What I will no longer take for granted when the pandemic is over
Repeat after our governor.
We will get through this.
We will get through this together.
When we will get through this coronavirus pandemic no one knows for sure, not Gov. Andy Beshear, not Dr. Steven Stack, not the national politicians, not university presidents or college athletics directors or coaches. Not even Dr. Anthony Fauci knows for sure.
What we do know is that once we get to the other side, and we return to something of a normal life, we will, or at least we should, no longer take some simple things for granted.
For me, such things as:
▪ My morning trip to Panera, where I get my bagel and my iced tea, and where I typically converse with regulars such as Bob and Frank and Bill and Mark. The son of a longtime Cincinnati Reds ticket manager, Bill even brought me a red folding chair used at Crosley Field. During our time away, Mark sent me a picture of a lounge chair in his backyard. Sitting on a table next to it was a take-out bag from Panera.
▪ Lunch at Chipotle, where if I’m lucky enough to be greeted by a familiar server my chicken bowl begins before I order. They don’t have to ask.
▪ Or our weekly lunch at Ramsey’s with a couple of friends. We all order the side salad on such a regular basis the waitress already knows who doesn’t want bacon and who wants blue cheese dressing.
▪ The joy of watching a sporting event together in a stadium or an arena.
▪ The joy of watching a sporting event on television that is actually live, not a “classic” game from way back when.
▪ Doctors.
▪ Nurses.
▪ All medical personnel.
▪ The freedom to get in my car to run to the store and pick up something with that store being open for business.
▪ Being able to go to the grocery store without the fear I might be risking my life, and shopping with customers who aren’t fearful of their lives.
▪ Bookstores, the brick-and-mortar variety where you can actually go and browse and touch the books.
▪ Opening day for Major League Baseball. May I never think of it as routine again. And wouldn’t you know it, just when the Reds change direction and play to win, we have no baseball season. Not yet, anyway.
▪ The Masters. I even promise not to make fun of the traditional Butler Cabin interview. I’ll at least try.
▪ Our two boys, grown now, who no longer live in Lexington. (We will never take them for granted.)
▪ Grandchildren. We don’t have grandchildren, but the regret I hear most from grandparents is the inability to see their grandchildren. And in most cases, the grandchildren can’t understand why they can’t see their grandparents, but especially those who live close by.
▪ Being able to go into my mother’s house to help her with her printer without wearing protective gloves.
▪ Wimbledon.
▪ Appointment television without Andy at 5. Not that I dislike watching Andy at 5. There is something comforting and communal in watching Gov. Beshear go through his daily 5 p.m. repetitions and reminders before giving his daily updates. As our news columnist Linda Blackford says, there’s a sincerity about the governor that even those on the other side of the political aisle have found appealing. (Hunch: When the time comes, the governor will be very happy to give up Andy at 5, as well.)
▪ Going to a real movie theater.
▪ That the first Saturday in May will always mean the Kentucky Derby. This year, it will be the first Saturday in September. Or so we hope. Or it could be the first time since the first Run for the Roses back in 1875 that there will not be a Kentucky Derby. Who could have imagined?
▪ Being able to enjoy a quiet weekend at home without being forced to spend a quiet weekend at home.
▪ A haircut, and it’s not even like I have a full head of hair.
▪ Graeter’s ice cream. Or any ice cream, for that matter.
This story was originally published April 11, 2020 at 10:45 AM.
