WST for today is “Too Many People.” Today is Super Bowl Sunday. For many years we were in the habit of going to our friend’s house to watch the game. Or, I should say, my husband went to watch the game. I went to visit but, honestly, being the introvert I am, mostly I just sat on the couch and worked on some craft project I brought with me. Rude? I wasn’t trying to be and I did engage in conversation of course. If the half-time show was worth watching I got into that. There was lots of pot luck food and drinks as you can imagine but that’s another reason I would bring crafty stuff to do so I wouldn’t sit and eat all day.
As you can guess, the last two years there has been no Super Bowl party. Also as you can guess that didn’t really bother me at all. My hubby would still watch the game but I’d be happily crafting in the studio. This year our friends decided to have a small gathering, maybe 15 people, to watch the game. My husband is all for it. I am still thinking that is too many people. It truly would be nice to see our friends and actually converse with someone who doesn’t live in my house but I just think it’s a bit too soon. Maybe it’s because our son just had a bout with the virus and he’s been vaccinated. Another vaccinated friend my husband saw recently got it as well. I just want to minimize my exposure for a little while longer.
And then there’s the complicated (to my way of thinking) idea of, do I ask if everyone who is coming has been vaccinated/boostered? Do I just trust that our friends are as proactive about protection as we are? Do we wear masks in the house just in case? It is all too much for me to want to deal with, especially because I don’t care about the teams playing and the half-time show of Dr. Dre, Snoop Dog and Eminem really, really does not interest me in the least. It is easier for me to say, “Go ahead, honey, have a good time. Stay safe. Say hello to everyone for me,” as I head out to the studio. The ONLY thing that I am remotely interested in is the score. Not as in which team is winning but as in do those numbers match the squares on the football pools we have?
Thoughts? Are 15 people still too many people? Is watching a game that you have no interest in worth the risk of exposure to the virus? Would you go just to make your husband happy yet be miserable the whole time? Tell me!
Janet's Smiles 
I went to a birthday party this weekend that was about 14 people, but they were family and everyone was fully vaccinated and boosted. I don’t think I would be comfortable going to a party where I didn’t know other people’s status. My daughter (and perhaps husband) had a very mild case in January, and she was fully vaccinated and boosted. I don’t worry about getting sick so much, due to vaccinations making symptoms pretty mild for most of us (though not everyone), but I don’t want to pass it on to anyone who might be more susceptible, and I don’t want to somehow overwhelm the local hospitals if I were not lucky and did get really sick.
Regarding the Super Bowl, I’m team Guacamole. I don’t care about the game, but enjoy the snacks. I should have taken up some sort of craft to help me eat less. Smart.
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Hi J. I was very content staying home, for those exact reasons. I didn’t want to ask if everyone had been vaccinated and our daughter, while vaccinated and boosted, had just had jaw surgery so the thought of her perhaps catching something while her mouth was splinted shut was not what I wanted to chance. Thanks for stopping by!
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Hello back from Ally’s. I think 15 is too many and I wouldn’t have gone. (it looks like you didn’t) I went to my boyfriend’s, we rooted for different teams, had good snacks and then finished off a Prime series that we’d been watching. It was ideal.
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Yes, sounds perfect.
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Hi, other Janet. I’m hopping over from Ally’s to say hi. I enjoy football, so that part isn’t/wasn’t a problem. It was easy for us as we didn’t go anywhere as my husband was on call, so we watched the game at home with inexpensive but tasty food and not overeating. We didn’t watch the halftime show (not a fan of performers or the show in general) and enjoyed the game.
As far as groups, we’re not really doing any group things. Of course because we moved right at the start of Covid, we haven’t had a chance to make friends to form a group. I still wear a mask when shopping even though hardly anyone else does. We’ve only eaten in a restaurant twice, I think, and the table were distanced. I prefer to err on the side of caution and even wore a mask the last two Sundays at a church I just started attending, one of only a few to do so. I’m fine with that and it makes my husband feel better. He worries about getting it even though we’re vaccinated and boosted.
That’s my story and I’m sticking to it. It will be wonderful when we feel that we don’t have to wear masks around lots of other people but I don’t know when that will be. In the meantime, wearing a mask isn’t such a big deal and if it’s the hardest thing I have to do, I’m blessed. 🙂
janet
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Thanks for coming over, Janet. I agree with you, if wearing a mask is the hardest thing, I can do that no problem. My son recently got covid and he was vaccinated but hadn’t had his booster yet. It was a mild case but he had to stay home from work to quarantine and that hit his wallet since he does not get sick pay where he works. I’d rather take a few extra precautions now and be able to really enjoy things later.
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We went to a small gathering of eight – all neighbors, all vaxxed up. I had no real interest in the game but it was fun to get together. We are careful too but are also starting to feel that we need human connections to some extent.
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You are right, Janis. I would have loved to see our friends but maybe only a couple at a time. I was also thinking about our daughter who just had jaw surgery and I didn’t want to take the risk of bringing something home to her.
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You know I’m going to say live today because there are no guarantees of tomorrow
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Good point. I stayed home and had a great time in my studio. I did miss seeing this particular group of friends but I don’t regret staying home.
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I normally don’t watch the super bowl…yesterday was an exception, but that’s a long convoluted not particularly interesting story
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I would have said stay home!! Glad you did :))
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Janet, I completely understand. My grandson is turning 1 year old next weekend and – of course – we’re invited to his birthday party. Family, some close friends of his parents, and their children will be in attendance. I’m confident about the close friends being vaccinated and I know there’s a culture of testing regularly among them. I feel the same way about family members too, on top of which my daughter’s family have all recently had Covid, so their anti-bodies are high. But there will be children attending who are too young to have been vaccinated, and schools/nurseries are currently the prime breeding grounds. I desperately want to be there and am willing to take the risk for myself, but Himself is not. The problem is that any risk either of us takes is shared by the other whether we like it or not. It’s killing me. So, yes, I completely understand your caution.
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That’s it exactly! Our daughter who lives with us just had major jaw surgery and I didn’t want to take the added risk of bringing something home to her.
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I agree with you. I too am still avoiding groups of people, no matter the size. I had a situation in which I trusted a person who told me he was vaccinated. He wasn’t– and later went on to gloat about how no one had gotten sick, proving that vaccinations aren’t necessary. That kind of callous disregard for the truth and my health is why I’m still avoiding people.
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Exactly! I mean, you like to think that you can trust your friends but then it extends to their friends and on and on.
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Yep.
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I couldn’t care less about football. What bugs me is with other pro sports are the ludicrous sums of money these people are paid to play a game. Football is so boring!
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Yep. And the halftime performers were not my cup of tea.
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We seem to think alike, but I honestly couldn’t care less about football…
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It’s definitely still complicated. I tend to err on the side of caution so I would feel anxious as well.
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Glad it’s not just me.
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