So for the past three and a half weeks since we began opening things up in Georgia, the COVID-19 case numbers have been pretty good which has been pleasantly surprising. I don’t think this is as much because Kemp made a good decision as I still disagree with the places he opened initially but I think this gives credit to those in Georgia. People and businesses for the most part have done an excellent job regarding social distancing and keeping things clean.
I have been following several states and New York’s numbers thankfully have gone down as well. There are still states that are in an uptrend so I continue to hope that their numbers will eventually come down.
For those who want to tell me “I told you so” with regards to Georgia’s downtrend and so many of you have, I will say the same thing. I’d prefer to be wrong. Still, just because things are opening up does not mean we can go back to normal. We can’t…at least not yet. We have to continue doing what we’ve been doing and being cautious about not putting others at risk.
I am still a big advocate with regards to wearing masks. I believe it is one of the only ways we can control the spread of this virus. I keep hearing from others that it is taking away their civil liberties or it is hard to breathe or it makes them look cowardly. I understand what you mean with regards to civil liberties but please understand that it is to protect others and not punish you. As to the issue of being hard to breathe, myself and many others with cystic fibrosis wear them, and we have a lung disease. With regards to looking cowardly, I look at people wearing these and I think that those people are selfless and brave for helping those around them. I understand that not everyone is like me.
I am still staying in quarantine. I haven’t been to a public place in nearly ten weeks. I’m spending my time at home writing, hanging with my family and trying to figure out why I’m less exciting to my children than an episode of The Flash or Vampire Diaries. Ethan and I go out and play baseball or hit the tennis ball on the street. Avery and I talk about life on occasion and how she’s handling the pandemic in the teen community. Andrea and I are talking about how we can eventually open up our own house as numbers continue to dwindle but we still have to be extremely cautious.
I’m still working out every day. I was running three to five miles a day but I’ve cut that down to about two to four miles a day to protect my knees and I’m also running a lot more outside and practicing on hills. I’m still doing weights about 45 minutes a day. I continue to stay disciplined with regards to my cystic fibrosis medical routine. I do two therapies a day each for about an hour and take my 30 to 40 pills per day.
As far as my mental outlook goes, I still deal with depression and anxiety but I do my best to keep them both in check. I have days where I lie on my bed and think about the future. I don’t think that contemplating the future right now is the best coping mechanism. It’s very important that I keep things day to day and not concern myself with what could happen in a week, a month or a year. Still though, for the most part, I’m doing okay or as my grandmother Rose would say, I’m fair. I miss her a lot.
Anyway, I just wanted to say thank you to everyone who is following the rules and I hope the slow opening up of the economy has helped those who so desperately needed it. I also do want to thank those in the medical community, public office and essential business community for not missing a beat when it comes to doing their best to keep us safe. I may not always agree with what is said or done but I also know that the decisions all of these people make on a daily basis are not easy ones.
Stay safe. Stay strong. And if you can, stay home.
Live your dreams and love your life,
Andy