COVID-19: Shaken, not stirred

In lieu of it being National Alcohol Awareness Month, I thought it would be cheeky to use a mixing analogy to speak to the changes due to COVID-19.  Little did I know, however, when I started to research this phrase that its history originated with James Bond.  Who doesn’t love a little James Bond montage starting with Sean Connery?  You can go down the Google rabbit hole of reading more of the reason why James Bond supposedly requested dry martinis “shaken, not stirred” over the years, but what I found more interesting in it all was what the actual phrase meant.

According to Collins Dictionary the way this phrase reads is:

“If you say that someone has been shaken but not stirred by an experience, you mean that they have been slightly disturbed or emotionally affected by it, but not deeply enough to change their behaviour or way of thinking.”

Although I’d like to say I’m shaken by the impact of COVID-19 in my professional and personal life, the reality is that it’s most likely been stirred.  I think mid-February I might have said I was “shaken but not stirred” and yet with it being the end of April, I have been emotionally affected by this to deeply change my behavior and way of thinking.  COVID-19 has made its imprint on me, and the world.  This is not something we’ll be able to just move on from. Returning to normal is not a thing, as normal is different.

We will eventually return to being less careful.  We will return to a time of enjoying entertainment unphased.  We will return to a life of imbibing that feels carefree and lighthearted.  Yet, in the back of our minds we will be reminded that we have been stirred, not shaken by COVID-19.

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Hang in there

This saying is growing old, fast.  I’m not viewing this expression as equivalent to saying “I’m fine” when someone asks you how you’re doing.  I’m not annoyed in the fact that I keep using it and can’t seem to find anything else that would be appropriate.  Both responds are generic and mask one’s true feelings.  Being home for over four weeks now has be on autopilot answering new and old acquaintances alike.  So, it got me thinking.  What else can we really be saying to switch up the humdrum?

First, it’s important to highlight the definition of what it means to “hang in.”  According to the Cambridge Dictionary, it is

said as a way of telling someone to not give up, despite difficulties

In reading this, it does remind that we are certainly experiencing difficulties.  Trying to not give up hope (and our sanity) despite the COVID-19 pandemic does seem somewhat uplifting.  It’s still being overused.  I was reading through other idioms though too.  What if we tried on to keep on trucking, to push forward, or to continue weathering the storm?  Ironically, I was using the expression “business as usual” during the first two weeks.  Then when my time came and went for when I was supposed to be traveling for work, it no longer became business as usual.  I might try on pushing on for size and see how that feels.  If it doesn’t sit well, I can be certain that I’m not going back to using hang in there.  That idiom is forever dead to me.

I’m so curious what other people are using, if anything at all, as an automatic response to describing how one is doing.  These are difficult times, and they’ll continue to be moving forward.  Stay the course.  We can get through this.  Remain positive.  Find solace in slowing down.  There is no room for anxiety and worry right now, as there is only so much that is in our individual hands.  Take care of yourself, and do your part.

For questions or comments contact Joanna.