Pandemic: Part 1 - 2020

This is the first part of my Pandemic tale. It all started in March, 2020.

On March 12, 2020, I had a first date with someone. We had chatted on Facebook and decided to go for pizza at Minsky’s. Five hours later, the world completely closed for about nine months and it remains partially closed to this day. Thankfully, masks and vaccines have partially rescued the world from the dreaded lockdown.

By the way, there wasn’t a lot of chemistry with the person I dated, so eventually the direct messages slowed down until now and I am not sure my Facebook friends list even has that name any more.

As a person who tests consistently as INFP on the Myers-Briggs Personality Type Indicator, I thought the lockdown hadn’t really affected me much. I know that it didn’t have the psychological effect that many spoke about on TV.

I became very familiar with Netflix TV series:

• Queen’s Gambit
• Tiger King
• The Circle
• The Circle France
• The Circle Brazil
• ETC . . .

I found out that I could watch foreign language reality shows and read the closed captions in English while the alleged real folks were talking in French or Portuguese. This was a testament to my endurance because I usually can’t even watch a documentary if I have to read subtitles. I wonder if that skill will be useful for something later in life. I also re-watched Downton Abbey, the 90s TV show Sisters, and Six Feet Under at least twice on DVD or Blu-Ray. In addition to Netflix, I subscribed to the Hulu/ESPN/Disney+ package so I could watch the filmed version of Hamilton. And that list of shows . . . It seems so long ago! In addition, I framed a bunch of pictures and hung them on my apartment walls. Re-arranged furniture. Various and sundry Pandemic stuff! So now my humble abode is much cozier and more aesthetically pleasing.

So, you may be asking yourself, what effect did the lockdown have on David?

Well, here goes:

I started going to places other than the grocery store in October. The first thing was my great niece’s wedding; I went there because it was an outdoor event. I started calling doctors and making appointments. First my primary care physician. Then I called to make an appointment with my cardiologist for a yearly check-up that was three months overdue. (Here’s the rub.) My A1c had skyrocketed to 12.1. The cardiologist’s office said you’ll have to come in to see Dr. So and So; I had no idea why my cardiologist of about ten years wouldn’t see me. So, as one does, I Googled her. I found out she had died of a heart attack three months earlier in the latter part of the Lockdown. She was only 50 years old. In what year could that have happened other than 2020!

So eventually, I started a long series of doctor visits at KU Medical Center, where all my specialists are now, since KU is easily accessible by public transportation. (By the way, all buses here in Kansas City have been free since 2020.)

So the next blog posts will be a rundown of the battery of tests that went down during the year 2021 and that have led to a continuing regimen of doctor visits in the present year!