This is a photo of our local emergency room with empty triage tents outside of it, taken from inside our car. We were passing by on our way home from getting drive-through flu shots which we could get because our insurance is really good and our doctors are very caring. Somehow everything about this picture sums up for me how we have access to ways to take care of our health that other people don't get. Black and brown and poor people are dying at so much higher rates. Even when wealthy white people like the president and his entourage get sick, they don't even think it's a big deal because they are already insulated and pampered, and can get expensive, cutting edge medical treatment with no problem. If all of us tried to keep each other safe, and if essential workers got excellent care and protection, we'd see a very different pattern.
October 7, 2020
I was never a huge "going out" person. I went to parties, sure, but I never was one for a big group or outing. Last year I started craving it. And early this year I started doing it. Going out, having fun, hanging out w absolute strangers. Now that's all gone. People still do that, people I know that is. But I'm no longer comfortable with it. My roommate bringing a date home is enough for me to grab the lysol. I feel devoid of human connection. I know we're all experiencing the same thing, but somehow it's different, empty. As if I'm moving through life in a fog that won't lift.
November 26, 2020