There’s an older woman who comes to the gym regularly—I think she’s about 70, and she’s in working out five mornings a week, like clockwork. Literally, like clockwork, in that she does the same exercises, at the same weights, on the same machines, in the same order, every single day. (From what I hear, she’s been doing so for about the past five years.)

Anyway, the first day the gym reopened in the fall, she was back to her morning loop, albeit heavily layered up with PPE. And even as the general understanding of COVID evolved (e.g., the low risk of fomite transmission), even as more and more people were vaccinated (I know she was back in February, and by now almost 100% of the members and staff are), she kept her precautions at full tilt. Beyond double-masking, she still wore latex gloves throughout her workout, still wiped down every piece of equipment she touched, before and after, with disinfectant wipes.

Then, last week, the CDC changed its indoor mask recommendations. This week, New York State policy followed suit. Today, the gym dropped its mask requirement. And all morning long, I was jarred by the sight of people squatting and jogging and generally walking around the floor with faces bared.

So when the regular lady showed up this morning (not surprisingly, in full protective regalia), I assumed there was inevitable conflict ahead. Another member, seeing her on the leg extension machine, went over to let her know that she was now allowed to work out without a mask if she wanted. And I literally cringed as he did, braving myself for her searing, ‘what an irresponsible abdication of safety precautions and collective responsibility’ response.

Instead, she just said, “oh, really?” And then, like it was the most natural thing in the world, peeled off the gloves, took off both masks, and headed over to the next machine in her daily circuit.

So, basically, that’s NYC in a nutshell at the moment. It’s nice to see all your faces again?