A Senior Hiding From Covid-19

God knows that we, the public, are being inundated with, daily even hourly updates on the status of so many facets of our battle with this new disease, called CoVid-19.

So I’m just going to speak to what this old man who happens to live in Florida, is doing to avoid the possibility of “Death By Covid”

This seriousness of the whole Covid-19 battle is unique in the modern history of mankind that honestly, every few days or so, makes me sit back and walk my mind through what this has already been done to humanity, just so I don't avoid becoming jaded by the enormity of it all.

Who Did It?

How humanities battle turns out and determining just who is actually going to be blamed for its release onto the public, will be documented by Historians in the future.

I remember a popular truism from the times of WWII. There are numerous variations on the original phrase, but in essence it states that History is Written By The Victors of Wars, not the Losers.

Hopefully. one day we will have access to the real facts on this new disease which will explain just how the people on this planet of ours were able to go so long before we recognized, and reacted to, the potential dangers of such a devastating biological threat like this one.

Regardless, right now after all I have learned over the past couple of months, I believe that one of two things which are going to happen once we have dealt with this disease.

Inevitable Changes for our Planet

I believe that either the world will be forced to adapt to a new reality, one of a human lifestyle that will always have the threat of a CoVid-19-like infection hanging over our heads; whether or not our scientists will actually develop a viable vaccine.

Come on! Stop shaking your heads!

You're an intelligent person and you know how to read between the lines of BS that are being streamed on the teleprompters for our worldwide newscasters to then repeat to us.

We are already being told that if we’re lucky, there will be a new type of “flu shot” for humanity to be injected with, hopefully only annually; because there is no expectation of there being an actual CURE for CoVid-19!

So, what else are we not being told about this type of threat to humanity?

Knowing all of this, I already have my own personal defense system and presently I try to live within its bounds.

A few weeks ago I jokingly told a few people that I was a “Three Time Loser”; but surprisingly, they didn’t laugh. Bad Joke, I guess?

I stole this term from the many gangster movies i used to watch as a kid; because I actually do have three major physical conditions that this new disease loves to attack in humans.

1. I am in my Seventies.
2. I have a Kidney Transplant.
3. All transplant recipients have to take anti-rejections drugs that suppress our immune systems.

Thus my three-time-loser philosophical identity.

When this CoVid monster first showed it's ugly head, I consulted my Doctors on what I should do to protect myself and I have to say that I love the brutal honesty of the medical experts. They pulled no punches when they explained that any one of these conditions dramatically increases the chance that I will most likely die if I contract CoVid-19.

So, I had to accept my "new reality" for what it is and I quickly put together my own collection of personal defenses which i could use to increase my odds of surviving until there actually is a vaccine which will protect me.

I can say that I did not live through what I have lived through without learning how to run when it was time to run; but more importantly I know how to fight when it’s time to fight. Presently, I'm in the fight mode.

Each of us should have a personal plan that fits with our lifestyle. I have one that works with my existing lifestyle and at the same time gives me the most flexibility as I wait and watch the "Health" world attack this disease. Below is what my new reality looks like..

I am A Floridian

I am a Floridian living in a small community so I am more isolated than many others. I may not be a native Floridian, but my wife and i did move here ten years ago; so, I now call myself a naturalized Floridian, in case anyone cares. And physically, I live in a relatively rural area; it could even be described as being a small town.

I live in a Senior Community

My Wife and I live in a Senior community. In case you’re not aware of them, they’re also called 55-plus communities; and pretty much everyone living in ours is in the same age group as myself. And generally speaking. due to our ages we all have similar maladies; which we manage with medicines and entertaining ways to get some level of exercise.

It’s a good lifestyle for a Senior couple and as an added benefit of living in one of these communities we, by design, are voluntarily confined to our community and isolated most of the time from the local population.

Tiki Bars and Happy Hours

Typically our entertainment includes;

• Traveling around the country in our RV, which presents its own level of isolation.
• playing Golf, Fishing, and even Swimming in our own pools Plus we have our own Tennis or Pickle Ball courts.
• Riding Bikes and Jogging on our own almost five miles of streets.
• eating Dinner (along with a couple of drinks) early in the evening at our own community restaurant and the occasional local restaurants with their own very strict isolation rules.

You might believe say that this is an unhealthy lifestyle? Well, sorry folks, but we’re SENIORS! We have worked and saved what money we could, our whole lives, so we could spend our latter years doing what we never had time to do while we built and ran America. And we like our isolated lifestyle while this CoVid-19 thing is being fought.

How has Covid-19 affected these Senior activities so far?

• Travel - This activity is almost totally restricted, but an RV is in itself a great form of self-isolation wherever you may take it to camp..
• Jogging, Bike riding, Tennis, Pickle Ball and Golf - We can still play these sports with relatively low levels of danger within our own communities.
• Dining Out - As the phased re-opening progresses for everyone else, I see a new paradigm of service being implemented by these business' that makes me feel safe enough to occasionally enjoy an evening at a Tiki Bar or other restaurant.

In Florida, if you want to sit outside with your friends; in the shade of an umbrella or Palm Tree; and enjoy the near tropical scenery that’s only a few feet away; then you're going to frequent a lot of Tiki Bars.

So, we Seniors end up at certain Tiki Bars, a lot. We enjoy our friends and the weather, and as a safety note; being our age, we are normally home by the time most of the working people of Florida get off from their jobs.

I know, I have probably said too much about my lifestyle, but I had to let you know about my lifestyle before I could explain my particular personal defenses against this disease.

Businesses Cleaning

I have been self-isolating so far and now I can go pretty much anywhere and rely on one thing that was never available for me in the past.

I can count on the fact that the businesses I will frequent, have thoroughly cleaned every surface that I may have to touch and have even put up barriers between wherever I might stand or sit, and the staff.

Face Masks and Gloves

I now have access to decent face masks and gloves and I have them with me at all times. I have already developed a habit of picking up a mask before i leave our house, wherever I plan to go out.

I am now one of those people who wears a mask as my main protection tool.

Washing My Hands

After this disease showed its face, washing my Hands quickly evolved from a habit to an obsession. I now do this without hesitation throughout my day.

Using Disinfectants

Where my wife and I might once have used a couple of good household cleansers that happened to be good disinfectants, we now have our own supply of disinfectants; wipes, sprays, and soaps, in our house. And we rarely walk by a dispenser without using it.

Avoiding Idiots

i have found that the hardest task for us so far is just the logistics of keeping away from the Idiots out there who seemingly do not practice any forms of self-protection.

I avoid going near those other people who, for whatever reason, feel they have some kind of personal immunity to this disease and actually believe they don’t need to even wear a mask.

My attempts to comply with the many restrictions I follow do force me to take my own stand with these people, or what I call potential carriers.

From my perspective, they know what they’re playing with, so I have to accept their reality which is; that it’s their life and it’s their potential death; but stay the Hell away from Me!.

My wife and I have no plans to isolate ourselves from the rest of the world, especially not to the point that we may as well be living in a Bubble.

Our lifestyle is not one where we frequent many of the places that our younger generations find so enticing. This in itself is a large part of our self-isolation. You see, we have no delusions of some personal immortality and our lifestyle is a cautious one.

I remember that a General once said something like; Nations send their young men to war because the young have no fear of war and they have their own feelings of immortality.

I have no such delusions; I am well aware of my mortality and going forward, I will be watching the world’s war on CoVid-19 closely.

And when necessary, I will take whatever actions I need to take that will insure mine and my wife’s survival.

'Nuff SAID!