During the COVID lockdown in the U.S., I was deemed an "Essential Worker" because I worked at a grocery AND "hardlines" store (Wally World). I even had a special paper, signed, and explaining that I was not "sheltered in place" because the government deemed my work "essential." And I had to carry that in my pocket at all times!
I was, quite frankly, scared shitless that I was going to get the virus. It had gotten my Uncle very early on and he nearly died, respirator and all. But he made it through. Then we lost a coworker. You know how there's those coworkers who were either so generic they blended in with the background, or, were assholes, well, this guy was a really good man. Everyone liked him, he had no enemies. So his death hit everyone hard, and ramped up our fear of getting it.
Then my brother got it. Loss of taste and smell, and the flu-like symptoms. He ended up getting it twice, which was not unusual in my circle of experience. But he never ended up on a hospital stay. And best of all, never ended up on a respirator.
Then one day my boss of my department (Garden Center / seasonal), another truly good, positive, very well liked employee, told me he was going home because "man, I feel like shit. This is supposed to be my day off. I'm going home." Then it was boom boom boom; hospital, respirator, dead in like 4 days! I felt that one hard, he had been my direct boss. Of all the people for the gods to take, why him? He was even a military veteran!
So, after that, it was all bets off. Everybody was either broken up by these two coworkers deaths and realized they could get it at anytime. Or, on top of that, they had friends and family who had it, and some who had died.
We were open that whole time. Masks, Temperature readings before entering the building. Heavy stuff.
But this is the really crazy thing. All that time I was exposed to not just hundreds of coworkers, but hundreds and hundreds of the regular population a.k.a. customers. Many of them, when you couldn't understand them through their mask, took it off and got up right close to you to ask their question. I knew for certain I'd get it. The company was going to give 2 weeks paid vacation for anyone who had it. And a lot of stupid people pretended to be sick just to get 2 weeks paid off. I said, "okay, now what if you really get it? And you have to miss work. No money. What then?" You know how people are, especially those ignorant or young or uneducated or some of or all three of those, they simply think "it isn't going to happen to me" and "I'm immune." So, "I" knew it was coming for me. It was just a waiting game.
And I waited. A year or two go by and I don't get it. The company then pulls back and eliminates the 2 free weeks off, so I'm gonna get fucked there. And then, day after day, month after month, year after year; I don't get it. I started to think, man, the amount of things that had to take place to prevent me from being infected must be in the millions, perhaps billions, of possibilities. And somehow I ticked off all the boxes and was just lucky and would get it late in the game. But then, NO COVID. Zero. Nada, Zilch...
Eventually the mask mandate was lifted, then the "shelter in place" was lifted. Then the war stories of who had what and what was it like came in. And a constant, unbridled stream of hundreds and hundreds of customers flowed in.
And I STILL didn't get it.
Now, today, right as I write this, it's July 5th, 2025 with no COVID.
And I've had the two vaccine initial dose. And then two vaccine boosters after the fact when everyone was acting "normal" again in an open and free world.
So, there are two possibilities here;
1) (the most unlikely) I have managed by sheer insane luck to avoid getting the virus. Now, if you crunch the numbers, that's just impossible. I had to have been exposed at some point. There were hundreds and hundreds of times, especially on the city bus, that I was exposed to sneezing and coughing and all that fun stuff.
Which leads into;
2) I got the virus, but for some still unknown reason it did not make me sick. I was, as they said, simply a "carrier" of the virus without actually getting sick. Which means I could have infected other people, but I was randomly, in the DNA lottery, naturally immune to the virus.
They came up with a name for my kind; "NO-VID-ERS"
Medical websites asked for participants in studies. I signed up, sent off info, and so forth... but no one ever contacted me.
So, I feel like Charlie in the Chocolate factory. Out of all those millions of kids stuffing their faces with Wonka bars, "I got a golden ticket." (sing as in the movie).
"Cause I've got a golden ticket. I've got a golden chance to make my way. And with a golden ticket, it's a golden day."
Charlie Buckets, I got one too!
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