So, it’s 1:30a.m. I went to bed just after 10:15, and I was thinking “Please let me sleep until 6:30.” Nope, that didn’t work. I woke even earlier than my normal early waking. Bummer.

Oh well, might as well make use of the time.

Part of the doctor visit on Tuesday was getting the pneumococcal vaccine. Besides hurting more than a normal flu shot, that may also be why I was feeling ragged yesterday and couldn’t finish even the simplest dye job without a lot of ‘exhaustion pain’. It’s okay, I can finish the job later this morning (during “normal business hours”, right?), it just felt weird since I’ve made pretty good progress getting back my strength and stamina from the surgery. I just didn’t connect the vaccine on Tuesday with how I was feeling yesterday.

Last night just before bed, I got a message saying my test results were back for the A1C test. In March my A1C was 5.8. My test yesterday came back as 6.4. The note from the doctor said, “Your results showed A1c has increased slightly- but diabetes is still well controlled.” The standard range is 4.8 – 5.6 so I have some work to do. I am pretty sure I know the culprits that I need to further eliminate from my daily diet.

Per the doctor’s order, I scheduled an ultrasound for my abdominal scar and the underlying issues that feel like a hernia. It doesn’t hurt, but he wants to get a better look at what is happening in that area to make sure it doesn’t get worse and to get it fixed is possible. That will happen next Wednesday, and I can call ahead to get a regular flu shot. They were out of stock when I was there on Tuesday, and offered to hold one back for me when they got more in stock, so I’ll call later today and see if that offer holds. I really don’t want to skip the flu vaccine this year, especially.

Speaking of vaccines and stuff…. No, I don’t believe there will be a viable vaccine for COVID-19 before the election. That’s a stupid idea proposed by the Ignoramus-in-Chief who has no clue what’s involved in creating a safe vaccine. And now this week, thanks to Bob Woodward’s latest book, we are learning that Trump knew way back before the first case appeared in the U.S. that this was a deadly airborne virus, far worse than a normal influenza, and he deliberately chose not to reveal what he knew, and further worked to prevent anyone else from adequately informing the public. How fucked up is that? Now that this revelation has come out, he is claiming he wanted to downplay the virus to “avoid a panic.” Bullshit. He doesn’t care about the public health. He was only worried what the news would do to the stock market and his personal pocketbook.

A true leader doesn’t “avoid a panic” by blatantly lying to the public. He will be honest about the risks and dangers involved, but will also inform the public what sort of plan is in place for controlling a pandemic. The previous administration left a playbook for handling pandemics, and had personnel in place to watch for such things and to be prepared for it. Trump ignored the playbook and fired the people who were qualified to deal with something like this. Fuck Trump.

Public health should not be a partisan issue, but Trump is using it for political purposes. There’s no question he has failed the American people in soooooo many ways, and this is one of the worst things he’s done, in my opinion. Fuck Trump.

Anyway, I suppose I should try to wind down again and try to get back to sleep eventually.