By Jared Skoro
A Search for Normalcy
It was a year ago when I was last in New York. The memories I had of the City at the start of the pandemic were not ones too unfamiliar to all of us: I was squished in a Trader Joe’s. Why was I there? I never shop at a Trader Joe’s. I wasn’t there to shop or stock up, so there was no good reason for being there. Perhaps in the chaos of newly masked shoppers zipping through the aisles, the screaming and hissing of the shopping cart wheels as they darted from one empty shelf to another, directed like car traffic by tired, worn employees; I was there in search of normalcy. I would be returning to Texas soon, and all the hum and buzz of what was the City, with its colorful characters and architecture, would retreat into memory and perhaps never be seen again. This could be the last taste of what was New York. I remember writing about this moment a month later to try to understand this feeling I had, but all that came up was one word, Souviens, a very gustatory swallowing sort of word in French. Souviens. Remember.
When I returned to Texas, classes for the spring semester ended and the chaos in supermarkets still reigned. I decided to work at one until I could return to New York. I didn’t do it for some sentimental recollection wherein by being in a supermarket, I could harken back to that time where I stood in one in New York, desperately clinging to a normalcy that could never be had. That would be stupid. I only did it because it was one of the few places where I could work overnight and not talk to anyone, not get sick while on the job, and not deal with any customers. So, an overnight job at the supermarket was perfect, just listen to music on my earbuds, go into some aisle, and stock empty shelves until daylight. I applied at one nearby and easily got the job. When I went for an interview, the pay they offered was good despite still being Texas wages, and the work seemed manageable, so with everything lined up, I began working within the week. Continue reading “Filling Empty Shelves”