What the 2020?!?!?

TW: this blog post mentions pandemic-related issues and mentions of police brutality

Okay, maybe 2020 is not what we all thought it was going to be. If you asked me back in the wee hours of January 1st what this year was going to be like, I would have said, "It's going to be amazing! It's a new year, a new decade, and we're going to see some much needed change in the world." Well, we got that change...in the form of a pandemic called COVID-19. It was discovered in 2019, but at that point, it was not even really as big of a deal as it eventually got. 

I am not going into too much detail on COVID, the outbreak, the shutdowns, and everything else because we all have had it. There is so much information out there being ignored (i.e. safety measures) and a lot more misinformation being spread as quickly as the virus. Some people think it's all hoax (187 other countries beg to differ), some people think it's just a flu (13 million people worldwide beg to differ), and now we have grown adults making such a big deal over wearing a little face mask for just a short period of their day (surgeons, doctors, nurses, and other professionals who have had to wear masks for their jobs for the last several decades all beg to differ). Something about "personal freedoms" or whatever. 

What we do know is that the numbers are increasing at alarming rates. We were doing so well, and then BOOM! Memorial Day happened. BOOM! Fourth of July happened. Businesses started opening up way too early and more people are getting sick. On top of that, Black Lives Matter skyrocketed as a movement! All 50 states and 18 other countries have been having massive protests following the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and countless other people of color who have been killed by police (Breonna Taylor's murderers have still not been arrested yet).

If anybody needs any documentary recommendations, I highly recommend 13th on Netflix. It is about how mass incarceration came to be and how people of color are disproportionately represented in the prison population. It dives into various eras of American history (i.e. Slavery, post-Civil War, Jim Crow, today) and presents so much new information that is very eye-opening. If you haven't seen it yet, then it's a must-see. It was directed by Selma director Ava DuVernay. There is even an interview she did with Oprah that's a good way of still retaining the information while also calming down a bit after the ending (there is some very graphic footage shown of police brutality with permission of the families). It was a much needed punch in the gut, to say the least.

Moving on to everyday life...there is none. I have not left my apartment yet. I was hoping to have moved to Cincinnati, where I'd be working with any of the theatre companies in some form. Unfortunately, I have decided to stay safe and keep living in Berea for the time being. If the opportunity presents itself to where I can work remotely full-time and it is safe enough to relocate, I will do so. Right now is not the best time, as I had hoped. Right now, we would have been gearing up for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, which have been postponed. The Olympic Trials in St. Louis have been postponed to next year. I still have tickets for that with hopes that everything will be safe by next summer. Who knows?

As for theatre, the dinner show I was in ended up being a success. I had a lot of fun acting with Adventure Theatre. We performed in various restaurants all over central Kentucky. I finally got to make my Lexington acting debut and we even ended our run in Berea, of all places. For once, I got to the local cast member, and what a performance that was. We had the best audience that night (my parents were there) and it was just an evening full of laughter. I'd love to work with them again...when the 'rona is gone. 

Everything will happen when the 'rona is gone or at least at the point where it's safe to be out and about. I have been able to see my parents from time to time, but I am still trying to stay distant since I still have a restaurant job. Being in constant contact with the public can be stressful, but nowhere near the stress levels of doctors, nurses, and other medical staff. They're doing the brunt work of this pandemic and I'm very grateful for them. With that in mind, I need to get tested again soon. Better be safe than sorry.