Day 19 - Mask mandate RESCINDED. We do NOT need to wear masks.

Bad customer service…

Dr.  Kimberly Shriner, well-respected Head of Infectious Disease at Huntington Hospital, in Pasadena, says “People with Covid often don’t have temperatures. The vast majority of them don’t. Using temperature as a screening technique has not proven to be very helpful for this disease.”  If that’s the case, why the hell am I still standing in front of 5’5”-foot-tall thermometer every Tuesday and Thursday? Trust the science?  What science? 

Hospitalizations are down, but there are increasing detections in wastewater and cases tend to rise 1 to 2 weeks after wastewater detections. Also, cases trend from the East to the West, so when there are surges in Europe and the UK, they end up in good ol’ USA a few weeks later. At this point, so many of my fellow Americans, including myself, contracted Omicron that most of the population has immunity, BUT what is rarely discussed is, “How long will this immunity last?” It seems like the American population is constantly told to get boosted, but crazy House Member Rand Paul stopped wearing a mask the second he got ‘OG Covid’ [original gangsta] and is none the worse for wear. Are we safe if we’ve actually contracted Covid? Maybe we don’t need to get boosted??? 

Also, the boosters have NOT changed, even with the ‘wily’ MRNA splicing science that Big Pharma sold to us. If you get boosted, you’re still getting the same shit you got 2 years ago.  It can’t possibly be comparable to the Omicron variant…it’s morphed so many times that we’re down to letter ‘O’ in the Greek alphabet. At least with the flu vaccine, they try to guess the new variant…when it comes to Covid-19, Big Pharma doesn’t care about innovation as long as people are still willing to get the same booster. Plus, the variants change so quickly, Big Pharma can’t keep up. An Israeli study concerning the efficacy of the 4th jab (second booster) shows very modest protection anyway…

 3/22/22. Tuesday

4:45-4:55-My alarm goes off, but I lie in bed for 10 more minutes of transition time.

4:55-5:15-I go downstairs to get coffee and ice and the dog is asleep; she doesn’t move. When I start microwaving my coffee, the dog jumps off the couch to say good morning. Outside we go, and I wait for the dog to go potty.  Return inside and cheese for her.  I grab my coffee, a bag of ice, and go upstairs.

5:15-6:10-Shower. Coffee. Ice. I listen to The Daily. Lotion. I wear my “Sexy Librarian” attire: floral blouse, jean jacket with floral embroidery, black pants, a wedge, lace-up shoe. I grab all my bags and I’m out the door by 6:10. Upright and caffeinated.

6:10-7:20 – Driving. Traffic is terrible, even in the carpool lane.  I listen to the Best of Both Worlds and Marketplace Money. I put my make-up on in the car.

7:20-7:40-I park in the elementary school parking lot, finish putting on my make-up, and have overnight oats for breakfast.

7:40-8:00-I report to the office [“Temperature Normal!”], then walk to Mr. G.’s classroom. When I arrive, I’m hit by a blast of hot air.   HVAC has been down in Mr. G’s classroom for a week and although he’s reported the issue to Admin., nothing has been done, other than to move two industrial fans inside the classroom.  Mr. G. said, yesterday, it was 110 degrees in the classroom!! so he filed a “Williams Complaint” regarding the fact that his HVAC system has been pouring hot air into the classroom.  I’ve never heard of a Williams Complaint…Mr. G. explains that this particular complaint is filed when conditions are sooo terrible, teaching cannot occur. It appears I should have been filing Williams Complaints at College No. 1 for the past 20 years.

8:00-9:30 – Class is in session. It is hot in here! even with the industrial fans going, but because this is the first class of the day, it’s tolerable. Mr. G. said if the heat gets too unbearable, we can switch to a different classroom. Right…just what I want to do…call the Office and wait 20 minutes for them to locate an empty classroom and find keys, at which point class is over. Today’s itinerary: Episodes 1 and 2 of a podcast, so I sit in the back of the classroom and work on a blog post.

9:30-9:45 – Class dismissed. I return the Attendance, then drive to my car.

9:45-11:00 – Driving.  I call Chase Credit Card and ask them to waive my late fee, then speak to a Liberty Mutual representative to find out when L. will finally receive her money for the car accident. I’m told to contact “Orlando”, the claim agent, but I hate that guy and specifically tell the employee I’m speaking with, “No! I do NOT want to talk to Orlando.” She assures me that she will route my question to a SUPERVISOR who will call me in 1 to 2 business days. 

I call Supersweet Tattoo to try and schedule an appt. to have my tattoo updated, but the employee I speak with tells me to schedule an appt. online, even though their online scheduling doesn’t work AND I’m speaking to the receptionist on the phone. Still no appointment… 

I call Mr. Cooper, my loan servicing company, because there’s been an issue with my escrow account since August; HOWEVER, every time I call Customer Service, I’m patched through to a loan agent and the hard sell begins. I’m on hold for 30 minutes, but I’m in the car, stuck in terrible traffic, so who cares? Finally, I’m rerouted to the Escrow Dept where I speak to a representative who informs me that I need an “escrow analysis.” She submits the request and informs me that I can expect the analysis in 10 days. Finally…this issue is going to be resolved!  Spoiler Alert: The escrow analysis never arrives and I’m still overpaying. I have a pre-made salad for lunch. 

11:00-11:30 – Home and I bring in all my bags and put everything away.

11:30-12:00 – Kitchen duty and I fill the dog’s water dispenser and ready my coffee for tomorrow. 

A call from an unidentified number comes in and I’m assuming it’s the Liberty Mutual supervisor, so I answer.  To my horror, it’s Orlando. The customer service representative lied and forwarded my concerns straight to him. He and I. get. into. it. and by get into it, there are expletives and raised voices on my part.  The main issues are:  

1)  Orlando says he’s been unable to reach L., intimating that she’s been avoiding his calls, and I. go. off. See, I actually know the course of events on that lie.  Orlando made an appt. with L to call her so he could obtain yet another statement, when L. already gave one. She arranged her school and work schedule to accommodate Orlando’s schedule and he never called, nor did he leave a message or text explaining why. It was extremely irritating. If you read this blog, you know how jammed our lives are…L. and I plan our days to the hour and sometimes to the minute.  For Orlando to not even have the decency to make the phone appt after L. has arranged her life like this is “unsat.” After screaming at him for 30 seconds, he seems truly taken aback and readily admits the scheduling incident was his fault;

2) Orlando says L. is at fault, however, when it comes to her accident. He makes this detemination even though he never interviewed L.’s friend, T., who was a passenger in the car.  Orlando failed to interview T. because he said T. is NOT an “independent witness.” I call bullshit on this and he and I have more words; AND finally; 

3) Where is the f—king money?  It doesn’t matter whose fault it is…L. is still entitled to compensation because her Dad and I I pay $2500 a year for her insurance. Orlando keeps saying that he wants to forward the reimbursement  to the body shop when we’ve told him repeatedly, we can’t afford to repair it, instead of sending the money directly to us. The quote came in at $2000, but because my deductible is so high, Liberty Mutual took $1000 off the top. L. will receive $1000 which is not enough to repair the car, which we don’t want to do anyway, because we’re getting rid of that car. L. and I. want. the . money. Orlando says he’ll send it. 

Listen, it sounds like the accident was probably L.’s fault, as her front end was partially in the traffic lane and “Marisol” ran right into her. But, according to Orlando, Marisol said, stupidly, that she saw L. but didn’t bother to stop.  A) Why would you admit that? and B) You’re really f—king dumb. Can’t we use Marisol’s testimony as a mitigating factor?  If L.’s insurance rates go up much more, my blood pressure will go up! Can either of us get a break here? Oh yeah…let me throw in the disclaimer real quick…”I know I’m a recipient of white privilege and these are NOT third-world problems.  Ukraine is at war and their people are suffering.”  Now, back to me and L….can we get a break here? I know this is a first-world problem, BUT I’m living in a developed country where “the bureaucracy” is so incompetent that nothing ever goes smoothly. First-world problems happen to be MY reality… 

I’m in a bad mood after talking to Orlando. 

12:00-1:30 – I change into workout clothes, then do a 10-minute Insanity Max-Ab workout and a 20-minute Insanity Max-Friday Fight.

1:30-2:45 – I read the Currated Closet.

3:00-4:30 – I go to Starbucks and reward myself with a peppermint hot chocolate. I sit in the parking lot and work on my bullet journal.

4:30-5:30 – I stop at Smart and Final and buy spinach, barbecue sauce, and almond milk.  I listen to Tiny Victories and the Double Shift.

5:30-6:00 – I start a barbecue chicken thigh dish in the crockpot.

6:00-8:30 – Gardening.  The yard is covered in leaves due to the recent winds we’ve had so I sweep the patio and the red rock flower beds.  It looks like the circuit blew again and the sprinklers haven’t been coming on so I reset the circuit breaker and fix the problem. Then, I trim my plants, clean out the pots, and water everything.

8:30-9:30 – I have two chicken thighs and an avocado.  I know I shouldn’t be eating this late, but the chicken is a protein.

9:30-12:00 – Oops…I fall asleep in my chair.

12:00-12:30 – I take the dog out and lock up.

12:30-2:45 – Blog posts.

2:45-3:00 – Bullet journal.

3:00-3:30 – Nighttime routine. Bed.