Now that things are opening up, it's full speed ahead for me.  I'm not being reckless, but if they'll let me in, I'm sanitizing my hands and I am coming!  And I've noticed some changes that are consistent from one place to the next.

I'm seeing Plexiglass sneeze guards everywhere, aren't you?  Businesses are installing the barriers to separate customers from workers during the check-in and check-out process, and after seeing the rush jobs in March, these days they're looking a lot more permanent.  At Target the other day, I noticed the clear plastic sheets at the registers are outlined in black trim now, and it looks like they are part of a fortress that's been styled a bit because it's here to stay.  Oh, and at Kohls, I could barely get my card into the debit card terminal because it was so close to the sneeze guard.  A few tweaks might be in order in some spots.

Some changes are looking universal, and others seem more specific to the type of business.

What I've Noticed at the Gym, the Nail Salon, and the Grocery Store

The gym. There are boxes of rubber gloves everywhere, and we have to wear them when we're on the machines.  Hands get hot and sweaty and the gloves are a bit suffocating for fingers, but the gym doesn't want naked fingertips touching the buttons and we understand.  We also have to bring our own towels and sign up for workout times in advance so they can keep track of the day's capacity.  And we're scanning our own cards at the front desk while the workers stay behind the plastic barrier.

The nail salon.  The manicurists are wearing masks, and my salon requires customers to wear them too.  Theresa has been doing my nails for six years and we always talk through the entire appointment, but now the conversations are a bit muffled and we can only tell if we're smiling if our eyes light up and twinkle.  The salon is also taking fewer appointments so it's less crowded than usual.

The grocery store.  There are ample supplies of toilet paper, and I've even seen hand sanitizer back in stock.  We survived the panic-buying mess of two months ago, and the stores no longer look like they are recovering from a robbery.  But there are changes for social distancing and they're easy to notice.  There are stickers on the floor to mark where customers should stand when they check out, and the kids think it's a big game to jump on the circles and stick the landing.

I read today too that most people are thinking handshakes and high fives are gone for good, and most people say they'll wear facemasks for one more year.

READ MORE: See how some companies are changing their businesses to combat COVID-19

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