Your Sub? Standard Year End Post

They say blogging is dead. Ang whose fault is that blogger? 

Whatevs. I think I considered this more of an exercise. This was writing easy, ephemeral, safe topics.  Certainly not as a means to earn money.  If anything, this blog has enabled me to see how my writing has changed, how I have changed over the years. I am more cynical than ever, that's for sure.

There's a reason why I haven't published much this year: my recent posts have not been appearing on google search. It matters to me, after all I don't do pwede na and I'm sure some socmed people out there notice. My writing may be average but you know what, my works have been copy pasted/lifted without consent, without credit and passed off as someone else's own. That should say something. This is why I want my work in the search engines: so that if I get copied, there's searchable proof that I was copied.  I mean, aside from being curious as to how Blogger differs from Wordpress, I switched to the former because you can disable text select and copy in it. 

But of course, that has not stopped content creators copiers from pilfering. There's even one youtuber who was able to amass thousands of views (and followers) after copying my post. You will notice that it is very different from her other vids. Biglang naging scientific approach nya dun. If you look at her other vids, not a shred of science in them. All but a handful of her post do not even get above 50 hits.

I also know when a brand is doing an online campaign. Old posts of mine about their product/s get lots of hits. Didn't notice it at first. Until I would suddenly see several blogs, Youtube, Facebook or Instagram accounts talking about said product/s days after the spike. Also when someone's holding an online contest. There's sudden interest in my posts on life during the pandemic every time that Southeast Asia Blogging Project is on. Sheesh.

So am I ending 2021 this bitter? Don't know. It's really a sucky year. 

Year-Enders

A schoolmate of mine died because of Covid-19. He was well-off and could have afforded the best possible treatment there is. As far as we know, he is a healthy person.

So it irks me when people, supposedly educated people at that, teachers even, scoff that Covid-19 ain't real. Or that it's just like TB or the flu. Or that Covid-19 should not be blamed, you don't die of Covid-19 but of whatever disease you already have.  Don't these people get it? Those people with co-morbities would still have been alive if it not for Covid-19. Covid-19 basically pushed them off the cliff. 

The thing is, you never know if you will be a mild case or a fatality. And if you don't get a yearly comprehensive physical, it could be too late before you learn that you have an underlying condition.

Being healthy also does not guarantee that you'd be asymptomatic or a mild case.

Taking a swab test alone is not a walk in the park. My brother relates that our frontliner cousin already had a swab test twice. Cousin says one time he has to stop himself sneezing that his face was beet red after the swabbing. 

Already it seems that other people are gonna break protocol and mass gather these holidays. The last few weeks saw a lot of people out shopping, a lot not observing social distancing or correct mask/face shield wearing. Some people in our neighborhood have already been doing rowdy revelries since October, karaoke sessions and liquor-drinking parties. Sometimes disregarding curfew. Obviously, the party-goers are not related by blood. A recent one involved a series of fireworks at midnight which was really, really inconsiderate. There were cheers of happy birthday after. Their voices were that loud that they can be heard several houses away. I have an inkling of who had this party: the same people who had been honking their car's horn in front of other peoples' houses at a time when everyone else is sleeping just so their help would open their gate. Supposedly, one of their own works for an administration senator. 

What curfew?

Uncertainty is Certain

We've been experiencing covid news fatigue. While I still check the daily statistics in our city, I stopped paying attention to the nationwide tally. They seem to be manipulating the numbers to suit whatever narrative they wish to feed the citizenry. (There was a time when the new cases per day was pegged at 200+ for so long. Now, 3000 + is the new 200+.) It's harder to do that at the local level since you're working with a smaller population, where someone with knowledge could blab should a case go unreported. 

Biking is 'in'. Even for kids and teens.

The Philippines seems to be set on becoming the Guiness Book of World Records' country with the longest time on lockdown. I sometimes think that that was their only plan, ride out the pandemic by making people stay indoors. We're on GCQ now but the meaning/specific guidelines of each CQs are lost to us especially as it seems that those guidelines are not set in stone. We went to MECQ last month and yet tricycles still plied the roads. Went back to GCQ but local businesses remained closed on Sundays until just recently. What remains clear is that no matter the CQ, the virus is still around. 

From ECQ to MECQ to GCQ to MGCQ

It felt like Hunger Games, complete with a siren at 12 noon then 8PM during enhanced community quarantine or ECQ and modified enhanced community quarantine or MECQ. Then there's the televised announcement of the fallen aka the day's total number of cases usually at 4PM. Donation drives were launched for PPEs and food for frontliners, and mass testing.

During ECQ and MECQ when only essential work was allowed, LGUs used funds to provide households with relief goods, usually rice, noodles and sardines. Who knew lumpiang sardinas tastes good.

Life During Lockdown Due to Covid-19

I am terrified.

I haven't been sleeping well, worrying. Especially since there are three senior citizens in our household, all of whom have co-morbidities, one of whom has a mental illness and needs to go to the hospital monthly, at the very least.

We get our daily dose of Vitamin D at our rooftop.

My sissy and I have been quite diligent, taking necessary precautions to keep the family safe. The problem is the senior citizens in our household think they are invincible. Even at a supermarket in Malhacan, I have observed some senior citizens talking in groups, never mind if they don't know each other, just met each other at the queue. Good-bye social distancing. I hate the queues there, cutting into the line is rampant so it's imperative for one to be there at 6AM, even if the supermarket opens at 9AM then, 8AM now.