Fully Vaccinated

 I officially reach my fully vaccinated status the 8th of February, two weeks after my 2nd Covid shot.

I had no reaction whatsoever to the 2nd shot.  I wondered then if perhaps the steroids I was on, for my sciatica, during the time of my first shot, negated me forming antibiotics.   Steroids work by reducing the immune response.   I hope not.  But after hearing so many stories from people who claimed to get ill following the 2nd shot, when I had zero reaction, not even a sore arm, I wonder.

Oh well, I did my duty and got vaccinated.  My second shot was given to me by a doctor to be, going to the Lebanon medical school.  For some reason, that made me proud.

The second dose experience showed off an unbelievably efficient Linn County vaccine clinic.  They had vastly improved on their circular clinic experience since my first vaccine.   I was so impressed.

My older brother and his wife now too, are vaccinated.  My younger brother was asked by his knee doctor to get vaccinated right away.  He is going ahead with knee replacement middle of April.   I hope that goes well.  He seemed very relaxed about it when I spoke to him last night.   I'm sure he will do fine.  He's even planning his second knee replacement and looking forward to summer a year from this summer, hoping by then, he'll be out of the pain he has endured for years, from his knees.  I think that will improve his sleep and outlook immensely, to be freed from pain.

My car dash lights went back off yesterday morning, after I got $10 in gas.   I think this time it might actually be the gas tank cap.  I was told to replace the gas tank cap when I first got this car, and the dash light problem was evident.  An auto parts store clerk told me that is sometimes the problem, with the three lights that come on.   I tried it then, and it didn't work.  But now, since it went out right after getting gas, I wonder.  They'll probably come back on again.  When they first started coming on again, they went out again for a couple days once before, then came back on.  Who  knows.  I've decided to ignore them, as I did for almost three years prior to being told I needed a new cat and O2 sensors and getting that done.   I was happy they went off after that.  But now, three months later, and after spending all that money on that repair, with them back on, off and on, I wish I had not spent that money.  I feel like I wasted it.

Hindsight.

Gas prices have skyrocketed here in the valley.   Over $3 per gallon many places.  That means a trip to Sweet Home, like to the wheelchair man's colony, costs me $9 or $10, just in gas back and forth.   That's terrifying, really, to think about.    So I don't think about it.  And stay home unless out after cats.  The city here is considering a "utility fee" although its not for utilities, it would be added to the cost of water/sewer, to pay for probably the services needed to support all the new developments going in.  Which is ridiculous, to make rich developers richer, swamp the city with traffic and service needs, draw in out of staters who buy those new houses, and tax the populous more to pay for it.  Seems like shitting in your own yard, really.  

The lowest rate the city is considering would be $9 a month.  That's a lot for fixed income folk.   Along with the rest of the increases.  Its a dire and frightening thought to me, that I'm getting steadily outpriced to live in this area.  

I finally talked to the woman who posted about the barn home.  It's a relatives place and the relative already has cats, that are not fixed, at the property and many are vanishing, probably due to predation.  I will offer to help her relatives get the cats on the property fixed, instead.

Somewhere else may come up for the junk shop cats, I hope.

Speaking of vaccinations and needles....saw this by the dog park yesterday.