Pet Peeves About COVID-19

2020 has been a difficult year for everyone. The one headline that has been dominating news stations and the airwaves this year is the coronavirus pandemic. You can’t go one day or one minute without hearing about it. Honestly, there’s way too much coverage about COVID-19. I understand that it’s an important story and to keep people informed about it. However, it’s not necessary to report about it 24/7 and trying to scare us. That’s why many people have been panic buying and the media keeps instilling fear towards us. It can also make some feel anxious, especially to those who have mental illnesses. Are there even any positive stories in the news to report these days? Here are my least favorite terms and phrases that have been repeatedly said during the pandemic. Don’t get me wrong. This virus is real and has claimed the lives of thousands of people in the U.S. I’m in no way downplaying the severity of it. These are the terms that I dislike the most and not in any specific order.

“Social distancing”

This term is part of the safety recommendations by the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). I dislike that word with a passion, because it makes it sound like people shouldn’t communicate with others. Whenever I hear health experts say we must “practice” social distancing, it makes my skin crawl. Practice? Practice what? For a football game? Communication is important and needed for everyone. If someone is and feeling ill, they should stay home. The pandemic has already taken a toll on those suffering from mental illness. Being isolated can have its negative effects, such as depression, anxiety, and thoughts of suicide. In my opinion, social distancing is the new F-word. My point is that no one should ever be apart from each other.

“We’re all in this together”

You’ve seen and heard celebrities, politicians, and others say this slogan a lot. In reality, we are NOT in this together. Also, who is “we?” How are “we” in this together when millions of people have lost their jobs? How are “we” in this together when families and individuals are counting to struggle to keep a roof over their heads, dealing with food insecurity, and unable to receive any kind of assistance? How are “we” in this together when we are told to stay home ? How are “we” supposed to bring in any income to support ourselves and our families? Maybe all of these governors and mayors can answer those questions for us. They, along with members of Congress and the President, are getting paid, but millions of us are still struggling and waiting for more relief to come our way. Meaningless slogans and sayings are not doing us any good, so please save them and stop trying to coddle us. We want our lives back again so we can see our friends and family. We’re exhausted with taking safety precautions and increasingly losing patience.

“Flatten the curve/Slow the Spread”

These are two terms on this list that aren’t my favorites. We’ve been hearing them for months and people are feeling restless and tired of being cooped up at home. While I understand that everyone should be safe, we can’t be confined to our homes forever. I compare these so-called “stay at home orders” and “shelter in place orders” to house arrest. That’s what it’s been like for months. We have to go out eventually. These health experts and governors can’t keep us hostage. I’m so sick of the word “ban”, because we have a right to go out and enjoy ourselves. What’s next, we get arrested and fined for wanting to have fun? They’re not our parents and we’re not children. We’re grown adults and we can make our own decisions. It’s not their place to tell us who we can or can’t visit, or else we’ll be arrested or fined. Last I checked, executive orders or the “orders” I mentioned, are not law. To me, they are draconian and an overreach. The government should stop telling us what to do and let us live our lives. I watched one of the late George Carlin’s comedy specials months ago and it was about germs. What he said was true: the government is just trying to mess with our heads and control our every move by obeying their rules. Everything is not risky, as most people are claiming. I’ll say it again: we’re adults (well, a majority of us are). Let us do whatever we please and mind your own business. Stop trying to ruin our get togethers, our plans, and holidays. You can’t always use the pandemic as an crutch to put a stop in our plans and regular routines.

“Essential”

Before I go any further, I highly appreciate and admire health care workers, bus drivers, grocery store workers, and mail carriers for going above and beyond to serve us. You deserve a lot of credit for all the hard work you do. Now that I’ve gotten that out of the way, the people that I just mentioned are considered “essential”, according to the government. Not to take away anything from those people, but I feel that if you receive a paycheck from your employer, then you are considered as an essential worker. All jobs matter and are important, including mine. It frustrates me when other people’s line of work are forgotten and swept under the rug. I don’t and will never agree with governors and mayors ordering the shutdown of places that aren’t deemed “essential”, such as bars, barber shops, gyms, and nail salons. Owners of big and small businesses need income to keep their places open and operating. Having them shut down for periods at a time will make the economy even worse. Businesses can’t be closed forever. Everyone’s job are essential and people need to return back to work. Their lives and livelihoods depend on it.

Bonus: Virtual events

This is not part of the list, but I feel like I need to vent about this topic. Since the beginning of the pandemic, I’ve been vocal about virtual events on social media. Here’s my opinion about them: I don’t want to spend the next few months to a year staring at a screen watching an event. They’re not the same as going to one in person. I crave in-person interactions with people at events, such as conventions. Virtual events, in my personal opinion, cheapens the whole experience and not as exciting. I’m like, stop it with the virtual events already. I’ve had enough of them. The last time I attended an even was the beginning of March with friends, whom I haven’t seen since. Like I said earlier, face-to-face communications are important to us. I expect to attend more cons in 2021 and see my friends again.

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