"crazy times"

when my dealer told me that he was still an hour out, i messaged back "that's okay! crazy times!!!" he also didn't have either of the strains i wanted. it was a friday and apparently very busy. i was using a new guy who did contactless delivery, recommended to me by a friend of my boyfriend who lost his job the very next day.

i have said "crazy times" a lot since the beginning of march. it has become my new default "don't worry about it" phrase. usually it accompanies "no problem," which felt sufficient pre-pandemic. coffee shop out of the drink you like? no problem! coffee shop out of the drink you like, and also the world is being ravaged by a deadly virus? no problem; crazy times!"

the phrase is a neat trick, making you feel like you've adapted to the crazy times when you haven't. it's soothing, in a way, to say, as if by saying it you're acknowledging all the pain and suffering that this pandemic has lead to. when i feel optimistic, saying "crazy times" feels like a gesture of solidarity. yes, the pandemic has touched me, too. ain't that crazy.

but "crazy times" is a lie you tell yourself. yeah it's crazy out there--it's been like that for a minute. the longer it goes on, the less it feels like crazy times, and the more it feels like just "times." a new age to adjust to, whether we like it or not.