Thank you.
I wish I could count on the buckets of anticipatory tears helping to diminish the final tears, but it’s not at all a guarantee.
My kids have had no experience with death. Life experience… 
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Yep, CDC just authorized. Same article updated. I think DS17 wanted to cut school one day next week anyway (exams he’s exempted from), so…
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Nice! I just booked DS17 his booster for next Friday - getting boosted is a good way to start winter break.
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If you know anyone immunocompromised or that Is medically unable to take the Covid vaccine, they just made monoclonal antibodies available as a pre-exposure Covid preventative.
Link:
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I got a new cat. I have 3 now and it’s (truly) been a goal of mine most of my life to break my parents’ 2 cat rule. I can’t believe I finally did it! That is all.
Well, not entirely all. I keep thinking of really self destructive things I could do b/c of wanting to try new things, but I decided to go for the cat instead. This is part of my version of covid fatigue…
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I don’t know if you are still talking weird Bingo… it’s not 2020 anymore. In fact - it’s almost 2022 and we are still doing this…?
anyway.
Camels ejected from beauty contest over Botox use and other ‘tampering’ | | foxcarolina.com
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Yay for a new cat! 🐈⬛
At one point I had seven. That’s too many and I don’t recommend. Now have four. Would prefer to be at two or three. Sometimes though, life gives you kittens! 
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Yeah, it look like it’s going to need to be a 202X thing from the way things are going. 
“The 40-day King Abdulaziz Camel Festival, located about 100 kilometers (62 miles) northeast of the capital, Riyadh, launched at the beginning of December. In its sixth year, it sees breeders compete for more than $66 million in prize money,”
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I guess this is the best place to share this news.
Returned from WDW last Saturday. Started feeling a burn in chest and throat I attributed to heartburn. It ended up turning into a heavy cough.
Laid around all day Sunday on purpose - to rest up for work on Monday. By Monday the cough was heavier and I was congested. Decided to call into work because these days it’s socially unacceptable to have coughing fits in public. (Always has been, but nowadays people give you dirty looks.) 
Took Mucinex and proceeded to rest up again. I didn’t think I had Covid because I never had a fever, body aches, lethargy, etc. Thought I just picked up an nasty chest cold. But because I am one who rarely gets sick, I asked my husband to pick up an OTC test. Just in case. I wanted to rule Covid out altogether.
I was shocked when it came back positive. And the directions on the OTC tests tell you a positive result is generally accurate, whereas a negative result is not. I immediately scheduled a PCR for the next day, which also came back positive. I don’t know where I picked up the virus. WDW? Airport? Who knows. They say it can live with you five days before any symptoms. Well, that puts me smack in the middle of WDW. Not trying to lay blame. It’s just a fact.
I am fairly sure the federal government no longer does contact tracing. I have not been asked where I have been, or who with. I share that to say - who knows if there’s an outbreak in FL. No one seems to be keeping track. I am only four months fully vaccinated. I waited late because I cannot say I was onboard with it. Mainly because since March 2020 I had been to WDW twice. I also work in “essential” infrastructure and never had the liberty to isolate and shelter in place. I was convinced I would catch it, one way or another, just by doing every day things. I wasn’t against the vaccine - just suspicious of the push to get it done when many of us were left out there to be exposed when there was no vaccine.
I am not here to argue about the vaccine/mandates. Just sharing my personal journey. I am however, surprised to have had a breakthrough case of Covid just four months into being vaccinated. Perhaps the vaccine has kept it so my symptoms are somewhat mild. (I pray the cough doesn’t end up being permanent.)
The issue that has me most perplexed through all of it is - how many symptomatic folks are walking around with Covid and thinking it’s “just a cold.”
Covid is never going away I don’t think. Many of us are too individualistic about it. I know I was … ‘til it knocked on my door. 
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I’m so sorry to hear this! I certainly hope it doesn’t get any worse. Do keep us posted. How is the rest of the family?
Excellent decision to do an at-home test instead of going to work! 
Wish more were doing that. Good job not to be part of a transmission chain!
Other than at the very beginning of the pandemic, the federal government doesn’t do the contact tracing. It is your local (probably county) health officials, so it varies considerably how it is done. (I think the feds are getting involved for now if it’s Omicron though.)
If you don’t mind sharing what level of safety precautions you took at WDW (type of mask, whether you only masked where required or if also in crowds or other situations, whether you did inside dining, etc.), I think that data would be hugely helpful to people that are trying to decide what protocols they will follow or whether they want to reschedule.
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FYI…If you’re booking a booster through CVS, the online form still says in one place that boosters are available for 18+, but it did allow me to book a booster for DS17 without any issues.
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I hear “it’s just a cold” or “it’s just allergies” a lot and it always makes me wonder.
I’m sorry you have it but hoping it’s mild and no long covid. I’m coming up on the one year anniversary of my own covid. It was miserable but luckily no long symptoms.
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It’s just my husband and I and he has tested negative twice with OTC tests.
Good to know. Thank you. I live in a red state/county, so probably won’t hear a thing. 
Good questions. At the airport/plane I double masked. Disney mask with KN95 over it. Only because N95 left horrible indentation on my face.
At WDW I didn’t mask at all outside except for rides that are outside/inside. I also had I eight, or so , sit-down meals inside. Including two that were buffet style. Definitely rethinking those two …
Also thinking about Christmas party night where I was eating popcorn and taking items (water, cookies) from folks in between. Definitely let my guard down there. I don’t usually eat finger foods unless my hands have just been washed.
No social distancing at all, really. Pretty much face to face with everyone. Strangers and cast members alike. Retracing my steps I definitely see some spots where I may have been too loose with things. (I even touched someone’s phone, which I generally don’t do IRL.)
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I hope your cough goes away quickly!
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Sending good vibes for a fast recovery!
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Thank you for sharing your story. I followed your TR, which was fun, and am considering taking my family to FL in early 2022, so your perspective on your trip as well as the aftermath are both a service to people like me.
I’m so sorry you got sick and truly hope you have a quick and smooth recovery. I’m also glad you were home with family and the comforts of local resources before you felt sick. Sending pixie dust your way.
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I hope it remains relatively mild! Good job not going to work - I hope that’s something we all keep after this. (I shudder to think the things I passed on because I was “tough.”) And excellent that husband remains negative!
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I have to say that a lot -DS4 has been bringing home all kinds of germs from school, even though he’s masked and does a good job at keeping it on for the most part. But they take it off for snack, so who knows.
However, whenever one of us gets the sniffles, we take an antigen test over 2 days to make sure we are not infected before doing anything. DS4 doesn’t do well with the at home test though, so usually when he comes home with something we end up with a PCR. I think that’s the responsible thing to do, and it would be great if everyone would just do that.
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My wife started working as an aide again this school year and was assigned the pre-schoolers, which she loves. (The 6th graders she had 2 years ago were super challenging.)
People are still sending their kids in with “colds” regularly and is very sketchy IMHO.
How do they know it is a cold? These are 4 and 5 years olds with masks and runny noses! Not a good combo.
Over the course of this week she now has been told that 2 kids are home after testing positive.
However, the sketchiness goes even further: one of the kids was supposed to be out later this week because the family was flying out on Wednesday to Turks & Caicos, Fiji or some remote archipelago. Parent tells them Monday they will be keeping little one home Tuesday too while they get ready for travel.
Then they hear the tot’s slightly older sibling was in school yesterday (Thursday!) and was pulled out of class because of a positive COVID test. Right after that my wife and the teacher hear about the pre-schooler’s positive.
So, timeline recap is:
- Family was supposed to go on trip.
- For some reason one of the kids continues to be in school AFTER the day they were supposed to leave.
- Other kid is not in school.
- BAM! Positive COVID tests.
THEN: Another aide tells my wife she overheard the kids’ parent in parking lot at dropoff the other day talking to another parent: “Well, I just had my COVID, can check that off the list!”
So, my wife tends to work with that preschooler a lot, so she’s now paranoid that this was all going on the end of last week into this one while she was unaware that anyone in the family was positive.
She’s had a bad headache since yesterday (but she gets those often enough) and is walking around the house with a mask and slept on the couch until she can get tested today.
On our wedding anniversary. Happy Anniversary! Woohoo!
Wish everyone was acting as responsibly as you are - and I’m sure people appreciate that you are.
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I hope you feel better soon. Thanks so much for sharing your activities and precautions. We don’t have a trip planned until summer, but still very helpful.
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