The Long Sick Road
Stories of people that have traveled in the middle of the 2020 Covid crisis
It’s April of 2020. They say It is more contagious than the Flu. You’re stuck in Miami but home is in New York City, the epicenter of the pandemic in America. No one knows how the Coronavirus really transmits itself yet and everything is a guess. You don’t know if you’re doing it right and can only hope you are. Everyone is winging it. CDC says masks won’t protect you; they change their stance a few weeks later. Your sister in law nearly dies from The Virus. Are you going to get it too?
You’re stuck but you need to get home. Driving up to New York you get in your car with your your husband. Gas stations are abandoned, highways are empty. The gas stations you do encounter often won’t let you in to use the bathroom for fear of spreading The Virus. Every shred of groceries you buy are scrubbed down with disinfectant wipes like a baby that soiled themselves. You have one mask each between the two of you and you wear it till it eventually tears itself apart from exertion and overuse.
Traveling in 2020 has come to an abrupt halt for many. In a year that changed so much for so many, the open road is perhaps one of the most obvious things that have been altered. Full of dangers and rife with uncertainty, some travel for necessity, others for just to get the feeling of 2020’s claustrophobic dust off their shoulders.
Cat Del Buono was one such traveler upon the road when she and her husband found themselves stuck in Miami for work in the early days of the pandemic. Documented in a New York Times editorial, her sister in law nearly died from Covid-19, so when she and her husband, David Paley needed to get home in New York they opted to get there by car rather than by air. It seemed more safe.
“I was scared to death of getting the virus. Not just for myself but for my husband who I constantly watched to make sure he was not touching his face or touching anything for that matter. He isn’t as naturally vigilant as I so I felt I was watching out for the both of us.”
Cat experienced an incredibly frightening trip up to New York. But more than that, just tiring. “I was so exhausted not only from the long drive, but from all the stress. I would fall asleep instantly at bedtime.”
CDC has a dossier of suggestions while traveling domestically in 2020. It include a flu shot suggestion before travel, adequate masks and sanitizer, a possible negative Covid-19 test, and honoring the laws of each state. However, each state has a different set of rules and with no Federal Covid-19 plan in place, different states have set up their own territorial rule sets and obligations which varies from state to state. When Cat and David hauled their car to the Empire State there weren’t as many restrictions or rules because nobody really knew what they were doing or how the virus spread.
Despite the increased danger, Covid isn’t stopping America from stepping on the gas pedal or the TSA security line.
Train stations and airlines posit that traveling is safe citing studies that prove the efficiency. But others aren’t as nearly as convinced, arguing that the studies don’t consider the full spectrum of possibilities while traveling.
The author of this article personally moved from Texas to New York City in November of this year with a ticket bought in June. Flying by airfare I personally wasn’t assuaged by any claim of safety while flying. I was hungry so I ate at the food court, transfixed at the other people that also needed to eat. I ate my Panda Express noodles as quickly as I could without making others stare. What about using the bathroom? Wearing both a surgical mask and an N95 mask at the same time, I didn’t feel better by the fact my entire cabin was full with zero social distancing in effect or the patron that sat by me with his mask under his nose the entire time. With so many variables and uncertainties, traveling was more stressful than it usually was. I tested negative days after arriving in New York.
Elliot [Redacted] of Park Slope, Brooklyn drove to Kentucky to visit his parents for Thanksgiving. It had been over a year since he visited. “Even though traveling was discouraged during this time especially, I gave myself a pass due to the ability to drive there directly, and the fact that they live secluded on a farm, a minimal amount of contact with the outside world.”
Elliot expresses they did everything as safely as they could and heavily limited contact. Paranoia was present but it particularly targeted towards his parents. “[Paranoia] was especially amplified because I was visiting my parents, who are elderly. It wasn’t enough to keep me up at night since we had done a lot to keep ourselves safe.”
Yet others, such as Stu [Redacted] didn’t feel a need for paranoia. After his lease in East Harlem ran out, he and his wife moved to rural Hudson Valley. Before the move they took a detour to Wilmington, North Carolina for another parental visit. Equipped with a Camper Van borrowed by his father in law, they could use a private bathroom with no extra hassle. “We felt pretty safe, we wouldn’t have gone if we didn’t.” Driving slower than usual to lower the risk of an accident during Covid and have to deal with an unknown party, Stu safely arrived in North Carolina with as little contact as possible. Cutting out all unknown variables removed any anxiety the married couple had. The paranoia he mostly felt was on the way to their new home,”This was riskier behavior than anything in the last 5 months.”
For Del Buono life has changed a lot. The lack of travel has hurt her Airbnb business. “Eventually, Airbnb was allowing Covid workers to use Airbnb and I was asked if I could host emergency responders. I thought it was the right thing to do and so we hosted a couple nurses at a discounted rate for a few weeks.” Her sister in law according to her, has a new life. Fully recovered after nearly dying and weighing 80 pounds, she’s found a new love life, is physically active again and is back to teaching full-time. Yet in the midst of so much turmoil and uncertainty, the fog of this year has yet to entirely clear. “We got one job during the summer with MTV and it was filmed outdoors, everyone in masks, everyone being tested, so we felt safe. Now with the colder weather, I’m not sure what we will do for work.”
Despite so much behind them, the Cat and David seem to keep looking towards the road of their future with poised confidence and a straight back, ready to take on any obstacle that opposes them.
