By: Revanche

Living in the time of pandemic: COVID-19 (326)

August 31, 2026

Year 7 of COVID in the Bay Area.

Year 7, Day 118: The first week of school, which was all of two days last week, trounced me. I was exhausted in body and spirit by the time retrieval of both children was accomplished. Taking to my bed was all I could think of by the time we fed everyone. JB was still fairly overwhelmed by Day 2, SmolAc was fine and jonesing for more. They’re going from a full day to a partial day so it’s a downward adjustment.

I’m a little bit better prepared for this week with my own schedule but have accepted the responsibility of on-call dog care for my friend who is going through family drama and managing an elder’s healthcare due to a massive sudden decline. Very much hoping the scheduled nurse visit for which they need the dogs out of the house happens at a manageable time for me and the kids.

I’m so glad I’ve been holding firm against bringing home a new dog before this period. I’m having enough trouble with the changes/transitions of 2 human dependent, a third might well have broken me.

Year 7, Day 119:  It is a dark day today, losing Dolly Parton. So few people could measure up to the example she set, much less people in the public eye. She was always so genuine, and she cared enough about people she’d never meet to do all kinds of good for them from the Imagination Library, to Dollywood, to the Moderna vaccine, to the direct aid she did for schools and marching bands, to helping out the folks affected by the fires in Tennessee. That’s probably just scratching the surface of the list of all the good she’s done over the years. What a loss for the world. I hope that everyone whose lives she ever touched is moved to do as she did in whatever way that they can. I’ve always tried to follow her example in my own small ways.

Year 7, Day 120: I’ve been diligently digging out roly polies of all sizes from the potato bag and watering with the cold shower water catch buckets. The potato plants are coming up strong and the one green bean plant that survived the isopod depredations seems hidden among them. I’ve got another green bean seedling sheltering in a tiny pot, waiting for the right time to transplant it. If I transfer it too early, the isopod families will converge on the weak baby and devour it. They’ve wiped out two seedlings and four germinating seeds already and I refuse to sacrifice any more to them.

The blackberry bush came back strong with branches and leaves after being cut down to the ground, but only produced one flower that just withered away. I suppose they’re all primocanes this year. Both that and the blueberry bush seem to be responding a little bit to the acid amendments added to the soil a couple months ago but it’s too early to anticipate fruit, that’s for sure.

The sole sugar snap pea plant that managed to germinate seems pretty happy among the other potato plants, grabbing hold of its neighbors and growing a bit more sideways than vertically. But so far it seems free of the powdery mildew blight, crossing my fingers that it continues to stay healthy. Might I risk germinating another few? Maybe in a week or two. This week I’m full to the brim with responsibilities, and I’m dropping the ball on something if I add more to my plate.

Year 7, Day 121: Human guinea pig time? I’m exploring the possibility that a GLP-1 med might possibly help reduce my inflammation (which is at an all time long term high) and immune system failure (which is also high despite my diligently taking antivirals). It might not be a HIGH chance of success but any hope is better than nothing.

Update: Nope, Kaiser won’t dispense tirzepatide off-label and it’s apparently VERY expensive. I’ve checked Costco Pharmacy and Cost Plus Drugs and they don’t carry it at all. Rats. I’m pondering whether I should continue digging for other pharmacy options.

Year 7, Day 122: Doing my usual clear my public data off the internet dance. Going through and removing my data scraped from public records is tedious but I feel better for having done it. This week’s targets were Radaris and Truthfinder.

One of them lists an address that I have never been at — my brother and dad’s address since their last residence. I don’t know if they associated it just because I’m related to them OR if it’s because my dad used my personal information to apply for housing behind my back. 😒 My credit reports have been locked down for several years to prevent his using them, though, so I hope this is inaccurate data scraping and linking.