What are you going to do when the pandemic is over? These Minnesotans know

It's coming. We can almost see it. In a matter of months, we will (we hope) be free of limits and lockdowns. The moratorium on hugs will be lifted. Our fears will start to subside. To help prepare for post-pandemic life, we asked Minnesotans what they were looking forward to, what they learned and how they might describe this unprecedented year. Responses were edited for brevity.

The Minnesota State Fair.

Sarah Cade Hauptman, Maplewood product designer

When I can hug people I don't live with without feeling jumpy or twitchy or scared.

Shannon Gibney, Minneapolis author

When I feel free to meet my family in person and play with my great-grandkids heartily.

Rhoda Brooks, retired Excelsior teacher, Peace Corps volunteer

Jovonta Patton, Minneapolis musician

When events and event venues reopen without restriction and concern. And when infections become rare and hospitalizations and deaths approach zero.

Dave Schrock, Grand Rapids building products manager

When I can wear my red lipstick, and it's not all over the inside of a mask.

Jevetta Steele, Golden Valley singer/actor

Jeralyn Mohr, St. Paul artist and interior designer

When I can have a normal face-to-face discussion with someone and not subconsciously be thinking about COVID all of the time.

Chip Jones, Edina photographer

When the skyways have people again and the coffee shop is open.

Napoleon Steele III, Minneapolis shoe repairman

Leann Benjamin, Ojibwe Language & Culture program director, Misi-zaaga'iganing indoonjiba (Lake Mille Lacs community)

The truth is that I am a writer, a memoirist: This pandemic will truly be over once I can meet it as a memory.

Kao Kalia Yang, St. Paul author

I will share super long and tight hugs with all of my most favorite people!

Christine Friberg, Roseville nonprofit president

Dave Schrock, Grand Rapids building products manager

I am going to go hog-wild crazy. I'm going to get together with my grandmother and friends and family. There's already talks in the works about picnics, birthday celebrations, and even (gasp!) going out of state!

Aaron Perra, Minneapolis hairstylist

Go see my mom. Get a full body massage from a spa. Send my daughter back to campus in Iowa City and enjoy some empty-nest time!

Lindsey Stupica, Minneapolis performer and animator

Alex de Ana Skinner, St. Paul high school student

I am going to go sit someplace and have someone bring me the most delicious drink and meal. I'm not going to have to pick it up outside or coordinate a drive-by.

Jill May, Minneapolis, oncology nurse navigator

I'd love to take my children to the St. Paul Farmers Market in the heart of summer. My daughter can get flavored honey sticks from the man who wears a hat like a bee. My sons can stand on their toes and point to the doughnuts of their choice at the doughnut table. I want purple Japanese eggplants, cherry tomatoes, finger potatoes, and bundles of mint, cilantro and green onion.

Kao Kalia Yang, St. Paul author

Sarah Agaton Howes, Cloquet artist

I'm going to have long dinners with as many friends and family members as possible and then, when we're done eating, laughing and sharing stories, wrap my arms around them and squeeze for as long as time will allow before we depart from each other.

Jevetta Steele, Golden Valley singer/actor

I'm going to go someplace big, gay, with a patio so I can watch men flirt, affirming the circle of life.

Seppy Yoon, Minneapolis board game designer and publisher

Anthony Gulyard III, Minneapolis elementary-school student

The standard use of socks. I'm pretty sure creating puppet friends to talk to isn't their normal use, but I just can't remember what is. I guess I should google that.

Seppy Yoon, Minneapolis board game publisher

Letting down my guard about social distancing, feeling comfortable in crowded places and having casual contact, such as hugging and even shaking hands. And being nonjudgmental about COVID deniers and anti-vaxxers.

Dave Schrock, Grand Rapids building products manager

Alex de Ana Skinner, St. Paul high school student

It's weird because I'm a full-on extrovert and have been missing connecting with people in person so much this past year, but at the same time, it's going to take some getting used to again. Just like it took some time to get used to being separate from folks, in the beginning of the pandemic. I'm gonna have to ease into it, and not expect too much from myself at once. We all are.

Shannon Gibney, Minneapolis author

Showering and looking presentable on a regular basis.

Christine Friberg, Roseville nonprofit president

Anthony Gulyard III, Minneapolis elementary-school student

I don't drive as much, as I work from my home and quarantined during the pandemic and have been homebound. I can still drive, but when I leave my house I feel like a cave man.

Audra Robinson, Brooklyn Park entrepreneur

Get my 85-year-old alto voice working again so I can sing in the church choir.

Rhoda Brooks, Excelsior retired teacher, Peace Corps volunteer

Jevetta Steele, Golden Valley singer/actor

The Minnesota Nice has worn a bit thin lately, so I'm going to need to brush up on my small-talk skills.

Sarah Cade Hauptman, Maplewood product designer

In-person conversations (without masks, eventually). There's so much nuance in a person's body language and facial expressions that add context and color to a conversation. I look forward to those moments in the future.

Alex West Steinman, Plymouth entrepreneur

Sarah Agaton Howes, Cloquet artist

Doing what I've done I've had to stay engaged. But COVID has not been kind to my middle, so …. maybe some lipo.

Jill May, Minneapolis oncology nurse navigator

I've fallen in love with attending church online. I enjoy TV ministry and may find myself attending with technology more often.

Jevetta Steele, Golden Valley singer/actor

Audra Robinson, Brooklyn Park entrepreneur

I plan to continue working at home, eating at restaurants less and being more mindful of my budget. The pandemic really drove home for me that a lot of my spending habits were wasteful, and they did not, in fact, make me any happier.

Sarah Cade Hauptman, Maplewood product designer

I learned to relax. Not having to fulfill work and social obligations was a very freeing experience. I intend to maintain a balance between enjoying my friends and work responsibilities while also enjoying solitude.

Scott Mayer, Minneapolis event creator

Shannon Gibney, Minneapolis author

I started to work out every day, not for cosmetic goals but for my mental health, to feel good in such a dark era. I started to journal more and having daily affirmations. I will take that with me for the rest of my life.

Jovonta Patton, Minneapolis musician

It was a bit of the Wild West in our home at the beginning of the pandemic, but bedtimes, designated workspaces, and unplugging at night made everything a little easier for everyone. I'd like to keep these routines and boundaries as we step back into the world.

Alex West Steinman, Plymouth entrepreneur

Napoleon Steele III, Minneapolis, shoe repairman

I like masks and I think people should wear them, when they are sick anyway. I'd like to see masks become a normal part of life.

Lindsey Stupica, Minneapolis performer and animator

I was determined that our kids would learn the depths of their patience, the gifts of being outside, and for that I am grateful. The woods coming in clutch, yet again.

Sarah Agaton Howes, Cloquet artist

Jovonta Patton, Minneapolis musician

Remember that the people who died during this time did not die from the pandemic alone. There was no justice to be found. In the newspapers, on the days after our loved ones died, we read of treatments available to the rich and powerful. We waited to bury our dead. They came to us in dreams with questions we couldn't answer.

Kao Kalia Yang, St. Paul author

It was a confusing time, where some folks made their own "truth" and we lost more people than we needed to.

Seppy Yoon, Minneapolis board game designer and publisher

Alex West Steinman, Plymouth entrepreneur

A lot of people died, a lot of sadness was present in society, but there were many good things, too. I was able to do many new things, relax at home a lot more and go outside a lot.

Alex de Ana Skinner, St. Paul high school student

It was like a football game: the time displayed on the clock had no bearing on how long the game actually lasted.

Sarah Cade Hauptman, Maplewood product designer

Sarah Agaton Howes, Cloquet artist

Can I say hell on Earth? Then it was hell on Earth.

Aaron Perra, Minneapolis hairstylist

You can't honestly believe how much your life can change with a moment's notice. Everything you thought you knew can be changed by the decisionmaking of others.

Jill May, oncology nurse navigator

Scott Mayer, Minneapolis event creator

What I can do is talk about my mom. I will be able to share her story, and how she lived, and how she pushed and pushed for us to be better people. She was careful, always so careful during this pandemic, but something went wrong. Did she get too close? Did she not mask up or did she forget her mask? These are questions that I ask myself, and I still have no answers to.

Leann Benjamin, Ojibwe Language & Culture program director, Misi-zaaga'iganing indoonjiba (Lake Mille Lacs community)

Staff writers Richard Chin, Rachel Hutton, James Lileks, Connie Nelson, Kim Palmer and Erica Pearson contributed to this report.