After doing her best at her piano recital, we took Charlotte to Flix Brewhouse to celebrate with a shake.
That was on March 7. We had no idea what was coming our way.
Businesses were still open when spring break began the next weekend, but shopping started to feel sketchy. The people at the grocery store were beginning to look desperate. Their carts were overflowing. We had heard about toilet paper disappearing from store shelves, but that idea seemed ridiculous. On that Monday we ate at a disturbingly empty Tasty Tacos.
It was almost noon, and the restaurant should have been packed. There wasn't even a line at the counter. Char didn't notice my unease, but I started to get a little freaked out. I think this was the moment when I started to think, This doesn't feel safe. I think being here is a mistake.
We drove over to Flix after lunch to fill up a growler for me and then headed home. Flix, like most of Iowa, shuttered their doors the next day.
As the weeks ticked by, businesses began to tentatively open. We stayed away from most of them. We were getting by okay. What we couldn't get at Hy-Vee could be ordered from Amazon.
If you checked the Flix website during the past five months, then this is what you'd see:
I also stopped by the mall in mid-July to check for signs of life. It was bleak. I don't know what I expected, but it wasn't a locked fence.
As I walked back to my car, I tried to figure out why I missed going to Flix so much. Flix isn't the only place in town where I can get a beer, a pizza, and some ice cream. More theaters are now offering food and drinks during their movies than ever. So what is it?
I decided that what I really missed about going to Flix is that it's a family event.
Charlotte has a blast when we take her to see a movie there. Char isn't hard to please, almost any movie will do, and it is so much fun watching her laugh at the screen or hide from it when the tension rises. Charlotte was tell us her favorite parts on the way home, and if it was a funny scene, she'll squeal with laughter as she tries to retell it.
Daphne and I don't have many date nights, and so when we do go to a movie together, it is always one we really want to see. We both order our favorites off the menu, and we know that we are in for a good time. I suppose that is a far cry from a "night on the town." But it works for us.
I think we have done a pretty good job of keeping Charlotte entertained during the pandemic summer, but it would be so nice to let someone else do the cooking, planing, and clean-up.
When other theaters began to open but Flix did not, I was beginning to get worried. But then this appeared on their Facebook page last week:
I put that in my Google Calendar and began counting down the days!
I'm not interested in seeing any of the movies that Flix is showing, but I'm all for supporting the business by picking up a crowler or five.
And then, around noon on August 27, the Governor made a new proclamation.
I get it. The Covid numbers have spiked in Iowa counties where students have been returning to four-year colleges. I have no idea how people thought college kids were going to keep a social distance from each other.
But then again, are you serious? I waited 162 days to have the Flix Brewhouse close on the same day it re-opened? I figured I had at least an hour after work to briefly enjoy the atmosphere. I high-tailed over there as soon as I could.
Whew. They have Covid-19 protocols in place, but the place was open!
The photo booth isn't there right now, but I took a selfie in its place anyway. I am smiling. That's for sure.
I'm taking the family to Flix this week to get some diner to-go. The menu is limited, but something is better than nothing by a long shot. We're still nowhere close to being "normal," but I'll take what I can get.
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