Tag Archives: science

What’s Eating Aunt Debbie?

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Like so many of you, I have too much on my mind and I’m suffering from insomnia. I’m lucky if I sleep 6 hours once a week! Last month, I had slept 5 nights of 6 hours or more. All other nights were 4 hours or less. No lie. Yes, I have been keeping track so I have something to show my NP on my next visit.

So, you may be wondering what’s been bothering me? Maybe the same things that are bothering you! And I’m going to say right now up front and without hesitation, this blog is based on MY life, MY feelings and MY opinions. If you don’t agree that’s your prerogative but if you can’t be respectful then don’t fucking comment!

COVID. Yes, the topic that everyone is sick of. But being sick of hearing about it isn’t going to make it go away! Making it go away will be a joint effort of everyone and I don’t see that happening anytime soon. Some people think it’s all about them and their personal freedom. Guess what? It’s not about the individual. It’s about the entire country; your state, your community. If you don’t want to wear a mask, then don’t. If you don’t want to get vaccinated, then don’t. I just pray that COVID skips your dumb ass and that you don’t infect your children, grandchildren, elderly parents, siblings, or the innocent immune-compromised shopper that you infected as you sneezed while in the produce aisle, because you don’t seem to care about those people when you refuse to wear a mask. Thankfully, the number of deaths have gone down BUT I’m pretty sure we’ll have another surge eventually. Not enough folks want to get the vaccine to help stop the virus and at the very least, won’t wear a mask because they think masks don’t work or it violates their freedom. Pfftt…

I just don’t get it. The mentality.

Masks work. If they didn’t then there would be no need for your dentist to wear a mask while bent over your open mouth. If masks didn’t work then there would be no reason for surgeons to wear one while removing your gallbladder or doing open-heart surgery. Duh.

Vaccines save lives, too. Think about polio, pertussis, measles, mumps and many other communicable diseases that have been nearly eliminated. Are there risks involved in getting one of the COVID vaccines? Of course there is, just as there are risks getting any vaccine or taking any medication. The benefit outweighs the risk! I think some people would prefer to be ignorant of facts and science. UGH.

Some people are nuts. Seriously. They refuse the vaccine because they “don’t know what’s in it.” Come on. Give me a break! You don’t know what’s in that McRib sandwhich, Nacho flavored Doritos, or numerous other products either but you consume them like they’re the best thing under the sun. If you get sick with strep throat, the doctor will prescribe an antibiotic. You don’t refuse that, either, do you? You don’t know what’s in it. Why do you take it?

All of this crap is just exhausting. No one seems to want to do the right thing anymore. People are hateful for no reason. Behaving badly seems to be the new normal. It seems people don’t have a problem being UGLY to each other.

So, I stay home. I don’t venture out for much these days. I go to appointments and pick up a few groceries now and again. Mostly I use pick up services and drive up windows. I have very little use for most humans anymore.

What’s Eating Aunt Debbie?

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Well, first of all, I’ve been writing and re-writing this post since Saturday. Every time I read it, I feel like it’s not good enough, sounds stupid, or “that doesn’t make sense.” So, I’m starting over and writing as it comes and if it’s not good enough, too damn bad. If you disagree, then that’s fine. These are my feelings and opinions, and NOT up for debate. 

*When I was growing up, through old movies I watched with my Dad, I learned that it was wrong to shoot or stab someone in the back. It meant that you were a yellow-bellied coward. You should always look your enemy in the eye. Have a fight that is fair. No back-stabbing. No bullets in the back. It all seemed so logical at the time and it still does.

Why would you shoot someone in the back anyway? Unless you were a yellow-bellied coward… 

Fast forward to 2020, August 23rd to be exact. A young black man, father of 6 children, was shot 7 times at close range….IN THE BACK! Jacob Blake is his name. He is paralyzed and will have life-long issues. Three of his children watched their father being shot in the back by a police officer.

Police officers need to be trained better! They need to be taught to never shoot a man in the back! What a cowardly thing to do. I don’t care if Mr. Blake had a knife or not. I don’t care what his past was. (No, he did NOT rape a child.) He didn’t deserve to be shot in the back! I don’t care if there was a struggle. A person walking away or running away poses no threat to police officers. If Mr. Blake had a gun and was shooting at the police as he ran away, then that would be a different story. But he didn’t have a gun. The officer who fired those shots was following Mr. Blake at very close range. That officer also put 3 of Mr. Blake’s young children in danger! They watched from the backseat of the vehicle in horror as their father was shot! What if one or more of those bullets had missed Mr. Blake and ricocheted, hitting one of those children? 

This event and others like it, are occurring more often in this country and it sickens me. Kyle Rittenhouse killed two people and injured others, but he’s alive. Had he been black, they would have shot him dead. I could list dozens of incidents but it’s exhausting to even think about it. I’m so disillusioned and disappointed in people. I do support police officers. They do a dangerous job in protecting the public but ANY police officer who shoots a man in the back should be held accountable and by that, I mean fired. PERIOD.

*On the subject of COVID-19, I’m sick to death of hearing our POTUS continually ignore science and experts in the field. What the hell is wrong with him?! 6 million people have tested positive for COVID-19 in the US. OVER 183,000 of those people have DIED. Now, I’ve heard him pushing herd immunity. It’s just another attempt at ignoring the severity of the COVID-19 problem.

Scientists say that in order to achieve herd immunity, 50% to 70% of the United States population would need to be immune (either by infection or vaccination) to stop the spread. That’s 165 million to 230 million people! The death rate from this virus is about 1%, which sounds like such a small number BUT that could mean 2.3 million people in the US would have to die. Some research suggests that herd immunity could be achieved at just 20% of the population. That would mean 600,000 people would die.

Haven’t we had enough deaths in this country? 

 

*I’m disgusted with Trump for so many reasons… Too many to list here, although that post may come some time in the near future. I just can’t understand WHY it’s so easy for Trump’s followers to believe that Joe Biden is a terrible person and unworthy of the title of POTUS… but so difficult for them to believe that Trump is a despicable, dishonest, racist, ignorant, narcissistic, hateful human being when it’s all laid out for the entire world to see. 

*On a personal note, my littlest grandchild, Hudson, turned 2 years old yesterday. His party is Saturday and unfortunately, Dad and I won’t be going. If you follow my blog, then you may recall that my Dad is 83 years old and at high risk for contracting COVID-19. A birthday party is just not a risk we’re willing to take. This terrible virus is affecting us all. I’m not one to ignore science, neither is Dad, so we continue to stay home.

Depression comes and goes but we are doing more to occupy our minds. Jigsaw puzzles, crossword puzzles and other word games, movies and tv series’ keep us busy. So does food, but I won’t mention the tendency to overeat or the weight I’ve gained! On the flip side, Dad has lost weight. He’s getting so skinny and try as I might to get him to eat more, he just doesn’t have much of an appetite. It could be the heat, too, so thankfully we’re looking at some cooler temps as we enter into the Fall season…or more commonly known in my house as “Sweater Weather.”

Signing off for now. Be good to yourselves.