62 Comments
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J. Clements's avatar

I love this!!! You should send this to the New Yorker and see if you can replace Borowitz for an issue.

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Jessica's avatar

I'm not nearly posh enough for the New Yorker, :)

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AC  Rossie's avatar

Seriously though, self-effacement aside, you should send it to them. If it is not published, I'd love to read the rejection letter! Hope you'd post their response so we could read it - to paraphrase the Kilgore character from a famous Coppola movie "I love the smell of BS in the morning.....it smells like victory!"

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Matt Wells's avatar

But you are tho, brain posh baby!

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Theresa's avatar

Read an article that the last of the "holdouts" are "finally abandoning" protections. Alas, I am a holdout who is not abandoning protections. Until it is impossible to get covid19, I will wear a mask and ask anyone providing a service to me to do the same. Hairdresser, doctor, etc.

I have found old cloth masks in pockets. I bought so many in great fabrics and patterns. I have them in a tote. I am not sure what to do with them. They are too pretty to throw away...and they are a reminder for me to a time when we only had to deal with the "OG." Which was not nearly as contagious as the thousands of Omicron variants. Can we go back to the OG? I have n95s now. :-)

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KOB's avatar

My partner and I will be making either a throw pillow or quilt with our old cloth masks. She made so many with fabulous designs and colors, it's be a waste to throw them away!!

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Robin Maxwell's avatar

I'm a "last hold-out" who will continue to hold out until the cows come home. Yesterday, two women friends -- both highly intelligent -- talked to me about covid. The first (in her 70s) admitted that that morning she tested positive for the 5th time, that her doctor is not remotely concerned and has said no to prescribing Paxlovid. My other friend (50 with 2 young kids) said she's had covid three times now. Only after I explained that my long haul brain fog has actually gotten worse lately did she admit that she, too, had memory loss for 5 months before it went away. I've sent this really important essay to them both.

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LM's avatar

Glorious! I saw that horrible article too, and you totally nailed it in your response. Absolutely perfect.

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Barb H's avatar

This hits the nail on the head. I am surrounded by people who think I am struggling, when in fact I am having an appropriate reaction to risk.

Please submit this to as many editors and publications as you can.

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Melissa Thompson's avatar

This is brilliant. Absolutely one of the best pieces of the entire pandemic anywhere, in any publication, medium or forum. I agree it needs to be distributed as far and wide as possible.

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Sari Tähtinen's avatar

Thank you Jessica🙏

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KOB's avatar

This seems to also go hand in hand with a phenomenon I just heard about called "Revenge Tourism". Ie people aggressively vacationing to make up for not being able to travel as freely as they wanted to for first couple of years of the pandemic.

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The Angry Yogi's avatar

It's definitely a thing...read this today, and cried, we are parasites devouring this planet, sigh.

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/27/travel/overcrowded-europe-summer.html

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Dr Emma Katz's avatar

Fantastic

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Geoff Levin's avatar

I’m normally(hah) not in favor of labels. In this case I agree it’s necessary to define and label this behavior. I’m immuno-compromised, I lost a kidney to cancer. So I still mask up, we have high quality air scrubbers at home and guests are required to test before they visit.

I use Kaiser and I’m amazed at how many patients and visitors don’t wear masks any more. How about when they are going to the ONCOLOGY ward? Are you kidding? I avoid elevators if some of the people are unmasked.

The Covid pandemic is here because from a pure physics and energy point of view we are in a solar and astronomical phase that is driving these diseases to proliferate. So let’s be “normal” in a phase of solar flairs and galactic alignment that is anything but normal.

Good article Jessica. Maybe I’ll write a song about UNS.🎶🎤

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J. P. Gownder's avatar

We need more people to hear this message. Unfortunately, the very VAST majority of people suffer from urgent normal syndrome for sure.

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Jessica's avatar

Yes, they need help--don't they?

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Elisa's avatar

EXACTLY--to all those suffering from UNS: “please seek help.”

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Kim Wareham's avatar

Jess, this might be your best yet.

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Jessica's avatar

I felt especially satisfied after this one. :)

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Kyle S.'s avatar

I know I am! Bravo.

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Lynn D.'s avatar

I love how they flip being appropriately cautious based on situational awareness into being a paranoid freak who is clinging to their mask like a pacifier.

It doesn't matter,mostly, what people think. But it's rough when people you care about have fallen into the "back to normal" trap and data is drying up, so we can't easily determine the risks in our area.

We've missed holidays, birthdays, baptisms, and other events because they're held indoors and are crowded. I'm sad about that.

But it isn't safe yet, and at all costs we don't want to get it.

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Andrew Smith's avatar

The grossest pandemic reaction has been to judge people for keeping themselves or their families safe. The blinding lack of empathy was too much for me; I kind of checked out from staying connected for a year or so. It was a dark time for me. I'm super glad that part is behind us (even while covid isn't entirely).

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Paul Zickler's avatar

This is beautiful. Thank you for flipping the script. For the few minutes it took to read this, I could almost imagine a world where sanity prevails.

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Andy Lay's avatar

Hilarious!

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HumanBeing's avatar

This feels so GOOD to read ❤ You bring some balance back into this utter madness we are witnessing. I wish your texts would be published in german, so I could share with all my ignorant fellow citiziens!!

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Kyle S.'s avatar

Goddamn Jessica, this is ART.

Thank you. 🔥

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