Up until a couple of days ago, Arizona was a mild COVID-19 risk. We had a few cases, and no deaths. Yesterday we had our first death. It wasn't anyone I know, and it wasn't anyone at all similar to me (aside from geographic location), but somehow knowing that this disease has killed someone in my state makes it real. I don't want this to be real. In many ways, I wish Trump was right when he made the inane and unsupported claim that the heat of April might make all of this blow away. Let the record show: he has done a piss poor job of handling this crisis. He has repeatedly lied about the severity of the threat we face, has bandied unscientific and unsupported claims about, and has always seemed to care more about a) the pandemic's effect on the economy, and 2) the pandemic's effect on the stock market more than he cares about Americans dying. He is a megalomaniac and an asshole, and I hope history bears those two truths out.
Anyway, back to the lecture at hand. We had a COVID-19 death in Arizona. So far, due to the Trump administration's ineptitude, there has been a massive lack of effective and reliable tests for the virus. Because I live in the poorest county in an often-neglected state, I cannot imagine that we'll get prioritized for testing any time soon. So far no tests have been run in La Paz County, which is a bit terrifying. This is the time of year when old folks from cold states pour into the area. We locals don't take too kindly to these snowbirds, but especially not now. The elderly are at an elevated risk for COVID-19, and diseases such as this are often communicated to new regions when people travel. Because the early symptoms are similar to a common cold, it is entirely possible that there are infected individuals right here in the county, and it will be a long time before we'll know it. Hell, I could be carrying the disease. I'm the only member of our family who goes to the barren wastelands our grocery stores have become.
For the record, I don't fear my own death, but I do fear the deaths of my wife and children. I also worry about our ability to stay employed and keep food on the table. Tomorrow we're having a big meeting to find out how we're handling the rest of the school year. In the meantime, anxiety is high, depression is high, and the asshole in the White House is doing nothing to mitigate it.
Anyway, back to the lecture at hand. We had a COVID-19 death in Arizona. So far, due to the Trump administration's ineptitude, there has been a massive lack of effective and reliable tests for the virus. Because I live in the poorest county in an often-neglected state, I cannot imagine that we'll get prioritized for testing any time soon. So far no tests have been run in La Paz County, which is a bit terrifying. This is the time of year when old folks from cold states pour into the area. We locals don't take too kindly to these snowbirds, but especially not now. The elderly are at an elevated risk for COVID-19, and diseases such as this are often communicated to new regions when people travel. Because the early symptoms are similar to a common cold, it is entirely possible that there are infected individuals right here in the county, and it will be a long time before we'll know it. Hell, I could be carrying the disease. I'm the only member of our family who goes to the barren wastelands our grocery stores have become.
For the record, I don't fear my own death, but I do fear the deaths of my wife and children. I also worry about our ability to stay employed and keep food on the table. Tomorrow we're having a big meeting to find out how we're handling the rest of the school year. In the meantime, anxiety is high, depression is high, and the asshole in the White House is doing nothing to mitigate it.
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