COVID TESTING REALITY FROM THE DRIVER’S SEAT

Covid testing, for the uninitiated, the disbelieving, for the safety of others, is more real when you drive someone to their scheduled testing.

Have you done that as a family or civic task? Or is the better question, “Do you think covid testing is for the virus, or “SOMETHING ELSE?”

For my purposes, hopefully your purposes as a sharp reader, I’ll leave SOMETHING ELSE to the people who need more than the reality of a disease that’s having it’s way with America.

I’ll leave it after this aside:

I caught a case of HPV neck cancer and started treatment the day after Trump’s inauguration. During the run up to treatment I had concerns and doubts about the treatment available.

Was I moving into the standard radiation and chemo lane too fast? Could I be missing a better treatment, like take a pill and call me in the morning treatment, instead of the industrialized medicine lined up in front of me?

The key factor is time. I wanted more time to make a better decision. So, like every good and decent married man with a problem, I asked my then wife, who is still my wife, my now wife.

As fate would have it, I married a naturopathic doctor with lots of ideas on what passes for good health practice. And not everyone agrees with her, or their local naturopathic doctor.

She had colleagues who had had the same version of the nasty that took up residence in my neck. ‘Just my luck,’ I thought.

“Perfect,” I said. “Let’s make history and kill cancer without the hard drugs.”

“That’s what they decided, too,” she said. “When it didn’t go as planned, they decided on mainstream chemo and radiation, but too much time had passed. They wouldn’t have survived the treatment.”

“So what happened?” I asked, and I wasn’t playing dumb. I wanted to hear that the cancer noticed their hard work and went away, like magic. But, as in so many instances, disease doesn’t go away like magic.

One radiation doctor even said, “What are you waiting for, that tumor isn’t going away by itself.”

Even when a master medical magician like Trump says covid will all go away like magic, the virus wasn’t listening. Cancer wasn’t listening as it collected more victims.

Without blinking an eye, my wife knew the stakes from the get go.

Covid Testing Stakes High

Like everyone else who hasn’t been infected, or known infected folks, I hear all about the corona news numbers. From cases, to deaths, to refrigerated trucks as mobile morgues, I’ve heard the same news as you.

What I do with the information may be different. I’m a former Army medic, former caregiver, and current husband and father. I’ve got lots more former and current things to list, but those I’m leaving on the shelf this time around.

I’ve seen Parkinson’s take a man out; I’ve seen a huge brain bleed take a woman out. The particular man and woman were my father and mother in law. My dad died from diabetes complications, my mom from a brain tumor, my step-dad from a stroke while recovering from surgery.

If you’re thinking, ‘Gee Dave, you sound old,’ then congratulations on that conclusion. Did the image in the header of boomerpdx help any? Maybe I should post a more authentic picture with my hair dyed and shades and leaning against a Harley like a Facebook badass?

Naw, reality is fine with me. Besides, I make other changes that matter more, like helping people close by live better lives by hanging around. And writing. I like to think of my presence as air freshener. If I’m absent, my blog, this blog, is a substitute for the fresh air under my wings.

Give It Time If You Don’t Feel It Yet

Giving it time isn’t a luxury with cancer, covid, or covid testing. Wait on cancer and you’re dead; and it’s just you because cancer isn’t contagious, unless it’s HPV cancer.

Wait on covid and you probably won’t die, but that doesn’t mean the people you spread it to won’t die. You’ve heard of personal responsibility? Personal responsibility in this case means don’t be a spreader.

Trump as president has shown little interest in keeping the virus down in general, particularly at events where his fans follow his lead. This is the guy with the big joke line of, “I could shoot a man on 5th Ave and not lose any supporters.”

It wasn’t a howling funny line then, and neither are the poor performances by his ‘team of experts.’

Why didn’t Trump go under the care of his handpicked guy Dr. Scott Atlas of the coronavirus task force in the White House instead of Walter Reed? Did you ask that question? I did.

Maybe he doesn’t trust that Dr. Atlas’ judgement would hold up? There is a suggestion here:

“Allowing myself to be taken advantage of.”

Instead of being disingenuous like Dr. Atlas and Mr. Trump, then adding crocodile tears to an empty apology, follow the lead of the science and medical community.

That’s a link to the Center For Disease Control.

Covid testing isn’t a big conspiracy theory. Neither was the chemo/radiation on cancer. How does it all work? Science explains. Wearing a mask isn’t an infringement on your freedom. A mask isn’t after your guns, causing abortions, or hampering your speech, y’all.

Medical guidelines are not a slap in you pastor’s, minister’s, priest’s, or spiritual guide’s face.

That’s a link to India’s The Week with a story on Trump’s spiritual advisor doing an exorcism looking dance. Why India? With all of the spirits running around there, even India thinks this was weird.

Covid testing isn’t the same as shooting a man on 5th Ave. The top image is a drive through medical testing setup outside a Providence clinic. But maybe you’re thinking, ‘But Dave, if you don’t test you won’t see as many cases.’

Let’s read along together: Ignoring the coronavirus the way Trump has is not the same as shooting a man on 5th Ave. It’s closer to shooting 250,000 and not losing support. Hard to believe? Check the vote count.

Whether foreign influences had an affect on the presidential elections, or not, whether US intelligence agencies agree or disagree, even the voice of Al Qaeda is calling the election for Biden.

Let’s agree that we will not be taken advantage of like Dr. Scott Atlas was with his professed ignorance of who is and who isn’t a registered foreign agent. Shouldn’t a guy working in the White House know this stuff?

Final word: If you don’t know, now you know.

Final word, Pt2: Leave a comment and it’s your final word . . . but I’ll still respond.

PS: My passenger tested negative for covid. Go, Mandy, go.