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Post by cj59 on Dec 26, 2020 16:35:19 GMT
I've been thinking something for awhile now but don't really have anyone I can say it to, but I think that those you posting here will understand. So I appreciate letting me say this. Sometimes I think I'm the one that is weird/strange. I've limited going anywhere since March, only going grocery shopping 1-2 times a month. I've only had a few service people in the house since that time for necessity. I've been in a few other stores for necessities only (except for getting some craft supplies which I consider a necessity ). I had one office appointment in the summer when the virus was low in my state, and scheduled two medical appointments for late this year after putting them off. I wear a mask, even when outside if I'm going to be around someone. Until around September I was wiping down my groceries after each purchase and letting dry goods sit for a bit like they told us to at the beginning. I finally stopped doing that and just put them away now. I feel like I've tried to do everything I can to limit my exposure to the virus and exposing others to it if I had it with no symptoms. But all I hear about is people I know (including family) who have flown on planes several times, got together with family groups for Thanksgiving and Christmas with people from out of town, went on vacations, go out to other appointments that aren't necessities, visit with people, go out and eat meals, etc. They are mostly living almost normal lives. They do all wear masks. None of these people have been sick with the virus. It's just frustrating and confusing that this is so conflicting in my mind. I thought at the beginning of this if our country could just all wear masks and social distance we could get through this quicker. But now it seems like a lot of people are still just doing whatever they want to do, while others of us are trying to do what we can so we don't get sick and so that things can get better. It just makes me feel that I'm the weird one for not wanting to go out and do things. Thanks for letting me ramble. I know that I have to accept that this feeling probably won't go away and I have to make my own decisions about what things are best for me to do. It's just too bad there is a such a divide in how people in our country are reacting to and dealing with this situation.
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Post by lani on Dec 26, 2020 17:57:42 GMT
cj59, I have been behaving almost exactly like you. Perhaps some of these people that haven't been affected have had it and been asymptomic the whole time, or they were never exposed, or perhaps some folks just don't catch it. We just don't know. I feel the responsible thing to do is what you and I have been doing, keeping ourselves and others are safe as we can given the facts that are available. I do differentiate between those who are able to isolate and choose not to, and those whose economic circumstances require them to go outside the home to work. I can't help but judge former as selfish and/or ignorant. Sorry, not sorry.
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Post by bbbearsmom on Dec 26, 2020 18:23:06 GMT
Jennifer, My husband and I are doing pretty much the same thing. I am almost 74 and he is 66 and has emphysema so we are very at risk and that thought stays with me all of the time. As for these other people they are getting sick look at the numbers out there, someone is getting sick, and some of them are dying. DotRen, It is so not over because we have the vaccine. First of all it will be months until everyone that wants to be vaccinated is vaccinated, and even then we might not have enough for herd immunity. Also the vaccine isn't a guarantee that you won't get the virus, just cuts your chances.
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Post by DotRen on Dec 26, 2020 22:12:52 GMT
cj59, same here. I've been out for 2 appointments (well 3) since this started: eye exam, then glasses, and drivers license -that's it. We do either grocery delivery(they put it at the door step not inside) or pick up. Ron or JD will run errands if they need to, but other than that and work, they've both been pretty diligent about cutting their chance of exposure. They both work with people that think it's nothing to worry about. When Rons sister caught it last month, she didn't know where she might have come in contact because she's really careful, BUT she also still was going to her kids homes, going to restaurants, etc. Yeah, we all want "normal" but it's going to be a long time before that can happen, longer if people continue to ignore facts and science because they "want it now".
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Post by fullmahina on Dec 27, 2020 14:42:04 GMT
I guess I am relatively healthy but I am 66 years old and DH is 72. DH has had cancer (three years out from radical surgery), severe heart disease and a quadruple cardiac bypass (still has cardiac issues that cannot be resolved with surgery so he's on meds for that), and an autoimmune disease. With his meds he is doing quite well but COVID would undoubtedly hit him hard if he got it. We are doing the same things we did when this started, in fact we recently started doing curbside pickup for groceries. The last time we went grocery shopping ourselves I was so disgusted by what I saw---noses sticking out above masks, people wearing cotton bandanas that were so thin you could see through them, people with masks down around their necks. By the time I got out of those last two stores I went to I was furious. The best mask-wearers were the people who worked in the grocery store where we now do online shopping with curbside pickup. Yes, I still do a wipe-down of the things we order, no matter where we order them from. When Rons sister caught it last month, she didn't know where she might have come in contact because she's really careful, BUT she also still was going to her kids homes, going to restaurants, etc. Isn't it amazing how people have a total blind spot about how their behavior might have exposed them to COVID? WTAF, people. My sister will rant about the people she sees in Walmart who are not wearing masks but then she herself goes ahead and has get-togethers with people who are not in her immediate household and who may very well have been exposed. As soon as her salon opened up she made her appointment and reported afterward that "some of the people had masks" and she was "really uncomfortable" but gee, she managed to sit through her cut, color, and manicure without bolting for the door. Her SO (they have lived together for many years) hauls his ass over to an all-you-can-eat serve-yourself breakfast buffet (oh, Texas...) where he said "most of the people had masks on." I hope those grits were worth it. Friends of mine (former ICU coworkers, she is a respiratory therapist and he is an RN) sent their teen kids to live with relatives. They have not had them in their home since at least April. Another former coworker, ICU RN, put pics on her FB page of her and her teenage daughter in their apartment in Manhattan, having a quiet Christmas celebration. Her daughter is doing only remote schooling and they have visited none of their relatives/friends since this all started. She has lupus, the daughter has asthma, and she is terrified. Still working in ICU...terrified. So when I see people who absolutely have to go to that damn breakfast buffet, have to have MeeMaw and PawPaw over to make Christmas cookies with all the grandkids and their cousins (despite the fact that MeeMaw is obese, has renal issues, rheumatoid arthritis, hypertension, etc and PawPaw, also obese, has COPD and cardiac issues---can't walk from the car to the house without getting short of breath--- and just got out of the hospital after surgery), and who declare they are "not going to live in fear" I could just scream. I end up being the angry maniac, the "negative" person, the one who is over-reacting. The one who sits here muttering as I read the responses on my FB page when a group-gathering photo shows up, responses like "Wow...beautiful family! God bless!" and "looks like you had a wonderful time!" Of course I feel like responding "where the hell are your %$#&ing masks and WTF are you thinking, you morons??" but I never do.
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Post by DotRen on Dec 27, 2020 14:46:28 GMT
fullmahina *claps* that's exactly how I feel - expressed perfectly.
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Post by fullmahina on Dec 27, 2020 14:53:10 GMT
fullmahina *claps* that's exactly how I feel - expressed perfectly.
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Post by luanne on Dec 27, 2020 17:58:42 GMT
Thanks to all of you for being so rational and being a place where we all can "vent". I am trying to stay out of discussions online with those fools who either deny Covid completely, or say it's no big deal as the recovery rate is high, and mostly those who keep saying we are living in fear if we want to remain cautious.
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Post by bbbearsmom on Dec 27, 2020 18:09:15 GMT
luanne, Sometimes it is appropriate to be afraid. I lost my 80 pounds because I am afraid of getting diabetes, and I think that fear has served me well. Yes I'm living in fear but I'm not willing to accept the worse possible outcome.
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Post by lani on Dec 27, 2020 18:35:03 GMT
we are living in fear if we want to remain cautious. The only people who live without fear of something have had lobotomies. IMO of course.
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Post by cj59 on Dec 27, 2020 18:46:09 GMT
I wanted to thank you all for understanding what I was saying. It's just kind of bizzare how some people don't realize that their behavior contributes to the spread of the virus.
I know I'll continue to do what it safe for me and others.
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Post by luanne on Dec 27, 2020 18:51:23 GMT
we are living in fear if we want to remain cautious. The only people who live without fear of something have had lobotomies. IMO of course. My problem with the "living in fear" thing is that it gets thrown out there by those who want to feel superior. This is my opinion. It's usually followed by something like "well you can bury yourself away and live in fear". They want to be able to go about and live their lives as if everything was normal. I am more fearful of these idiots that I am of Covid.
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Post by lani on Dec 27, 2020 19:45:33 GMT
The only people who live without fear of something have had lobotomies. IMO of course. My problem with the "living in fear" thing is that it gets thrown out there by those who want to feel superior. This is my opinion. It's usually followed by something like "well you can bury yourself away and live in fear". They want to be able to go about and live their lives as if everything was normal. I am more fearful of these idiots that I am of Covid. You said it. If only we could heal everyone's psychological wounds so no one would feel and act this way.
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Post by fullmahina on Dec 27, 2020 21:45:00 GMT
Sometimes it is appropriate to be afraid. The only people who live without fear of something have had lobotomies I know I'll continue to do what it safe for me and others. My problem with the "living in fear" thing is that it gets thrown out there by those who want to feel superior. Sigh....all of this. Fear is an emotion of survival, an emotion that signals the "fight or flight" response. Nature has equipped us with it, and smartly so. It has enabled the survival of man for thousands of years. For some reason some of us have evolved (devolved?) to a point where we think we are bigger, better, smarter, wiser than things that exist only to extinguish us. After all, we have survived blight and war and viruses before, we've conquered many diseases and thrived. What is a measly little virus to think it can mess with mighty US?? And oh yes, we have GOD on our side too, for extra measure. "Faith Over Fear" is what I see time and time again, especially from my bible belt friends and family. Fear is now a weakness, a sign of frailty. What we need to be afraid of is the loss of FREEDOM, apparently, not a deadly virus that should be avoided at all costs. Again...save yourself. Protect yourself, accept the temporary (hopefully) loss of "freedoms" and we may get through all of this alive. A nurse friend sent me this picture. As a former ICU RN I can tell you everything that is going on here, including the double vents, one for each lung. Yeah, %$#%ing "FREEDOM!!" Stupid stupid STUPID!!!
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Post by bbbearsmom on Dec 28, 2020 0:37:40 GMT
fullmahina, Thanks for the photo. I'll look at it every time I whine about not being able to be out and about.
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