It messes with the scalp, too.
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Since Iām in a couple of high risk groups that put me in āPhase 1Bā for vaccination in Missouriās plan, 3 weeks ago, I signed up with St. Louis County Health to pre-register for my vaccination.
Today I got an emailā¦ confirming my pre-registration and telling me that the state hasnāt provided enough vaccines, and please pre-register with other entities if I can (but donāt actually schedule with more than one such entity).
Missouri ranks #49 of 50 states in terms of vaccinations per capita, having barely limped past Idaho in the last couple of days.
My parents, who live in rural Georgia in a spot where thereās one major-ish hospital to cover five counties, got vaccinated last week (saying it was really well-organized and smooth) and are scheduled to have their second dose.
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Every medical person I know says go ahead and sign up anywhere you can. Thereās no law that says you can only be on one call list. And do not take yourself off any of the other lists until youāve actually had the first shot.
Also, talk with your doctors about what other options might be available. Perhaps they have a satellite clinic just over the border with more vaccines available, for example.
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Havenāt been around/liking posts/etc a whole lot, because Iām back in self-imposed quarantine again after a few weeks elsewhere for work again. Airport fun, restaurants, whole nine yards.
Even though Iāve had to loosen my personal standards when on trips, itās starting to get slightly annoying how most areas Iāve been forced to travel to seem to be better about the whole mask/isolation thing than where I call home. Though part of that may be a result of being in areas with more frequent traffic from travelers, and I havenāt gone out to a local restaurant since this whole thing startedā¦
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Journal of the Corona Year
02/06
On Saturday I made one of my rare trips into Manhattan for some dry cleaning and shopping. I walked past Union Square. On the elevated portion facing 14th Street there was a large gathering. Behind them there was a white banner with large black letters reading something like āEND THE LOCKDOWN! OPEN NEW YORK NOW!ā
As I got closer, I noticed the large gathering were all men, each with an Arrow electric bike. This was a separate event.
The guys with the Arrows were on the lower portion. Someone was speaking to them in Spanish. It was either about labor rights or advice on staying safe for Super Bowl Sunday. Probably both.
The āEnd the Lockdownā event was far less impressive. It amounted to three middle-aged white guys all looking a little rough. One of them was making a speech. He was dressed in old denim. His hair was long, grey and uncombed. He was speaking into a microphone that may or may not have been plugged into something. He spoke with the detachment of someone talking to themselves on the subway.
As I walked past them I could hear what he was saying. āā¦Itās all lies. All the infections, all the masks all the vaccines theyāre all lies.ā So the coronavirus has been raging for a year and he had no new material.
I could hear him still droning on as I rounded the corner and turned north into the Greenmarket. A heckler shouted, āwhat about all the deaths?ā The heckler was louder than the guy making the speech. The speaker continued as if he didnāt notice.
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So, NYC is somewhat back to normal then?
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No, not at all. Thatās what the small group was protesting against, and why there was such a large group of food delivery workers organizing.
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I meant ānormalā in the sense that some guy is rambling/ranting on about something in public into a mic that may or may not be powered, and people are just ignoring him. And folks are meeting outside about labor issues.
See, to me, being a non-NYāer, thatās a part of the normal of NYC. All the fic and non-fic books, all the docs and films - something like what you mentioned seems to be happening somewhere in NYC at any given time during its history after the whites took over the land.
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I see what youse mean.
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Of all the things for me to be ahead of the trend on, it would have to be a deadly pandemic.
I have been doing this since November. I shocked a medical clinic worker who saw my cloth mask, asked me to change to a surgical-style disposable and discovered that I was more masked up than she was (I have found the cloth helps improve the fit on a surgical mask). I mean, I understand the clinic policy: people barely wear a single-layer of loose woven spandex half the time, or use exit valve masks.
But I had people laughing at me back in January 2020 when I said that there was news coming out of China that wasnāt good. They said I was overreacting when I noted that the cancelation of Lunar New Year celebrations was a very, very bad sign. When I told people to be very careful in March and April, and cancel travel plans, I was getting worked up about nothing.
I dread each time I have to go into my office, because most of my co-workers treat masks more as an imposition and six feet like a magical ward, as though HVAC and air circulation donāt exist. The moment they sit in their cubicle, it comes off. Meantime, I am wearing a double-mask for the full time I am there and am at the point where I will eat lunch in my car, because at least I know Iām the only one in it, when the mask comes off.
The truly scary part is the fact that I work with people who supposedly have backgrounds in science, including microbiology. Unfortunately, what thatās translated to is a bunch of people well prepared to deal with fomite-spread (wash hands, disinfect surfaces) with a mental block around everything else. Throw in some people who have been brainwashed by Trumpism (yes, even here), others more concerned about appearances than facts (like not liking how disinfectant makes things look, so wiping it off immediately instead of letting it sit as per instructions) and I literally do not feel safe at work.
And yet, people are still acting shocked when something I warned about months ago suddenly becomes a thing. āOh, wow, you were right. Apparently,
masks help prevent spread. Oh! You were right again! Apparently double-masks are better. Oh, did you hear? That new variant you said was worse? Itās apparently really bad.ā
I mean, if I can read the clues, anyone can. This isnāt esoteric information, and it isnāt about something that will barely affect us. Every generation alive is going to be affected by this. Nearly everyone is going to lose a friend, colleague or family member. Kids have had education upended. Weāre facing massive shortages in medical care as professionals burn out under the strain. Even if we could have 100% vaccination and herd immunity tomorrow, the collapse is inevitable at this point.
And whatās worst is that as a society, weāve learned nothing. The next one is going to come along and weāre going to deny it, downplay it, host superspreader events and demand ānormalacyā and āfreedomā over science and survival. Weāll be more than willing to sacrifice the poor, disabled and minority communities before our beer and circuses. Weāll cry out for a saviour, and refuse to listen when we donāt like the answer.
Go ahead. Tell me Iām overreacting. Weāll see.
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You knowā¦ people who whinge about overreacting irritate me, especially on stuff like this. Sure. Maybe people are overreacting. But when lives are on the line, itās far worse to underestimate things than it is to āoverā react. If people who are well-prepared end up being wrong, well, no harm no foulā¦ but if you dismiss something like this and donāt take it seriouslyā¦ well, half a million Americans end up dead.
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A flashback to the golden age of quarantine.
A more innocent time.
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The local news/advert rag had this on their front page:
And this on the āSecond Front Pageā
Pisses me the hell off.
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This really pisses me off. Imagine, if last February, we had had a coordinated federal response, plus buy-in by ALL governors, without politically weaponizing the use of masks.
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Back into lockdown 11.59pm tonight. Only for five days and may end sooner if an outbreak of the UK variant here in Melbourne is shut down. But stillā¦ 
I feel like such an idiot now for saying about a year ago that I canāt wait to get back to hugging. Seems like itās indefinitely postponed.
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