Wearing Masks in the Grocery Store

I went to Central Market this afternoon to get a few items we were needing - mostly meat.  For Julia's birthday I had made each of us our own face masks as part of the Quarantine Birthday Celebration.  Turns out they may be more helpful than originally thought.  As more information about the virus becomes known we're learning that it can be transmitted from just talking or breathing.  I brought my mask just in case and while talking to my mom on my way there I decided to wear it.  It just felt way overprotective and it felt so strange to wear one.  But I was glad I did.  There were several people in the store wearing some kind of covering - whether it was a face mask like what you'd see in the dr's offices, homemade ones like mine, and bandannas.

What cracked me up was how many people would steer clear of me because of the mask.  It was like they assumed that I had it because I had the mask.  And yet you have to wonder how many people who aren't wearing masks are actually contagious and unaware?!  And possibly more contagious.  But wearing a mask definitely brought about distance between me and them.  Several times I had people turn around after seeing me in an aisle (ha!!).  At one point I was watching through the coffee area and when I turned a corner there was a lady and a guy (husband? boyfriend? relative? who knows).  She looks surprised and despite there being room next to me to go by, she immediately told him to back up... keep going back... and then she said that they'd go this way and went opposite of me (ha!).  It was so funny.  Maybe I'm looking into it too much, but I pretty much had full reign of any aisle because no-one wanted to be near me.

So note to self:  if you want people to stay away, wear a mask!