The Twelve Days of COVID

Like many other people I know, I had the COVID over Christmas. I spent the days leading up to my favorite holiday running around trying to find out if I actually was one of the numbers of people that had the new Omicron, Auto-bot variant.

I went through the stages of denial; shit, I-gotta-google-all-this-shit-now… oh wow I need a nap… is work gonna think I’m faking just to stay home, and I guess I should try to get tested.

Problem was, finding a test was like getting Hamilton tickets in 2015.

I got up early as fuck as to head over the City MD on 125th to get the test. 

Fell back asleep, because, COVID.

Still made it over there by, I don’t know, 9:30? And they were already booked for the day. They told me about a place a couple blocks down that was testing. It was a pop-up in a store front. I confirmed with the person who was first in line that there was no sign-in procedure involved and went to the back of the line. 

The guy in front of me was smoking. 

I found what humor I could in that and turned my attention to the woman in back of me who brought a folding chair and was talking super-loud on speaker phone. Why not just talk on the phone in a normal tone so you don’t have to yell? You know who you are.

Forty-five minutes later the same woman was still first in line. 

One night during COVID-mas, I took Alka-Seltzer flu medicine, but it was the day-time formula I guess which has caffeine. One in the morning, and I am laying in bed wide awake for the first time all day, and I wrote this song…

Sung to the tune Twelve Days of Christmas (duh)

“On the first day of COVID I had a sore throat, so I stayed home just to be safe.

On the second day of COVID I called in called in sick to work and …”

This is gonna take forever let’s do it backward.

On the 12th day of COVID, finally got a positive, even though I had no more symptoms.

11 – Zoom meet with doctor

10 – So fucking bored

9 – Played Call of Duty

8 – No test results yet

7 – Cancelled my booster

6  – Was gonna get a booster

5… Probably… shouldn’t…  drink . . . 

4 – Ate Chinese on Christmas

3 – Stood in line for COVID test

2 – Called in sick to work

1 – Had a sore throat so I stayed home just to be safe

 

Happy New Year, everybody!

Scott Brooks

Born and raised in a small town in Massachusetts, Scott has lived in New York City for more than twenty years. A degree in theater led down many paths from a gig as a top 40 DJ, to film and television production. He also managed to write several plays and get some of those on stage. He has had a handful of screenplays optioned or produced along the way as well. Most recently, Reality Sets In – a comedy web series about being newly single in the city. His proclivity for the arts led to a slew of survival jobs from tour guide to the inevitable years in hospitality where he prefers to bartend in fancy restaurants and five-star hotels, if he must do it at all. His first novel, based on his experiences at the intersection of hospitality and show business, And There We Were and Here We Are is available on Amazon Kindle and in paperback. He also just finished the travel tip book; 50 Things to Know Before You Go to the Theatre in NYC, which is also available on Amazon. He is an avid reader and proud father.

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