Doug Belshaw has shared a couple of interesting articles about the ongoing Covid situation.
Firstly, one that echoes my experiences of people wanting to get back to normal and acting like it even in the face of rising cases again. One sentence particularly hit home:
"Mask-wearing and social distancing have sometimes become so rare that to practise them feels embarrassing."
I still always wear a mask when I'm going to be in a crowded place, like a shop, or somewhere public indoors. I believe it's still the right and polite thing to do, especially now that we are firmly into autumn and, as expected, cases are on an upwards trajectory. Yet, I am in an increasing minority. It has reached the stage where I might be the only person I see wearing one – it almost makes you wonder what the point is. Is that why others have stopped wearing them? Are the numbers now so skewed that most feel it's pointless or don't want to be seen as the odd one out?
What was more intriguing was the notion of 'psychological hibernation' – when stuck in an environment with reduced stimuli the brain dials back. That's exactly how lockdown felt, I just wasn't able to enunciate it. Psychological hibernation is a perfect description.
