[jimjamuser]

Originally Posted by TrishMvhl

Thank you, Taltarzac725. I just returned from six weeks at our house in Pennecamp. Before our lovely tenant moved out, his co-workers threw him big retirement party at City Fire. He got COVID from it, and spent five days in the hospital. A strapping guy in his early 70's, he said it knocked him on his a** and the struggle to breathe was scary.

Personally, I've known six people who have had COVID, all in the 40s and 50s, and pretty healthy. One was bad enough that she struggled to breathe for six weeks alone in a room so she would not infect her husband and six year-old son. So your post really resonated with me.

I see a lot of people scoff at taking precautions and using the words "fear" and "freedom" to back up their positions. I don't live in fear, but I am using common sense and protection when I venture out to the store etc. I don't eat inside restaurants, but I will support them by getting a meal to go. If a store is not enforcing mask usage (hello, Wal-Mart), I walk right out.

My niece is a nurse in Maine and her hospital is filling up, after being relatively quiet. She'll be working through the holidays and it will probably be Spring before we get to see her. So it angers me to see people who downplay the situation our country is in. This is a highly contagious virus, and while someone in the Villages may not be personally affected, that can quickly change. More and more nurses and doctors are exhausted, and posting videos begging people to simply wear a mask. It's the least we can do until the vaccines are widely distributed. Hang in there, everyone.

Great post. Kudos!