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How is the coronavirus pandemic affecting your life right now? Tell us about your experiences, feelings, and thoughts.
Over this past weekend, I went to a beautiful spot on the coast of northern MA - Plum Island, pictured above. It is a wildlife sanctuary that includes beaches and coastal habitats. Although I grew up in MA, this is not a place I have visited often. My friend and I went on Sunday - a beautiful, hot and sunny day. We wore masks in her car and had the windows open. We hiked around wearing masks. Much of Plum Island is closed off to the public, but sections of the beach are open. We had lunch in one of these sections, sitting 6 feet apart, unmasked. When we left, we forgot to put our masks on, and didn't remember until we saw masked people coming toward us. It was so nice to take a break from COVID, even briefly!
August 31, 2020
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How is the coronavirus pandemic affecting your life right now? Tell us about your experiences, feelings, and thoughts.
A few days ago, on the first day of Thanksgiving break, I decided to drive to the airport to watch the planes land and take off. The drive was longer than expected, and once I got to the free parking lot, I couldn't really see much of the airport or tarmac through the grated fence. However, when I was on the highway near the airport, I saw a glimmer in the sky from a plane that had just departed, and that got me really hopeful and excited. I think a plane took off as I was turning in to the parking lot, but I couldn't stop to take a look because I had to make a crazy hairpin turn. I saw 2 planes take off and 2 planes land in total. The cell phone lot is the perfect place to see incoming planes, and the first plane I saw come in was a beautiful blue Southwest Airlines plane. I saw it at a perfect, beautiful profile side angle. I couldn't see the departing planes that well, but I got very excited when their engines revved and when I saw them take off into the sky. It was dusk by the time I left, and the last plane I saw come in looked like a bright, distant star or streetlight as it flew in from a distance. Surprisingly, it was an Amazon prime cargo plane. I didn't expect to see those types of planes come in to Bradley, but with it being the only major airport in the state, I guess it makes sense in hindsight. I didn't feel the exact sense of excitement that I was hoping for when going to the airport, as I thought I would feel like I was travelling myself and have the same excitement and energy as if I was going somewhere. However, I still felt good for going to the airport, and I was really happy and excited whenever the planes came and went. I did have some minor car trouble when leaving though, and it made me realize just how difficult it is to find a place to pull into to check your car out without being on the side of a major road. Going to the airport made me want to travel for real and get 100% of the experience and excitement instead of just looking from afar.
November 26, 2020