Submissions for this project are closed now. Thank you to everyone who shared with us.
You can view images that were shared with us here.
As we approach the one-year mark of the first pandemic shutdown in Minnesota, the Star Tribune wants to know what the last "normal" photo you took was before COVID-19 uprooted life as we knew it. What "normal" looks like for everyone — both before and after the pandemic — is different, which is why we're letting you define it however you see fit.
Maybe it's the last day you were in the office before working remotely for 11 months. Maybe it's a picture you took before people began wearing masks. Maybe it's a photo with a loved one you haven't been able to see since the pandemic started. Or, maybe it's a photo you snapped during a meal out at a restaurant, before things became all about takeout.
We'll select some of your photos to be featured in a special Star Tribune project — one that will help us all remember what life was like for Minnesotans across the state before the pandemic changed everything.
Use the form below to submit your photo along with a short description of what's happening in it that differs from your current daily life. We ask that the photo is from no earlier than Feb. 1, 2020. If you'd also like to share a photo that reflects your current daily life, feel free, but it's not required.
Here's an example of my last "normal" picture, which might give you some ideas on what you'd like to submit.
I consider my last "normal" photo to be this one, taken on March 10. I left the office (remember those?) and caught a bus to Sonder Shaker to drink a happy hour cocktail while trying to speed read the end of "Emma." I had about 20 pages left to finish before leaving to watch a showing of the new movie adaptation at St. Anthony Main Theatre.
At the time, it felt like a special — but typical — day. Now, it sounds like a dream. Less than a week after this photo was taken, I started working remotely from home, where I've been ever since.
