In early March 2020, I came into work at the Washington Athletic Club, and as soon as I came in I heard the rumblings about the great concern over COVID-19.
The valet, Tony, came right up to me as I was wiping down my desk with the new sani-wipes that we were supposed to use after every shift change. Tony asked about the wipes and what the new rules were—he wasn’t really concerned; he just wanted not to get caught breaking the new rules.
Tony was still reeling over the death of Kobe Bryant who was his favorite basketball player. I had actually seen him shed a tear at work; It was sort of sweet but more uncomfortable than anything else.
We talked for about half an hour about what would happen in the coming days before a member came up to us asking for their car to be brought up from the garage. As Tony left I could see Jordan come around her desk and waddle like a strange and big and pretty penguin. She was cute but had a boyfriend—a know it all boyfriend to make it worse.
Her big blue eyes stared at me and her smile curled to one side before she said that she knew we were fucked! I wasn’t concerned about COVID— as far as I was concerned we had been through plenty of flus before: Bird flu, Swine flu, the whole damn farm of animal flu’s had come and gone so why would this be any different. But Jordan spoke with confidence and she was certain that her perfect boyfriend was right when he had told her that we were going to be shut down. The news made me feel giddy as I thought about a nice long vacation—I almost thanked the flu.
Jordan explained that we might be shut down for about two weeks but I was hoping for more. Still it was just a rumor and our boss lady had not said a word about shutting down. She was only concerned with wiping things down with saniwipes—damn the paint job and wipe it all down!
Jordan loved to be the bearer of bad news. I watched her waddle away with a smile on her face back to her desk.
At 6 pm , our busiest time, I saw no members arriving, so I took my lunch break in the fancy lunch room where tables were spread out with cookies and pies and crackers with many strange and stinky cheeses.
I grabbed a scone from one of the tables and sat by myself for the whole room was empty. The room was eerily quiet except a big flat screen which was playing the story of an old-folks-home where many residents had contracted the virus. The home was in Seattle.
The news anchor reported the seriousness of the situation as many of the residents were dying and had died. A few co-workers who I didn’t know arrived unnoticed, and soon we all stood there watching the horror. For a long time the room remained quiet except for the television. We did not speak to each other.
At the closing of my shift the lobby was empty and I found my way over to Jordans desk where I flirted with the blonde penguin. Tony soon came up to us as did one of the gift shop girls who had already closed her shop. The four of us were becoming good friends and in the short time I had worked there I was becoming happy to work there.
We talked a bit more about COVID before Jordan switched the conversation over to me and asked how I was doing with the recent break up I had had. I told her I was getting over it—it had been two weeks or so. Jordan explained that the best way to get over a break up is to meet someone new, and I’d be lying if I wasn’t also thinking the same thing. Jordan then blurted out that we might not have much time left to go out and that we should all go out one last time, tonight—her boyfriend had told her that everything would be shut down soon. We all looked at each other and as we began discussing the plans exhaustion or fear dawned over us.
Tomorrow for sure we all said and that was the plan. We did our last duties and then the four of us walked out into the chilly night. We walked together for a minute and then we each went our separate ways.
I watched the pretty penguin wave goodbye and I told her I would catch her later—in more ways than one.
The next morning I was awoken by the buzzing of my cell phone. I answered groggily and the voice behind the phone said not to come in to work.
when I asked when we would return, the voice said soon. The voice said it would let me know and that it shouldn’t be more than two weeks.
And just like that I was out of a job and the bars, and the restaurants, and the whole world stopped, and I never saw my friends again and I never caught the blonde penguin. The isolation began. And the new normal took hold.
jaimesgalindo.com 