Friday, July 23, 2021

Getting Back to Normal

 

It has been a long time since I’ve posted, which seems to have become my pattern over the past couple of years.   This time, though, there seem to be more positive things going on in between posts.  I’m not sure how long that will last, with the delta variant, but it’s nice for now.

Here are a few of the highlights.  As usual with this kind of post, most of the pictures aren’t related to the post.  They’re just pictures I like and haven’t gotten around to posting yet. 

Like many people, I’m fully vaccinated.  My group got bumped up pretty fast, so I got my second dose on March 28th.   I didn’t expect to get it that soon, but it seemed like it really sped up.  Everyone at work was emailing information about clinics, and several of us ended up at a drive-thru clinic about an hour away.  It was so efficient!  Everyone was really nice, and they did a great job moving people through.  

I ended up getting the Pfizer vaccine and had fairly mild side effects.  I had a small, slightly itchy rash around the injection site after the first dose.  I had a large (pretty much my entire upper arm) very itchy rash around the injection site after the second dose.  I messaged my doctor, and he called in a cream that cleared it up within about a week.  I’m told skin reactions aren’t unheard of but aren’t one of the more common side effects.  I’m very, very prone to skin reactions, so it makes sense that I’d be one of the people to get a rash.  My sister is fond of saying that I can get a rash if someone looks at me the wrong way.  She’s not exactly wrong. 

I will definitely take a week-long rash over COVID, though.  Possible death or permanent lung damage versus a rash?  I’ll take the rash, thank you very much. 


Nick and my sister were fully vaccinated last time I posted.  Both of my parents and Nick’s mom and step-dad are fully vaccinated as well.  We’ve been able to see my sister and parents, which was wonderful.  There’s more travel involved in seeing Nick’s mom and step-dad, so we haven’t seen them yet.

We had our neighbors over for a cookout and game night a couple of weeks ago.  We’ve been out to dinner a couple of times and have met friends for lunch.  It is so wonderful to be around people again!  I think that was something I took for granted pre-COVD, the ability to see people by going out to eat or having someone come over for dinner.   I hope it’s something I will always appreciate going forward.  


I’m finally back to working in the office.  We went back on July 6th.  There are a few more teleworking options than there were pre-COVID, but I’ve opted to keep the same schedule I had before COVID.  I’m embracing being back to normal!  I have some projects I’m really excited about coming up, so I’m doubly happy to be back. 

As so many people are, we’re trying to schedule all of the appointments that we missed in 2020.  Our dentist’s office isn’t scheduling any appointments.  They just put you on a call list and aren’t saying how long it will be.  I got lucky when I called for an eye appointment in June.  They were scheduling for January but had one cancellation for the next day.  I was pretty sure my prescription had changed, so I happily took that appointment.  My prescription had changed drastically!  In addition to glasses, I have prescription sunglasses, but my insurance only pays for one set of frames and lenses per year.  I couldn’t get new lenses for the sunglasses without leaving them at the office, but I could for the glasses without leaving them.  They said it’s because the sunglasses frames are so old.  I’ve had them since 2012, but they’re still in great shape.  So I have new sunglasses (frames and lenses) and new lenses for my glasses.  And I still have my old sunglasses for working in the yard.  I’m hoping my prescription won’t change for a few years so I can eventually get to the point of having a backup pair of glasses and sunglasses. 

Charlie

 We’ve been working on another house project.  Because, apparently, we didn’t learn our lesson with the kitchen.  Our back porch was screened in when we moved in, but over the years, the screens have torn, and the outdoor carpet has fallen apart.  Nick’s mom gave us a Lowe’s gift card for my birthday in April, so we decided to re-do the porch.  Like every other home project, it has been more difficult and taken longer than expected.  It’s so close to being finished, though!  And I think it will all be worth it.  I envision lots of al fresco dinners and time spent outside reading. 

I don’t have many pictures yet, since there’s still work to do, but you can see the color we painted it in these pictures of our cute little groundhog visitor.



Isn’t the groundhog adorable?  They remind me of Howard the way they stand up.

Howard

The groundhog hasn’t been back.  While I would have liked to see him again, I think it’s probably best for him that he’s staying away from our yard and away from Duke. 

Duke

 So what about all of you?  Are things getting back to normal for you?  What have you been up to over the past few months? 

22 comments:

  1. I got my second dose a week after you and by Mid-May, we’ve been back to normal, living life. I’m sort of shocked about you not being able to go to regular appointments during Covid! We never stopped going to dentist, eye dr and PCP. Here, they were encouraging people to keep up with their medical care. But, medical care is the major employer of Cleveland, so maybe that’s the reason.

    I’ve been wearing Transitions lenses for 15 years and love them! Middle Child has them, too. Much easier than switching glasses.

    I’m so glad that you blogged again. I always miss you when you’re gone.

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    1. Glad you're vaccinated and back to normal. Our dentist closed for a while during the shutdown. We went for a few appointments that seemed particularly necessary, but put off what we could. Even though NC had a mask mandate and crowd limits, our country lost their collective mind. We're one of the idiot counties where the commissioners openly defied the mask mandate. Community spread was extremely high, so we opted to postpone what we could. Now we're playing catch up.

      I've wondered about the Transitions lenses. Do they darken if you're in a brightly lit room? And are they big enough to work well as sunglasses? I know my sunglasses cover a lot more area. Switching back and forth is such a pain.

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    2. Transitions have really improved over the years. They never get dark inside unless I’m sitting in direct sunlight next to a window, which never happens. No, my frames are not as big as many sunglasses, but I have never been bothered by the sun while wearing them and I walk outside a few miles every day.

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    3. Thanks for the information! I think I'll definitely ask about Transitions next time I need new glasses. It is such a pain to switch back and forth.

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  2. I'm so happy to see a post from you and so glad to hear things are getting back to normal for you too! We have been fully vaccinated for a few months, but still laying low since we are in Florida - things are not looking good here. We still stay home as much as possible and still wear masks in public places. At least my grown children can all come over now without us having to social distance outside for family gatherings, that's the most important thing in my book! Have a fantastic weekend and try to pop in more often! :)

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    1. I'm glad you're vaccinated and able to see family indoors. I don't blame you for laying low other than that. We're doing a lot more than we were this time last year, but definitely aren't back to exactly how everything was pre-COVID.

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  3. Seems like a good house project with the porch. That groundhog is so cute :)

    Glad you are back to work in person!! Working at home is fun but that in person interaction with people is also good too!

    I am not vaccinated and at this time won't get vaccinated. For me, although I know its been tested, I don't like that it hasn't gotten FDA approval except for emergency use. I'll take my chances and if I made not the best decision, its all good. We never really stopped seeing family and have all remained healthy :) I won't get too religious or preachy but I thank God for that :)

    betty

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    1. I love groundhogs, but I'm really glad he stayed safely away from Duke. I think groundhogs must be much smarter than rabbits.

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  4. It's good to hear from you, Denise, and thanks for stopping by, too. I'm behind answering comments so please know I loved seeing yours!

    I'm glad you are both fully vaccinated and able to find a degree of normalcy again. Me, too. Although because of Delta, I'm still masking in stores or crowded places, indoors and out. But it's nice to sit at a table with people -- inside -- and enjoy dinner or good times. Most of the people I know and hang with are vaccinated too, so I feel pretty safe in private. Such a relief! Happy weekend to you!

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    1. I'm glad you're vaccinated. We haven't totally abandoned our masks either. And with Delta, we may be wearing them a lot more soon. So far we've only had people who are vaccinated over to our house, other than the neighbor kids who aren't old enough. It's pretty mixed here as far as vaxxer and anti-vaxxers, so we're not fully back to normal. Even closer to normal is so wonderful, though.

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  5. Nice to see you posting again. Glad you are safe and well. I have been fully vaccinated, too, for which I am very thankful. Love that groundhog, so sweet. You have lovely pets, too. Stay safe and well, Valerie

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    1. Glad to hear you're vaccinated. I love groundhogs, and I'm so glad this one stayed safely away from Duke.

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  6. I am so glad life has returned to some sense of normalcy for you and that you came through the pandemic so well. It took a lot of sacrifice I know but now the get togethers are so wonderful.

    Take care!

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    1. It is absolutely wonderful to be getting closer to normal.

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  7. Me and hubby were given the Pfizer. He was just really drained and exhausted with a sore arm for about 24 hours after both shots, and that's it. I was so ill after my first one I ended up spending a night at the hospital to be checked out, plus had to have some blood tests, and was banned from having the second shot on medical grounds. Both his parents, my parents, and my eldest brother are fully vaccinated too (hubby's parents had the Pfizer too, but my parents and brother had the Oxford). I'm the only one of us to have any issues worse than some tiredness and a bit of a sore arm. My other brother is still waiting, since he didn't get contacted even though he should have been by now in my opinion (me and the other brother were ahead of him because we had medical issues making us a bigger priority, but the general catagory for our agegroup has mostly been done now, so I'd have thought he'd at least have a date booked by now). Anyway, with me not being able to get fully vaccinated, and the discovery during my blood tests that I have a compramized immune system, we're still having to be careful.

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    1. I'm so sorry you had such horrible side effects. I hope you stay safe and can get back to some kind of normal soon.

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  8. Hi Danielle. You've been busy, and that is awesome! We, too, are sort of getting back to normal. We are fully vaxxed, but still mask up when we go inside stores and what not. It IS nice to see friends and family who are also vaxxed. That's the best part, I think. I went back to the office for a one-day team meeting on Thursday -- first time since March 2020. My team and I will still be working from home, though we will have 2 days in the office/month starting in October. I definitely don't miss my 4-hour RT commute. LOL.

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    1. I'm so glad y'all are fully vaccinated. We haven't totally abandoned our masks either. I don't think those are going away any time soon.

      I can't imagine a four hour commute!!! Mine is 12 - 15 minutes, depending on lights and traffic. Maybe a little longer during tourist season in the fall (I haven't worked in the office in the fall yet, so I'm not sure), but nothing like yours. I think I'd be a much bigger of teleworking if I had that kind of commute! That's awesome that you'll be able to keep mostly working from home.

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  9. We got our second doses around the same time--I got mine March 30th. Just in time to go back into the classroom...

    As luck would have it, I got in to see my optometrist right before shutdowns, and I scheduled my dental appointment before, but the date was during the shutdowns (about a year ago). I know what you mean about new prescriptions. I was glad I had the "new eyes" as things were closed.

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    1. I'm glad you were vaccinated before you had to go back into the classroom.

      That worked out really well with the optometrist. Our last dental appointments were scheduled about a week after the shutdown started. They closed for a while, so seem to have a massive backlog.

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  10. Jenny and I are getting out and about a bit more now the virus restrictions are being relaxed a bit and we've been double vaccinated. We've been eating out, going to the cinema and enjoying a barbecue with our neighbours. But my book club still hasn't resumed its monthly meetings and I miss our friendly discussions about what we've read. It's going to be a long while before we're back to anything like pre-covid normal.

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    1. I think you're right that it's going to be a long time before things are back to pre-COVID normal. Our numbers are spiking again and our county has high enough spread that even vaccinated people are being advised to wear masks. I'm surprised your book club hasn't switched to Zoom meetings.

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