Fun Stuff
If You Must Wear a Mask Anyway....
Why not be creative?
I don't like wearing a mask. I thought those days were essentially over when I retired from my nursing career. The more I read and observe, the more my personal opinion is, it is symbolism over substance and I'm siding with the medical professionals who say they are of little benefit in screening viruses.
However, it is a current fact of life. Since wearing one is not against my conscience or threatening my freedom of speech and worship, I wear one as the mandates require. And one of the upsides of this whole thing is observing how creative people can be! Not only that, the American entrepreneur quickly caught on to the possibilities. You can purchase masks that look like Disney cartoon characters, advertise your business, or express your own personable displeasure in having to wear one.
You can wear a mask to color coordinate every outfit!
While in the supermarket last week I encountered a lady with two small children who was doing her shopping. She was wearing a mask with exaggerated eye lashes, large bright red lips, and the overall look of a cewpie doll. You could not look at her false face without smiling.
Someone sent me a video last spring that came from an eastern European country featuring a young woman who showed you how you could turn a pair of men's jockey shorts into a very effective face covering. No thanks.
When this all began my son started texting me pictures, asking my opinion on what option for covering his face I thought he should choose. He liked the look of a simple red bandana, but thought if he was going to go with that, he should have the complete western look. Since he didn't have a western hat or one of those ornate belt buckles, he thought the look might get expensive.
Next he sent a face covering that even without an assault weapon made him look like a middle east terrorist. Another no go.
In the end he decided on a more traditional look. But the basic mask or even the bandana has brought another reality to mind. With some exceptions, such as the lady with the cewpie doll look, the masks don't disguise who you are. While going about my business people recognize me, and I almost always recognize them.
When I was a little girl we loved those old western movies featured for our entertainment on Saturday mornings. All the bad guys had to do to disguise themselves when they held up the stagecoach was pull their neckerchief up over their faces. Another childhood myth out the window.
Actually, I think good masks are quite valuable. The usual type I see, e.g. the bandana or that one pictured is hardly of any value. For a mask to be protective it needs to filter all the air in and out of your mouth and nose. Of course, that requires a good fit - - - and a good filter, e.g. N95 or better. The masks I see are, indeed, creative, but for my protection, I use an N95 perfect fit mask and do stay my distance when in a crowded area. After that, NO MASK for this kid. The air quality these days is running 0-15 - perfectly wonderful autumn air. (For awhile there the smoke was so bad we had to wear masks just to go outside!) Wearing a mask is a real pain but then catching that virus would probably be a worse pain . . LOL.
ReplyDeleteGreat perspective, thanks so much. I agree, if an individual is at high risk to develop a severe case of covid19, as someone with asthma for example, this is exactly what they need to venture out in the public arena, especially where spacing is not practical.
DeleteWe were fortunate to have a few dozen N95 masks on hand when the pandemic began. From all I have read, these are effective if worn properly. Other styles? Not so much. Some actually increase the risk of infection.
ReplyDeleteI am high risk, as I have asthma and three autoimmune disorders, so I wear one if I go out among strangers. I don't like it, and I find it hard to breathe through it, but I never liked having pneumonia, either.