On April 16 Creative Loafing Tampa Bay published a post that opened like this:
“I think it’s week five of ‘the after.’ A lot of this—the worry, the dread, and the fear and, for some, the boredom—is starting to feel routine. Having Netflix (and a few beers on a good night) put me to sleep seems like a ritual. Not having to wear underwear at the desk—well, that’s a perk. But overall, my new movements are starting to feel very familiar. And not in a comfortable way.”
It’s been 14 weeks since that thought. In pandemic time, that’s about three-and-a-half years.
I’m sorry to report that the worry, dread and fear has not subsided. The boredom—I don’t even know what I was talking about—that’s not even a thing in my mind. Since returning to the office, I’ve had to start wearing underwear again. And our world has only gotten more complicated.
Coronavirus numbers are still rising, but kids might have to go back to school. Performing arts venues are still closed; without a federal aid package aimed directly at saving music venues and theaters, I fear that we’re probably just a few weeks away from blogging about permanent closures the way we’ve had to write about restaurants taking a pause after staff comes in contact with COVID-19.
Outrage and sadness in the wake of the murder of George Floyd—combined with anxiety from the killing of Breonna Taylor—erupted in nationwide street demonstrtions. The thoroughfares in Tampa/St. Petersburg have played host to Black Lives Matter protests almost daily; CL's coverage has tried to capture the energy, hopes, fears and frustrations week in and week out (stories in this issue are about those very things).
But in some ways—for better or worse, I still don’t know—that once-new-now-old familiar feeling of life under quarantine is starting to fade away.
Food & Drink Editor Jenna Rimensnyder is back in the office two times a week as a regular freelancer (frustratingly, CL still hasn’t hired her back full-time). She’s here (a) because the newsroom is incomplete without her energy and knowledge about the local food scene and (b) because restaurants are opening in spite of COVID-19’s tendency to crush the hopes and dreams of most business owners. We need someone to cover that beat; Rimensnyder is undoubtedly the best person to do so.
Jenna’s return to 204 E. Henderson is also symbolic of coverage wanting to go back to a version of “normal” where our pages and URLs find you reading and us writing about restaurants, sports, new local music, arts initiatives—you know, less coronavirus-y and protest-y things.
But social justice—and the sins of government officials who refuse to believe science and continually put our readers in danger—should not take a backseat as we settle into our “new normal” (God, I hate that phrase). And for as long as CL hits newsstands each Thursday, it won’t. We’re committed to writing about things from the protesters point of view and holding officials accountable (send us news tips!). That coverage—whether you think there's a place for it or not—will exist alongside what looks to be more music, arts and food news.
There’s nothing normal about the times we’re living in right now, but we’ll do our best to serve you as the world asks us to pretend like it’s not as weird as it actually is.
Support local journalism in these crazy days. Our small but mighty team is working tirelessly to bring you up to the minute news on how Coronavirus is affecting Tampa and surrounding areas. Please consider making a one time or monthly donation to help support our staff. Every little bit helps.
Subscribe to our newsletter and follow @cl_tampabay on Twitter.
This article appears in Jul 30 – Aug 6, 2020.