Coronavirus Diaries Day 9 - An Anxious Trip to Costco
I've been to Costco hundreds of times but nothing prepared me for my trip to Costco today. The crushing reality of the pandemic has slowly started to set in.
1) When I drove by the front, there was no line. By the time I parked and ran to the front, there were 4 people in line. About two minutes later, the line was nearly around the building (timing is everything).
2) Everyone in line was at least 6 feet apart, marked by posts.
3) There were employees on walkie talkies monitoring the number of people entering and exiting and keeping the numbers constant.
4) When I finally entered, I had a freshly cleaned cart issued to me.
5) Walking around the inside, it was just a different vibe. It just felt tense. There were no greetings, no socializing, people trying to maintain the proper distance, and just had tunnel vision to the things they needed. Also, it was quiet... Like only 100 or so people in the store at one time quiet... But I appreciate all the efforts.
6) There was no toilet paper...
Which brings me to a side note. Maybe I've been an engineer and an analyst too long... But I know how much toilet paper my family uses on a weekly / monthly basis... The adjustment factor being now that I'm teleworking at home, the consumption level goes up but not by several magnitudes... So, I'm guessing this is more of a psychological issue than one of observations of actual usage...
7) There was no line at the registers. My items took less than one minute to ring up and throw back into my cart.
8) All of the seating areas for the food had been removed (as much as I wanted a slice of pizza, I just wanted out of there!)
9) I found myself wiping down every single item before placing it in my car (too much?)
It's nowhere near the invasion of Baghdad, but just had a tension about it that if I did anything wrong then my life would change for the worst, either directly or indirectly.
I hope I'm overthinking, but at least I'm taking it seriously.
1) When I drove by the front, there was no line. By the time I parked and ran to the front, there were 4 people in line. About two minutes later, the line was nearly around the building (timing is everything).
2) Everyone in line was at least 6 feet apart, marked by posts.
3) There were employees on walkie talkies monitoring the number of people entering and exiting and keeping the numbers constant.
4) When I finally entered, I had a freshly cleaned cart issued to me.
5) Walking around the inside, it was just a different vibe. It just felt tense. There were no greetings, no socializing, people trying to maintain the proper distance, and just had tunnel vision to the things they needed. Also, it was quiet... Like only 100 or so people in the store at one time quiet... But I appreciate all the efforts.
6) There was no toilet paper...
Which brings me to a side note. Maybe I've been an engineer and an analyst too long... But I know how much toilet paper my family uses on a weekly / monthly basis... The adjustment factor being now that I'm teleworking at home, the consumption level goes up but not by several magnitudes... So, I'm guessing this is more of a psychological issue than one of observations of actual usage...
7) There was no line at the registers. My items took less than one minute to ring up and throw back into my cart.
8) All of the seating areas for the food had been removed (as much as I wanted a slice of pizza, I just wanted out of there!)
9) I found myself wiping down every single item before placing it in my car (too much?)
It's nowhere near the invasion of Baghdad, but just had a tension about it that if I did anything wrong then my life would change for the worst, either directly or indirectly.
I hope I'm overthinking, but at least I'm taking it seriously.
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