Day 392. A shot in the arm.

 That's right: a few nanograms of RNA near the left shoulder, wait three weeks, a few more, and I'll be 95% virus-proof.  I'm keeping my mask, both because I'm only slightly protected in the first 10-15 days and to set an example to the unvaxed majority. 

For posterity, I should tell the whole unlikely tale.  My wife, eager to fly to where her sons and her father live (three separate places, BTW), had been poking various Web sites for a week or two  looking for vaccine appointments.  She finally found one about two and a half hours away.  Then a day or two later she was able to trade it for one in a town where a friend of hers lives, just one and a half hours away and within reach of our car's battery (OK, it helped to get a little recharge en route).  Her appointment was on Tuesday.  So the Sunday before it, I looked at my medical provider's app and saw nearly a full page of appointments, only one hour away!  Of course, it seemed much too good to be true.  But on Wednesday morning, I checked again, and they still had slots open the very next day.  So I signed up for 1215, then checked that the battery was recharged enough to cover the distance.  And holy immunity, Batman, it really came true.  Pfizer/BIONTech.  The battery car turned out to be a very good choice, because the clinic was a drive-through setup.  I never even unfastened my seat belt, and rarely came within six feet of anyone, but the downside was that the car spent an awfully long time waiting to move a few feet further forward.

My wife suffered fatigue on Tuesday evening, but was fine on Wednesday.  I felt only a slight sting on Thursday afternoon, followed by mild stiffness and soreness on Friday.  They tell us the second dose cause more of a reaction. 

Speaking of second doses, the USA medical authorities still mandate doses 3 or 4 weeks apart, which is, frankly, criminal.  There is ample evidence from the UK that much longer intervals are safe.  The dose that would be my second dose is most definitely more useful in the arm of someone who has no protection at all.  Until a substantial fraction of the population is protected, this planet is one big lab where the virus can develop and test new variants of itself.  Some highly placed medics are starting to dissent from the Party line, but by the time they are heard, it will be very late in the game.  I've written about this in my general blog, too.

The good news is that our tale suggests that supply is becoming less of a problem.  The not-so-good news is that there is less demand than there should be, especially among Republicans (for all that their idol has praised the vaccine on TV).