My Complicated Relationship with My Mask

When do I wear my mask? I know I definitely need to wear it in the grocery store, and I wore it in Lowe’s when we had to make a pitstop on the way back from our camping trip the other day, but I haven’t been wearing it when I go for walks or for a run. It has not escaped my attention, however, that more and more people are wearing them outside when they’re easily 10 feet away anyone else. On my run along the Potomac this morning, about a quarter of bicyclists who passed by were wearing masks. I have yet to see runners wearing them, probably because it would get hot and uncomfortable pretty quickly. If I do put on the mask while running, am I saying to the world, “Don’t worry, I won’t cough or sneeze in your air,” or am I saying, “I’m protecting myself from you coughing and sneezing in my air”? I guess it’s both.

Yesterday, the kids and I took a walk down to Pentagon City to drop a package at UPS and get beverages from Commonwealth Joe. We had masks and gloves at the ready. Edwin put on his mask and gloves right as we hit the sidewalk, but then changed his mind and didn’t put them on again until we reached a more heavily populated area. I put on my mask and gloves to enter the UPS store, but nobody else had a mask on. I kept it on, but I couldn’t help but feel a little bit like an alarmist. I pulled the mask down off my face when I got outside, and we continued the three more blocks to the coffeeshop. The kids waited on the corner, masked and gloved, while I entered the coffeeshop suited up. There were three employees, and I was the only customer. Guess who was the only one wearing a mask? Again, I felt weird (almost rude, which I know is ridiculous), so I slid it down. Just then, four other customers entered the shop. The mask went back up. This is a very complicated relationship.