6 Feet Under: Struggle Distancing in the City

Article

May 6

Strolling through Philly right now is like a big game of chicken. Social distancing guidelines say 6 feet minimum from one another - good luck doing that in a major metropolitan area. For all our charming alleys and walkable neighborhoods, Philadelphia is feeling uncharacteristically claustrophobic.

The Old City CVS tells me with a bunch of copied paper signs on the door that Face Masks Are Required by Law. Sure. I'm grateful that everyone inside is adhering. Even with the low foot traffic, its difficult to maintain six feet of distance for the whole trip through the aisles, and certainly not at the crowded self-service checkouts. The guy in front of me is an awkward half step behind his “LINE STARTS HERE” duct tape. I shift an awkward half step behind my own duct tape, 6 feet behind him. After I pay and grab my receipt (is this paper clean?) I have to sidle between the shoppers at the other registers, staring at the ground with guilt.

I leave CVS and decide to take a magical history tour. As I approach Independence Hall, five teens on bikes are coming my direction, maskless. I’m sure for them masks feel just as cool as wearing helmets.

There's a half dozen federal park rangers keeping watch in front of Independence Hall, half a dozen feet from one another. All of them but the biggest ranger have facemasks on - he is obviously too tough for the virus to kill.

The virus is really bringing out the Darwinist in me I guess. I despise the runners without masks, breathing rapid fire slugs of hot air as they gallop on by. They’re so much harder to negotiate who's crossing the street, when every other pedestrian knows we need a solid 10 seconds of eye contact to determine which of us is going to wimp out and jaywalk. It’s against this constant rat race that I am committing myself to strengthening my body in quarantine. After 44 days indoors, I am on Day 4 of Yoga with Adrienne's 30 Day Challenge.

So maybe there’s something to learn from the sturm und drang of walking around the city right now. I didn’t move to a city to stay isolated, after all. We can find ways to make this situation work out, but we need to be at peace with the fact we’re going to be bumping elbows in new ways. I think the City of Brotherly Love will be fine.