Things to Look Forward to After Self-Isolation
We are all excited for life to go back to "normal," whatever that will look like. Here are some things I'm personally looking forward to once I can leave my house and reintegrate into society!
1. Going to the gym
How lame am I to list personal fitness as a top priority for when this isolation period lifts? You would think I'd want to go workout in the great outdoors and hit the beach or something, but instead, I'm looking forward to confining myself in another building. Doing pushups and situps at home just doesn't compare to the sweaty, shared equipment of a public gym.
2. Going to McDonalds
When people talk about longing to dine in a restaurant, they're usually referring to a nice, sit down, 3 course meal. Not me. Give me my cheap, fatty McDonalds trio with burger, fries and soda! I want to eat in a physical McDonalds and place my order on those huge, greasy self-service screens and fill up my plastic cup with watered down Sprite! McDonalds just brings me back to my childhood and despite there being so many quality restaurants, I just want to sit on a hard McDonalds stool next to my local homeless man and enjoy a simple hamburger.
3. Public pools
Most people hate public pools, and I can understand why. They're full of bratty kids who don't shower before they jump into the water, they're crowded, and there's so much chlorine in the water that your skin practically burns. Nonetheless, outdoor public pools are one of the simple things in life that I highly enjoy. I love reading a book by the poolside while listening to the soothing sounds of a camp kid getting scolded by a lifeguard for running. Sure, I could tan at home on my balcony, but being by a pool that is shared by others just trying to enjoy summer is just as refreshing as the freezing water itself.
4. Visiting friends and family
In hindsight, I should have put this one higher up on the list. Oh well, it probably wasn't higher as I actually don't have many friends. Truthfully, even without self-distancing restrictions, I only ever saw my friends in person about once a quarter. We are so accustomed to FaceTiming or talking on the phone, mostly because we're too lazy to actually drive or commute to each other's houses. The glory days of going out to bars and clubs are long behind me, and it seems the people I still talk to feel the same way. Still, just knowing I could see my friends if I wanted to would be a nice pscyological weight lifted.
5. Going to the library
Nerd alert! Who still goes to libraries unless they're a student you ask? The answer is me! I've always loved checking out books, and reading a good novel on the balcony while sipping some ice cold sangria. Sure, I can still read books on my e-reader, but the experience isn't the same. It's much harder to come off as an intellect in public if people can't see the cover of the book you're reading, and as someone who definitely judges books by their covers, I love browsing through the collection of new arrivals before picking one that seems appealing.