Some reflections on the care of others.

@SKimballMD & I were fortunate to get a vacation in earlier this month - lots of hiking, friends, and driving.

It was striking but not surprising to see how hard this year has been for all of our friends.

2/ Seeing friends in (distanced!) person, I reflected a bit on how to overcome the many barriers to connection as we head into the winter. My main conclusion was that since the pandemic has flipped video chatting into a work tool, the target is mainly to find other avenues.

3/ (this is unfortunate, since video chats would be great!)

For me, this has meant more "plain" phone calls, where the other friend and I can do household tasks while just chatting. But it also means looking at asynchronous ways of communicating.

4/ I think that the more we move away from mail, the more impact a physical letter has.

They do take some time, of course, so I also like the "photo-to-postcard" apps that let you dash off a note from your phone. The one I use below, there are many. https://apps.apple.com/us/app/postagram-photo-postcards/id429264904

5/ I also think that material goods have a role, especially when friends hit low points. Various choices here, 2 I favor:

@EHChocolatier from Boston - $$$ but great for special occasions. I'd say ~40% of friends term them the best chocolates they have ever had.

6/ @BrittScarpato clued me into @RubySnap cookies in SLC, which delivers *amazing* cookies across the country. I'd say $$ - definitely appropriate for a treat.

( @paullongMD, UT secrets)
(( @poojakmehta the first to be targeted with this specific treat)) https://rubysnap.com/collections/menu

7/ Staring at the calendar between now and March, it's going to be a long haul. For me, sending out bursts of friend affection, even/especially when most affected myself, will be a key part of self-care.

Anyone have other good friendship support techniques for 2020?

@DrYadavalli @BMCimRES @Seth_Bhavna @EddieBriercheck @sacjai @jonbparr @DrRishiRattan @DreifussMD @jabarocas