Featured Refresh
Text & Image
Does this time of the year feel different than it normally does, or different than it should? If so, give some examples of what feels different.
Tests are rationed in drugstores. Today in Boston: 4 per customer at Walgreens, 6 per customer at CVS. My brother-in-law wanted as many as possible, so yesterday my sister and I ended up in a bunch of different stores, and she bought 18 packages -- 36 tests -- in total. At $25/package, that's a pretty penny. I didn't say anything (though I did buy her an initial set of four to match her first 4 in the first store), but it felt pretty awful to me to be buying so many when there's such a serious shortage. Today the shipments seem to have just come in, but for days people all over Boston apparently were scrambling and home tests were completely unavailable. Meanwhile, people waited in long lines for equally hard-to-obtain PCR tests. My bro-in-law's justification is crap. Said something about someone last spring who'd said "it's everyone for themselves" upon scrambling to jump the queue to get vaccinated -- but of course he's doing exactly the same thing by getting all these tests.
December 27, 2021
Text Only
How is the coronavirus pandemic affecting your life right now? Tell us about your experiences, feelings, and thoughts.
Today I rode the bus and light rail to a doctor appointment. I hadn't been on the transit for over 15 months and was both excited and a bit apprehensive about the trip. I had been relying on friends to help with necessary transportation but now that our world is opening back up again, everyone is getting busy with their lives. And I had really wanted to regain some of the very independent lifestyle that I had pre-pandemic. But it felt very strange to me and I was glad to finally get home. Passengers are required to wear masks on the buses and trains but I rarely saw much compliance. People really are acting like the pandemic is over. The people who had masks were mostly wearing it as a chin strap or around their neck. As an immunocompromised individual, I found myself feeling very uneasy around all this. News about the new variants scare me and I wonder if I will ever feel comfortable around so many people in an enclosed space again. That would be very sad.
June 22, 2021