only businesses concerned that people might be concealing their identities to steal from them. I would guess that businesses banning masks aren’t doing so entirely from a “how dare you care about your health?” attitude. Further, unfortunately, it’s a lot easier for some people to be assumed to be wearing a mask for health reasons than it is for others. I’m not inclined toward wearing masks when they’re not strictly necessary or required, but as a Black man, I also have no interest in the inevitable hassles I’d face if I continued to wear a mask inside stores after that becomes rare.
I was out and about a bit today in my heavily vaccinated town in my heavily vaccinated state (Massachusetts), and outdoor mask wearing still seems to be about 80% to 90% in the center of town. Feels kind of weird to me now to see people wearing masks outdoors when they’re not close to others, since our outdoor mask mandate has been lifted, but I certainly wouldn’t criticize anyone for doing it, or insist that they stop.
Yes, certainly there’s been no exception for banks in places with indoor mask mandates, as far as I’m aware. But those mandates will go away sooner or later.
My bank required a mask, but when you first walked in and had passed the temp screening, you had to stop, take it down, and look into the camera. That way they had you on camera with and without the mask. This was last year when the bank first re-opened the lobby. It is also a VERY small credit union, so they were only allowing 4-5 people in the lobby at the same time. They really wanted you to use the ATM or a drive thru (this branch doesn’t have a drive thru).
They stopped the temp check and hand sanitizing requirement a few months ago. Also stopped the mask removal for photo requirement. However, the guard is now at the front door, controlling entry (used to sit closer to the tellers).
Last week I had stuffy nose and sore throat. Everyone told me I had allergies, but it didn’t feel like it because I’ve never had allergy and I felt better each passing day. I think I either had my first cold in 15 months or covid (I doubt it).
No one has told rhinoviruses and the “other” coronaviruses (aka common cold culprits) to take a vacation. Hope you feel better soon.
We ate inside a restaurant for the first time in more than a year! It felt very normal except the tables were further apart, and it was not as noisy as before Covid. We liked it but are well aware that the business owner would want the old hustle and bustle back.
My allergies are really bad this year. I seem to be mostly allergic to trees and flowers, and it’s bad when the weather changes from dry and sunny to wet (brings molds off the trees). When I lived on the east coast, it was worse in the fall but this spring is bad.
My daughter had to go back to working in the office on May 3, and she’s had a sore throat and sniffling too.
Well, I am back to pre-covid spending levels on my credit card. This time last year, it was so low with only food and wine charges. Now that we can go out, there are charges from a weekend visiting my daughter, restaurant charges, and a few brick and mortar store purchases.
Fully vaccinated and essentially everyone I know / spend time with is fully vaccinated. Grocery store has lifted the mask requirement. Has a sign that says fully vaccinated are permitted without masks, everyone else must continue wearing masks. Wore mine anyway for a bit. Finally decided to go without. Felt strange and I was in the clear minority. I would eyeball about 10% of us were “naked”. Typical grocery store must have 200 - 300 people at any one time. Probably more. Most of these people are vaccine age eligible. No way only 10% are fully vaccinated. It’s just going to take time for many to feel comfortable about leaving the mask in the car. I did feel stares, but I think that was introspective.
Yeah, we’re back to having travel charges on ours. It feels good TBH. We had diverted our travel expenses to charities helping folks stay afloat during Covid, so our spending didn’t really change, but now we feel we’re helping those folks directly again.
Very, very few people around us (still currently in the 1000 Islands region of NY) are wearing masks, but so far, essentially everyone has had one and pulled it out to put on when they thought it was going to be required (stores, attractions, restaurants). They put them away when finding out they aren’t - or leave them on when it seems right to do so. I’m impressed.
Most of my family, as well as my husband’s family, other than our children, live within 20 minutes of each other. Prior to Covid, we saw one family, if not both, weekly. Everyone that is eligible for a vaccine has had one, except my 55 year old cousin; my mother’s sister’s son. He kept saying he was going to get the vaccine, but never did. First he wasn’t eligible, then he couldn’t find an appointment, and now, when you can get one on every street corner, he still has not gone. He is single and currently working from home, so don’t think he is in a rush, or maybe really doesn’t want to get it.
My mother, who is 90, and very close to her nephew, left him a phone message the other day. Basically she stated that if he isn’t going to be vaccinated, she guesses she will never see him again. She would not attend any dinners/events he was at until the time he was vaccinated! While I was surprised she did that, I though it was an interesting move. Prior to vaccines being available, my cousin would periodically bring special foods to my mother that he found at out of the way restaurants. While he didn’t come into her apartment, he would stand in her hallway and chat for a few minutes.
It will be interesting to see if this is the push my cousin needs to be vaccinated. While his vaccinated parents have him for dinner, he has not been included in the most recent family dinners as only vaccinated adults were allowed. At this time, he can choice to not be vaccinated, but he will miss family events. That of course might change as more people are vaccinated, and more information is know about the length of time the vaccine provides protection.
Hope you feel better soon.