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How is the coronavirus pandemic affecting your life right now? Tell us about your experiences, feelings, and thoughts.
Two days ago, I flew for the first time since March of 2020, an unexpected trip to spend some time with my daughter, who fractured her foot and needed help managing everyday tasks. The photo is of a well-worn social distancing sign on the carpet at the airport departure gate. I was uncomfortable about flying, because although I recently received a booster shot, it had only been five days since my shot when I flew. What was reassuring: everyone was required to wear a mask, except when eating or drinking, both in the terminal and on the airplane. I had recently acquired some KN95 masks and was wearing one. My flight was not full, so I had no one seating next to me. What was disconcerting: at no point in my travels did anyone ask any questions about my vaccination status, or whether I had any symptoms or had been in close contact with someone who tested positive for Covid-19. I used to enjoy air travel, but this trip, though necessary, was not enjoyable.
November 12, 2021
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How is the coronavirus pandemic affecting your life right now? Tell us about your experiences, feelings, and thoughts.
Well, nothing happened too much other than my daughter getting her COVID booster two days ago but I do have some thoughts… So today the CDC has backtracked their “you don’t need to wear a mask indoors if you are vaccinated” advice because infection rates and hospitalizations have spiked due to low vaccination rates in many places of the USA due to the Delta variant taking over. So a lot of unvaccinated people took advantage of the previous recommendation and now the whole country is paying the price. In my province, 80% have had their first vaccination while 57% have had their second booster. So while we are seeing some increase in overall new cases, it’s minuscule compared to the increase seen to the south of us in the States. This tells me two things- 1. Overall, there are a lot of idiots/poorly informed people in the USA. This is slowing down getting past the pandemic in North America. This has helped confirmed to me that I no longer want to support that country via purchases or tourism dollars in the future. 2. Unlike the polio epidemic, there is a lack of public feeling that as a cohesive whole, we can beat COVID by getting everyone possible vaccinated. What’s happened other than a whole lot of misinformation out there to cause this? Or are people getting less concerned overall about their community as time goes on? This is a truly nasty virus. It’s not going away any time soon and if more people will admit that and act appropriately, we may make some more headway. Vaccinations and continuing to have public health measures in place are the only way the world community is going to get over this, despite the fact some people think wishing it away is going to help.
July 28, 2021