SprinkL3 - thanks for sharing your thoughts on this. It so happens that this friend of mine has always had political views different from mine. For years I've avoided getting drawn into political discussions with her. I guess a lot of people have gotten tribal and have distanced themselves from others who don't share their tribal affiliation. I'm sorry that, in your new location, you've had to lose connections with neighbors who were once friendly.

Like you, I prioritize my safety and my health. You make a goid point about how stressful it gets trying to maintain relationships where very basic values aren't shared. Once I get over this loss and the suddeness of this loss, it may reduce some stress in my life. I need to gravitate toward others who look at protecting health the way I do.

It's not like I'm some strange weirdo holding to a very odd viewpoint that hardly anyone else believes in. You've expressed very well the way I look at COVID precautions. Right now, it seems like most of the noise comes from the anti-vaxer side, but they really don't represent the majority of opinion.

I think I had overestimated how good of a friend this person really was in the first place. I may have over-invested in the relationship. I have to admit, she was kind of a high-maintenance friend. She was calling a lot and, over the course of a week, I'ld have spent hours on the phone with her. She'ld want to drop by a lot and hang around for hours, when I had other things to tend to. But I'ld drop other things and figure that, if a friend wanted company, I'ld cater to my friend's needs. She could get pretty needy. With her, I always seemed to be giving a lot. Maybe that gave her the impression that she could always get her way. Maybe that's why she has gotten so angry. I really don't need that in my life.

I'll have to see this as a chance to move on and invest more in healthier relationships.