Today in Pandemia

HAPPY FAT TUESDAY WORLD!

We are coming up on a year of COVID and the RantFamily: for RantMom seated yoga  a writing exercise and not enough face to face with her kids. For RantWoman bits of science, webinars, and whiel the Lege is in session, the opportunity to watch and comment on legislation to an extent never before possible for RantWoman.

The view
out RantWoman's window
today

Vaccinations?

RantMOM got the second of her two shots. Everyone in Little Sister's household has gotten at least the first shot. As for RantWoman? RantWoman is not of an age to qualify automatically. RantWoman had no intention of running all over the internet trying to find an appointment, let alone find an appointment easy to get to on the bus. But guess what: Fire department is bringing the vaccinations, along with confusion about qualifications to RantWoman's building TOMORROW. 

The first round of communication said all households with someone over 50 qualify. Subsequent information raised the age threshold with a waitlist band. RantWoman is definitely in the waitlist band. Look folks, as often as the fire department comes to RantWoman's building shouldn't everyone qualify. Also, RantWoman has on her list a couple households where there is an unpaid caregiver situation, for instance an adult child who lives in the building and is involved in care for a parent who also lives in the building. RantWoman does not even know who specifically to encourage to show up.

RantWoman DOES know, the vaccination clinic will happen in the lobby outside the Friendly CLOSED due to Pandemic Neighborhood Center for Extreme Computing  So much for digital inclusion: just do the best you can to avoid having to rely on public computer labs during disasters.

Masks?

One person RantWoman has regularly Zooming with was very fastidious at the beginning of the pandemic about wiping down groceries, wearing masks, needind a lecture about why lay professors should leave the N95 masks to health care workers. Recently though, he confessed sometimes he doesn't even wash his masks between wearings. He just figures after 3 days any virus on his masks will be dead and it's safe for all to re-use the mask before laundering.

RantMOM asked RantWoman about double-masking. No! RantWoman is slowly upgrading to multilayer well-sewn masks with elastic at the ears. A lot of hte time though RantWoman is just wearing the same cut out of T-shirt cloth no sew masks she has been wearing for months. If it really becomes clear that more masking would help, RantWoman can go back to multiple layers of folded bandana anchored with ponytail holders. But no, double masks will be TOO MUCH.

Snow and Sun-induced Giddiness

After several days of snow and subfreezing weather, the city is (choose one or more)

The tree and window ledge
 two days ago

--blanketed in a soothing cover of white pillowiness?

--Covered in grey slop, car-friendly bus and pedestrian annoying snow plowings

Grey slop at bus stop.
What bus stop?
Can you find the bus stop?

--Ablaze in more than enough sunshine to lure many folk out of our grey dingy lairs.

The cat needs more cat litter. The cat is also running low on her favorite brand of canned food. RantWoman needed to take care of the being who is doing RantWoman the most good on a daily basis. RantWoman also needed to get out. The snow mostly still lay round about. RantWoman's travel routing. 48+2+11+11+8. Destinations Mud Bay on Broadway and Trader Joe's on Madison. On behalf of all @KCMETROBUS riders everywhere, RantWoman sincerely thanks @SeattleDOT for a fabulous plow job. Next time could you please maybe possibly, I dunno, push snow PAST the bus stop and leave 6-8 feet next to the bus stop for wheelchair users, blind people not up for urban snow treks, people lugging bags of cat litter...

RantWoman especially thanks the 8 driver who picked RantWoman up at 25th and Madison. The ramp really helped. It probably was not designed to have to mash a pile of snow, but Thanks to you RantWoman made it home without further incident.

Next up: more lentil brownies after book group.