As July begins, starting with a bang on July 4, people are outside, gathering, and figuring that it’s summer and COVID 19 is done. Lots of prior restrictions such as masking have been lifted. Meanwhile, there’s lots of rumors that the Omicron variant BA-5 is running rampant. And that it’s far more contagious. BA-5 and the closely related BA-4 Omicron strain were collectively about 1% of US cases by early May, according to CDC. BA-5 alone represented an estimated 65% of US cases by the week ending July 9. But Covid wasn’t even mentioned that much on the news because everyone was talking about the January 6 hearings that were being televised, among other concerns such as rising gas prices, the thought of a recession, and the situation regarding the war in Ukraine.
Our friends the Koobatians flew up here and spent a nice weekend with us . The value of friendships can’t be overstated. We hunkered down, pretty much stayed home and enjoyed local restaurants. Got into a few intense political discussions but Covid was not featured in any of them. All four of us have been very careful for so long and continue to do so!
Then it was time to pack for our Canadian trip. It’s been in the planning stages for so long! While packing, I made sure to take lots of masks and then at the last minute, I threw in four boxes for a total of eight Covid tests.
It’s a good thing I did.
I felt a bit uneasy before we left on our trip, as the cases have gone back up and it seem to be everywhere. The ArriveCAN app that’s required for entry into Canada, as well as the fact that Canada still requires masking in airports and on planes, was reassuring.
We embarked on our trip, knowing that we had done what we could and were just going to enjoy our time! We arrived at the Westin hotel in Calgary late on the afternoon of our departure on July 12, and noticed that hardly anybody was wearing masks. We learned that other than the airport and airline restrictions, masking wasn’t required in Canada anymore. And boy were people out in full force for the Calgary stampede! Although everything was outdoors, there were people, particularly young people, everywhere. They were friendly and joyful. We went to two shows, an afternoon rodeo and then an evening show. We were pretty packed in with people but again it was outdoors. We thought about masking, but didn’t. We noticed a few people here and there that were masked. This was the first Calgary stampede in three years that had no Covid restrictions whatsoever. People were in a celebratory spirit!
On Friday morning July 15, we embarked on our Tauck tour. We noticed that on the bus, there were only a handful of people that had masks on. Masks weren’t required by Tauck anymore either, but they were going to follow the local rules as far as masking or other health protocols.
Lynn started having cold symptoms shortly after we began the Tauck tour. On the morning after our first hotel stay, he tested himself. It was negative and we were very relieved. But, we began diligently wearing masks indoors and out to protect the other travelers even if it was only a cold. On the next day, he felt a little better and we thought “good, it’s just a cold.” But then the day after that, he started feeling worse and to me he didn’t look good at all. By then we were at the Fairmont resort hotel in Lake Louise. This is a very exclusive hotel in what is basically a ski town. There is a three-year waiting list for reservations at this hotel.
On the morning we were to depart from the hotel for our next leg of the tour, Lynn tested again. This time it was positive. This meant we could no longer continue on the tour. We had to make some decisions, and make them quickly.
After discussions with our travel insurance, our travel agent, and the Tauck trip Director, we made the independent decision to safely depart from that hotel, reserve a spot on a bus back to Calgary, and catch the first one-way flight we could back home. Quarantining in Lake Louise was out of the question and we really didn’t see the advantage of going back to Calgary and quarantining there. We actually weren’t very far from home. Plus we needed Lynn to get on Paxlovid (more about that later) and obtain a PCR test. We felt we could travel safely and protect others by double masking and distancing during our journey home. But It would require us to “do the skedaddle” and keep our mouths shut.
Which is what we did. We were on a bus heading back to Calgary before our Tourmates had even boarded the Tauck bus for the continuation of their journey. During the bus ride, our travel agent made airline reservations for us for 6 o’clock in the morning the following day. We would have to get up at 2:30 in the morning to clear international flight protocols but we didn’t care. She also booked a hotel for us right there by the airport that provided a 24 hour a day shuttle.
We were very grateful when we recalled that the United States had lifted the Covid test requirement to re-enter the country. We wouldn’t be dealing with any US restrictions during our journey back into the country.
By the time we settled into the airport hotel, I felt like I was having symptoms, but I wasn’t sure if it was Covid, anxiety, or travel fatigue. I decided that when we got home, I would test myself. Meanwhile, we basically breathed as little as possible, (LOL), never coughed, and distanced ourselves as much as we could. We breathed a collective sigh of relief when our plane landed on US soil in Seattle. On the final flight into Bellingham, our seat assignments were in the last seats in the back and there were six rows ahead of us that were completely vacant. We thought that strange, since the news was talking about canceled flights and flights being jammed full. But we were grateful, just the same. Thank you, Lord. Perhaps we didn’t end up exposing anyone.
We got home that morning at 10. Lynn was able to get his PCR test and a prescription for Paxlovid. I tested positive for Covid. The next day, July 19, I also got a PCR test and Paxlovid prescription. Both of our PCR tests confirmed that we were positive.
Was it just a cold?
No. It wasn’t. Are the symptoms cold-like? Sure. That’s what it could feel like to some people. But saying it was “just a cold” is part of a Covid political narrative that has defined Covid for so many people in this country.
Upon our arrival home on July 18, we followed a strict quarantine and only left the house to get our PCR tests which consisted of someone in a hazmat suit outside our car swabbing our nostrils.
Neighbors and family were kind enough to porch-drop our prescriptions, groceries or other needed items. Neither one of us felt like doing anything but rest, sleep and eat as a requirement to survive but nothing else. Our symptoms were congestion, a slight headache at the beginning, very sore throat, lack of appetite, cough and Lynn felt congestion in his chest. My adult onset asthma was triggered by the Covid.
Paxlovid Gratitude
We were prescribed Paxlovid for five days, Morning and evening, three pills a dose for me and two pills a dose for Lynn. Lynn‘s prescription was different because of some possible risks to his kidneys. For us, Paxlovid had a few irritating side effects. A Couple of hours after taking a dose, we both had a horrible taste in our mouths that we really couldn’t get rid of. It went away on its own some hours before the next dose. We both experienced appetite loss and our taste was compromised. Not sure yet if that’s the Covid or the Paxlovid.
On Monday, July 25 Lynn tested negative for Covid. He had finished taking his Paxlovid the day before. I began testing on July 26. The cumbersome process of submitting a travel claim began. We are grateful we made the decision to get travel insurance.
July is almost a Wrap
According to the Census Bureau dated July 26, the number of people between June 29 and July 11 who said they didn’t report to work because they were sick with COVID-19 or taking care of a sick loved one numbered 3.9 million. The number of people who said they missed work for those reasons during the same period Last year numbered 1.8 million.
As of July 31, I am still testing positive.
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