Muh Muh Muh My Corona (virus)

I went back to the well with mom on Sunday, not necessarily doing the hard sell to get vaccinated but just asking that she remember how much she and her grandkids love each other (and thanks to my brother’s wedding in January she went from two to five in the blink of an eye.)

Her stated reluctance is that she doesn’t feel like she can get full information on how the vaccines were created, what the testing protocols were and what the effects are. And this is a woman who worked nearly three decades in the hospital lab, so she’s far from medically illiterate. (She also struggles with media trust issues, a function of being a religious conservative.)

I did get her to agree to discuss with her GP, whom she already had an appointment with this week. If she brings up the J&J news, my plan is to tell her that I think it is a good sign that they are being transparent with risks, and that this is the newest of the three US-approved vaccines in terms of authorization time, which gives me a bit more confidence since there have been no similar reports on the ones that have been around a bit longer.

 

So my Thursday J&J appointment is . . . off? In limbo?

 

Call your airline.

 

Yeah, NC is halting use of it. Some places offering different vaccine. But my Walgreens was only offering J&J when I made the appointment.

https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/state/north-carolina/article250628134.html?

 

Not yet. But I did go to the site where I made the appointment, and instead of having all kinds of availability, it now says "no appointments available in the next 5 days"

EDIT: Just called. They are switching to Moderna. Appointment still good.

 

J&J has had supply issues, followed by tainted product. Pulling it for now is the smart move.

 

I had a similar talk with a friend last week. My feeling is I’d rather have some protection than zero. IMHO it’s benefits outweigh slight risks.

 

My son, the newly-minted 18-year-old, had been dead set against getting the shot, but had finally relented and made an appointment for this week after we backed off and gave him time to decide for himself. (Of all things, he relented because he wanted to get back to running the sound booth at his church.) No telling how today’s news will muddle things.

 

Kennedy Center plans massive season of in-person theater, including ‘To Kill a Mockingbird,’ ‘Hamilton’ and ‘Hadestown’

They will run at full capacity (with masks mandatory). I'm a bit surprised.

 

This brings up a pertinent question, though. Of course, I guess it could be a dumb question, too.

But, are we sharing vaccines and/or vaccine production information with other countries?

I ask/wonder because I would think/hope it would be welcomed by people in those places -- many of which are poorer, and yet saddled with much stricter COVID-19 related precautions and restrictions.