1) I miss getting together with people. But the tragedy of the pandemic has been an opportunity (welcome or not) to reset and reassess our social lives.

2) In the Before Times many introverts felt like they were running on the continuous treadmill of social obligation that our extraverted, high-energy, "show 'em that you're *doing something*!" society continually demands of people.

3) Because, for many extraverts (people who draw energy from being around people), "activity" often means "getting people together". If people aren't gathering, extraverts often feel like nothing is being accomplished.

4) But for introverts (people who draw energy from relative solitude), "activity" more often means having time to read, think, and create. When people are constantly bouncing from one event to another, introverts often feel like nothing is being accomplished.

5) Life is all about balance. Few people are exclusively extraverts or introverts. Everyone needs some alone time, and everyone needs to socialize - but the proportion of each that feels right varies tremendously, depending on the person.

6) Overall, there is a lot of sociological and psychological research to back up the claim that American culture is a highly-extraverted culture, which consequently demands a lot of people's time and expects them to socialize and "put in the time" attending various events.

7) This is particularly true for many white-collar professions, where social obligation after social obligation is relentlessly scheduled (mostly by extraverts) and faithfully attending all of them is seen as an indispensable part of being a conscientious professional.

8) Whether or not all of these social obligation are equally worthwhile or valuable is beside the point (many are), but the point is that few people (introverts, in particular) can sustain that level of social activity without harm to their personal lives and mental health.

9) So, as we get closer to the eventual end of this pandemic, and contemplate "going back to normal", I hope that we will all think about social events and gatherings, about the role that they play in our lives, and perhaps be a bit more judicious about scheduling them.

10) Every event is understandably seen as critically-important to the people organizing it, but each comes with an opportunity cost - irreplaceable time that could also be spent with loved ones, or even simply be spent alone - creating, thinking, learning.

11) If we emerge from this world-altering event with a better appreciation for how precious time really is, and with a better recognition of how busy and overscheduled many people felt, then some good will have come out of this. [end]