Illinois locked down relatively early, when a statewide order was issued starting March 21, 2020. Like every lockdown we no longer went to work, restaurants or bars, or visited friends. So after a period of reclusiveness I started going on daily walks and runs. I’ve been doing this inconsistently throughout my years in Champaign, but this time is different. I’m usually the only person I see exercising. There’s an occasional dog walker and once in a while I pass by a runner (always tempted to high five them) but this time, during the lockdown, there are a lot of people out wandering. Solo. Almost all listening to earbuds. It’s getting to the point that I pass the same people on their daily walks every day. It’s been so humid and so hot over the last few weeks we are all now compressing into those couple of hours just before sunset, madly swerving each other this time, engrossed in our own podcast worlds.
