Monday, May 2, 2022

COVID Continues

I was optimistic that the daily COVID case rate, spiking thanks to a new sub-strain of Omicron, would resume its downward trend once it got warmer in the spring, but after a chilly April, it's only beginning to get warm now and the seven-day new case average has already doubled over the past month.

And to make things even more disheartening, Dr. Anthony Fauci (below), after having declared an end to the pandemic in the U.S., quickly backtracked and said that the "acute phase" of the pandemic is over in the U.S. and that we're still in a pandemic. Some experts are actually expecting another surge - in the Southern states this summer.  But things are quiet for now, right?  Judge for yourself - Dr. Fauci skipped the White House Correspondents Dinner to avoid getting sick - despite being vaccinated - due to his age (he's 81, two years older than President Biden). 

Well, things should be done in my area for awhile by June, at least.  In fact, I was planning to go to a local art museum that opens to visitors for free every first Thursday evening of the month on June 2 to see a special exhibit.  June is usually the last month the museum has free first Thursday nights before resuming them in the fall.  I figured that going this Thursday, the first Thursday of May, was too soon.  Except for one thing; there won't be a June free first Thursday this year, so if I want to see this special exhibit, I have to go this week. 

And after that, I don't see myself returning to this museum any time soon.  Or doing much of anything else locally; there's a film festival every year in my area, and this year the festival is in October.  Thanks to COVID, and thanks also to high ticket prices, I don't expect to go to a movie at the film festival, and I have unsubscribed from the e-mails the festival organizers send out.  Dropping out of life's pleasures, of course, is nothing new to me, as I've made clear in the past month and change. 😢    

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