Random Thoughts on a Saturday Night

My husband Dave and I went out shopping today to a real mall. It was the first time we’d ventured out except to the grocery store in a long time; I’ve been using the internet to avoid crowds. But I kept ordering a weed eater and a shovel from a hardware store, and the orders never went through right, so we decided to be brave and actually go to the store in person.

We live in a small community outside a big city, and the chain hardware store we went to wasn’t in Fayetteville, so I was surprised at how crowded the place was. Dave and I have both had our vaccinations, but as per instructions, we wore our masks anyway; there was a sign in the window as we entered that said state and store policy required masks, and they were available just inside the door if needed. I admit I hate wearing a mask; I have trouble breathing in warm air all the time, and I never even wore my scarf up around my nose in below-freezing temperatures up North for the same reason. But I do wear the mask, because I remind myself of how awful it would be to not be able to breathe because I have Covid, and I certainly don’t want to spread it, which I still can, even with my vaccine.

I was amazed at how many people had masks on but were wearing them as chin straps or just over their mouths. Then there were the few who had them down around their necks and a few who didn’t have any mask on at all. I can’t count how many times I’ve been told that masks are the best way to stop the spread, even after vaccination, and that the new variants are worse than the…