We made it through Memorial day weekend. The first big Spring to Summer holiday this year. Many of us were worried about how everyone would react to the holiday celebrations given that we all still need to be wearing masks and being socially distant. As with anything, you had your people that followed the rules and your people that didn't. Unfortunately even just a few people not following the rules is very bad news for everyone during this Coronavirus pandemic.
My wife and I did have a Memorial day weekend celebration, but we did it in a safe manner. The guidelines for our county was that you could have a group of no more than ten people and you still needed to maintain at least six feet apart trying to stay outside. If you needed to be inside than they want us to wear masks. So my wife and I had a cookout with two other people. Staying outside the whole time. Staying six feet apart the whole time. Using hand sanitizer periodically etc.
It was a different kind of celebration without a doubt. But we made it work. This is the first time my wife and I have seen other people (Friends I mean) since this pandemic started months ago. Since lock-down. So even though we couldn't shake hands or give hugs etc. It was still so nice to be in other peoples company.
(Our lilacs came in finally, Just in time for a great Summer celebration!).
I was surprised at one point in time during this past weekend. Someone I know was actually trying to throw a 50 plus person pool party and invited me to join. My response was "Absolutely Not". That sounded like a horrible idea to me. My wife felt the same way.
I know it's hard right now. Everyone just wants to see their friends and family and have a good time. Have a pool party and enjoy summer the way we all use too. However this just isn't the time to be doing all of that in a big group of people.
Well, thank goodness this person ended up seeing a story on the news prior to having their party and saw how someone else in another state did this (A group of teenagers) and caused another major outbreak in Covid-19 cases. This person ended up realizing how bad an idea it really was and decided to cancel.
It frustrates and saddens me however that not everyone this weekend was following the rules. I mean, I truly didn't expect everyone to do the right thing. But the people who do say F**k - it and go out in big groups of people and party during this pandemic are putting the rest of us at risk. That's not okay.
City of Rochester officials have been responding to several incidents over the weekend where large crowds gathered to party, with some devolving into fights. On Friday, nearly 300 people gathered for a party. And then just a few hours later, this time on a different Street, police were called again to disperse a crowd of over 200 people.
Even though Rochester, NY had some idiots who clearly broke the rules and put others at risk. Rochester, certainly wasn't the worst.
At a glance it looked this weekend like many Americans have forgotten about the dangers of Coronavirus. Crowds packed beaches in Florida, Maryland, Georgia, Virginia and Indiana. Many people went out without masks and others failed to keep their distance even as officials highlighted the continued importance of both in order to prevent another surge of infections.
In Missouri, hundreds of people went to a pool party just days after a similar party in neighboring Arkansas caused a cluster of new Coronavirus cases. Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson said the state is now experiencing a "second peak."
The number of deaths caused by Coronavirus neared 100,000 on Monday. As of Monday evening, the number of coronavirus related deaths had reached 98,218. Which is more than the number of US troops killed in the Korean and Vietnam wars combined.
I know there were a lot of people that did practice social distancing and did follow CDC guidelines and state / county guidelines. So I don't want to completely over shadow them. But the people I have written about above. The people who clearly have no respect for the rest of the world just blow my mind. We will see the affects of those peoples actions in the coming weeks. Mark my words. We will see a spike in infections across the country. And that to me is just so frustrating and unfortunate. Because it could've been avoided.
I want to thank you all for taking the time today to read this blog. I hope that you celebrated Memorial Day Weekend in a safe way! Please stay well and please continue to wear your mask and practice social distancing.
"Be smart. Masks work. In simple New York terms: Don’t be stupid." - Andrew Cuomo.
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