It finally happened to us! I thought we dodged the bullet here since we are all safely vaccinated, but not quite. Travis was not feeling well one day last week, with a sore throat and cough. He didn’t think much of it. He was feeling better in twelve hours and went to work. As a precaution, he got swabbed. Came back positive for Covid. I am pretty sure he was the most shocked. So, he got an unplanned week off of work this week, despite feeling okay. He also missed out on playing with the old man band and our friend Matt at an outdoor party Saturday night. I felt bad because he was practicing so much leading into the weekend. On the CDC website, I discovered that healthcare workers can return to work if they have two negative tests 24 hours apart, but the hospital told him that they aren’t using the testing “return to work” plan. Travis just has to stay away for 10 days from the onset of symptoms. 

I have to admit, I like the house husband thing. With an unplanned week off, Travis has been checking off his home “to do” list. Since Taryn works at the library, she usually has some weekdays off, so she can run errands for him. It’s kinda nice. Because the whole clan is vaccinated, the rest of us can continue to go to work. We just must get tested if we exhibit symptoms. After watching Travis get sick, I am pretty sure we will have symptoms if we get sick. So far, nobody else has had anything. I’ve been keeping my distance inside and sleeping in Tayden’s room. Tayden has a pretty nice bed!

So, if the truth hurts, here it is. There are WAY more breakthrough infections than are being reported. Until the CDC changes the “return to work” requirements, most vaccinated individuals will just stay home while actively sick and return when they are feeling better… same thing we have been doing our whole lives. Anyone whose work will pile up while they are away, feeling healthy, for a week will choose ignorance and pass on the test. They will justify it after the fact by saying that it passed so quickly, it must have been a cold or flu. Honestly, the CDC is part of the problem here. I like the negative test plan I mentioned earlier. If they implemented that plan, more people would get tested while sick. And they could study how long it typically hangs around in vaccinated individuals. With cold and flu season upon us, this is the plan that makes the most sense. But I’m not in charge. 

In our house, we will get tested because it seems like the responsible thing to do, given our jobs. In the meantime, I will go and teach math to a largely unvaccinated student population. I am wearing a mask and keeping a safe distance. So far, so good. And I had to miss most of sisters’ weekend. I went to visit on the beach last Saturday, but didn’t go in the house. My sisters were nice enough to have dinner on the beach so we could enjoy a longer visit. And when I come home from work or play,  Travis is there. It’s been such a nice week, we usually just hang outside on the porch or on the boat. Travis will be happy to return to work soon! Maybe this is just what he needed. Not the sick part, but the time off part. Have a great week everyone!!