Now Entering... State of Denial
Our trip on Saturday was not just 537 miles across 4 states and 3 deserts. It was also a trip across two states. Reality and denial.
California is mostly a state of reality. The state has fact-based precautions to control the spread of Coronavirus, and for the most part people follow them. Oh, there are exceptions like the restaurant manager we saw in the morning who wasn't wearing a mask while cooking and serving food, but those are thankfully rare.
As we crossed into Nevada we started to enter a state of denial. Nevada has its casinos and restaurants open, because those are the lifeblood of its entire economy. They have rules for wearing masks and socially distancing, which look... not completely insane on paper. But how well people follow them in practice is a different matter.
We made two stops in Nevada at restaurants/convenience stores. In both cases the stores had very clear signs at all the doors stating that masks were required, yet both times we saw people walking into the stores without wearing masks. In addition, while staff in the stores were wearing masks they generally weren't wearing them correctly. Most staff had their masks pulled down below their noses, and some even had them dropping below their mouths. Dude, it's a mask, not a chin strap!
The state of denial got even worse as we crossed into Utah. In Utah only a few counties have mask requirements. Most do not. By the time we reached Cedar Breaks we were into the masks-not-required part of the state.
About half the people at the park were from the "Don't Give A Fuck" (DGAF) part of the US, not even carrying masks and making zero attempt to stay social distanced from others. We had our masks with us while hiking the Spectrum Point trail and donned them whenever passing others. But few others reciprocated. At Chessmen Ridge the problem was especially acute, with lots of people crowding in to a narrow area and most of them not wearing masks.
At times like these we wonder what should we do? To maximize safety we could just leave. But that's horribly unfair to us and the time, effort, and money we've spent to get there. We brought our masks like responsible people, why should we get punished by having to throw away everything we worked hard for?
We decided just to tough through it. Being in a crowded area with lots of unmasked people wasn't ideal, but at least it was outdoors. And it was brief. And we wore our masks, and washed our hands with isopropyl alcohol on the way back to our car. Sometimes when you can't do manage what is best you've got to settle for the best you can manage.
Restaurant Full, No Masks
The same challenge came back in spades at dinner. It was getting late as we made our way to Bryce, late enough that restaurants and stores were closing up for the night. We stopped for pizza in the town of Panguitch, UT. The restaurant had good reviews online- and it was still open. From the parking lot we saw that it had outdoor dining... important because in most of Utah, restaurants are open for indoor dining with no restrictions!
It was interesting observing the demographic differences at the restaurant. The people sitting inside were pretty much all maskless. And the restaurant was crowded; six-foot social distancing was not even considered. But outside on the patio, everyone wore masks that they removed only to eat. It's like all the locals were inside, all the out-of-towners were outside, and both groups were staring at the other like "You're going to infect me!"
Oh, and the staff were all maskless, too. That's the ridiculous thing about making masks "Not required, but recommended." People read into the fact that masks aren't required and take it as validation of their beliefs that Coronavirus is not really dangerous. You'd think that even if masks were merely recommended (read: wear one if you're a hysterical sissy who hates America) for the general population they'd at least require them for people cooking and serving food. There are all kinds of other food service requirements on hygiene... but not for the new #1 killer in the United States when you're in one of the States of Denial.
California is mostly a state of reality. The state has fact-based precautions to control the spread of Coronavirus, and for the most part people follow them. Oh, there are exceptions like the restaurant manager we saw in the morning who wasn't wearing a mask while cooking and serving food, but those are thankfully rare.
As we crossed into Nevada we started to enter a state of denial. Nevada has its casinos and restaurants open, because those are the lifeblood of its entire economy. They have rules for wearing masks and socially distancing, which look... not completely insane on paper. But how well people follow them in practice is a different matter.
We made two stops in Nevada at restaurants/convenience stores. In both cases the stores had very clear signs at all the doors stating that masks were required, yet both times we saw people walking into the stores without wearing masks. In addition, while staff in the stores were wearing masks they generally weren't wearing them correctly. Most staff had their masks pulled down below their noses, and some even had them dropping below their mouths. Dude, it's a mask, not a chin strap!
The state of denial got even worse as we crossed into Utah. In Utah only a few counties have mask requirements. Most do not. By the time we reached Cedar Breaks we were into the masks-not-required part of the state.
About half the people at the park were from the "Don't Give A Fuck" (DGAF) part of the US, not even carrying masks and making zero attempt to stay social distanced from others. We had our masks with us while hiking the Spectrum Point trail and donned them whenever passing others. But few others reciprocated. At Chessmen Ridge the problem was especially acute, with lots of people crowding in to a narrow area and most of them not wearing masks.
At times like these we wonder what should we do? To maximize safety we could just leave. But that's horribly unfair to us and the time, effort, and money we've spent to get there. We brought our masks like responsible people, why should we get punished by having to throw away everything we worked hard for?
We decided just to tough through it. Being in a crowded area with lots of unmasked people wasn't ideal, but at least it was outdoors. And it was brief. And we wore our masks, and washed our hands with isopropyl alcohol on the way back to our car. Sometimes when you can't do manage what is best you've got to settle for the best you can manage.
Restaurant Full, No Masks
The same challenge came back in spades at dinner. It was getting late as we made our way to Bryce, late enough that restaurants and stores were closing up for the night. We stopped for pizza in the town of Panguitch, UT. The restaurant had good reviews online- and it was still open. From the parking lot we saw that it had outdoor dining... important because in most of Utah, restaurants are open for indoor dining with no restrictions!
It was interesting observing the demographic differences at the restaurant. The people sitting inside were pretty much all maskless. And the restaurant was crowded; six-foot social distancing was not even considered. But outside on the patio, everyone wore masks that they removed only to eat. It's like all the locals were inside, all the out-of-towners were outside, and both groups were staring at the other like "You're going to infect me!"
Oh, and the staff were all maskless, too. That's the ridiculous thing about making masks "Not required, but recommended." People read into the fact that masks aren't required and take it as validation of their beliefs that Coronavirus is not really dangerous. You'd think that even if masks were merely recommended (read: wear one if you're a hysterical sissy who hates America) for the general population they'd at least require them for people cooking and serving food. There are all kinds of other food service requirements on hygiene... but not for the new #1 killer in the United States when you're in one of the States of Denial.