Something in the Air

On my way to bingo, after this morning’s workout, I ran into Assistant Complex Manager.

She did not look well.

Walking slow and seemingly with considerable effort to get one foot ahead of the other, she looked to have the weight of the world on her shoulders.

"Are you okay?" asked I.

"No. I’m sick. It’s something we don’t know what it is. My husband has it too and I just admitted him into the hospital. It’s not Covid, but doctors don’t know what it is".

She looked so woebegone that I wanted to give her a hug, but didn’t because she’s got some kind of cootie and I didn’t want to catch it. Instead, I said, "You really look like you need a hug, but since I can’t give you an actual hug, consider yourself hugged."

She appreciated the thought, proceeded to hug herself as I hugged myself, and that was that.

Previously hearing there’d been an upswing in Covid and a new variant, I’d taken a mask with me to bingo, placed it in my bag.

About five minutes before the game started, a woman at my table began to cough. Instantly the woman next to her, across from me, began gagging/coughing, whereupon I felt something hit my throat and I began to cough.

I jumped up, fled the room.

Now standing outside the glass doors of the Community Room, coughing subsided, I watched as each and every resident still in the Community Room began to cough and gag uncontrollably.

It was like a horror movie.

I’d left my mask in the bag on the back of my chair, so I took in a deep breath of clean air, held it, ran back inside, masked myself and I was fine, as I watched others continuing to gag/choke/cough.

There was something in the air.

Red Light went and got Head Maintenance Guy, who turned off the A/C, opened all the windows.

Whatever had been released into the air was still in the room — residents gagging/choking/coughing, so HMG went and got Complex Manager.

She said she could smell whatever it was.

I never smelled anything, just what felt like dust going down my throat.

HMG and Complex Manager tried to blame it on someone having sprayed something, possibly pepper spray. Neither of which fit the situation as no one had sprayed anything, and eyes were not burning. Whatever it was had to have come through the A/C.

Long story short, Complex Manager evicted us from the room "For safety reasons".

Homegirl had by then run back to her unit, brought masks down for everyone, so others wanted to stay, play bingo.

With Assistant Manager and her husband ill from some unknown something, and then the gagging, choking, coughing, I was happy to be evicted from the room, get away from EVERYONE.

Last I heard, some of the seniors congregated on the patio area, in the hot sun. Didn’t play bingo, but ate the lasagna that had been made for break time.

Also last I heard, The Baker became seriously ill from whatever it was and was told by her daughter to take a shower, because it was probably pepper spray which clings to skin and clothes.

Nope! I’ve been pepper sprayed and that wasn’t it.

I can still feel a burning in my throat — no gagging/choking/coughing, just a burning sensation, which I didn’t feel when I pepper sprayed myself.

So anyway, it’s not going to be pretty if management goes with this bogus pepper spray theory, instead of ordering some kind of hazmat inspection, and residents get sick like Assistant Manager and her husband, because whatever it is may be the reason she and hubby are ill.

They live in that building, as does HMG and his family. All of them breathe the same A/C air.

At any rate, with my throat burning, news of stuff in the air not just here but everywhere, I don’t think I want to be out and about around others at tomorrow’s senior convention, so the event I was worried about having to lie about is a no go for me.

BTW.

Am I the only one to have noticed the cute cop standing guard at yesterday’s historic event?

Now that there’s a mugshot floating around, I decided not to invest in yet another t-shirt. Instead, I upgraded the one I’ve been sporting — the one that so triggered that cashier at Target.