It absolutely breaks my heart to see what terror our institutions (government, health, regulatory, etc.) have decided to voluntarily inflict on vulnerable people.
I admit to having little sympathy for people who aren’t elderly or somehow physically or mentally compromised. Contempt is the dominant feeling I have when I see young people wearing a mask in a car or a store.
But it saddens me to see the panic in the eyes of people who have been fed all this BS and may have good reason to be nervous.
Personally, I was up in southern Maine in a very liberal part of the state (Belfast) and was accosted twice for not wearing a mask when outdoors. In one case, I was sitting in a folding chair reading a book about 10-15 feet on the grass off a paved walking trail, and two women gave me crap about not having a mask.
Unbelievable.
Oh my goodness! I am sorry you had to be subjected to that! Here in Florida, in my area there was no big hassle if you weren’t wearing a mask or unvaccinated. Even Walmart just put up “distance” tape on the floor at checkout to make people more comfortable. They asked you to wear a mask but if you didn’t, they didn’t kick you out or anything.