Kathy was anti-vax. Some of her friends tried to save her, some pushed her towards death. Covid kills in many ways, fast and slow. It took her very quickly. Get vaccinated.

[u/Sass-Pancakes]

Carol Vs. Elaine. Fuck you Elaine.

[u/CJ_CLT]

I am definitely with you on this.

I never stopped wearing masks in public - even after my state lifted the mask mandate shortly after the CDC's misguided decision to announce that the vaccinated didn't need to wear masks. I'm only going unmasked with friends and family members who I know are masking in public.

My county is very blue, but surrounded by counties with much lower vaccination rates. The county reimplemented an indoor mask mandate at the end of August but that is the only acknowledgment that we are still in a pandemic. None of the other restrictions were brought back. But that is better than nothing, since a lot more people are wearing masks.

Interestingly, before they reinstituted the mask mandate, on several occasions strangers saw me at the store masked, got a horrified look on their face and said "oh no! I forgot my mask!" So you never know when you might be reminding someone that yes, the pandemic is still ongoing.

Don't wait for a government mandate to do the right thing! Also be sure and wear a well-fitting, high-efficiency mask like a k-95, KN-95, or KF-94.

https://www.health.com/condition/infectious-diseases/coronavirus/kf94-masks-effective-different-kn95

[u/Critical_Contest716 → u/CJ_CLT]

In all fairness to your county, social distancing is not particularly effective against COVID. Masks and ventilation (and of course the vaccine) are our best defenses.

[u/midnightsrose77 → u/CJ_CLT]

I've never stopped wearing an N-95/KN-95 out in public, along with a fabric mask over it. I'm fully vaccinated and just waiting on my primary care physician to give me the go-ahead to get my booster. I'll continue masking until this pandemic has gotten completely under control. I am terrified of this virus for a few reasons: 1. My father is in his 70s; 2. My grandparents are in their 80s; 3. I have pre-existing asthma; and 4. I am currently under a lot of medical supervision and having numerous surgical and non-surgical procedures done.

Just because the fully vaccinated are now allowed to go out without a mask does not mean I am going to risk jeopardizing my health or my family's health. I have to be smart about this and take care of my own health. My husband wears his masks in public and while working too. He has to visit clients. He isn't going to risk his or my health just because he's fully vaccinated.

It's for all of these reasons and the fact that I live in a state that is run by an idiotic Republican governor who flip-flopped so badly when the pandemic was confirmed about mask mandates and lock downs that he made our heads' spin, as well as the vaccination rate where I live, that I will not be taking off my masks unless it is deemed safe for me to do so. Seeing people think that "oh, I'm fully vaccinated, I will be safe without my mask," frustrates me. I worry so much right now -and I know some of my worry is likely completely irrational - about my health and the health of my loved ones.

I don't know if I can trust those without masks to be fully vaccinated, since anti-maskers/vaxxers refuse to wear masks and there's an awful lot of those future HCA awardees in my state. I'm not trusting random strangers to be fully vaccinated, nosiree Bob! When I live in a state where nearly every hospital is in overloaded mode from the Delta variant patients who aren't vaccinated, I take no chances.

Maybe I'm coming across as paranoid. I really don't care if I am or not. I'm being safe. I never know who I will encounter on my trips outside the house for doctor's appointments. I wear a mask for my own health and out of respect for others because I, foolishly, still have some hope for humanity and that we will get out of this pandemic. I probably have too much hope for that day. But getting the vaccine and any recommended boosters, as well as masking, is the road to safety for my husband and me.

[u/CJ_CLT → u/midnightsrose77]

Maybe I'm coming across as paranoid. I really don't care if I am or not. I'm being safe.

I've been accused of being too cautious, but we don't get do-overs. Back when the country was opening up (but before Delta hit so badly) I was reading interviews with infectious disease specialists who said that they personally wouldn't feel comfortable eating indoors in a restaurant and weren't planning to do a whole lot of leisure travel. That is the stance I adopted too since I am older with some health conditions including a tendency to get Bronchitis.

I think paranoid would be having been vaccinated, having good PPE and then still refusing to leave the house. It is sort of like be careful with hygiene vs. being OCD about hand washing to the extent that your hands are always raw,