Items

• 2021-02-18

  Vaccinated

  I received my second vaccination earlier this week. I had minor symptoms (some fatigue and body aches), but otherwise it went well. I had some friends, both in exceptional shape, who experienced high fevers and other flu like symptoms, so I guess I lucked out on that front. The peace of mind is incredible. I plan to still take precautions, especially because even with the vaccine, it is believed you can still carry the virus, but it is wonderful to not have to worry about getting sick with COVID anymore.
• 2021-02

  Vaccine

  I feel like I am running out of ideas for JOTPY entries so I thought I would share my excitement for my second vaccine appointment next week. While I know we still have a long road ahead with COVID-19, I am excited to take this next step for myself. The peace of mind will be worth it alone. It will be nice when the "plague year" is a memory rather than a current event following herd immunity.
• 2021-01-30

  Things That Haven't Changed

  Stories in this archive often describe how things have radically changed. My submission will highlight some of things in my life that haven't. To begin, many of my hobbies have stayed the same. Since I moved to a new state a year before the pandemic, I never had the opportunity to pick up any new hobbies, especially with anyone outside of my small circle here. My hobbies mostly include reading, hanging out with my wife, watching movies, playing video games, going on walks, working out, and spending time with my dogs, all of which I have done with the same or more consistency. I have gone home roughly the same amount as I had before the pandemic. None of my friends or family have gotten seriously ill from COVID-19, so I am lucky to have not lost anyone to the disease. Other than working remotely and taking precautions when going out in public, my day to day life has remained largely the same.
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  2021-01

  A COVID-19 Puppy

  After months of deliberation, my wife and I decided to welcome another dog into our household. We were hesitant about getting a big dog, since we have only had experience with dachshunds together. But I have wanted a German shepherd my entire life and we figured that now is perhaps the only time in our lives that we will have enough time to invest in a big dog to make sure he is well trained (plus to keep him from eating the furniture!). Working from home due to the pandemic enabled us to get another dog, which probably wouldn’t have happened otherwise. While I am looking forward to some normalcy hopefully returning later this year, in the meantime I will be hanging out with my new pup, Oliver.
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  2020-09-25

  A COVID-19 Wedding

  Our marriage was supposed to be May 1, 2020, but soon after the lockdown following COVID-19 being deemed a global pandemic, we made the difficult decision to reschedule our wedding. Being overly optimistic, we rescheduled to September 25, 2020, assuming that the world would return to normal by then. We were wrong. Rather than rescheduling to another date and taking another shot in the dark on when the world might be safe enough for a normal wedding, we continued on with our plans for a fall wedding. We shortened the guest list and took several precautions. The wedding and the reception later that night were both outside. We asked our guests to stay home if they were sick and provided hand sanitizer to everyone (picture attached). Our wedding was safe and beautiful, even with the pandemic ongoing. While there was definitely risk, we did our best to ensure everyone's safety and made the decision to push on with our lives.