I was talking to a friend from Texas last night. I was struck by how different their experience of 2020 was. In NYC in 2020 there were daily visible reminders that things were not normal. Our lives changed dramatically and traumatically. In Texas, to hear them talk about it, nothing really changed that much at all. Here are a handful of shots documenting parts of my NYC 2020 experience.
Domino Park March 17, 2020
Numbers were surging in NYC. Rumors were flying, fear was high. City is not yet in lockdown but many are sent to WFH.
Coroner's Van Brooklyn April 5, 2020
City is in deep lockdown. Everything is closed except supermarkets. Ambulance sirens and flashing lights constantly in the background. People dying in their homes.
Long Island April 25, 2020
First time out of the city since lockdown. Lying down on the grass, blue sky above, sun radiating down—I felt like I was literally recharging.
Domino Park May 20, 2020
Social distancing circles painted six feet apart on the grass in Domino park. A welcomed innovation.
Burnt Out Police Smart Car, Soho May 31, 2020
Aftermath of the George Floyd protests the night before.
Brooklyn Bridge June 6, 2020
George Floyd protest march. From Prospect Park to Washington Square Park.
Lower Manhattan June 6, 2020
Rain briefly falls on marchers.
Coney Island August 22, 2020
Coney Island in total shutdown during what should have been the peak of the summer season.
McCarren Park November 7, 2020
A spontaneous gathering in McCarren Park on the day Fox News called the election for Joe Biden.
In Tennessee there's signs on business doors that say anyone entering with a mask will be assumed they're robbing the joint.
Recent Lynyrd Skynyrd concert:
That's nuts. I never understood why masks weren't more popular given so many fears around the use of facial recognition. Masks = freedom from government tracking.
The population density made it hard to ignore in NY. If you have thousands of people on your block, and a few precent of them get seriously ill, that's a lot of ambulances you're going to see and hear. In less densely populated areas the impact of what was happening wouldn't be as visible. I knew a few people who got sick in the first wave, and a few people one layer removed who died. If my only exposure to sick/dying was people I know, I don't know I would have taken it so seriously. It was seeing so many anonymous people around me being taken away in ambulances that drove it home.
I hear you. We've spent several weeks in Florida since returning abruptly 2020. About a month in California, Ca is a mess but doesn't sound as bad as where you are.
In Fla even Uber drivers insisted we don't wear masks.
Around here I'm the only one wearing one in the post office. I've been wanting that opportunity for a long time. I think masks are ridiculous and won't get into my personal opinion but I really love being able to ship/receive at the post office in surgical gloves and a facial disguise and the longer I'm the only one doing it, the shorter it will last.
People don't answer the door anymore when opportunity knocks. They're easily terrified, assume everyone's the boogeyman and dial 911 instead.
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