And others things that disappeared from my 2020
By Sara Bloomberg
This year didn’t go as planned. In January we started hearing about a fast-spreading respiratory virus that would cause the disease known as COVID-19. Wuhan, China went on lockdown. Then Italy, Spain and France. By mid-March, the Bay Area and California followed, though not quite as austerely.
I cleared my desk, grabbing as many essentials as possible to work from home indefinitely, when I saw the news break that San Francisco was going under shelter-at-home orders. I’m fortunate to be able to continuously work from home during a pandemic that has killed more than 335,000 Americans (1.8 million globally) and put millions more out of work in less than 12 months.
Overnight my routines changed. No more daily commute. My 220-square-feet studio apartment morphed into a live-work space with no boundaries. And suddenly rituals and habits that I took for granted had to change.
With hindsight, here’s to all the little things that disappeared from my life in 2020.
JEANS
👖
The most utilitarian of pants, you were never quite as useful as purported to be, because when made for a woman, form supersedes function. Yet I have several pairs, in several colors, for any and all occasions. Leggings, jumpsuits and dresses have been my sartorial staples lately and you will likely remain stored away under the bed for another nine months.
EARRINGS
👂🏻
My pride and joy, I’ve been collecting you for nearly three decades. The silver and amber from Mexico. The glass beads from my childhood. The resin with reclaimed wood from a trip to Oregon. Dozens dangling and sitting on my dresser, wanting to be worn. I’ve neglected you. Forgetting to select a pair each morning between rolling out of bed and ambling five feet away to work and eat. Next year will be different, I promise.
PODCASTS
🎧
You accompanied me to and from work. From the moment I stepped out of the door till I arrived at the office, there was always something to listen to. A transition between home and work, work and home. The Daily. Vergecast. Today Explained. Reply All. Planet Money. The Hive. With no commute, no physical transition from one space to another, those moments have become filled by the TV. Perhaps 2021 will bring some balance.
WALKING
👟
Perambulatory pleasures lost overnight. With no commute, my twice daily walks to the office vanished. But from that loss, I gained sleeping-in and slowing down for breakfast. No longer in a rush to get out the door by a certain time, I don’t have to worry about packing lunch. Or making an egg sandwich only to forget it on the counter. Eventually, I found time — made time — for walking. Until a shoulder injury turned everything into a difficult task. A simple stroll down the block would cause searing pains from a rotator cuff tear. Six weeks after surgery, I’m starting to get back on track.
COOKING
🔪
A toaster oven, a microwave and an Instapot. I’ve managed to cook as much as possible with limited space and tools over the past four years. Baked eggs. Muffins and loafs. Salad dressing from scratch. Rice. But this year, take-out and delivery overtook what little cooking I still did. Even that has now given way to frozen smoothie packs, prepared salads and ready-to-reheat meals. Having surgery will do that. An unexpected benefit: a lot less food waste.
ANTIPERSPIRANT
💦
Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall. I sweat through them all. Until I found concentrated wipes that keep the moisture away for seven days straight. But with nowhere to go, and no places to be, sweating during the day is totally fine. Now odor control — deodorant — is all I need.
GROOMING
🪒
Eyebrows left unplucked, except for a few obvious stray hairs near the bridge of my nose. Arm pits unshaven for months. I remember the first time I curiously took a razor to my leg. And then going through a period of not shaving or plucking, so as to not conform to patriarchal beauty standards. Only to realize later on that it’s OK to enjoy smooth legs and shaped brows. But with nowhere to go for months, being hairy is fine once again. And time and money previously spent on hair removal can be put towards other uses.
PUBLIC TRANSIT
🚃
Muni. BART. CalTrain. For more than a decade, they’ve shuttled me around San Francisco and the Bay Area. South to San Jose for a work conference. East to Oakland for a Sleater-Kinney concert. Criss-crossing the city for school, drinks with friends or a grocery run. Now my radius extends only as far as I can walk. For anything beyond that, a taxi or ZipCar will suffice. But I long for the day when I can take a Muni bus to a BART station to get to another train or a plane to go to all the places once again.