{"id":16162,"date":"2021-06-16T00:29:16","date_gmt":"2021-06-16T00:29:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/woodriverweekly.com\/?p=16162"},"modified":"2021-06-15T19:31:33","modified_gmt":"2021-06-15T19:31:33","slug":"things-that-should-still-be-things-post-pandemic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/woodriverweekly.com\/index.php\/2021\/06\/16\/things-that-should-still-be-things-post-pandemic\/","title":{"rendered":"Things That Should Still Be Things Post-Pandemic"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Eric Valentine<\/em><\/p>\n

What follows is an excerpt from the latest issue of Wood River Weekly\u2019s \u201cThe 101\u201d wherein all the wonderful things to do in this Valley are listed and described. We added a section to it this year that listed a number of things we did during the once-in-a-century pandemic that shouldn\u2019t have to be put on hold for the next 100 years.<\/p>\n

Get Involved in the Discussion<\/b><\/p>\n

There used to be an excuse to not speak up at city council meetings or school board sessions\u2014very few had the time to show up. But with pandemic protocol keeping people out of public meetings, those in charge had to upgrade\u2014and in some cases create\u2014a live, online way to view and comment on agenda items. It\u2019s a small step toward a more transparent and democratic process, so long as we the community use it.<\/p>\n

Visit the Capitol<\/b><\/p>\n

Not all the reasons for heading to Boise and making the power of the people known were the same, and that\u2019s OK, because it\u2019s democracy. And not all behavior there was civil, or legal. But most of it was, from George Floyd vigils to visits by Valley mayors trying to solve the affordable housing crisis. Peaceful assembly still makes a difference. It\u2019s also a good excuse to visit the Boise Basque block while there. Get some sheepherding history and croquettes all at the same time.<\/p>\n

Appreciate the Working Class<\/b><\/p>\n

Not everybody did their part, but enough about them. Instead, focus on all the folks at the beginning of the pandemic who stepped out to their front porches at 7 p.m.\u2014when healthcare workers change shifts\u2014to howl at the sky. It was a sign of respect a lot of folks needed. How many times did you hear yourself or someone close to you say, \u201cI could never be a teacher now that I\u2019m sort of a teacher,\u201d referring to the full-time, in-home learning that had to take place? Remember when you didn\u2019t think you depended on truckers and grocery store stockers? And then you couldn\u2019t find toilet paper.<\/p>\n

Going forward, keep these folks in mind when you\u2019re deciding who to support for leadership positions around the Valley. Your dollars and your votes have a wolf-like bite.<\/p>\n

Turn Japanese, At Least a Bit So<\/b><\/p>\n

In Tokyo, tens of thousands of commuters pack trains and office workers work elbow to elbow, daily. That\u2019s why there are some commonplace hygiene practices there nobody finds controversial. Yes, mask wearing. Not every day, but when you are symptomatic with any sort of cold. At restaurants, served along with your food, is at almost every restaurant a hot washcloth at best or a handi-wipe at least.<\/p>\n

In Japan, there\u2019s also a lot less high-fives, hugs and smooches in common situations. They bow instead. It feels so formal to us, but having lived there, this writer can say you get used to it fast. And it makes the high-fives, hugs and smooches that much more special.<\/p>\n

Celebrate Virtually<\/b><\/p>\n

Now that you can bring numerous friends and family over to your home to celebrate benchmark accomplishments, holidays, and other joys in life, don\u2019t forget about Aunt Bertha in Topeka. She should be part of the celebration, too. A simple Internet connection and working camera on your phone, tablet or computer is all it takes to keep that lady sending you her special fruitcake come Christmas time.<\/p>\n

Read Wood River Weekly<\/b><\/p>\n

We don\u2019t claim to be the paper of record for the Valley or Pulitzer-winning journalists headed toward \u201cGrey Lady\u201d status. We do claim to be a paper that gets this Valley, and that there\u2019s a north part, a middle part, and a south part to it all. And after all the dust settles, every one of us wants to remember why we love living here and what\u2019s involved in keeping it that way. We try to do stories that accomplish both.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Eric Valentine What follows is an excerpt from the latest issue of Wood River Weekly\u2019s \u201cThe 101\u201d wherein all the wonderful things to do in this Valley are listed and described. We added a section to it this year that listed a number of things we did during the once-in-a-century pandemic that shouldn\u2019t have […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","_pvb_checkbox_block_on_post":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-16162","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-commentary"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/woodriverweekly.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16162","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/woodriverweekly.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/woodriverweekly.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/woodriverweekly.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/woodriverweekly.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16162"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/woodriverweekly.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16162\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16164,"href":"https:\/\/woodriverweekly.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16162\/revisions\/16164"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/woodriverweekly.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16162"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/woodriverweekly.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16162"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/woodriverweekly.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16162"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}