When I ask what gift she would like my friend says she is trying to get her brain working better so she’d like puzzles, a book, and a meditation app. And though I’m tempted to give her masks so she stops catching Covid, instead I thank her for these gift suggestions.

If given a choice between being called a “zero Covid zealot” for still taking precautions, and being called “next patient, the doctor is ready to see you now,” you would be wise to choose the first option.

As I walked by the burly man in the aisle said: “I love your little mask,” and as I kept walking I replied: “thanks I love it too,” and I could tell he was not happy with my reply.

Should you find yourself buying last minute gifts make sure to get yourself the gift of a test kit for though it can be difficult to know what to get everyone you can be certain that no one on your list wants you to give them the flu or Covid or RSV.

When you hear people say it’s getting lighter, that at long last it’s finally getting lighter, you need to understand such comments are about the amount of daylight, such comments are only about the amount of daylight, for everything else (alas) is still just getting darker.

With a bit of focus and a measure of effort you can ensure that you will not need to bring work with you when you go on vacation. And with a bit of focus and a measure of effort you can ensure that you will not wind up bringing viruses with you when you go on vacation.

My work friend who long ago abandoned any and all precautions asked me what I would like them to get for me this year, and I said: please don’t get me anything, and when he replied by starting to cough, I quietly said: and please, really please, don’t give me anything.

After the solstice the fall ends and the winter begins. And after the solstice plague season continues plague season just continues.

As the year draws to a close I asked the old punk how she stands firm in this moment when it feels like everyone (it really feels like everyone) has given up, and with a simple shrug the old punk replied that she has always known she’s not like everyone.

How fitting it is that the heavily mutated (and aggressively spreading) Covid variant BA.3.2 has been nicknamed "Cicada," for what better way is there to react to this mutated subvariant than by wanting to emulate the humble cicada by screaming?

The start of Covid’s 7th year is the perfect time to revisit the pandemic hobbies you have abandoned: you can get back to baking and puzzles, reading and calling friends; and you can even get back into doing what you can to protect other people. * 301 librarianshipwreck.wordpress.com/2025/12/19/p...

If upon seeing the headline: “Whooping cough cases soar as vaccination rates drop,” you find yourself wondering how this could happen, it is important to remember that even as this headline fills you with anger and worry, most people will react to it by saying: “big whoop.”

When you hear them respond (and you will) to this winter wave of respiratory illnesses by saying: it’s winter, everyone always gets sick in the winter, it is vital that you remember that there was a time when even in the winter everyone didn’t always get sick.

It is not so much that I am tired of hearing Christmas songs wherever I go but that I am tired of hearing Christmas songs interrupted by coughing wherever I go.

A new study has found that “People who regularly ate higher-fat cheese and cream had a lower risk of developing dementia,” so if you want to protect your brain you should eat some Brie, and to protect your brain you should also do what you can to avoid contracting Covid.

My friend, who is optimistic, insists that right now it is vital to believe that next year will be better than this year was. And, my friend, who is pessimistic insists that right now it is vital to believe that next year might be better than this year was.

The professor told me on the last day a student had asked why she had worn a mask all semester and so she told him: that most students miss a few classes, but based on how many students miss a few classes she has a hunch that Covid and flu come to her class every day.

When you hear people ask “what never came back after Covid?” calmly and politely tell them that what never came back (what never will come back) are the more than 7.1 million people who lost their lives to Covid, and that number is still growing for we are not yet “after Covid.”

By now you have probably heard the bad news: that yet another study has found that Covid can cause long-term brain alterations. So now you should really hear the good news: that there is still time for you to alter your behavior so you don’t catch Covid.

According to the news “Researchers from Griffith University have found that COVID-19 can cause long-term brain alterations in those who had been infected,” and while it is wrong to say “those who had been infected” describes everyone, it probably describes most people you know.

Should you wish to understand this world there is much to read there is so much to read there is too much to read but how difficult it is to get around to it when you are so busy reading the writing on the wall.

Could this have been prevented? Yes, this could have been prevented. And yet, my friend. And yet, my friend, it wasn’t.

I have heard that in Canada doctors are “alarmed” about this mutant flu, and I have heard that in the UK doctors are saying this super flu is “beyond catastrophic,” and here in the US public health departments (and even the CDC) are quietly saying you might want to wear a mask.

It used to be that I longed for public health groups to urge people to take precautions so things wouldn’t get worse, but today when I saw CA’s Department of Public Health encouraging travelers to wear “a high-quality mask” I thought to myself: things must be worse than we think.

The professor told me that over the course of this semester she eventually lost count of how many students were using AI for their papers and how many students were out sick with “something,” and when I asked which frightens her more, she just replied with: yes.

If you are wondering why so few people are concerned about the scent of smoke, why so few people are concerned about that overwhelming scent of smoke, keep in mind: multiple studies have found that a Covid infection can cause lasting damage to people’s sense of smell.

Recent changes to FDA regulations have nearly doubled the amount of formaldehyde considered safe to inhale, so if you were looking for yet another reason to wear a mask there you have it.

When you hear that clinicians in the UK are saying that due to the “super flu” that “this is the worst winter they have seen,” it is essential for you to keep in mind: that this winter is just beginning, alas, this “worst winter” is only just beginning.

Listen! If you act now there is still time to order them a gift and have it arrive before Christmas. And, listen! If you act now there is still time to take precautions so you don’t get sick before Christmas.

The start of Covid’s 7th year is the perfect time to revisit the pandemic hobbies you have abandoned: you can get back to baking and puzzles, you can get back to reading and calling your friends; and you can even get back into doing what you can to protect other people.

When I asked how her last day went the masked professor told me that many students had said kind words, but what had mattered most, what had made it all worth it: was that her masked student (her only masked student) had told her that her class had made them feel less alone.

Please, my friend, take note that you have lived through six years of Covid-19. And please, my friend, take care for you are living through year seven of Covid-19. * A compendium of the 300th week of plague poems… librarianshipwreck.wordpress.com/2025/12/12/p...

I know a professor who makes sure to bring donuts to the last day of classes. And I know a professor who makes sure to bring candy to the last day of classes. And I know a masked professor who makes sure not to bring viruses to the last day of classes.

My friend who studies politics says it’s worse than we think. My friend who studies the climate says it’s worse than we think. My friend who studies epidemiology says it’s worse than we think. My friends who studies says at least some of us still think.

If you are wondering how it could be that the surge of hospitalizations (due to flu in England) is leading the NHS to warn of the “worst-case scenario” this winter, just remember: that far too many people cannot imagine a worse scenario than being asked to wear a mask again.

My colleague who is committed to not getting sick this winter keeps asking for advice, and so I tell her about the tools I use, but as she rejects each and every suggestion I am reminded that there is a difference between having the tools and having the willingness to use them.

I hear there’s a lot of flu out there. I hear there’s a lot of Covid out there. I hear there’s a lot of measles out there. I hear there’s a lot of RSV out there. I hear there’s a lot of “something” out there. So here there’s a lot to be said for not going out.

I have read the news that “The measles outbreak in South Carolina is “accelerating” with no end in sight following Thanksgiving and other large gatherings,” and I am worried that a month from now I will be reading the same news only with “Thanksgiving” replaced by “Christmas.”

When you hear about viruses, know: there is still plenty of time to resolve to take care and protect your health in the coming year. And when you hear about viruses, know: there is still plenty of time to resolve to take care and protect your health in the current year.

I know most people do not care about viral threats to humans or animals, but in Greece a virus has killed nearly 500,000 sheep and goats imperiling the supply of feta cheese, so even if people do not care about humans or animals perhaps they’ll care about viral threats to cheese.

Due to the absence of reliable data it can be difficult to know exactly how bad flu and Covid and RSV rates are at the moment, but considering that NYC’s department of health is urging people to wear a mask it seems safe to assume that the current situation is pretty bad.

If you want to protect yourself against the flu that’s going around: wear a mask. And if you want to protect yourself against the Covid that’s going around: wear a mask. And if you want to protect yourself against the “something” that’s going around: wear a mask.

The man in front of me looked at my mask and asked: “you sick?” I replied: “No.” And then he stated: “I can’t imagine wearing a mask unless I’m sick,” and though I wanted to say “I can imagine getting sick so I’m wearing one,” instead I just said: “the cashier’s ready for you.”

I asked the professor how the last week of her semester is going and she told me all of her students have contacted “finals flu,” and when I asked: doesn’t that usually happen?, she replied: yes, but what’s unusual is this semester all of her students have actual doctor’s notes.

I have heard that a pandemic doesn’t end until the next one begins, but having read that “Once H5N1 is spreading sustainably among people, authorities may have only 48 hours to prevent a pandemic,“ I now fear that the Covid pandemic will end when a worse pandemic arrives.

The professor told me she had attended a meeting on what could be done to help students succeed in the classroom, but when she suggested things that could be done to help students avoid getting sick in their classrooms, she was asked what that had to do with students succeeding.

He told me he isn’t worried about catching the flu or Covid because he doesn’t know anyone who has the flu or Covid, instead what he’s worried about is the odd “something” which it seems everyone has, and though I wanted to scream instead I said: masks protect against that too.

Please note: terms used in the UK differ from those used in the US. In the UK it’s a lift, in the US it’s an elevator. In the UK it’s the boot, in the US it’s the trunk. In the UK it’s an NHS “stay at home” alert to fight winter viruses, in the US we no longer talk of prevention

My colleague tells me that he’s glad to have caught “it” over Thanksgiving as this way he doesn’t need to worry about catching “it” over Christmas, and as he says this I can’t help but remember how last year that exact same logic didn’t work out well for him.

If they respond (and they will respond) to the mask you wear and the precautions you take by telling you that at this point nobody cares about the pandemic anymore, remember: the fact that they feel so compelled to tell you this is because your actions are proving them wrong.