I guess I'm a little bit "late to the party" on this. I had seen various articles about when the pandemic hit and the lockdowns, people who were struggling with isolation and introverted would feel more in place. The main point of the articles were that people who do not have those issues can now know what it's like for those who are struggling.

For me, being introverted and isolated, it was kind of nice at first when the lockdown happened. There was less noise and commotion around me. But I had never noticed anyone else complaining about how alone they felt. I know a woman, at my apartment, who is very outgoing. I had spoken to her a few times during that period. She said that she had to work at home and liked it that way. It seemed like she was doing well socially still when the lockdown was going on. So I never felt like anyone else was going through the same struggles that I'm going through.

And now the lockdown has eased, even though there's a new lockdown order. I've noticed that on the avenue where I ride my bike near my place, the bars have opened back up and people have been crowding in. They don't wear masks and sit close together. It's like the whole thing never happened. It was depressing when those places were closed, but I liked having it quiet and no traffic. Now it's back to the way it was and it's a letdown.

There's an acronym FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out). To me, the F should really stand for Feelings instead of Fear, I think. That's more accurate.