the fruitcake enterprises social review — winter 2022
In the winter of 2022, I engaged in in-person or face-to-face virtual social interaction with the following people on the indicated number of days:
1. Shobhit—12
2. Alexia—11
3. Tracy—8
4. Karen—5
5. Laney—4
6. Noah—3
7. Jennifer—2
8. Danielle—2
9. Gabriel—2
10. Lea—2
11. Scott—2
12. Matthew—2
13. Justine—2
14. Dad—1
15. Sherri—1
16. Ivan—1
17. Claudia—1
18. Sachin—1
19. Morgan—1
20. Tess—1
21. Eric—1
22. Shelley—1
23. Rebecca—1
Total days in the spring with social interaction: 38 (42.2%, a -9.4 percentage point change from fall)
I was going to start by noting how dramatically Shobhit's points dropped this quarter from the fall—although, much to his relief I'm sure, his position at #1 remains secure—but, I soon realized that, on average, numbers dropped for everyone. My socializing just broadly decreased dramatically in the winter compared to fall, the total number of days with socializing falling below 50% of all days for the first time in ages. And there's a very clear reason for this, which would also account for even the dramatic drop in Shobhit's points, from 25 in the fall to 12 in the winter: the Omicron variant surge, which peaked in January. I thus spent the whole of January not really socializing, at least mostly not in-person anyway. After New Year's weekend, I made the conscious choice to avoid in-person contact with people for the most part, for about four weeks. I even worked from home during that same four-week period, which I still think was a smart choice. Now, I did make a couple of exceptions in January. Most significant was my neighbor Alexia, with whom I spent time indoors and unmasked twice—once to watch the finale of The Expanse at our place, and once, as a calculated risk, going out for dinner at Aviv on January 19. I'm tempted to say more somewhat defensive things about how she lives alone, except she has long been far less careful about things like masking than I have, only doing it around me when it was clear I would prefer it (such as waiting for our food at Aviv). I guess in my only quasi-defense, she was the only person I did not live with, with whom I spent much time with in-person outside of my household those four weeks. That, combined with time otherwise being freed up by not socializing as much with other people, is the reason Alexia is the only person whose points increased dramatically, shooting her up from 5 in the fall to 11 in the winter, securing her the #2 spot, with only one fewer point than Shobhit. Alexia ranked #5 (with her 5 points) in the fall. Tracy did go down, by not by much: she ranked #2 with 10 points in the fall, and now ranks #3 with 8 points. So overall, things stayed fairly consistent with her. The same goes for Laney, who had 4 points both last quarter and this one; she ranked #6 in the fall and ranks 5 now. Similarly, Karen, who as ever just has her virtual lunches with me twice a month, except when sometimes she has to cancel, ranked #7 with four points in the fall but ranks #4 with 5 points now. Ivan, however, is another one whose numbers dropped precipitously, having ranked #3 with 7 points in the fall, and only has 1 point for the winter, in spite of his living with me—plummeting him in the rankings down to #16. I haven't done anything social with him outside the home (and I don't count the semi-regular times we watch movies together at home) since we went to Neko Cat Cafe in late December. I really thought he would be coming to a movie with me yesterday, and even with only two points he would have ranked far higher than #16, but it was not to be. I made the assumption that he would be super interested in this Finnish film because it's set on a train ride through Russia, a country that was always of interest to him. But, we literally discussed it four times and ever time he had forgotten about all previous conversations. And then he made plans to go on a hike with someone. As for the likes of old-timers like Danielle and Gabriel, they each got two points, securing themselves in the top 10. Ditto Jennifer, who usually doesn't appear on this list but twice a year on average, but she and her boyfriend Matthew came to Seattle or a comedy show and they stayed in the Braeburn Condos "Guest Suite," securing both of them two points as well. And now that all that riveting analysis is out of the way, let's get to the who did what with whom where and when!
Tuesday, December 21: with Alexia, WildLanterns at Woodland Park Zoo Friday, December 24: with Dad and Sherri, out for dinner (Emperor's Palace) Sunday, December 26: with Shobhit, to a movie (Licorice Pizza) Wednesday, December 29: with Ivan, to Neko Cat Cafe Friday, December 31: with Alexia, watching a movie in her condo (Arthur Christmas) Friday, December 31: with Shobhit, hanging out at PCC offices until midnight Saturday, January 1: with Shobhit, watching Space Needle New Year's fireworks from PCC offices Saturday, January 1: with Gabriel, Lea and Tess, hanging out at their place and then watching Gabriel do his annual Polar Bear Plunge Sunday, January 2: with Claudia, virtual drinks over FaceTime Monday, January 3: with Karen, lunch over FaceTime Sunday, January 9: with Shobhit, out for a walk (Alki Beach Park) Sunday, January 9: with Shobhit, Sachin, and Sachin's mom, dinner at our place Friday, January 14: with Shobhit and Alexia, watching the end of The Expanse at our place Saturday, January 15: with Shobhit and Danielle, dinner at Danielle's house (take-out from Indian restaurant in Kent) Wednesday, January 19: with Shobhit, walking downtown for the PCC Downtown grand opening Wednesday, January 19: with Alexia, out for dinner (Aviv Hummus Bar) Thursday, January 20: with Karen, lunch over FaceTime Sunday, January 23: with Alexia, walking to PCC Downtown Thursday, January 27: with Scott, Tracy, Noah, Eric, Justine, Rebecca, and more, Scott's virtual sendoff over Microsoft Teams Friday, January 28: with Scott, Tracy and Noah, "goobye dinner" for Scott (Tanoor Seattle) Saturday, January 29: with Laney, Virtual Happy Hour from Magnolia Beach, Texas Sunday, January 30: with Alexia, movie at her place (Airplane!) Monday, January 31: with Tracy, to a movie (Flee) Wednesday, February 2: with Tracy, out for dinner (Watershed Pub & Kitchen) and to a movie (Moonfall) Friday, February 4: with Alexia, movie night at her place (Mission: Impossible III) Friday, February 11: with Karen, lunch over FaceTime Friday, February 11: with Tracy, to a movie (The Worst Person in the World) Saturday, February 12: with Laney, Virtual Happy Hour from Crystal Beach, Texas Friday, February 18: with Alxia, movie night at her place (Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol) Saturday, February 19: with Alexia, to a movie (Death on the Nile) Sunday, February 20: with Tracy, out for lunch (Taqueria Cantina) and to a movie (Lingui, the Sacred Bonds) Friday, February 25: with Alexia, movie night at her place (Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation) Saturday, February 26: with Shobhit, Danielle and Morgan, out for dinner (Cashew Thai Cuisine) Saturday, February 26: with Danielle and Morgan, to a live show (Freestyle Love Supreme) at Bagley Wright Theater Sunday, February 27: with Shobhit, Alexia and Tracy, movie in the Braeburn Theater (The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring Extended Edition) Thursday, March 3: with Shobhit, to a movie (The Batman) Friday, March 4: with Jennifer, to a show (Fortune Feimster at The Paramount) Friday, March 4: with Shobhit, Jennifer and Matthew, takeout dinner at our place (Manao Thai Street Eats) Saturday, March 5: with Shobhit, Jennifer and Matthew, out for brunch (The Egg & Us) Sunday, March 6: with Karen, to a movie (Cyrano) Monday, March 7: with Noah, Tracy, Justine and Shelley, out for lunch (Skillet) Friday, March 11: with Karen, lunch over Zoom Friday, March 11: with Laney, Happy Hour at La Cocina Oaxaqueña Sunday, March 13: with Alexia, dinner and movie night at her place (Mission: Impossible - Fallout) Friday, March 18: with Laney, walk and visiting at her new place in Mount Baker Saturday, March 19: with Gabriel and Lea, dinner and board games at their place
1. Shobhit—12
2. Alexia—11
3. Tracy—8
4. Karen—5
5. Laney—4
6. Noah—3
7. Jennifer—2
8. Danielle—2
9. Gabriel—2
10. Lea—2
11. Scott—2
12. Matthew—2
13. Justine—2
14. Dad—1
15. Sherri—1
16. Ivan—1
17. Claudia—1
18. Sachin—1
19. Morgan—1
20. Tess—1
21. Eric—1
22. Shelley—1
23. Rebecca—1
Total days in the spring with social interaction: 38 (42.2%, a -9.4 percentage point change from fall)I was going to start by noting how dramatically Shobhit's points dropped this quarter from the fall—although, much to his relief I'm sure, his position at #1 remains secure—but, I soon realized that, on average, numbers dropped for everyone. My socializing just broadly decreased dramatically in the winter compared to fall, the total number of days with socializing falling below 50% of all days for the first time in ages. And there's a very clear reason for this, which would also account for even the dramatic drop in Shobhit's points, from 25 in the fall to 12 in the winter: the Omicron variant surge, which peaked in January. I thus spent the whole of January not really socializing, at least mostly not in-person anyway. After New Year's weekend, I made the conscious choice to avoid in-person contact with people for the most part, for about four weeks. I even worked from home during that same four-week period, which I still think was a smart choice. Now, I did make a couple of exceptions in January. Most significant was my neighbor Alexia, with whom I spent time indoors and unmasked twice—once to watch the finale of The Expanse at our place, and once, as a calculated risk, going out for dinner at Aviv on January 19. I'm tempted to say more somewhat defensive things about how she lives alone, except she has long been far less careful about things like masking than I have, only doing it around me when it was clear I would prefer it (such as waiting for our food at Aviv). I guess in my only quasi-defense, she was the only person I did not live with, with whom I spent much time with in-person outside of my household those four weeks. That, combined with time otherwise being freed up by not socializing as much with other people, is the reason Alexia is the only person whose points increased dramatically, shooting her up from 5 in the fall to 11 in the winter, securing her the #2 spot, with only one fewer point than Shobhit. Alexia ranked #5 (with her 5 points) in the fall. Tracy did go down, by not by much: she ranked #2 with 10 points in the fall, and now ranks #3 with 8 points. So overall, things stayed fairly consistent with her. The same goes for Laney, who had 4 points both last quarter and this one; she ranked #6 in the fall and ranks 5 now. Similarly, Karen, who as ever just has her virtual lunches with me twice a month, except when sometimes she has to cancel, ranked #7 with four points in the fall but ranks #4 with 5 points now. Ivan, however, is another one whose numbers dropped precipitously, having ranked #3 with 7 points in the fall, and only has 1 point for the winter, in spite of his living with me—plummeting him in the rankings down to #16. I haven't done anything social with him outside the home (and I don't count the semi-regular times we watch movies together at home) since we went to Neko Cat Cafe in late December. I really thought he would be coming to a movie with me yesterday, and even with only two points he would have ranked far higher than #16, but it was not to be. I made the assumption that he would be super interested in this Finnish film because it's set on a train ride through Russia, a country that was always of interest to him. But, we literally discussed it four times and ever time he had forgotten about all previous conversations. And then he made plans to go on a hike with someone. As for the likes of old-timers like Danielle and Gabriel, they each got two points, securing themselves in the top 10. Ditto Jennifer, who usually doesn't appear on this list but twice a year on average, but she and her boyfriend Matthew came to Seattle or a comedy show and they stayed in the Braeburn Condos "Guest Suite," securing both of them two points as well. And now that all that riveting analysis is out of the way, let's get to the who did what with whom where and when!
Tuesday, December 21: with Alexia, WildLanterns at Woodland Park Zoo Friday, December 24: with Dad and Sherri, out for dinner (Emperor's Palace) Sunday, December 26: with Shobhit, to a movie (Licorice Pizza) Wednesday, December 29: with Ivan, to Neko Cat Cafe Friday, December 31: with Alexia, watching a movie in her condo (Arthur Christmas) Friday, December 31: with Shobhit, hanging out at PCC offices until midnight Saturday, January 1: with Shobhit, watching Space Needle New Year's fireworks from PCC offices Saturday, January 1: with Gabriel, Lea and Tess, hanging out at their place and then watching Gabriel do his annual Polar Bear Plunge Sunday, January 2: with Claudia, virtual drinks over FaceTime Monday, January 3: with Karen, lunch over FaceTime Sunday, January 9: with Shobhit, out for a walk (Alki Beach Park) Sunday, January 9: with Shobhit, Sachin, and Sachin's mom, dinner at our place Friday, January 14: with Shobhit and Alexia, watching the end of The Expanse at our place Saturday, January 15: with Shobhit and Danielle, dinner at Danielle's house (take-out from Indian restaurant in Kent) Wednesday, January 19: with Shobhit, walking downtown for the PCC Downtown grand opening Wednesday, January 19: with Alexia, out for dinner (Aviv Hummus Bar) Thursday, January 20: with Karen, lunch over FaceTime Sunday, January 23: with Alexia, walking to PCC Downtown Thursday, January 27: with Scott, Tracy, Noah, Eric, Justine, Rebecca, and more, Scott's virtual sendoff over Microsoft Teams Friday, January 28: with Scott, Tracy and Noah, "goobye dinner" for Scott (Tanoor Seattle) Saturday, January 29: with Laney, Virtual Happy Hour from Magnolia Beach, Texas Sunday, January 30: with Alexia, movie at her place (Airplane!) Monday, January 31: with Tracy, to a movie (Flee) Wednesday, February 2: with Tracy, out for dinner (Watershed Pub & Kitchen) and to a movie (Moonfall) Friday, February 4: with Alexia, movie night at her place (Mission: Impossible III) Friday, February 11: with Karen, lunch over FaceTime Friday, February 11: with Tracy, to a movie (The Worst Person in the World) Saturday, February 12: with Laney, Virtual Happy Hour from Crystal Beach, Texas Friday, February 18: with Alxia, movie night at her place (Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol) Saturday, February 19: with Alexia, to a movie (Death on the Nile) Sunday, February 20: with Tracy, out for lunch (Taqueria Cantina) and to a movie (Lingui, the Sacred Bonds) Friday, February 25: with Alexia, movie night at her place (Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation) Saturday, February 26: with Shobhit, Danielle and Morgan, out for dinner (Cashew Thai Cuisine) Saturday, February 26: with Danielle and Morgan, to a live show (Freestyle Love Supreme) at Bagley Wright Theater Sunday, February 27: with Shobhit, Alexia and Tracy, movie in the Braeburn Theater (The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring Extended Edition) Thursday, March 3: with Shobhit, to a movie (The Batman) Friday, March 4: with Jennifer, to a show (Fortune Feimster at The Paramount) Friday, March 4: with Shobhit, Jennifer and Matthew, takeout dinner at our place (Manao Thai Street Eats) Saturday, March 5: with Shobhit, Jennifer and Matthew, out for brunch (The Egg & Us) Sunday, March 6: with Karen, to a movie (Cyrano) Monday, March 7: with Noah, Tracy, Justine and Shelley, out for lunch (Skillet) Friday, March 11: with Karen, lunch over Zoom Friday, March 11: with Laney, Happy Hour at La Cocina Oaxaqueña Sunday, March 13: with Alexia, dinner and movie night at her place (Mission: Impossible - Fallout) Friday, March 18: with Laney, walk and visiting at her new place in Mount Baker Saturday, March 19: with Gabriel and Lea, dinner and board games at their place