Wearing a Mask

I left San Miguel four weeks ago and I never thought I would be wearing a mask four weeks later but a lot of things have happened in those four weeks that are beyond anything I could have imagined. Looking back, how naive I was.

I understood that the coronavirus was going to affect many people and that medical systems would be  stressed but I thought that the United States could handle the virus better than Mexico. So I could go to Houston, get an apartment for six months. The complex where Ned and I had lived for two years was next door to an HEB, Krogers and Walgreens were across the street. When I arrived I was renting a car for a week to gather up what I needed for an apartment and then I wouldn't need a car. I could walk and if I wanted to go somewhere too far to walk, I'd get an Uber. Within about one day after arriving in Houston it dawned on me that "staying in place," or isolation, or quarantine, or whatever you want to call it was happening NOW. There was no time to settle-in. There was no time to see most of my family. So, I look forward to talking with them and long to hug them.

Services like Instacart, Curbside pickup, Whole Foods, Krogers, and HEB delivery all sound great but the demand is so huge that the delivery times are out about 10 days and they are so overloaded that the 20 items you ordered may be down to 10 items available when they are delivered. Although if I walk to the grocery store I can find the things I ordered except for cleaning supplies, toilet paper and paper towels.  Toilet paper can sometimes be found but I have not seen paper towels since the day after I arrived. Thank God, there is no shortage of food.

Naive? Yes! A few months in Houston. The emergency would be over. I'd go home but everyday brings more knowledge about this disease. To get it fully under control, we need a vaccine and that is probably 18 months down the road.

Although this is a rather stylish one that a friend brought to me, I hope that wearing a mask doesn't become the new normal.