There are pros and cons to wearing a mask - at least for me. I have developed a very BAD habit of saying things under my breath, because people haven’t been able to read my lips. It’s nothing for me to softly mouth things like, “Are you kidding”….”what an idiot” or “duh” and not worry about anyone knowing what an absolute jerk I am.
But, now without the mask, I have to return to more civilized behavior. When I am asked the most ridiculous question ever, I have to smile, and answer pleasantly. Yesterday I just nodded, at my local gas station when the person next to me blasted profanity laced music loud enough to be heard at least a block away. If I had been wearing my mask, I would have let that driver have a piece of my mind. Now he may not have heard it, but I would have said it - behind my mask. Instead, now unmasked, I gave a simple nod and a look of “what’s wrong with you”....”how rude”....and got back into my car.
Wearing a mask also has meant, not worrying about make up, especially lipstick. Heck, you couldn’t see anything other than our eyes....so why bother? That simple step saved me, and countless others time and money. Now I know some women who say the one thing they missed during our “masked” year was their lipstick, and wore it anyway...not me.
I also realized recently I didn’t have a cold all winter. Not one. I stock up my medicine cabinets every fall with various daytime and nighttime colds for the inevitable cold. I noticed the other day those packages are sitting unopened in the medicine cabinet. Untouched because for me, cold and flu season never came. And don’t go by me, the CDC reports a dramatic drop in cases of the flu as well. Granted there could be other factors as well. Social distancing likely played a role too.
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Maybe for me, this whole mask thing is a matter of a glass half full or half empty. To be clear, I didn’t like it. My glasses fogged up, it was hard to breathe, and I spent who knows HOW much time running back to the car to get a forgotten mask. I guess that’s the glass is half empty part.
But as the number of vaccinated people grows, capacity expands and mask rules are relaxed, there are some places I will probably still mask up. There is a certain anonymity that goes along with standing near the back of a room or crowd, wearing a mask, and giving a running commentary on the absurdity of others....all behind my mask.