The way we live now

[starlady]

As the year draws to a close (and not a moment too soon) I've been thinking a bit about all the ways things have changed since the pandemic. Many of these changes are terrible, and I hope most of them don't stick around, but there's definitely changes I've made in my life that are here to stay. I'm interested to hear what other people think will become permanent too.

Things I started doing that I didn't anticipate

• Getting toilet paper and tissues on subscription – I signed up for Who Gives a Crap because I was over the toilet paper hunt and because I appreciated that their products are made from bamboo, not from actual trees. Bonus: not having to haul huge quantities of paper goods around, something I hadn't realized was a drag until it freed me to make shorter trips to the closer Target on my bike. (Also: if you want a referral code for a subscription, let me know.)
• Grocery shopping by bike – It's more feasible in summer than in winter, but hoo boy, it's some good exercise to haul self and twenty pounds of groceries up the hills.
• Ordering coffee in ten pound quantities – For years now I've found buying coffee in the grocery store deeply tedious, and in the pandemic I just said fuck it and started ordering ten pounds at a time from the roastery in Utah that makes Condor Coffee for Tracy Aviary. It's women owned, fairly traded, and certified bird friendly. And I don't have to constantly buy expensive coffee that I maybe don't even like very much in the grocery store.
• Dried beans – They are better than canned and they're more efficient to transport. Win-win.

Things I haven't done since March

• Worn makeup – I enjoy it, to be clear, but it seems silly to bother between Zoom and the masks. I have worn lipstick a few times, and I think I did put on makeup for a webinar I did. Maybe.
• Starbucks – I wasn't a huge consumer since I started working from home in 2017, but I was a pretty reliable customer on my travels. I had one pumpkin spice latte in August, and that was it.
• Haircut – I was just starting to consider getting one in October when the cases started to turn and it quickly became something that seemed like a foolish potential risk. In the meantime, my hair is as long as it's ever been, which is about shoulder-length because it's curly and it won't grow any longer. It appeared longer when I was in high school and I was torturing it to be straight; it only got to wavy, because it's curly.

Things I'll never do again

• Blow-drying my hair – I'm kind of surprised I thought that frying my hair with an electric appliance was a good idea for as long as I did, but no more.

Comments

[thistleingrey]

Having a regular day for groceries is something I hadn't bothered with for years, but since the spring it's been helpful to me for gauging quantity to buy as well as potential spoilage more finely, alongside getting outside my home.

(Neither coffee nor makeup for me except as rare exceptions, heh, and I haven't blow-dried my hair since high school. Now I'm trying to think what else would pertain.)

[starlady]

Yeah, I started going on the same day once a week as well. Like you say it helps to have a regular sense of when stuff will run out.

[kuwdora]

What is the name of Utah roastery? I have been thinking about how I should try buying coffee in larger quantities but I haven't had the brain RAM to research and find a place that might have something I'd like.

[starlady]

The place in Utah is Caffe Ibis--the particular blend of coffee I get (I like dark roast) is the Condor Coffee. I also have ordered occasionally from Raven's Brew, whose Dead Man's Reach coffee is really really good (again, I like dark roast). I mostly stick with the Condor Coffee because it is certified bird friendly, because I am a bird nut.

[oracne]

That coffee roastery sounds great. I have been doing instant espresso [!] because Cafe Bustelo is actually good, imo.

[queenbookwench]

I really hope that grocery chains continue to offer pick-up after the pandemic, because I love it.

I don't have a car so I just roll up with my cart and the Giant staffer sets my bags on the ground.

[cofax7]

I've been getting more sleep: I can sleep from 10:30 to 6:30 or even 7, and still walk the dog and make a pot of tea before I start work. And (don't tell anyone) sometimes I go into my bedroom and take a 12-minute power-nap at 3 PM...

[starlady]

Wildly jealous and impressed that you've been sleeping more and not less.

[cofax7]

well, I'm menopausal, so I wake up at 2, or 3, or 4 regardless. But having my office 20 feet from my bed means I can at least stay in bed longer--at least until the sun comes up.

[jhameia]

Have you noticed a difference in your hair since giving up blow-drying? I used to blow-dry when it was shorter to get a fluffier look.

[starlady]

I think it is slightly softer but it's hard to tell. For a long time I was drying it for the volumizing effect too, but I started wearing a sleep cap a few years ago as a curly hair technique and it has the effect of maintaining the volume for much longer than otherwise. I wash my hair every three days and by the end of the third day it's still flatter but much less than when I didn't wear the cap. I have also started using a hair treatment from Lush that definitely helps with volumizing.