it's different...
It can all be a bit off putting and even annoying. The dilemma comes in not knowing what to do in all situations. And, it's all because of a virus!
Should I go to that party or not.
Will others be wearing a mask if we go to the game?
Is it okay to go to a restaurant?
Do I stand six feet from someone talking with me while we're standing at that bar?
A family gathering at your house Doris...with how many people? Uh, is it okay to ask if they have all been vaccinated?
Yikes! Those plumbers are coming into the house! Will I offend them if I wear a mask?
HUH? What's up with that?
Indeed, Covid-19 and its variants have been like a major league team against a bunch of kids in daycare.
Think about it.
A virus has literally electrically charged political ideologies in the United States and other parts of the world. Covid-19 is the reason we are confronted with social situations and don't know the correct protocols and worry about offending (or not) our hosts or those around us. Our lives are certainly different from prior to Covid-19 and we're still evolving into whatever it is we are going to be in the future.
What’s really amazing is how wide-ranging the affects of the virus have played out in our culture.
While COVID-19-related lockdowns may have decreased the spread of a deadly virus, they appear to have created an ideal environment for increased domestic violence.
According to UCDavis.com.... extra stress in the COVID-19 pandemic caused by income loss, and lack of ability to pay for housing and food has exacerbated the often silent epidemic of intimate partner violence, suggests a new University of California, Davis, study.
In the workplace, it took a world-wide pandemic for many companies to realize they can function beautifully with employees working from home, while shells of their once populated buildings and offices remain empty. Still other corporations and public institutions are now returning to work.
Humana Corporation, based in Louisville, Kentucky, has set the middle of March as the target date for all employees to return to their brick and mortar headquarters in the heart of the city.
Among the casualties of the past two years is civility among each other. Not that there wasn't animosity and mean people in the world, but certainly not to the degree we see every day now.
Covid-19 pitted one American against a fellow countryman as a certain part of the population felt put out because of government mandates dictating the wearing of masks to protect themselves as well as being respectful to others.
A nurse recently interviewed for H?WUWT? questioned whether the cultural climate when the polio vaccine came out was as toxic as it seems to be today because of masks and the Covid vaccine.
The answer comes from Healthnews from NPR:.... but the polio vaccine had overwhelming public acceptance, while stubborn pockets of vaccine hesitancy persist across the U.S. for the COVID-19 vaccine. Why the difference? One reason, historians say, is that in 1955, many Americans had an especially deep respect for science.
If you believe in the science today, you are wondering about everyday actions that you took for granted prior to C-19 and whether or not we will ever get back to normal.
If you don't believe what's been said by scientists, you are ready to throw caution into the eye of the storm and go about your daily routine as if the renowned Dr. Fauci and his cohorts have been hallucinating for two years.
How, or even why, a medical advantage, such as the Covid vaccine became so controversial should be a priority topic for a future think tank.
True, not all has been bad for the past two years. There are certain habits that have changed because of Covid-19, and hopefully altered for the better. Hint: Buy stock in hand soap companies or any producer of hand sanitizer.
It is also true, there are every day movements and actions that I am now reluctant to perform, such as using a door knob in a public area; going to any kind of buffet; shaking hands with anyone, regardless of the relationship; remaining seated in a restaurant next to anyone who has been coughing or sneezing; going to the neighbor's house for a pitch-in dinner; or, pressing the elevator button in a public building (paranoid?); or, any number of common practices prior to Covid-19.
Expecting everyone to play by the rules may be asking too much, but it's expected of grownups. If you go to an event and a mask is required, put on the mask. It's no longer your option to not comply with the stated request. You have the option of attending the event or not. That's your choice in the matter, not whether to don a mask or flagrantly flaunt not wearing one.
At a recent doctor's appointment, a patient vehemently told the receptionist he would not wear a mask and no one could force him to do so. I watched this drama unfold and was amazed at the man's rationale (because it didn't agree with mine). In the end, he refused to wear the face covering. Not good all the way around.
What's right and what is wrong? Who knows. Everyone has their ideas and limitations and boundaries. This latest variant certainly seems to be much milder than its predecessors, but, the virus is still around. We can't act like it's not there, we have to learn to live with Covid-19 and whatever else blows in the wind.
Coming up: It's less than 70 days until the Kentucky Derby; and, meet more POS (people over 60); plus, what's up with these Oligarchs?
And, finally, however everything works out after this pandemic subsides will be fine. Hopefully, the future will be much brighter than the past two years......but, it's still sad that it will be impossible to eat a piece of that birthday cake after the candles have been blown out.
HUH? What's up with that?
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