T E X A R K A N A M A G A Z I N E
MY DRIFT COLUMN BY PATSY MORRI SS
10Things We Might Actually Miss About the
Pandemic (OR MAYBE JUST SEVEN)
Things are definitely looking up. I hesitate to say we’re getting back to normal because who can say what is normal? The rigors of a global pandemic, however, are behind us and the immediate future is looking a bit more familiar. As I’ve been looking forward, though, I’ve had occasional twinges of a feeling I struggle to identify. I wouldn’t really call it nostalgia, because I don’t have what you would call “fond” memories of the pandemic. Even so, now and then I run across some little thing that I remember as “not-so-bad” about the 2020 adult version of being grounded. Compiling a mental list of such thoughts, I realized I had the makings of a listicle. “Listicle,” of course, is a portmanteau combining the words “list” and “article.” Listicles proliferate on the Internet; you can’t glance at Facebook without coming across a couple. They are often used as click-bait, which is a ploy to entice a reader to view a linked piece of content. Sometimes click-bait is used for phishing and other deceptive practices, so it has a bad reputation that has spilled over onto listicles. Listicles have been around since long before the Internet, though. They’ve been a magazine staple since I was a teenager reading “Ten Ways to Know if Your Boyfriend is Cheating” in Seventeen . Many in journalism consider them junk content, but our editor is a good sport and okayed my idea. So here we go with what we might actually miss about the pandemic, in listicle form… Traffic, or rather the lack thereof. It was so easy to get around when there was nowhere to go. Traditionally, it’s hard to drive through the area around Richmond Road and I-30 and maintain your love for your fellow human beings. For months it was a breeze to navigate, but lately that’s all changed. It has returned to its regular drive-at-your-own-risk craziness. I liked it a lot better the other way. Avoidance of politics. When we weren’t getting together in groups, it was easy to escape getting drawn into a political discussion, provided you stayed off of social media. It was great for people like me who never intend to get into politics but step right off into them in spite of ourselves. The very first time we attended an event this spring I found myself regrettably involved in a political conversation. Later I felt irritated in a way that I never felt after spending the evening watching Dateline. I probably need to work on my kindergarten “plays well with others” skills.
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