How I Ruined Christmas Again ... For Me This Time
So, Christmas. Things were ruined yet again, but this time more for me than the others. I thought I was going to dodge it. It appeared to be going that way, but unfortunately I had to get Covid too late. I started having this tickle in my throat all day. I think that was on the 18th, if it wasn't the day before. But the night of the 18th I had gunk in my throat I couldn't clear out. It wasn't a good sign. The next morning I knew I was sick, so I had to tell my parents. To make things worse, my mom was going to ask if I wanted to go to the bookstore that day. D: And my parents were left once again wondering what to do for Christmas with Grammy planning on coming over.
But more with my symptoms: On the 19th that night I had a fever. The thermometer said 99.8. I felt like it was higher than that. It was not a good time and I turned in to bed early. But that was really my only bad night. The rest of the time it felt more like a cold with congestion and occasional post-nasal drip. Plus I've had a bloody nose the whole time. Then around day 4 or 5 is when I had the alteration of smell and taste. Or did I? That's a weird thing to answer because I never lost it completely and it seems pretty selective. I couldn't smell my deodorant. I still can't smell it, but I don't know if it had much of a scent to begin with. It's not like I tried to smell it before this happened. It's hard to know what certain things smelled like or how strong they smelled. I have some strong smelling chapstick. It smells fainter now. I can smell most everything else though. And my taste has been in tact except for that one day I guess where I'd say foods tasted slightly less flavorful. It's strange really. Well, I guess I'm glad I didn't entirely lose those senses. I did have a weird smell in my nose one day though that I can't even describe.
I admit I did not do a rapid test to see if I was positive, but then that's also because it really couldn't be anything else. Everyone in my family had Covid, which was confirmed by positive tests. The only time I had been out recently was with my mom to pick up some dinner, and I went in the restaurant with a mask on for like one minute. So yeah, how could it be anything else? Thankfully mild because I'm vaccinated and boosted. It really hasn't been that bad. I've had colds that were milder and colds that were worse. It never really drained me of energy or anything. And I'm not expecting to develop Long Covid or anything. I still have some left over congestion, but I have recovered pretty well. The only annoying part was not being able to go shopping with my mom. I gave her my list one time and she didn't get everything off it, partly because the store didn't have things, and well she just didn't get what I wanted. I also serve as her impulse control because she'll buy things she shouldn't lol. She also waited until the last minute to shop for Christmas dinner.
And that brings me to Christmas. My mom ultimately decided not to delay it this time. Instead I'd wear a mask (I was supposed to anyway) and Grammy would wear a mask too. I was concerned because even though it had been about a week since I first got sick, there was still a chance I could be contagious. I sat more than six feet away from Grammy and they didn't let me hand out gifts yet again. We had to tell Grammy to stay put a couple times because she tried to get up to get gifts for people. We didn't want her to handle the gifts either, but that was mostly worries about her tripping and falling. Fortunately, I didn't have to stay distant from my family because they had Covid already and it was over ten days for each of them, so hopefully no worries about putting Grammy at risk. Just me. I did tell my mom multiple times though if Grammy gets infected, I'm pointing the finger at her. Chances are my contagiousness level was low at that point, but you never know. I prefer to take more precautions around someone who would be higher risk. There's also the fact that Grammy never got the updated booster. She still needs to do that.
I forgot to post my Christmas list here, but I got what I wanted. I asked for The Trials of Apollo box set by Rick Riordan, New CDs by Orianthi and Tom Chaplin, Steam gift cards and an Amazon gift card, and my Ciruelo Cabral dragon calendar. My mom also got me some Nightmare Before Christmas pajamas and some new shampoo I had never heard of before, but my mom said is good. Grammy got me this Christmas pen and notepad. Actually it was a gift for me and the family. I don't mind having a new pen. I can also use it to write things on the calendar. And she regifted me My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante. It's a story about a friendship between two Italian girls, and I've heard good things. Yes, this is a gift we gave Grammy. I'll read it one day. Maybe. I want to, but I have so many things I want to read. Also there was something surprising because Donna got me a Christmas gift this year. She never gives me gifts, but this year she apparently felt bad because I have no friends I go out and do stuff with. That's not something that bothers me, but OK I'll take a gift lol. She got me a Spot the Difference puzzle book and some hot cocoa, so that was nice.
As for the things in my stocking, they weren't that great. I'm allowed to say that because my mom admits they weren't great. Basically I got more drawing pencils with an eraser and pencil sharpener. I don't need these things. Sadly I haven't been drawing much these days again. It's hard to squeeze in some drawing time because I focus on drawing Disney characters at the moment, but it's time consuming. She also got some fine tipped colored markers. She really wants me to color my drawings. :P The only other thing in the stocking, which I did actually like was a jar of chocolate chip cookies from a restaurant called Bru. My mom told me she just couldn't find much for stocking stuffers. Well, she did wait until the last minute.
After opening the gifts, I waited for Grammy (for a while) to head into the kitchen, so I could retreat up to my room. No way I was taking a chance of infecting her, so that was my Christmas. I mostly stayed isolated in my room while Grammy and my parents played games. They did actually make me eat dinner in the kitchen with them, which I thought was crazy. They did crack open the slider door for more ventilation. Still, I'm pointing the finger at my mom if Grammy gets sick. My mom did wait until the last minute to shop for Christmas dinner, but she did manage to find half a ham. Less leftovers is fine by me. The ham was good. We also had scalloped potatoes, green beans, and croissants. I went back to my room again until it was time for dessert. We had Marie Callender's Turtle Pie and Banana Cream Pie. Both so yummy. I escaped to my room a final time and after Grammy left, I watched The Christmas Chronicles 2 with my parents.
And that was Christmas. It kind of sucked again. This time more for me instead of everyone else. Maybe 2023 will be better. Maybe I'll be more vigilant about masking before the holidays, so this doesn't happen again. I can't believe it happened two years in a row. :/ My next post on here might be about the Hercule Poirot game, but if I don't finish it before New Year's Eve, I'm going to put it on hold because I'll be needing to work on my end of the year lists that take so much time, and it's a lot. I won't have time to do game updates. They would break the flow too, that's why I put gaming on hold around this time, but that's how it is every year. Things are winding down.
But more with my symptoms: On the 19th that night I had a fever. The thermometer said 99.8. I felt like it was higher than that. It was not a good time and I turned in to bed early. But that was really my only bad night. The rest of the time it felt more like a cold with congestion and occasional post-nasal drip. Plus I've had a bloody nose the whole time. Then around day 4 or 5 is when I had the alteration of smell and taste. Or did I? That's a weird thing to answer because I never lost it completely and it seems pretty selective. I couldn't smell my deodorant. I still can't smell it, but I don't know if it had much of a scent to begin with. It's not like I tried to smell it before this happened. It's hard to know what certain things smelled like or how strong they smelled. I have some strong smelling chapstick. It smells fainter now. I can smell most everything else though. And my taste has been in tact except for that one day I guess where I'd say foods tasted slightly less flavorful. It's strange really. Well, I guess I'm glad I didn't entirely lose those senses. I did have a weird smell in my nose one day though that I can't even describe.
I admit I did not do a rapid test to see if I was positive, but then that's also because it really couldn't be anything else. Everyone in my family had Covid, which was confirmed by positive tests. The only time I had been out recently was with my mom to pick up some dinner, and I went in the restaurant with a mask on for like one minute. So yeah, how could it be anything else? Thankfully mild because I'm vaccinated and boosted. It really hasn't been that bad. I've had colds that were milder and colds that were worse. It never really drained me of energy or anything. And I'm not expecting to develop Long Covid or anything. I still have some left over congestion, but I have recovered pretty well. The only annoying part was not being able to go shopping with my mom. I gave her my list one time and she didn't get everything off it, partly because the store didn't have things, and well she just didn't get what I wanted. I also serve as her impulse control because she'll buy things she shouldn't lol. She also waited until the last minute to shop for Christmas dinner.
And that brings me to Christmas. My mom ultimately decided not to delay it this time. Instead I'd wear a mask (I was supposed to anyway) and Grammy would wear a mask too. I was concerned because even though it had been about a week since I first got sick, there was still a chance I could be contagious. I sat more than six feet away from Grammy and they didn't let me hand out gifts yet again. We had to tell Grammy to stay put a couple times because she tried to get up to get gifts for people. We didn't want her to handle the gifts either, but that was mostly worries about her tripping and falling. Fortunately, I didn't have to stay distant from my family because they had Covid already and it was over ten days for each of them, so hopefully no worries about putting Grammy at risk. Just me. I did tell my mom multiple times though if Grammy gets infected, I'm pointing the finger at her. Chances are my contagiousness level was low at that point, but you never know. I prefer to take more precautions around someone who would be higher risk. There's also the fact that Grammy never got the updated booster. She still needs to do that.
I forgot to post my Christmas list here, but I got what I wanted. I asked for The Trials of Apollo box set by Rick Riordan, New CDs by Orianthi and Tom Chaplin, Steam gift cards and an Amazon gift card, and my Ciruelo Cabral dragon calendar. My mom also got me some Nightmare Before Christmas pajamas and some new shampoo I had never heard of before, but my mom said is good. Grammy got me this Christmas pen and notepad. Actually it was a gift for me and the family. I don't mind having a new pen. I can also use it to write things on the calendar. And she regifted me My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante. It's a story about a friendship between two Italian girls, and I've heard good things. Yes, this is a gift we gave Grammy. I'll read it one day. Maybe. I want to, but I have so many things I want to read. Also there was something surprising because Donna got me a Christmas gift this year. She never gives me gifts, but this year she apparently felt bad because I have no friends I go out and do stuff with. That's not something that bothers me, but OK I'll take a gift lol. She got me a Spot the Difference puzzle book and some hot cocoa, so that was nice.
As for the things in my stocking, they weren't that great. I'm allowed to say that because my mom admits they weren't great. Basically I got more drawing pencils with an eraser and pencil sharpener. I don't need these things. Sadly I haven't been drawing much these days again. It's hard to squeeze in some drawing time because I focus on drawing Disney characters at the moment, but it's time consuming. She also got some fine tipped colored markers. She really wants me to color my drawings. :P The only other thing in the stocking, which I did actually like was a jar of chocolate chip cookies from a restaurant called Bru. My mom told me she just couldn't find much for stocking stuffers. Well, she did wait until the last minute.
After opening the gifts, I waited for Grammy (for a while) to head into the kitchen, so I could retreat up to my room. No way I was taking a chance of infecting her, so that was my Christmas. I mostly stayed isolated in my room while Grammy and my parents played games. They did actually make me eat dinner in the kitchen with them, which I thought was crazy. They did crack open the slider door for more ventilation. Still, I'm pointing the finger at my mom if Grammy gets sick. My mom did wait until the last minute to shop for Christmas dinner, but she did manage to find half a ham. Less leftovers is fine by me. The ham was good. We also had scalloped potatoes, green beans, and croissants. I went back to my room again until it was time for dessert. We had Marie Callender's Turtle Pie and Banana Cream Pie. Both so yummy. I escaped to my room a final time and after Grammy left, I watched The Christmas Chronicles 2 with my parents.
And that was Christmas. It kind of sucked again. This time more for me instead of everyone else. Maybe 2023 will be better. Maybe I'll be more vigilant about masking before the holidays, so this doesn't happen again. I can't believe it happened two years in a row. :/ My next post on here might be about the Hercule Poirot game, but if I don't finish it before New Year's Eve, I'm going to put it on hold because I'll be needing to work on my end of the year lists that take so much time, and it's a lot. I won't have time to do game updates. They would break the flow too, that's why I put gaming on hold around this time, but that's how it is every year. Things are winding down.