Thanks to 2020, I Now Miss Strangers

“These are my sexy pants,” she said in a thick Russian accent. “They help me to get laid.”

My now-wife and I heard this coming out of a restaurant in DuPont Circle years ago and we haven’t stopped talking about it. Were those really her sexy pants? Was she being sarcastic? Was she actually trying to get laid at 2pm on a Sunday?

I’ve thought about that moment a lot since March because it turns out I now miss strangers. And it’s the strangest thing.

You see, in the before times, I wasn’t a fan of strangers. Even though I live in a big city, the other people only seemed to get in my way. I just wanted to be around my friends and family.

In 2020, that dynamic changed. Due to COVID and our new abnormal, I only interacted with people I knew — my friends, my family, and my co-workers. I know that when we eventually get through this hell, they’ll all be waiting for me. I missed seeing them in person, but I didn’t miss them, per se. I talked with them as much, if not more, than I ever have before. We kept our social circles smaller in 2020, and we kept them closer.

No, it turns out one of things I missed most about daily life in 2020 are strangers. And it’s the strangest thing because I never thought about them before. Being without them for nine months and counting made me realized how much strangers have impacted my life.

I could rattle off the small moments, when a stranger helped you with a nickel while in line or warned you…