I now have the Covid Booster #3. Because of medicines I take for auto-immune disease, I never felt like I was fully immunized. My sister-in-law (Debbie), a liver transplant, is part of a Johns Hopkin's study of people taking immune suppressing drugs. She got her third shot in August and further testing showed that she was fully immunized, at last. So, I patiently waited for my turn to get the booster, confident that I, too, will be fully immunized.
Debbie and my brother Jim are so confident of her immunization they are now on a cruise. After almost two weeks of having the booster, I am feeling more confident that I can get out, too, but I'm not quite ready for a cruise. I am ready to get out of the house, though, and explore some places that I haven't seen in more than 3 years: Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis Art Museum, the Butterfly House, Kohl's Department Store, Costco.
Our self-imposed isolation began in December 2018. Since my diagnosis with auto-immune disease, I traditionally isolate from mid December until mid March. But, in January 2019, my husband was diagnosed with lymphoma. So, we never emerged in mid March 2019. . . . Just as I was beginning to feel confident I could leave him at home alone to have lunch with my sister and cousin in late February 2020, Covid reared its ugly head.
I took some baby steps in May and June 2021: I had a pedicure, a hair cut, went to 2 thrift stores, CVS, Dierberg's and Schnuck's. We also went to the Doubletree to celebrate our 50th anniversary with our children and their families. We watched our grandchildren play in the pool, had lunch in a cabana, had a catered dinner in our own hospitality room with some video entertainment put together by our daughters and spent the night at the hotel. Did I feel safe? NO! The hotel was packed with two huge parties none of which wore masks. I refused to get on an elevator with anyone other than family members. We only spent one night at the hotel despite paying for two. We were luckier than many of our friends, though, whose anniversary plans were totally destroyed by Covid.
So, I am ready to step out again for the next two months. We are not ready to travel or eat in a restaurant. But, we are ready to visit some much loved places and people. So, while Jim and Deb are dining on fine cruise cuisine, we will still be eating at home, eating out-doors, getting take out. While they are seeing the tropical sights in the Bahamas, we will be enjoying the tropical Butterfly House. While they are playing socially distanced Bingo, we will be attending socially distanced church one Saturday night.
Baby steps. . . .
