Why mascara? Because behind a mask, your lips don’t show, but your eyes do. I have certainly noticed more and heavier eye makeup, especially on young women, in the months since people started wearing masks.
Corroboration of my intuition and direct observation:
https://fortune.com/2020/07/07/lipstick-index-face-masks-coronavirus-nail-polish/
https://www.businessinsider.com/eye-makeup-sales-rise-lipstick-dips-due-to-mask-wearing-2020-8
https://www.globalcosmeticsnews.com/goodbye-lipstick-effect-hello-mascara-index-how-covid-19-may-have-changed-the-beauty-landscape-for-good/
https://www.townandcountrymag.com/style/beauty-products/a32406560/end-of-lipstick-index-coronavirus-recession-mascara-index/
etc. (Search term: “lipstick sales down, mascara sales up”)
As for the disappearance of butter pecan ice cream, @stanleybmanly, that’s not something I track, but I do see that slower movers are being dropped from stores and also that some things have become scarce because supply lines have been disrupted. I can’t find RC cola’s zero-cal line, Diet Rite Cola, anywhere any more, unless I want to pay for shipping, which I don’t.
Do you think I’m making up conspiracy theories?