Coronavirus, Divisive Politics Have Autumn Optimism in Short Supply

Tom Purcell on Sep 8, 2020

I made it through the summer of COVID-19 - though I’m thankful that neither I nor any of my family have contracted the novel coronavirus.

I know that the summer doesn’t technically end until Sept. 22, but I got through June, July and August. It wasn’t easy for me or anyone.

Every Monday, I went on a diet to lose my “covid 19” - as in the 19 pounds I put on during March, April and May - because by every Friday, I slipped back into the bad habits I’d developed during the spring.

What a blur the spring months were. I remember being shuttered in my house all day long, every single day. Thank goodness my consulting contract wasn’t canceled - I’ve been working on a communications project for a medical company - and I was able to keep busy during the day.

But I went stir crazy every night. I took a lot of naps. I watched a lot of movies. I consumed a bit more wine than normal - box wine - which, apparently, lots of others did.

According to USA Today, Americans began consuming inexpensive box wine not by the glass, but by the bucket.

I stumbled through the spring months but I managed to get through them with high hopes for the summer. I hoped warmer weather would help kill, or at least slow, the daggone virus, allowing us to get back to some semblance of normality.

How naive.

After this summer, I’m not sure the normal I’m referring to - when people could disagree with each other’s politics yet remain civil - will ever return.

I remember the awful George Floyd video in late May that resulted in initially peaceful protests. Briefly, America was galvanized. We all wanted better police training and vetting.

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