Author: Mark Alexander

Remember a year ago when we first went into lockdown and I said I’d hoped this would be an opportunity for society at large to rethink how things were getting done?

I wrote this:

There’s no going back to the way things were even a few weeks ago. The system was broken, and while this transition is going to be painful, ultimately we will all be better for it.

Oh the naïveté. To think that human beings would actually change their behavior for the better because of one little pandemic. What the last year has shown me is that human stubbornness, greed and stupidity are alive and well and going nowhere.

Why this rant? Seven days from now will mark the one year anniversary of working from home and last week we were notified by the powers that be that we are starting a “phased” reopening on March 29th. Because reasons.

Foolishly I thought I’d be able to negotiate only one or two days a week in the office during this transition, but my boss (who has been extraordinarily accommodating through this crisis) sent me a snarky email this morning pointing out that we have to start transitioning back into the office sooner rather than later so my one colleague (who has already been going in a couple days a week) does not bear the burden of all the hands-on stuff that needs to be done.

I’m already scheduled to go in tomorrow to do some equipment imaging, but I replied that I would just rip the band-aid off and return to full time in the office starting Monday. Fuck it. I’ve had my initial vaccine with the second scheduled for the 27th, so at this point I just don’t care any more. And frankly at this point I’m back to wishing on an asteroid impact that just puts the human species out of its misery.