san diego: dialed in: CoViD-19: It Got Me | Where Do We Go From Here? | Are Schools Ready For Return and Surges?

Sunday, January 02, 2022

CoViD-19: It Got Me | Where Do We Go From Here? | Are Schools Ready For Return and Surges? | Suspending Listings |

Bonobos at San Diego Zoo (Taken 11.23.21)

Around 5pm today I finally got a call from the San Diego County Department of Health about my inquiries about my test results from December 23rd, and apparently I did, in fact, test positive. Even though I've done two antigen tests since then, one on December 25 and the other on December 30th, and both were negative. I started feeling a sniffle last night, so when two different nurses called me today, I had to reveal that, so even though it has been 10 days since the test, they are considering yesterday as my "illness onset" and I have five days of isolation ahead of me, today being day one.

And it fucking blows, I'm not gonna lie. One, because I was with my entire family on Christmas, maskless because we thought we were all in the clear. Hopefully they can all be tested, but my sister and her kids just did a week long trip to Albuquerque to see my brother's family so now they could all be indirectly exposed, too. And I don't even know if the in-home care my dad is getting will be able to test him.

But the other thing that is so frustrating is wondering how I could've gotten it?? Was it the nose-picking and coughing kids from Safari Park? Was it the clerk at CVS who TOOK OFF HIS MASK while he was doing my transaction because "it gets so hot with this thing" or was it from any of the Costco/CVS/Grocery Outlet trips I've made? I had two friends that week notify me of possible exposures but they both tested negative before I even got tested. Is careful not careful enough? Obviously not. And it was such a small window from my negative PCR test on December 18 to a positive one on December 23rd. Which also means that if you get that CDPH CA Notify text, you tested positive even if you haven't actually received your results, even though it doesn't clearly state that and is written in the most unclear way possible. I decided to check my bank account because where I caught it is driving me crazy. These are the places I went between my negative PCR test on December 18 to my positive test: Bates Nut Farm, San Diego Zoo Safari Park, friend came over for drinks in the speakeasy - tested negative 3 days later, another friend came over to hang out in the backyard - tested that same day with negative result the following day, CVS (three stores before finding rapid tests- North Park, Mission Hills, Banker's Hill), Grocery Outlet (downtown location), San Diego Zoo. And of course, we did Christmas, while I freaked out about the CDPH text for a few days, before getting Nova and Darren's negatives and loosening up and going back to normal life, even though I now know I should not have.

The reality is, I will never know where I got it. But I'll try to keep doing the right thing and honor the isolation and letting anyone who was around me the past two weeks know. I'll also try to stave off the negative self-talk and blame. Could I have done things differently? Sure, more than a few things. But I can't go back now and wallowing isn't going to make this go away any faster. At least I got my signup for Covered California application in last week so I'm covered for 2022. Still, what a dumb way to start the year - alone in my bedroom, under the influence of nasty tasting cold medicine, listening to podcasts, using the thermometer and pulse oximeter way more than I need to, working my way through a box of Kleenex. "Mild" fucking sucks, but it also beats the alternative. So glad to be three shots in with Pfizer plus a flu shot for good measure.

I think I'm gonna suspend listings for now. Sorry, but I just can't endorse congregating at this moment in time. You'll figure it out if you really need to.

Stay safe out there.

COVID-19:

Good Grief, We’re Doing Throat Swabs Now? The mouth method might be better at detecting omicron. - Slate (12.30.21)
FAQ: Positive tests: Isolation, quarantine, and re-testing - MIT (Not up-to-date with CDC 5 day isolation update for asymptomatic, but still helpful)
Schools adapt for return from break as COVID-19 cases surge - AP News (1.1.22)
Slavitt: For Omicron, 'Only Sure Mistake Seems to Be Certainty' — Seeing the latest variant as milder is just as right as seeing it as potentially more dangerous - MedPage Today (12.31.21)
Covid Will Become Endemic. The World Must Decide What That Means. The task of 2022 will be figuring out how much action we’re willing to take and how much disease and death we’ll tolerate. - Wired (12.31.21)