Life is returning to normal. It’s awkward and weird, but once you get over that it feels pretty good.
In September Astrid will be starting Kindergarten, and (unless something crazy happens) it will be a normal school year. I’m grateful she’ll avoid pandemic schooling. We picked up her “Welcome to Kindergarten” package this week and met the teachers. The librarian’s name is also Astrid, and they were both very keen to meet each other (it’s a very rare name in Vancouver). Our Astrid loves books too, so I’m pretty sure they’re going to be best friends.
On Friday, some of the engineers at work spent the afternoon relaxing in Queen Elizabeth Park. Our company has grown a lot in the past year. The majority of my co-workers I’ve never met in person. The first 10-15 minutes was awkward (extra awkward, not just nerds at a party awkward) but people soon became comfortable. I had a blast throwing a frisbee around, playing spike ball, and getting to know people I’ve only ever seen on a computer screen. I’m looking forward to spending more time with these fine folks this summer, going out for lunch, and talking about non-work things. Maybe we can even start an ultimate frisbee team.
Birthday parties are back! Astrid’s been to a princess party, a pirate party, and next weekend we’ll have a fairy party. And when the rain comes back, we’ll be ready with indoor play dates.
Things are looking up. I’m conscious of the fact that the pandemic isn’t over yet, but I’m optimistic the worst is behind us. Vaccines are doing their job and cases in most of Canada are dropping rapidly. We’re now seeing that 90-99% of new cases are in people who are unvaccinated (in BC, AB, SK, MN, IN, AZ). So thank you to everyone who has rolled up their sleeves. Not only are you giving yourself personal protection, you’ve allowed us to return to normal.
The next few months are still going to have moments of awkwardness, so be patient with your family, friends, colleagues, and neighbours. We need to figure out how to interact with each other again.
Canadian Veggie 