After a two month hiatus, I’m writing about an incident related to the topic of the year: COVID-19.

I was grocery shopping last weekend, and it was like a game of Pac Man without masks. Don’t get me wrong, I love video games and Pac Man. However, when you die in the classic arcade game after being chased down by a ghost, a new game costs a few quarters. Unfortunately, life outside of an arcade game isn’t as cheap or forgiving.

Only about 60% of people were wearing a mask in the store, and if someone was coming towards me down a narrow aisle without a mask, I turned around and fled. 

Another observation I made (and maybe this is an isolated incident): a majority of the people who refused to wear a mask in the store were men, specifially white men. I’m not anti-men, and this isn’t a radical feminist comment. But guys who refuse to wear a mask, your privilege is showing. Why do you think you’re immune? Why do you not want to protect those around you? 

A mask is a mark of humanity. It shows you care about someone other than yourself. If everyone would wear a mask and social distance, COVID-19 cases could be reduced exponentially. 

I’m disheartened and incredibly frustrated every time I leave the house these days. There’s another pandemic threatening our country that has yet to be addressed:

Selfishness.