It goes without saying just how many adjustments and changes we have all made to our lives since the start of the pandemic.
But there are some changes we made that have been for the better. For example: the ability to work remotely — which is something a lot of people don't want to give up.
And recently, Reddit user NativeSniper asked this question to the AskReddit community: "What's one thing we did before the pandemic that even if the world went back to normal you wouldn't do again?"
The thread quickly went viral, with thousands of replies. Here are some of the top-voted and best comments:
1. "Commute to work one and half hours each way five days a week so I can sit in my office and write emails and talk on the phone."
"Daily commutes. Our company is committed to three days a week max in the office. I’ve been in twice since the pandemic, and the colossal amount of wasted time really stunned me."
2. "Go to work sick."
3. "Feeling bad about calling in."
"Getting hassled for calling in because you 'just' have a cold. Or being expected to recover from a cold in one day."
4. "Treat my job title like it's my family name."
"Nah, I give you labor, and you give me money — that's the extent of our relationship and much like anyone trading time for money; others will pay me for my time.
Not a chance I will ever again bleed, sweat, or cry for a fucking employer. Never ever again."
5. "I still want 'no contact delivery' to be an option."
6. "Restaurants not doing carry out. My two favorite local places outright refused to do carry out until the pandemic hit. I really hope they don't end it. I love getting the food my wife and I enjoy, but being able to go home and eat it without a bunch of randos around."
7. "Birthday cake and blowing out candles: 'Here, I exhaled heavily on this; please eat it.'"
8. "I certainly am very careful about what I touch and the people I'm around. When I'm in public, I try and stay spaced out and not touch anything if not necessary."
9. "I also will probably have a lifelong habit of sanitizing my hands every time I get back in the car and washing them every time I enter my house. Not saying I didn't wash my hands often before, but certainly I'm more aware and do it more often."
10. "Having a nonstop out-all-day go, go, go schedule. I understand now why I was constantly feeling frustrated. I was completely burnt out and had no me time. Now I don’t make so many commitments to social events, work things, and extra stuff. I can’t imagine ever stretching myself so thin again."
11. "Live in a city for my job."
"I absolutely hated going remote for the first year. Emails were so much slower than just asking the guy sitting next to me; I missed making small talk or going out for lunch, company sponsored events. I still don’t like Zoom meetings, but I can tolerate it now.
Now that I’m farther removed, I realized a lot of that was just something I was 'used to' instead of something I enjoyed. My rent is almost 50% lower now, and I’m only 10 miles from where I used to live downtown. I still have access to the city, and if they need us in quarterly I can do a longer commute here and there. I’m not paying $200 a month for a parking spot. I get to live a quieter life in a quieter area, and when my significant other and I are ready, we’ll be able to purchase a house pretty much anywhere we want."
12. "The 'night life.' This pandemic has made me love staying home on a Friday night and not doing anything. No obligations to hang out with friends. No more FOMO. Just me alone gaming all night and waking up the next day with no hangover."
13. "Eat at a buffet. You can give me sneeze guards, face masks, hand sanitizer, and food handler gloves, and I will still pass it up!"
14. "I really, REALLY love the accessibility of doing doctor visits over the phone or Zoom."
15. "Going into any public space, while sick, without a mask. If I have a cold and have to nip to the drugstore for some cough syrup and Kleenex, I am 100% gonna mask up."
16. "I think I'm alone in this sentiment, but I really hate the return of only releasing movies in theaters. I really loved the streaming releases; $30 to watch the movie on my couch in my pajamas is way less than it would cost for me to go the movies with my wife. And if it's a kids movie, that's three more people. Plus, I make better popcorn on the stovetop than they do at the theater."
17. "Shaking hands. Always thought it was unhygienic and unnecessary."
And lastly...
18. "Breathe down people’s fucking necks in the checkout lane."
You can read the full thread of responses on Reddit.
Note: Some responses have been edited for length and/or clarity.