Courage in an unsure world

I was at the local London Drugs store in Calgary, because I had dropped my cordless phone and it broke into 2 pieces. My other handset had a bad battery. This piece of crap vtech should have lasted me longer. I asked the young woman about a price, I was wearing my mask. "Oh that's a nice mask. Did you make it yourself?" She asked. "No" I said. I had bought it online from Vog Canada when the fires were active. It's a re-usable, washable mask that's good for even virus particles (N99).

In truth, the mask fogs up my glasses so I have to walk around without them on. I can drive with them on, but I need the HVAC turned ice cold on  my eyes so it doesn't fog up.

There is a silent tension that builds up when you need to go out to the store now. I gear up, put on the mask, and head out. I don't have gloves, they're all sold out.  I don't care about myself, but I do care about my elderly neighbors who are frail. When you hit 70+, your immune system is very weak, where bugs that you could laugh off in your 40's and 50's would certainly kill you in your elderly years - especially if you have any other medical conditions.

Today in Alberta, 5 people died from COVID-19.