Taking my S22 for his second Pfizer shot tomorrow; wife and I get our second Moderna shots next Monday. I’ll be very interested to see what full reopening is like in our area. Our town has resisted the pace of Massachusetts’ reopening so far – our outdoor mask mandate doesn’t end until Friday. But supposedly we’re following the rest of the state in lifting all Covid restrictions as of May 29. It’s an eager mask-wearing area, though, and I expect many local businesses will keep their own requirements in place. I’m sure I’ll see a lot of masks on the streets, too. Which is fine – people should adjust at their own pace. I just hope people don’t do silly things like eyeing me suspiciously and giving me an exaggeratedly wide berth on the street (as a woman did when my wife and I passed her on a recent hike and I didn’t get my entirely unnecessary mask on in time).
I recently returned from a California to Massachusetts trip. Of my three flights, one flight crew stood out for their firm, but cheerful, enforcement of masking. It did not surprise me in the least when they announced at the end of the flight that they were Honolulu-based.
From what I observed on three flights and in four airports, I am glad I waited until I was fully vaccinated to fly.
My D has been fully vaccinated for over 2 weeks and got together with a few friends (all vaccinated) last Saturday night. They went to a restaurant, had dinner (outside) and then went back to D2’s house and had drinks and played board games for awhile. D2 called this morning with fever/chills and a terrible sore throat. I took her to the doctor this morning and she has strep throat. They also Covid tested her and she was negative. This was really the first weekend in 14 months where she has done things like a normal 26 year old and she ended up with strep. Hopefully the antibiotics will help her feel better soon.
I wonder if our immune systems are a little down after a year of staying home?
I’m hearing a lot of anecdotal stories of people getting sick with colds after they’ve been vaccinated and out with friends.
Just because COVID-19 is no longer a threat does not mean that other airborne diseases are absent. The other airborne diseases are looking forward to COVID-19 vaccination since social distancing and masks have been stopping them as well.
I do think that after we have all been wearing masks and distancing for so long that people are picking up “bugs” now that they are getting together again. D2 had chronic strep as a kid and has not had it for years after having her tonsils out so she hopes this is just a one time occurrence.
We’ve never been nor will we ever be without these other airborne diseases (and likely won’t be without covid in some form). The only reason we even care about covid vs. typical illness / flu is it’s highly infectious and more lethal nature. I wouldn’t consider masking or taking other “covid like” precautions to protect against the day to day risks of being a human, which include airborne infections, disease. I didn’t do it before. Not sure why I would start now.
That said, I’ve always been one to stay home when sick, to both get better and not infect others. And to not allow my kids to knowingly hang out with sick kids. Have always been amazed with parents who send sick kids to school (wife is a teacher) or to events because they don’t want them to miss out. We avoid those events when we know about that ahead of time. Going forward, we’ll get back to a full normal life.
Omg. The schools that used to ENCOURAGE going sick by rewarding no absences! Thank goodness that’s gone, hopefully forever!
I went for a walk on the beach with my husband. It was very empty in the direction we walked, but I realized it was the first time in over a year that I was out without once putting on a mask.
Enjoyed seeing a big pelican flock go by twice. Or two flocks once each, couldn’t tell.
Beautiful, @Marilyn!
I recently looked up the plural noun for a flock of pelicans, and they’re great: a squadron (which matches your picture), or a fleet, particularly when fishing!
That’s almost as good as a superfluity of nuns! 
Whoops, thought this was the picture thread…pardon the interruption!
As San Diego is a military town, squadron is apropos!
Went to get my hair done today and almost everyone was mask free. It was nice to be able to not wear a mask under the heat lamp.
Watch out for bombs from the birds overhead.
Went to Walmart here in GA. I would say that about 75% of the people were still wearing masks
My S told me he went to the gym this morning - the first day NYS is open at full capacity and vaccinated people don’t have to wear masks inside in most places. He said most people (including him) kept their masks on. He’s vaccinated, as is his wife, but he said with all the heavy breathing that goes on in the gym he just get more comfortable. I think it’s going to take a while.
It’s funny that I feel like a lab rat now. I didn’t when I got the vaccine. That doesn’t bother me. It’s the throwing everyone together unmasked and not distanced that makes me feel a bit hesitant in places. I feel like we are just now going to see just how well the vaccines work.
In my area, only have 38% have had one shot. I am also guessing from comments read/heard that the unvaccinated will likely ditch their masks. From what I’ve seen in the grocery store/Walmart that seems to be true. I’d guess at least 2/3 are unmasked. H is unmasked. I am masked. I will likely ditch it eventually. I have other places. I’m not really afraid there. It just doesn’t feel right yet and I don’t mind it at all.
My workplace is now only visitors who admit to being unvaccinated must mask. I don’t wear one anymore. I was down to only wearing it in common areas, so it wasn’t a huge stretch. I do wear it around my wrist and if I go in someone’s office, I ask if they’d be more comfortable with me wearing it.
The gym I still wear it except on aerobic equipment though I lift at home. I’m about the only person who wears one now. I’m sure I’ll ditch it too soon enough unless they open up all the equipment. I like having the machines open on either side.
Seems like your area probably reached easy availability of vaccine earlier than most. Has it been six to eight weeks since your area reached easy availability? If so, then you would only need to be concerned about those medically unable to get vaccinated, or those with conditions that reduce the immunity gained from vaccination; all other unvaccinated people could be presumed to be voluntarily unvaccinated.
Of course, if you are fully vaccinated, you would not be much of a COVID-19 threat to anyone else, vaccinated or not, and others would not be much of a COVID-19 threat to you.
Some schools still give a perfect attendance award to kids, and a monetary award to staff that uses less than a certain number of sick days.
I find that disgusting as all it does is encourage folks to come to school or work when sick.
This year, school nurses sent everyone home who had any symptoms of Covid, not to return until a negative test. I think that kept all illnesses at bay this year in the schools.
This is the part that concerns me and has me feeling like a lab rat. I feel like most of the vaccine testing has been under masked and/or socially distanced situations. We shall see if it does hold up in normal real world conditions.
True, but the placebo groups were also under similar masking and social distancing situations.
However, actual vaccine use suggests high effectiveness. Consider these health care worker observations:
https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMc2101927
After full vaccination (two doses plus two weeks), the rate of infection in health care workers (who are presumably “challenged” by virus exposures in the course of their work) fell by 89%, 93%, or 98%, depending on the study.