The Great Unmasking

Well, as I'm sure you're all aware, it happened.  The CDC suddenly came out and said, "Yo, you vaxxed guys can dump your masks now, yo." BOOM. 

Just like that.

No build up. 

I mean, wearing a mask has become second nature after a year-and-a-half. I began to finally accept it as the new norm, hardly even bothered me after a while. My second skin. Hell, it became so normal, everyone in my dreams wore masks. Now, I feel like I need some time to adjust to the whole masklessness of it all.

Part of it is my distrust of my fellow citizens. The pandemic has made a lot of people and politicians crazier than usual. I guarantee that a lot of the people out there running around without masks right now haven't been vaccinated.

Which just gripes my goat. I don't understand the "anti-vaxxers." They cry about how they should have freedom to not wear a mask or choose not to get the vaccine. And buy assault rifles. What they don't take into consideration is that they're holding the rest of us hostage by refusing to get vaccinated. So much for their ballyhooed "freedom." Thanks, guys!

Not only is refusing the vaccination downright selfish, it just doesn't make sense. The vaccination doesn't carry tracking microchips, for God's sake. Why anyone would refuse to possibly save their--and their fellow citizens'--lives is beyond me. Of course it doesn't help when a lot of our so-called political leaders are refusing the vaccine. In the House of Representatives, only 95 of 212 Republican House members have been vaccinated. What the HELL, guys?

It's all become so tiresome with everything so politicized. The chances of swaying someone from one side of the argument to yours is flat-out rarer than catching a snipe.

But, hey, it's Amurica, dammit! Land of the free! Home of the brave people with assault rifles! And the unvaccinated! I suppose it's everyone's right not to get the vaccine. But your personal "freedom" should end when it puts the person next to you at risk. There was some local Kansas idiot who ran the worst Mexican restaurant I've ever suffered. He refused to have his customers AND staff wear masks because "a man has to draw the line somewhere." Big talk from a little mind. "Would you like a side of Covid with your burrito?" 

Freedom to go out and infect people ain't what America's about. Damn skippy. Can't believe I have to spell it out.

Anyway, back to the CDC's decision... As I said earlier, I've become a lot more distrustful lately (thanks politicians!). This CDC unmasking seemed incredibly sudden. I didn't think we were anywhere close to achieving it yet. I still don't. I suppose there's a level of anxiety about it all. When my wife and I finally reentered a movie theater, it just felt wrong to be sitting there without a mask as we binged on popcorn. (By the way, there weren't very many cinematic options. But, hell, we would've sat through "Barney's Big Purple Blunder" just for the experience.) So, why did the CDC finally have a change of heart? I know there's been political pressure on them (again with the stoopid politicians!) to issue the new order, so I can't help but feel they may have bowed down to the idiot "lawmakers."

I'm still wearing my mask out even though I've been fully vaxxed for some time. However, we've actually eaten at a couple of restaurants, trying to get back to living our lives. But baby steps, man, give me baby steps.

If you haven't yet read one of my books (in or out of a mask), then take some baby steps toward my short story collection, Twisted Tales from Tornado Alley. You'll get a little bit of everything here, including a lot of dumb, stubborn Amuricans who get what's coming to them!

 

Meeting the Pandemic Part-Way...

Well, we all want this damn pandemic over with, that's something everyone can agree upon. Everyday I hope scientists discover a vaccine so the suffering of victims and their loved ones can end. And I would hope the day-to-day fear everyone has just by going out and getting groceries comes to a conclusion.

Months ago, I thought the situation was just untenable, near hopeless. I couldn't envision a world where we had to wear masks and even those weren't fool-proof protection. But we've managed so far. Even though there are other factors (*ahem*, I'm looking at you NOTUS {the Numbskull of the United States}) going on in our world trying to thwart the best efforts to stop the spread of covid 19.

Not too long ago, I woke up for the first time in a mellow sort of acceptance state. It is what it is. Time to pull up my big boy britches and carry on, hampered by masks or whatever, let's show 'em that gung-ho, never-say-never, can-do spirit! How did this happen?

It wasn't a sudden epiphany or revelation or premonition or visitation from Joseph Smith or an anal probe by aliens or anything. No, the night before I'd had a dream, business as usual, except everyone was in masks. And the masks weren't the point of the dream, nothing out of the ordinary. The pandemic was the new normal.

People are resilient. I think everyone's tackling this pandemic on their own terms, generally going through variations of the six stages of grieving: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, day-drinking, and finally, acceptance. I know I did.

I'm not happy about it, but let's buck up and carry on. Particularly with masks.

And I applaud the creativity that's coming out in certain areas, making the most of what it is. I've seen a lotta great masks. My daughter, for instance, has taken up the doggy mask. 

My daughter's fave mask.

I've seen people accessorizing their masks to match their outfits. Creativity is soaring!

But about those masks... People, don't make me repeat myself: WEAR YOUR DAMN MASKS OVER YOUR NOSES! It doesn't do you--or us--any good if you don't. The nose allows things in and out too, you know. I don't know how many times I've seen ruddy-faced guys with masks nestled below their noses, their nostrils pluming like a charging rhinoceros with asthma. Geeze, I can't believe I even have to say this. Pretty soon, I'm gonna start hitting people up and telling them to yank it up (of course, then I'll have to yank myself up off the ground; have you SEEN the size of these guys?).

And stop listening to our wondrous president. These days Trump's preaching that people should not wear masks. Recently, NOTUS attempted to bully a reporter into taking his mask off. Trump's rage rallies are full of maskless buffoons (thanks for the thousands of new cases, commander-in-chump!), as he preens onstage like an orange peacock, calling people names and bragging about what a genius he is because he could name a lion on a cognitive test. It wasn't too long ago Trump said wearing a mask was patriotic. But whaddaya expect from a guy who changes his mind by the minute.

My preferred mask (even though my wife is afraid for me to wear it in public. I say, "Bring it, fascist cretins!" (Of course, that's before I get beat up in a grocery store.)

 

Anyway, hang in there folks. This week, I took real enlightenment from something my neighbor said--"You know, living through the pandemic may well make today's kids smarter, more adaptable, and more empathetic."." Talk about finding a silver lining. I'll take it.