Summary

The website content expresses frustration over the public's disregard for wearing masks during the COVID-19 pandemic, highlighting personal experiences and the importance of mask-wearing for community protection.

Abstract

The author recounts a recent experience leaving home for car repairs during a holiday weekend, noting the lack of mask-wearing among service providers and the public despite CDC guidelines and expert advice. A specific incident with a taxi driver who failed to install a required plexiglass partition and carried an unauthorized passenger further illustrates the disregard for safety measures. The author, after reporting the driver, encounters a family without masks, leading to a confrontation over the importance of mask-wearing to protect against the spread of COVID-19. The piece underscores the seriousness of the pandemic, with references to daily infection rates and the potential consequences of not wearing masks, including the risk of death and the impact on children. It concludes with a call to action for personal and collective responsibility in preventing the spread of the virus through mask-wearing, especially in light of the long lines observed at a medical clinic, indicating widespread illness.

Opinions

The author is exasperated by the general population's refusal to wear masks in public spaces, despite overwhelming evidence of its necessity.
There is a strong sentiment of disappointment towards service providers, such as the car mechanic and gas attendant, for not adhering to mask-wearing protocols.
The taxi driver's negligence in installing a plexiglass partition and carrying an extra passenger is seen as a blatant disregard for safety regulations, which the author finds unacceptable.
The author believes that parents who do not teach their children to wear masks or maintain physical distance are acting irresponsibly, both as individuals and as parents.
The author expresses outrage at the number of people affected by COVID-19, emphasizing the personal impact of the pandemic on their community.
The author views wearing a mask as a critical act of care not only for oneself but also for others, and as a necessary measure until vaccinations become widely available.

If Not For Yourself, For Others

Put on your ******* mask

I left home yesterday for a necessary car repair. The check engine light came on, and I did not want to risk leaving the repair for later in the week.

There is never a good time for a car to break down, but a car breakdown is compounded during a holiday weekend when against all better judgment, the streets remain clogged with traffic, and the stores remain crowded.

What remains worse? The general population still refuses to wear a mask when out in public, despite the multiple warnings from the CDC, the numerous medical experts, and myriad stressed-out front-line workers appearing on every media outlet.

The car mechanic who repaired my car? Not wearing a mask. The gas attendant pumping gas? Not wearing a mask. The taxi driver who drove me back to the repair shop when I went to pick up my car? He was wearing a mask yet toted an extra passenger in the front who was not supposed to be there. That person was also wearing a mask.

Why do I mention the taxi driver and his extra passenger?

By city ordinance, every taxi driver needs to install a plexiglass divider in between the front seat and the back seat. Was this done? No.

I asked the taxi driver, “Where is your plexiglass partition?”

He responded, “I don’t have one.”

Thanks, taxi driver, for stating the obvious. You failed to provide a reason for not having a partition, other than telling me you decided not to install one.

I rolled down the window to ensure I wasn’t in an enclosed breathing space and was thankful it took only five minutes to get to the car repair shop. I reported the driver to the taxi company and will also register a complaint with the city’s taxi commission.

After picking up my car and putting the car in the garage, I met a friend for a walk. We both wore masks and began to walk through town.

We were waiting to cross the street when we saw two parents and their children on the other side of the walkway. Not one person in the entire family was wearing a mask, nor did anyone wear a mask around their neck. The light changed, and the kids took off. They ran directly toward my friend and me shrieking with laughter. I stopped short in the middle of the crosswalk. The parents yelled at their children, who barely avoided colliding with us.

The mother reached us. I was furious. I will share with you the edited version of what I said to her and will leave it to your imagination as to the swearing. I said, “Put on a ******* mask.”

I’m sorry, but you are a horrible parent and person if you are willfully taking your children into public without disciplining them and teaching them not to run into other people they don’t know.

You are a horrible parent and person if your child is above the age of a toddler, and you are taking them out in public without a mask. 175,000 to 200,000 people per day in the United States are diagnosed with Covid-19. Covid-19 is a disease that causes your blood to clot, your organs to shut down, and your breathing to cease. Isn’t that enough of a reason to take care of yourself and those you love?

How are you going to explain to your child the death of a sibling if one of them gets sick because you didn’t wear a mask during holiday shopping? How is it okay to teach your children that wearing a mask is optional at this point? How is it okay to not wear a mask when you’re out in public with your children?

The word “anger” cannot describe the outrage I feel in knowing how many people I know of, personally, who have gotten sick or who have died from Covid-19.

When I was out yesterday, I passed a walk-in medical clinic. It was 9 a.m. on a Saturday, and the line to enter the facility extended for three blocks. That line is a chilling reminder of how many are ill and suffering right now. Everyone waiting on the medical clinic line was wearing a mask, but were they wearing their masks too late?

Until vaccinations are available, we need to take care of ourselves. Wearing a mask is not only for self-protection. Wearing a mask is for the people we encounter, whether accidentally or on purpose.