I haven't written under the above banner for a full month here. I even skipped Day 730, which I think would have been two full years since I decided to heed my physician's counsel and begin isolating myself from others as much as possible. We've all had to mud-wrestle with the question of what's safe and what isn't and for me — since Day One of this — that starts with the belief that no one's COVID predictions are worth a whole lot.
What little trust I place in the advice of others, I place in certain Medical Professionals who have impressed me as being good at what they do for a living. A good doctor has not only knowledge of medicine but also the skill of Crisis Management. They're able to not confuse hunches with facts and to be neither overcautious nor over-reckless. And they know, when the future is not certain, to err on the side of overcautious.
Over the last two years, a number of people have tried to convince me that I've been being overcautious and they seem to think that's a much bigger mistake than I'm afraid of making. I do not find wearing a mask in public places to be a big deal. If you think it's uncomfy or bad for your breathing, maybe you need to try on different masks. I'm real happy with the one I found…but your face, if you're fortunate, is different from mine.
The masks I get may seem expensive but they're nowhere near as disposable as their packaging indicates. I get enough mileage out of each one to make them utterly cost-effective. Yes, you can find cheap masks. You can even find free masks. But, like so many things in life, you get what you pay for.
And if your discomfort at mask-wearing is political — it feels oppressive, it feels like the government is trying to control you — I think you're connecting two unrelated things. A friend who's been trying to convince me that masking is "theater" has as his primary argument that the governor of our state, Gavin Newsom, is an idiot and/or tyrant. Now, I don't think that and neither do the 62% of Californians who voted against him being recalled…
…but even if I did, I'm not wearing a mask or not wearing a mask because of my governor. My decisions about masking are based on my doctors. And it's not just that I think (correction: I know) that they know more about this stuff than my governor. They know more about this stuff than I do. That doesn't make them infallible…just closer to it than I could ever get watching YouTube videos or listening to professional politicians.
I knew a guy once who used to argue that there was absolute, undeniable proof that Climate Change was a hoax. And here, in toto, was his proof: That Al Gore said it was so. Science…rising temperatures…evidence of changing weather patters…none of that entered into it. All he had to know was that Gore said it was so. If Al Gore had warned against drinking poison, this guy would immediately have chug-a-lugged a liter-sized bottle of Drano.
So, bottom line: I have no long-term plan for ending my COVID-avoidance lifestyle. Like I said, I think long or even medium-term projections are pretty worthless…kind of like getting a wager down now on who'll win the 2024 Super Bowl. You might turn out to be correct. Hey, even Sylvia Browne guessed right once in a while when doing her phony "psychic" readings. You just shouldn't bet money (or your health) on uniformed prognostications.
I am getting out more. I am going to places I didn't go when the virus seemed to be at its peak. I'm just not quite ready yet to post the new header I have at the ready for this blog: It's a Sergio drawing of me throwing away my masks. Hopefully, you'll see it here soon.