2020 did not start off as I expected and this first post in many moons is not going to be about how my website is going to be used and how the future is going to be great.

Firstly, a pandemic happened which threw a wrench into everything on a global scale.

Secondly, I started a new job as a recruiter that I truly enjoy which ate a bunch of time, however, a global pandemic happened and threw a wrench into that as well. I haven’t seen my amazing colleagues in person for months now and working from home is getting a bit stale. Plus the crisis is taking its toll.

Thirdly, my amazing plan to go back to the gym and fixing my back was going back on track, but, sadly, a global pandemic happened and threw a wrench blah blah blah, you get it.

I could go on about wanting to revitalize my website and start working on new projects, but everything just kinda fell apart for everyone and we’re only now seeing a potential endpoint (at least in Ireland) which unfortunately does not seem to be anywhere close what “normal” was. Maybe that will come about in September when the government’s plan has come to fruition.

Whatever happens, we should try to stay sane and happy. I took up miniature painting again, see the Instagram feed on the right, and finished off a bunch of stuff that was just lying around. I progressed on something that I had initially abandoned due to lack of time and mental energy, which spurred this post as well. Maybe now is the right time to decide what we want to put energy into, whom to keep closer contact with and find out how we want to live after the crisis. The crisis, however bad it is, might be the kick in the tush for some people to decide how they want to live their lives.

I had an interesting conversation with my partner yesterday about it (sort of). We were enjoying a lovely constitutional in the inner city with nay anyone about, the middle of Dublin seeming almost empty when it occurred to me that life cannot go back to normal. My partner seems to think that we will eventually go back to “normal”. The screens in shops will go down, social distancing will go away, shops will reopen and it will be business as usual.

I don’t. For one, unless a vaccine or super effective treatment comes about very very soon, that won’t happen. Normal wont be normal and steps will be taken to make people be careful. On a more personal level, I don’t want normal to come back. My life feels better, I connect more (if remotely) with people I care about and I feel more focused on figuring out what I want in life. This unfortunate reprieve from the “normal” has made me focus on how abnormal my life felt previously.

So I don’t want “normal” to come back. I want to shape my new “normal” to be better, to be better balanced mentally, focus better at work and play better at home. Maybe that is the takeaway from the pandemic. That finding value and balance are much harder when everything is “normal” outside. Let’s use this painful moment to make things better. Even if just a little bit.

The other takeaway is that people don’t wash their hands enough, don’t know the difference between a bacteria and a virus, and don’t understand what exponential growth means.

Baby steps, world. Baby. Steps.