Long before Covid 19 our local boulangerie, in the quiet French village near our home, installed a baguette and croissant dispenser. This machine manages to supply a freshly baked product and one can hear the clunking and clicking as it then wraps it in a paper bag and presents it to you, all for 80 centimes . Amazing, I love it, especially this morning as I had left home late, not eaten and the bakery is normally closed on Fridays (rural France).
The gratitude (see our podcast ) was quickly followed by a thought that the boulangerie could do all their work this way. Why would they need to open at all?
Horror, as I then contemplate a life without the ‘Bonjour Christine comment vas-tu’ and the little chit chat that follows, that is so uplifting before I move to my Zoom meeting or online therapy session.
Seriously, this is, in a microcosm, a perfect example of the dilemma we all now face. Do we push for more distance working or move back in time to more social contact? We need research, we need discussion, we need progress. It’s not evident, it’s complicated.
What do you think?