A friend from another country asked if we were back to normal in the USA the other day… Well, that depends, really, on where you live in the US, but I’ll go with my hometown which will go unnamed for obvious reasons.
I went to my daughter’s swim meet yesterday afternoon and timed. The crowd in the stands was sparse by normal standards, but there were parents up there.
Not one kid, coach, parent (timer) or official wore a mask on the pool deck and only three parents had one on in the stands.
This is all good news to me, of course. I actually brought a mask with me, figuring they’d be required to get in the building (I have no problem playing along, though the misrepresentations of the science get tiresome). I was overjoyed when I saw adults walking into the building bare-faced, so my mask stayed in my pocket. Where it belongs.
We’re almost back to normal, but I can’t dare give out where I live for fear the mask-fascists will attack our school with their desire to c*ck-block everything good, happy and wonderful in the world to give off an air of superiority whilst, and at the same time, trying to keep everyone living in a state of constant fear and panic.
I will say this, though, with the left-wing extremists being the only people left in masks, at least it’s easy to tell who the nuts are.
Just sayin’.
For the record, according to the office of the Governor of Michigan (a Democrat), 98% of all COVID cases in Michigan occur in unvaccinated people. 96% of all hospitalizations are unvaccinated individuals. 94% of all COVID fatalities are unvaccinated. The rolling average for cases per day in Michigan are around 1,300. That means in a state of ten million people, twenty-six vaccinated people will come down with COVID today, on average. 9.6 people will die every day in Michigan at current levels… which means about one vaccinated person will die every third day from COVID… and that’s with virtually no masks being worn in public. (All Figures are averaged from last ten days as posted on the Michigan Dept. of Health website).
Put another way, according to the Mayo Clinic (and who doesn’t like mayonnaise?), “The CDC has said the risk of infection is 8x higher in the unvaccinated than the vaccinated, and the risk of hospitalization or death is 25x higher.” And the Moderna vaccine appears to be much better than the Pfizer. Guess which one I got.
I will take those odds; being this close to “normal” is sweet.
To add context to why I’ll take those odds, one of the main reasons I’m not afraid (apart from the obvious, that I’m vaccinated) is that I actually went back to work at the height of the pandemic, ten months before the vaccines were even available. I’ve been living and working safely for just shy of a year-and-a-half. I’m still careful, of course, but I’m not fearful and I ditched the mask after I was vaccinated.
So, are we back to normal? Meh, close enough for government work.
Fit Recovery 
We are far from normal here, and I see it only getting worse. Masks indoors for all. We go to another state that has less restrictions so we can feel a since of normalcy. In fact it has been said we live in the most strict state as far as guidelines laid down. Just when we were feeling a since of normalcy over night that was gone. I still will not allow that to steal my joy though. Enjoy your normalcy, and I wouldn’t post the name either lol 😂
Lisa, my heart goes out to you. There’s nothing worse than a state full of ego-maniacal do-gooders with inferiority complexes who think they know how everyone else thinks. As you take your trips to those free states, that’s where I’d take my money as well. Live cheap where they restrict you, is what I’m saying.
That is exactly what we are doing. We would even move as we live simply as it is, but my husband’s mom is is assisted living here. Even though as of now with them all being vaccinated they have 5 cases, and we can’t see her I don’t think my husband would leave. Although we are only 30 minutes to the state boarder. A lot to give thought too. All of us are sharing in eating after meetings across the state line. None of us wish to place our monies here. My mom is away on a vacation in another state, and so badly wishes she didn’t have to come back. To think it has come to this. Good thing I knew it would, and kept all my cool mask 😷 lol. If I have to wear it I wanna do it in style. Just trying to find any humor in such grave times. It is what it, and I can’t change it. So I have to accept it until something gives. Trust me though, we even gas up across the state line as it is cheaper. 👍