I’m writing at 8:36 PM and I have not had coffee today. Let’s see if I can get anything done. Yesterday I got a message to check my COVID-19 Alert App. It told me that I had been exposed on Wednesday. I thought that meant the app waited all this time to tell me but then I realized that’s not it. The app works via Bluetooth. It pings nearby phones and exchanges IDs. When someone gets tested positive that gets entered in the system and anyone with the app that’s been withing 6 feet of them for ten minutes or more gets a ping. On Wednesday I went to Aldi, this must have been on the bus ride there or back as I wasn’t near anybody for 10 minutes in the store or even waiting on the line to enter the store. The app gave a number to call and I did. As it was Sunday I figured I might get a call back today. I was wrong, I got a call less than an hour later. A marvelous woman took and gave me information including where I should go for a rapid test. The closest one was not as convenient as the one I usually go to, but it was only a 26-minute walk away. My plan was to leave at 10 AM but it took me a bit longer to get ready and I left around 10:30 and arrived at 11:00. I figured I’d be back for usual breakfast or lunch. There’s never a significant wait where I usually go. I was dismayed to find a line outside but figured it wouldn’t take that long. I was wrong. I didn’t get out of there until 3:40. Fortunately I was dressed warm enough. Some people gave up and left. Right in front of me was a father and his delightful let’s say 4-year-old daughter. There plan had been to go sledding afterward, last time he was there, there was no line. He brought her saucer. He ended up putting the saucer on the ground and the daughter quietly played on a tablet without a single complaint. She was better behaved than many adults. They did end up giving up after a few hours. I hope they went sledding.
There was one woman that I had to work at not getting annoyed at. She didn’t wait on the line. She’d take walks and come back, each time she did there wasn’t room for her to get on the line and maintain the 6-foot separation. I first noticed her when she was maybe a foot-and-a-half behind the guy in front of her. After one of her walks, she came back to stand next to the line, right by me and about 3-feet-away. I politely asked her to maintain 6-foot spacing and she very grudgingly complied. Unlike the child she was totally incapable of staying in the line.
Once I finally got inside things moved faster. There were two administrative stations where they took information from me. Then I was off to the trailer where they do the testing. This was the rapid result test. I didn’t know it but that means that they don’t jam the swab all the way up your nose until they reach your brain. This was a gentle brushing of the nostrils. Not at all unpleasant. I asked them when they were getting the vaccine. They didn’t know. They should be near the front of the line. My friend that’s an infectious disease specialist got his today.
I got home a little after four. I was out more than five-and-a-half hours. Remember I went out hoping to be back in time for brunch? I wasn’t. I hadn’t eaten or gone to the bathroom in all that time. Amazingly I was dying. Before I did either, I logged onto NYC Health + Hospitals MyChart to check my results. As expected I was negative. I’m still isolating from my roommate. I wear a mask when I’m not in my spaces and we coordinate our kitchen time via text. I was so hungry and tired when I got home that I just ate peanut butter on a bagel. Not like that’s a sacrifice, there are few things I like more than peanut butter on a bagel. After eating and watching TV I crashed. It’s tiring standing online for hours.
Yesterday I watched a few streaming concerts. I tried to watch Emerald Rae but there were technical difficulties, so I switched to my Sunday standby, the Kennedys. They did a great holiday show. Then it was a Sicilian Music zoom by Experience Sicily and Villa Palagonia. You might know them as Allison Scola and Joe Ravo. This wasn’t a concert; it was a lesson. First Allison taught us about the music and then she and Joe played. As always learned a lot. As an added bonus Sharon was in the audience. When it was over I gave them a little time and then planned on calling Joe. I suspected where some tech problem came from. I didn’t get to because Allison called me. I got to talk to her and then we went on Zoom and worked on the tech issue. I was completely wrong, but Joe figured it out. Here’s a lesson for all you musicians. The show sounded great once they got rid of some crackle. Nobody in the audience was disappointed. It didn’t sound the way they wanted to, but they have musician’s ears. During our private Zoom I heard things the right way and yes it was much better, but without the comparison, the less produced sound was not just adequate, it was hardly noticeable. So many musicians have told me that they were unsatisfied with a performance that the audience, including me, loved. Artists are their own harshest critics. As for me, I got to not just talk to but see good friends. That makes it a good day.
It was during the zooming that I got the message about the COVID-19 Alert. I took care of that when I was off the call. I was never scared or even worried. It was more about being inconvenienced and protecting my roommate. I’m getting a call from NYCH&H tomorrow with some counseling. I will also be getting a package in the mail. They provide social services for people that need it. I’ll see what’s available and see what I need. The state and the City are doing a great job on this. Remember that next time you say that the government can’t do anything right.
Wise Madness 