You could almost briefly forget about Covid and climate collapse.

40+ years of scientists telling us we have to make changes, and 40+ years of policymakers kicking the can down the road because we can’t hurt the economy offend the yacht and private jet owners. Capitalism will kill us all, and it will somehow be the regular folks that get blamed for not recycling enough or some shit.

Wildfires in Canada, Hawaii, Europe and a fucking hurricane on it’s way to California – but hey, this is alllll fine. What’s the over/under on Elon Musk absolutely not being in CA when it hits?

And Covid is letting us know that we may have forgotten it, but it hasn’t forgotten us. Two new variants with 7 confirmed cases, which means hundreds, or more likely thousands of cases out in the wild. If just one person infects 3 other people a day who in turn infect 3 a day – that’s over 200 cases in 5 days and 59K in 10 days. And folks have absolutely let their guard down, and I think this wave that is starting is gonna be messy.

I don’t know about the rest of the world, but here in the US, the CDC is saying if you’ve gotten the bivalent booster, you’re “up to date” but that’s kinda bullshit given that it’s been near a year since most of us got them – and we’re not going to have updated boosters until October at the earliest because we don’t have the public health emergency anymore, so that delays the rollout. Oh, and they’ll be ~$110 if your insurance doesn’t cover it. (See above: Capitalism is gonna kill us.)

But at least one of the better risk mitigators is also the easiest – get yourself a good N95 mask and wear it. I’m a big fan of the 3M Aura N95’s – and you can get a pack of 20 off Amazon for $12 right now. And the usual stuff – avoid crowded indoor spaces, go reward those restaurants that have patio seating, and make sure you have tests on hand.

And I know, I KNOW, we’re all very tired of Covid. I’m tired of masking up, I’m tired of the constant risk assessments, I’m tired of pushing off plans to later, I’m tired of living in a country that doesn’t give a shit because the capitalist meat grinder needs bodies. I’ve seen folks rightfully ask why the government doesn’t seem to care about the disability crisis that’s going to come with long Covid. I know why – they don’t give a shit about disabled folks as it is, what’s a few more to ignore? (Yeah, I’m gonna be salty about the government response to this FOREVER.)

The sad reality is that no matter where you are – something is trying to kill you – weather, Covid or both. Be as prepared as you can, be as safe as you can, help others if you can.