The last three years have felt like a bit of a time warp. I'll run into someone or reach out to a friend, thinking that I haven't talked to them in a year or two. Then I realize that it's been 4 or 5 years because the 2020-2022 time frame felt like a year or less. A long year, but still, less than the three years that passed.

Life is mostly back to normal for me, with travel, events, vacations, coaching, work, etc. all similar to the way things were in 2019. At the same time, I've changed and my life has changed. Some of this is aging, some is life moving on, but some is from the pandemic.

Spending so much time remotely has me a little less patient or excited about small trips, even around town. I cook more and my family is more often at home. My adult kids enjoy spending time with my wife and me. I appreciate family and time off more, which was good. These are positives for me.

Work is similar to 2019, but also different. Redgate is moving to a new, smaller office, and the culture of most people being there and eating lunch together is gone. We won't have our SQL Servery in the new building, so I'll be going out with friends, or bringing some sort of meal in when I'm at the office. I don't like that.

I still get to visit customers, and more so this year than in prior years, but there are a lot more Zoom meetings and short, quick engagements than in the past. That's a good thing, and I find it exciting.

At the same time, we have fewer events. Last year saw 18 SQL Saturdays, and we're on pace to exceed that this year, but we're far below the 100 a year from 2019, even adding in Data Saturdays and other events. Every event seems smaller than in the past, which is a bit disappointing for me.

Some people still wear masks, signs from the pandemic are still posted, and I find people to both be better and worse. They are more enjoyable at times, but at other times displaying more anger, argument, and selfishness than before 2020.  It's a weird mix, and I think the pandemic has people quicker to get upset at little things while being more tolerant in general. In general, the world feels normal to me, but slightly evolved from 2019.

Is life back to normal for you? It mostly is for me, though with one big difference. I appreciate life more, the people, the trips, the time, it all means a bit more after spending a few years fairly isolated and limited in many ways.

Let us know today.