Social Distancing and Isolation Log, Day 3: Today I was productive, personally at least – work less so. I filed my taxes, filled out my census report, and managed to have one proper meal. (Well, proper-ish, since I got wings and fries, so not healthy, but also not just picking at random bits in my fridge and cupboards.)

I also went outside to get groceries and it was a strange experience. There’s a mild tension in the air and people are all excessively cautious around one another (this is a good thing). We’re going into lockdown starting tomorrow evening. The grocery store was so strange. Some shelves were totally barren (yogurt, toilet paper – y’all gotta stop with that already – pasta, etc.) and there were signs up asking to take one only for certain items, and I think for the most part people respected it. I did get nearly all the produce I wanted which was nice.

While I was out I put on Hot Fuss by The Killers. It was the album I’d been listening to last time I was out, so it was already on in my music app, and I decided to just go with it. I love this album. I remember that I listened to “Somebody Told Me” in my mom’s van before taking the SATs. I just have this vivid memory of sitting in her van while I killed a few minutes before going into the testing center. I put this album on and skipped to this song. It just helped to calm my nerves so much.

I saw The Killers play a few years later at Lollapalooza. It was the summer I went to study abroad, and maybe a week after I got back home my friends from university came down for Lolla. I remember we spent an entire afternoon pushing our way to the front of the crowd just so we could be front and just-off-center for The Killers. (I mean, we were gonna watch Vampire Weekend and Snoop Dogg anyway, but now we had a mission.) We made it in the end, making new friends on the way. We ended up three rows or so from the stage, and I remember I could count the feathers on Brandon Flowers’ jacket. It was easier to look at the stage than to look at the jumbotrons. You can see my hat in the pics taken from the stage. It was one of the most memorable and fun days of my life.

Basically, I love The Killers. They have made some of my favorite music and I love that they can calm me even in these mad times. So today I’m posting “Mr. Brightside” because it’s one of my favorites, and I forgot how much I love this music video. I hope you are all staying safe and healthy. I hope this song can bring you a little peace in these chaotic days.

“Mr. Brightside” by The Killers