It's pretty wild to think that it's been almost two whole years since COVID-19 became a global pandemic and disrupted just about every aspect of our lives.
It's safe to say that life feels totally different now. So when I stumbled upon a Reddit thread comparing life before COVID versus now, I was intrigued by the conversation going on in the comments. Redditor u/Outrageous-Collar-09 asked the question, "What normal thing pre-COVID feels weird now?" — and the responses ranged. Here are some of them.
1. "Wearing any makeup at this point, TBH."
2. "Still going to work when you’re sick — because you’re not 'too sick' to work."
3. "Sharing drinks with people. I used to never think twice about drinking after someone."
4. "Blowing candles out on a cake — then serving that cake to other people."
5. "Flying on an airplane. Flew for the first time this week since 2018. Shit was weird, man."
6. "Knowing what the lower half of faces look like. I imagine my own version and then I see them without a mask and I get a sort of dissonance."
7. "Coughing and sneezing in public."
8. "Reading lips. I’m autistic with an auditory processing disorder. I sometimes hear syllables instead of actual words, so I lip read to make sure I’m hearing someone correctly. Masks have created so many awkward, embarrassing, confusing interactions for me because I can’t lip read anymore!"
9. "Anywhere with a crowd."
10. "Going anywhere you want without thinking about it."
—u/Aruaz821
11. "Dating during COVID sucks. There are no social gatherings to meet new people."
12. "I really miss greeting strangers with a quick smile in public places or seeing that they're smiling at me."
13. "Vaccines not being political."
14. "In-person work. Haven't been on site since March 2020 other than picking up an ergonomic chair once we knew we weren't coming back for a long time."
15. "Going to an empty drive-thru and quickly getting fast food."
—u/ulethpsn
16. "Going to browse around a store for no reason. I won’t go to stores anymore unless there’s something in particular I need."
17. "Going to a hospital without a mask. Super common before but unthinkable now."
—u/Guspsz
18. "Salad bars were always kinda sketch — but I miss them."
19. "Uber pools."
20. "In the Southern US, a handshake used to be a given. Now everyone has to do this weird half attempt or ask if it's okay to shake hands. Most people have just stopped. It's so bizarre."
