Got my Shot!

 

It was not the first time in my life that a shot made me cry. When I was young, I was scared of shots and almost fainted when I got a shot in my teens. Today I cried happy tears getting my first COVID 19 shot! I told the nurse this is the only time I have been happy getting a shot. The big event lasted almost three hours at a huge convention hall Las Vegas-style. 

I arrived at 7:30 am on a cold, dark morning for my appointment. I wore three masks, winter gloves, and my hooded coat to protect myself from germs. I stood in line shivering until the officials came out and waved us into the huge venue. There were uniformed servicemen and women managing the large crowd. When I showed them my appointment paper, they couldn't find me on the computer. Then he realized that this part of the building was for COVID testing only. Why didn’t they put that on a sign outside? So I had to follow a crowd to the other side of the building with an even longer line. Grrr...As someone said, we could have been at the front of this new line if there had been signs directing us there. Someone else remarked that we may have been exposed to COVID waiting in line with the people being tested. I can’t even…

    Hours later, I entered the large, crowded building filled with a high level of excitement. Luckily, my name showed up on their computer and I waited patiently in line while watching people get vaccinated. Some were reading worn-out paperbacks and had to be teachers. When it was almost my turn, they ran out of vaccines. Oh no. Luckily, uniformed workers showed up with a fresh supply. It felt like hours had gone by. Finally, it was my turn. I took off my coat and remembered how I used to dread shots. I hardly felt the jab and told the nurse this was the first time I welcomed a shot. She smiled and gave me an official card. It had a date three weeks later to return for my second shot 

Then I was led to the waiting area for 15 minutes before departure. We had to use a QAR code to schedule a second appointment. The Internet was not working well so I had to do it twice. What a mess! Some people didn’t have a mobile phone and had to share the few available iPads. It felt like I spent more time trying to reschedule than actually getting the shot. I finally got an appointment confirmation and left the crowd behind. I was so relieved and grateful to have success in Round 1. Stay tuned for Round 2.