The Second Shot (Scheduled)

 I received notice yesterday from the Department of Health that my second shot will actually happen as scheduled--on February 12 at 10:30 a.m. So that's good. I'm not looking forward to it because many people report flu-like side effects (headache, fever, chills, etc), but that's all still better than Covid.

I had a strange side effect from the first shot: A purplish, hard, hot, itchy spot about two to two-and-a-half inches in diameter near the injection site. At first I was worried that it was a spider bite or even cellulitis triggered by the injection, but then Dave saw a posting on an online forum from a doctor who was saying that she had seen several patients with a similar complaint after getting the Moderna vaccine (which I had). She described it as a rash that was happening near the injection site about ten days after the injection, but that it seemed to be clearing up after 24-48 hours. (Mine took several days and I still have a brown spot where it was.) 

This is a strange virus and a strange vaccine.

I also read this morning about the increase in psychological and neurological effects or illness in people who have had the virus. One study suggests that one in eight people who have had Covid report such things for the first time since getting the virus. The pandemic is taking a toll on many people's mental health as it is.

I also follow several healthcare providers on twitter and recently one described a case of a 'recovered' Covid patient--who had a stroke as a result of blood clotting from Covid that left him without the ability to speak or walk. But yes, he is counted among those who have recovered from the virus. 

The new recommendation is that with the new virus mutations that are here, we all need to be wearing N95 equivalent masks, such as the KN95s and KF94s. Dave and I are stocked up with both and wear them whenever we go out. 

Speaking of going out, the last time I went anywhere was to go with Dave to pick up a take-out order from the Korean restaurant where we go. Dave had bibimbap and I had japchae, which was kind of a rip because they half-filled the box with brown rice. I was, like, uh, where are the rest of my noodles? We also had some kind of fusion dish that is like a Korean arancini and some vegetable fritters. Dave liked the rice balls, but they were just "meh" to me, but we both liked the fritters. We had our dishes with tofu and radish kimchi, which was very tasty. 

Dave keeps kimchi in the house as a staple and one of the nights we were dog-sitting, he made a kimchi pizza (kimchi, mozzarella, sesame oil, and scallions). It was very good and I suspect we'll recreate it sometime in the future as we've had pizza once or twice a week since Dave started his baking jag.