@Nammu I usually don’t say much on the subject but I’m kind of glad you brought it up. It’s really been concerning me these days. It’s not a political issue, it’s a health issue – and people have yet to understand that. It’s infuriating we are even in the mess we are because of people being reckless and stupid. The bare minimum is to social distance and wear a mask in public. Get a vaccine, or don’t – but stop putting everyone at risk. I often put it like this – someone has the right to drink as they wish, they don’t have the right to get drunk and get behind the wheel of a car and endanger everyone else. It’s selfish and stupid, and the ignorance I hear. I’m so tired of “I’m vaccinated, I shouldn’t have to wear a mask. I did what I was supposed to do.” – If only science worked the way people wish it would rather than us understand science and how it worked. These variants exist because people didn’t take this seriously. We are still suffering as a country because they continue to fight it and children are now both at risk and the most affected by this variant. I am quite angry about it. Get the vaccine or don’t – but don’t risk the health of everyone around you by not doing what you can to stop the spread. People like DeSantis really need to be held accountable. I wish people could see their selfishness and laziness to intentionally not do what is required to end a pandemic is absolutely soul crushing to the idea of humanity being something to have faith in. We can’t even count on ourselves to protect ourselves FROM ourselves….

EDIT: Sorry to continue the rant, but I think it's also worth mentioning the mental toll on healthcare workers. ICU beds are full, and at this point, with all the precautions we have, they are still full of covid patients, largely unvaccinated, who they have to sit and hold their hand so they are not alone as they DIE, children included. It was different when there wasn't a vaccine, it was different when the this was early on. We know better, we should BE better but here we are.

Nurses and other medical staff are up and striking and not going to work, they can't handle the stress of it (which, I understand, but don't condone...). But they also have to think about their own families, and lives. Many have children who CAN'T get vaccinated. Even in my state the schools have pushed back starting because of a mask mandate made for schools that the parents are up in arms about. It's just too much to watch our own damn pride and being "comfortable" kill us off.

Off that note, I’m not doing well – mentally I don’t know how to say where I am, and I’m in unfamiliar territory where I don’t even recognize myself these days. I feel so disconnected with the real world. I’m not going through psychosis and I’m not any harm to myself or others, but I’m very uncomfortable and I don’t know how much longer I can keep up this pace. Please continue to keep me in your thoughts.