Vaccine Again, and a Baby

I’m glad a whole lot more people have been added to the eligibility pool for COVID vaccine including my daughter, but the New York State System is still deeply flawed.  The state’s website is adding new people’s appointments ahead of people who are already in line.  One of my friends just got an appointment in three weeks through the New York State website, while mine, made on January 12th,  is still almost seven weeks away.

My wife found another source of vaccination for both of us, much earlier than what we got through the state website, so if that works out, I’ll cancel my late-March appointment so someone else can have it, but last time I looked, there was no way to cancel or reschedule an appointment through that website, so I’ll have to call my state senator or assemblyman’s office to find out how to manage that.

Meghan Markle is having another baby with Prince Harry, so their son Archie will soon be a big brother.  I hope that if it’s a girl they name the baby Betty or Veronica.  If it’s a boy, however, I’m not recommending they name him Jughead.

Finding Vaccine in New York

As I’ve said before, I became eligible for a COVID vaccine on January 11th and was able to get an appointment on the 12th for March 26th.  My wife became eligible a few days later and I’ve still not been able to get her an appointment through the NY State Health Department’s website although I try every day.  According to that site this morning, the only place in New York that has appointments is Potsdam.  If you’re wondering what Potsdam is near, it’s a nice, small college town very far upstate, but it isn’t near anything.  To give you an idea, it’s northeast of Watertown and Fort Drum, but it’s closer to Ottawa and Montreal in Canada than it is to anything you’re familiar with in NY.

Frankly, I don’t understand the problem in New York and I wish I did.  My wife’s sister, in Florida, has already received both doses of the vaccine.  I know of other people both in Florida and North Carolina who have also gotten their shots.  I’m still 44 days away from my appointment for my firsr dose, and in five weeks of trying, I haven’t been able to locate the vaccine or even an appointment for my wife.

Also, while Google has become regarded as virtually the source of all knowledge, I’ve tried looking for COVID vaccine near me, and it’s useless for that.  Even the sites that are booked are far, far down the search list and last time I looked, nothing near the top of Google’s search results was even remotely relevant.

Yeah, Ground Hog Day Again.

The ground hog saw its shadow. So, six more weeks of winter. “Ground Hog’s Day” was a good movie, but the observance makes no sense at all, so the ground hog seeing his shadow is unsurprising.

First, the only way Punxsutawney Phil would not see his shadow is if there was so much snow the TV trucks couldn’t get through. Even if it’s cloudy, the ground hog always sees his shadow because of TV lights.

Second, Gobbler’s Knob, where the ground hog shows up, isn’t in Punxsutawney, PA. It’s just southeast of the borough’s border. You could look it up.

Third, take a look at a map. At any time in recorded history, has Spring ever come in mid February to the area of Pennsylvania northeast of Pittsburgh?

On a more positive note, pitchers and catchers report two weeks from tomorrow, so early Spring is possible in Florida and Arizona, if not near Pittsburgh.