Choices

This picture is Sam with her victorious, I won, smirk. The memory of this is a good, funny one. My mom was visiting us in San Jose and we took Sam to Toys R Us to let her choose a toy. A toy. Sam was having none of that. She saw this wagon and knew it was her choice. No matter what we tried, she let me and my mom know she wanted the Red Radio Flyer Wagon. She weighed about 15 pounds, had only a couple words but was so mad when we walked away from the wagon. It makes me chuckle remembering how mad she was at me for saying no. Obviously Sam won. Gramma bought the wagon and this is her first adventure in it. Everyday I pulled Sam around our neighborhood in this wagon. She loved it. A very good choice!

Now I’m going to tell about a choice/decision/option/pick we didn’t want to make but was necessary because of other peoples choices. It’s a topic that brings out the worst in me. Vaccination. How one word became it’s own sentence is baffling to me. And I promise after what I write about this can’t believe we had to make this decision, there will be a story about the choice of all choices.

This shit show starts with taking Sam to the second Angel game of the new season. Masks were mandatory FOR EVERYONE. I actually thought Angel stadium would be like going to Disney with compliance. Oh how dumb I was. Being typical of where we live, over half of our section including 10 people right next to my severely disabled kid, in her wheelchair, in the handicap section, refused to wear masks. I did not say anything. Ushers, security, managers all asked them to comply. Eventually, I asked all these maskholes to look behind them and see that a not well kid was behind them. All 10 of them told us to take her home. It was shocking. Still makes me cry. Their right to be complete assholes was greater than Sam’s life to live a little. Sam was compliant with all the rules. They were not. Maddening. And heartbreaking.

Knowing this was going to be the norm for where we live, I called her doctor to figure out what to do. Our discussion was COVID will for sure kill Sam, the vaccine may kill her. After a lengthy conversation we went with the may option. A plan was made how to manage any symptoms, medications to give before and after the vaccination and what to do in an emergency. Don’t forget, last time Sam got a vaccine she lost an eye.

The vaccine (one shot) was scheduled and it was done. Holy shit, it sucked. Drugged Sam before, right after, and for 4 additional days. She slept with me because I had to do temperature checks on her every hour and give her medications every 3 hours. Exhausting. And then there was a report about a very rare side effect about the vaccine Sam got. My first thought was, Sam won’t get a blood clot because she has very, very low platelets. Next was finding out the clots are happening to females with low platelets. Are you kidding me?!? So another 10 days of constant worry because of assholes that couldn’t wear masks at Angel game when masks were mandatory for all. It makes me nauseous writing about this and it has been months. It was awful. It truly was a decision we were forced into so Sam could live a little in this fucked up time in history. I want all those it’s my choice, it’s my body people to thank Sam for risking her life. A standing ovation thank you. Sam did her part to try and end this germ from spreading. She did. Many have not and it’s baffling to me. COVID is winning and having a good old time mutating. Germs are funny that way. I imagine COVID laughing at us and saying, “There is a way to beat me, but thanks for not, suckers!” Followed with hysterical laughing by a germ.

So, if it is your CHOICE to not be vaccinated, stay away from me. I have been through so much with Sam recently and have no patience for it. I’m just learning how to properly spell palliative and it’s a shitty word to have to learn.

Now I’ll tell you about the choice of all choices. Enjoy. It starts on my first day of first grade at a new school.

Little background needed to set this up. We moved to Valencia when I was 6. Apparently my parents didn’t want me to be bused to downtown LA for first grade (valley kids bused downtown, downtown kids bused to the valley) so we moved to what my older sister and I thought was the middle of nowhere after being valley kids. My kindergarten teacher, who I remember to this day as not being kind, recommended I be placed in the lowest learning groups at my new school. She did say during a parent meeting I was dumb in front of me. Nice right?

First day of first grade – after a bunch of new student tests I went from the lowest to the highest groups. Say what? Scary for a 6 year old who thought she was a dumb kid. While I standing next to a very nice teacher who was helping me get organized in my new groups, there was this crazy boy chasing a girl around the room. This memory is vivid and always gets me chuckling. I’m going to call this boy J.

J and I lived one block apart. We went all through elementary, junior high and high school together, spending a fair amount of those years sitting next to each other because our last names were so close in the alphabet. That wasn’t enough. We went to the same college. We were in different dorms, had different friend circles, but ran into each other a fair amount.

One day, fall quarter freshman year, I saw J in a cross walk on campus. All he said was Nancy Young, meet Darren Young. I said hi and kept walking. That was my freshman year choice, hi, and keep walking.

Fast forward to fall quarter third year. J shows up to my apartment with this Darren Young. If memory is correct, J told Darren I had cute roommates. Yes, I did. They’re beautiful and still my most treasured friends. We get together yearly and it’s the best. Ok, back to J and Darren at my door. I was studying for a mechanical engineering midterm, not even sure if my hair was brushed. It was still the 80s so I’m sure it was a huge perm of a disaster. They had BEER. A 12 pack of Keystone Light. Hello. Choice of all choices here. I ditched the studying and decided to pick that beer! I had so much fun. So much fun that I wound up marrying this Darren Young guy with the same last name. Love that choice to this day, and yes, Darren too.

Cheers.

Nancy

P.S. I did get an A on that midterm.