Maskerade.

Hello, everyone, and welcome to my post.  Apparently Toastmasters recommends that you start with a joke, so here goes.

These two Russians, Yuri and Lev, are sitting in a bar during the height of the Soviet Union.

Yuri leans over and softly says to Lev, “My friend, I’ve known you my entire life, we have been friends since birth.  Tell me something.  What do you really think about Communism?”

Lev quickly looks around in horror and hoarsely whispers, “No, not here!  Quiet now, come with me!”

They quickly finish their vodkas and leave the bar, silently skulking through icy, deserted Moscow alleys until they reach a small hut in a deserted lot on the very edge of the city. 

Lev produces a set of keys, unlocks six locks on the door, one after another, and then opens the door and they go inside, where there is only a rickety table and two chairs.

Lev carefully relocks the six locks, then lights a candle and sets it in the middle of the table, where its flickering light illuminates the shack’s frigid wooden walls. 

He looks around carefully, leans forward, and whispers, “I kind of like it.”

The moral of the story?  I'm really enjoying the lockdown.

I don't think that makes me unusual, but it certainly drives home the degree to which I really am an introvert.  Like a lot of geeks, nerds, otaku and other societal outcasts, a lot of my happiest time has been spent on my own, and as such I'm not suffering from cabin fever in the least.

In a lot of ways, this is very much like my childhood.  I'm the youngest of five, and at an early age became very familiar with making my own fun when older siblings weren't interested in more childish games.  Because we were in an extremely rural environment, where the blackflies were a constant menace in the summer, and winters could get as cold as -40,  I spent a lot of time inside - that's where my love of books started, reading in my bedroom while avoiding the outside world.

Having computer games, the internet, and cable TV would have been a great addition, but they're really not necessary, if you took them away right now I would start happily working my way through my bookshelves and be content for years.

Karli, bless her, has been a perfect stay-at-home partner, and just today she thanked me for being a good person to be locked up with, so we're doing well there.  She's not quite as acclimated to sheltering in place as I am, she misses her family, but she's done Zoom parties with them and phones people regularly, so she's doing all right, although she certainly looks forward to seeing them in person again. People in my family often go for decades without seeing each other, so no issues there for me.

One of my co-workers expressed their disbelief when I mentioned being an introvert, and commented that as far as they were concerned, I was anything but.  In reality, like people who suffer from depression, a lot of introverts create a public face that lets them function in the outside world - I'm actually pleased by how good my version of that person has become over time.  It's such a good mask that I'm almost surprised at what a relief it is not to have to wear it right now - ironically, just when more and more people are starting to wear masks in public.

In the end, we'll all go back to work.  Apparently British Columbia is doing an acceptable job of flattening the curve, and as such the next month will probably see relaxed restrictions and reopened retail, along with a return to the regular nine to five day at the office - well, 7:30 to 4:00 in my case, but you know what I mean.  I haven't decided if I'm going to wear a mask for that, under the circumstances it almost seems redundant.

- Sid