What kind of hand cream are you using?

These days, it's only a matter of time before the conversation turns to hand cream. Small talk has never loomed so large. These days, conversations start with mask shortages, death rates, and crowded hospitals. That's how we ease into things. Only then, once we've chitchatted about funeral bans and skyrocketing unemployment rates, can we move on to the much meatier, substantive topic of hand lotion.

"Go with Weleda Skin Food if you prefer something a bit thicker."

"It's my wrists that are really bad. Worse than my knuckles!"

"I thought I liked Aveda but I think my skin has gotten immune to it."

"The other day I kneaded pizza dough after applying Trader Joe's rose-scented hand cream and later I was convinced the pizza tasted like it."

I never imagined that living through a devastating historic event would be so mundane. I assumed the world would stop! I thought we would gather in the streets, throwing old furniture into heaping bonfires, drinking moonshine and dancing under the apocalyptic skies. But instead, we keep going. Writing emails. Cooking pasta. Stepping in a wet spot on the kitchen floor and walking around with a damp sock all goddamn afternoon. Same old, same old.

One difference, however, is that we're not taking mundanity for granted. With every conversation about hand lotion, we're clinging to the mundanity for dear life. We know all that stands between us and what we're seeing in leaked video footage from ICUs is one ill-fated touch of a handrail. It's not surprising that we'd rather debate the merits of Zoom's Gallery View versus Speaker View for 15 minutes.

Annnnnnyway.

I really do sincerely think that it's insensitive to talk about silver linings when it comes to the coronavirus. But I know we're all thinking it, so I'll just come out and say it:

Covid got me blogging again!

The silverest of all linings. It only took a bloody global pandemic, but I'm back. Maybe I'll write more in a few days. We'll see. Probably not.

Stay safe (<---- hate this),

Marge