Social Distancing. Self-Quarantine. Isolation. These are the all the buzz words nowadays in Week 2 (going on 3?) of the government-mandated shutdowns across the country caused by the coronavirus pandemic, and it's causing people everywhere to be in isolation.
Isolation is kind of a scary word, it makes me think about being locked in a room with a straightjacket on, or lost in the forest without directions on how to get out and night time rapidly approaching (a huge problem if you're in the world of Kingdom, outlined below). People can prey on isolation: I went to Knott's Scary Farm once with friends during Halloween and the paid actors there are allowed to talk to you and kept mentioning that "now you're isolated" if they trapped me in a corner by myself. It's one thing to deal with monsters, scariness, and the daily grinds of life with friends, but it's even scarier to deal with it alone in isolation!
So yes Isolation sucks, but MJ is doing it bravely! And not just during this mini-crisis in the last month, MJ and many other travelers to another country face isolation when moving to a new country and not assimilating to the culture, not being able to speak the language at first. Many Americans including myself don't have the experience of immigrating somewhere else and living there to start a new life; I read an article today about someone who endured culture shock because he couldn't get used to the new way of life in America and started eating something called "Shin Ramyeon" or dried noodles, something I didn't know existed until MJ started eating it. I guess people need anything they can get to make themselves feel the comforts of home when trying to assimilate to a new culture.
I guess in a way, everyone in the world is kind of getting the culture shock of the new world of social distancing and living our lives at home, in our own bubbles. Sure the coronavirus will eventually disperse and a cure will be found sooner than later, but parts of the new way of life will persist, such as working remotely, working from home, being stuck at home for long periods of time, not touching one's face, staying as far away from other people as possible (or at least 6 feet apart). Society is going to retain some of these things even after the virus like working more from home and planes are already taking out the center seat in some airplanes. Personal space is going to be a big issue moving forward, and as someone who has commuted to work in New York City during rush hour I do not feel culturally shocked by that at all, more culturally welcoming. Not touching things and not biting my nails is going to take some getting used to be, but I guess I'll just have to go munch on some Shin Ramyeon or something to satisfy my urge. I'm getting hungry writing this!
One TV series that you shouldn't watch while isolated: Kingdom, the Korean Netflix series. Intensity, intensity, and more intensity for 4 straight episodes and it only appears to be intensifying, if that's possible. I will probably get nightmares from watching it, but it's so suspenseful I've succumbed to the addictiveness of the show just as the zombies in the movie have succumbed to the disease that's plaguing ancient Korea.
Fantasize on,
Robert Yan
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