It's not like I haven't had extended conversations with anyone outside of the immediate circle, in the flesh, in the past two years.

A year and a half ago I had the privilege of talking to a class of MBA students. Cue impostor syndrome. I'm only supposed to coordinate with my bosses, not be a speaker myself! And besides, what do I know about supply chain? This, despite having done the exact same thing a year prior, with a different class of students, only in a classroom rather than in front of a webcam. I get that they wanted the bigger picture, which is really the only angle I can present, but still, why me?

But there are perks, coming from the students you just spoke to. In the old days that meant free dinner. It's a sandwich, which doesn't look like much at first glance, but it's a hefty sandwich, so that covers something. This time around, they'll just have it delivered to you. Not a sandwich, though. I don't think it's that exciting when delivered.

Luckily for me, the leader of the class I just spoke to lived at the condominium complex across the street from ours. Well, luckily for her, too, for she doesn't have to pay delivery charges. Instead, she'll bring it personally. And that led to a potentially awkward situation where the first person I'll be talking to in this God forsaken pandemic, in person, outside of my girlfriend, my immediate family members and the staff at the stores I frequent, is an MBA student who I allegedly shared my insights with.

Okay, I exaggerate, and greatly at that. Nothing awkward happened. It was just small talk, about what's next for the class and what we're up to. I got a dreamcake from Le Sucre Lab, too, which was nice. But I remember it being a rainy day and thinking that I could've gone to her instead. I mean, I was the speaker, but that thought will cross my head under any and every circumstance.

A few months ago I was coordinating with the PR folk of one of the largest delivery companies in the country. They had a rider appreciation thing, and we were one of the judges. That meant I was slated to receive a PR package just before the event. (Again with the impostor syndrome. I'm only supposed to coordinate with my bosses, not get one of these boxes myself! And besides, what do I know about public relations?) The night before, to be exact. That's what they told me.

This being from a delivery company, I expected one of their riders to be waiting for me outside my building lobby. So it was a surprise when I got a text message from my contact person. "We're here," she said, and it immediately dawned on me that, at almost nine in the evening, the person I was exchanging a lot of emails with has visited me at my home. Well, outside the lobby. Still, that meant I had to change clothes. Look a bit more presentable, despite the circumstances.

"Nice to finally meet you," I said, as I reached out to shake her hand. She offered her fist instead. Damn, we're in a pandemic, I thought. I closed my hand and did a fist bump. Two, actually, for she was with a colleague of hers. So, there I was, wearing a shirt I'd usually wear in bed, exchanging fist bumps with strangers in office attire. I know I am overthinking this, but you've got to admit it's a bit absurd.

That brings us to the dinner with the people in pretty high places who I met a bunch of times on Zoom. There will be pleasantries. There will be greetings. And, as a guy who hasn't met any of them before, I will have to be somewhat formal about it. With the awkward fist bumps still fresh in my head - I really did replay the moment several times - I resolved to make the fist bump my default, at least considering the circumstances.

"Hi, you are?"

"I'm Niko," I said, offering my hand.

Here we go again.

To be fair, we are in a pretty weird phase at the moment. Again, Alert Level 1, everything is open, and you sure hope as hell everyone is vaccinated. And even that does not determine whether you'll get sick or not, although, really, if we're heading towards COVID-19 as endemic, we really shouldn't be worrying about it that much, because we now know how to handle it, and more importantly, our hospitals won't have to struggle handling it right? But then, there are habits we will certainly bring with us once we really, truly reach the other side. I sure hope we won't stop wearing masks, for one, especially when we're a little bit unwell. But maybe by then we won't be forced to go to work despite having a bad case of the sniffles. But we'll see.

The fist bumps, though, will remain confusing. Not just for me. I've had at least two instances that night where I start with my fist and they, the hand, and then I switch to the hand and they, the fist. You get the idea. At one point the guy I was saying hello to just said, "I'll take a handshake, too" and, well, things weren't awkward.

But then there's also the pat on the shoulder. Maybe I got that twice, but definitely once, and only because they just came to the venue and I had my back turned. (There weren't a lot of people then.) And then there's the hug, which I got from one of my co-leads who was particularly excited to finally see us. Now, I like hugs. I'd happily accept one. I just never expected to get one at all. At least it wasn't awkward.