A bit of “retro” that I hope will never make a comeback. This post first ran in 2021, with the pandemic at its height.
Year Two (for crying out loud!) of the freaking coronavirus pandemic. Sure, it seems to be trending in the right direction, and many more people have been vaccinated against Covid-19, including my bride and me. But it is far from over, and I choose to listen to the experts, who say that the effects of the new variant strains could launch another surge. Not to mention potential super-spreader events, such as the spring breakers in Florida and elsewhere.
Some optimists—or deniers—seem to think we’re getting back to “normal.” Tell the truth, I don’t want to get back to “normal,” if “normal” includes mass shootings such as what we’ve witnessed over the past couple of weeks. It would be tragic if we’ve learned nothing from the trials of the past year-plus.
One good thing, I suppose: subsequent to receiving my second vaccination at the end of February, I have ventured out of the quarantine cave a number of times (still double-masked). I’ve been to my optometrist, my dermatologist, and my dentist, and I’ve taken my venerable Chevy in for a tune-up. Yeah, I know…nothing too exciting, but necessary.
However, the best is yet to come. Later this week—barring the unforeseen—Jacqueline and I will be at Petco Park for the San Diego Padres’ opening day! Moving to a less restrictive tier in our county will allow about 8,000-10,000 fans in for this initial homestand, and our season ticket longevity includes us among the chosen.
Ah, the simple pleasure of attending a baseball game. This kind of “normal” I can live with, ya know? GO PADRES!
Just when you think it’s been safe going back into the water for a long time now…
My family avoided catching COVID-19 during the pandemic, but those bugs are still out there waiting to pounce. Given that they’ve spread into so many animal communities, they say we won’t ever be rid of it.
Right before last Christmas, my husband’s step-father caught COVID. We thought he would be okay, but he took a sudden turn for the worse and collapsed at home from impending organ failure. He died in the hospital during the second week of January. He was not up to date with his vaccines.
My husband’s father went into the hospital a month ago with other serious issues, but two weeks ago they called us to say he tested positive for COVID. The probability is that he caught it in the hospital, but that was beside the point because my husband had been taking his step-mother to the hospital every day to spend the afternoons with his father.
Short version of the unfortunate story, both my husband and his step-mother caught it, and he brought it home to me. Despite having had every vaccine we’ve all been eligible for (five, I think), we’ve been sicker than we’ve been in a long time. COVID truly sucks. Nobody else lost their sense of smell/taste, but I did, which is really strange.
Fortunately, everybody is now on the upswing, but we were still worried there for a while because none of us are youngsters anymore.
I wish this post was simply “retro” but I can testify to the fact that it’s not. People need to know that getting their vaccines is still an important issue. They may not keep you from getting sick, but they can keep you from dying if you do catch it.
Sad tale, Kate. I hope you all remain on the upswing. An article in our local paper just this morning reported that cases in San Diego County were on the rise. I had my second booster a couple of weeks ago, but I’m still cautious when I do go out, since I barely expose myself to humans under current circumstances.