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tldr: Pfizer #1 last Tues. Went smoothly. Mild tiredness.
PSA 1 – Make an appointment to get vaccinated.
PSA 2 – If you find an earlier appointment, awesome! Take the first available. Then, please go back to cancel the first appointment. This will allow the vaccination site to schedule more people.
Writing this for the record & in case anyone is curious as to the process.
Signing Up
The local major medical center is hosting several vacc sites. My age group opened up on March 22. The week before, the vaccination sign-up page had my age group already listed. Did that mean I was eligible? Did that mean they were taking names for when I would become eligible?
Whatever. Sign up & let them sort it out.
Filled out form. Answered questions. They asked what day, what time, which site. I said first available, first available, first available. Crossed fingers that they wouldn’t schedule the same time as the blacksmith, just about my only immovable appointment in any given month.
How did I feel about Tuesday the 23 at 9:40?
How did they feel about me showing up an hour early on Tuesday the 23rd?
Come the day, I was only 5 minutes early. There is enough morning chores that it’s hard to get off the farm in the single digits. That’s why my saddleseat lessons were always 10:30 or 11.
Drive-Thru Vaccination
First person. Was I here for the vaccine? Yes, I was. On you go then.
Second person waved me into one of 8(?) lanes.
Third person waved me down under a long, shallow tent that covered all lanes.
ID. Was my car in park? Did I have my pen handy? They had advised appointees to bring one. Paperwork. Explanation of shot & procedure.
Roll down to next tent. Paperwork checked. Door opened. Shot. Tiny, tiny needle. I’ve had mosquito bites that I felt more. I will be scheduled to come back in three weeks.
Windshield was marked with my departure time, after the mandatory 15-minute observation period. As I passed down the line, various marks and checks were put in the top corner of my windshield. Trucks are not convenient for short volunteers.
The whole operation was amazingly efficient. I barely had time to strip down to the short sleeve shirt. They also advised this. Obvious, but I could see myself automatically putting on long sleeves in the morning.
Roll down to the waiting area. Chat from person with medical type ID. 15-minute wait explained. Honk if I feel anything at all. Please leave door unlocked in case we need to reach you quickly.
I brought a book, of course. Spent as much time people-watching. Particularly since I needed to keep my eye on the line of cars that advanced as the people ahead of me were released.
People kept circling thru to check that I was vertical.
Ready to go. Please follow the direction of the people in the yellow vests.
Done.
Drive-thru vaccination. Who knew?
Reaction, Or Not
The next day I was tired. Hard to tell if it was reaction, sloth, or relief. Took the day off.
The second day after was a bad weather day. Second one in a week. The sort of day when you have lots of time standing around waiting but you get nothing done. I wrote it off as a second sick day.
Day three, Friday. Still tired and cranky. A bit foggy. Misdated a few checks.
Reaction to vaccine?
Natural inclination?
Reaction to long week?
Only the Shadow knows.
My arm? Mild, but sore enough that for two nights I did not want to sleep on that side. Sharp amount of discomfort for a few hours on Wednesday. Go body! Train that immune response!
~~~
For your entertainment.
Humor – New Yorker: Things Fully Vaccinated People Are Still Not Allowed to Do, by Grober, March 22, 2021. Preach.
Reads – Lock In, “Unlocked”, & Head On, by Scalzi. Author takes the zombie/pandemic trope, adds robots, and makes it into a science fiction detective story.
Video – The Sacramento Bee: My Shot: Doctors remix ‘Hamilton’ song for COVID-19 vaccine. Watch the video, by Capron, March 16, 2021. Thanks to AV for the find.
Vaccine posts, [Mood On Monday, Vaccine Trials Volunteer, Guest Post] & [Intruder Alert! The Vaccine Trials Volunteer Returns, Guest Post]
Pandemic Posts [archive]
Stay safe. Stay sane.
Katherine
Virtual Brush Box 
I’ve got mine today so knowing what to look forward to is very much appreciated! I hope you’re feeling fully recovered now 🙂
Good luck today. You’ll do great. Actually, given the thoughts on your blog, I think you will find it fascinating.
All done and most efficiently too. I ended up with AstroZeneca and now I just need to test how long I can play on it with my younger family members 😁
Glad you got it. I was ready to drive to Baltimore if I had to, but they held the clinics here in the building. Hey, it’s an old people’s building. Ooo, not politically correct. Sorry. Senior citizens’ building.
My only side effect was some redness and swelling at the injection site. Both times.
You are right. Take whichever vaccine you can get, they’re all good.
“Go body! Train that immune response!” Glad you got your first!
Interesting to read about your drive through experience. The ones I’ve been working are always walk in. I love how organized it all was. Glad you got your first one!
Second one should be next week, then wait two weeks. Three weeks from full vacc. (I’m late with my follow-up comments.) Yay! (The vaccination, not the tardiness.)