Goodbye May...

Goodbye until next year, May.  It's been a strange month.  Most things have been off during this COVID situation.  We're closing out the 5th month.  So far this year, I've recovered from a hospital stay, we've had a lot of dreary mornings & there's been coronavirus.   I hope as this month ends, the doors start closing on a lot these issues as well.   It'd be nice if some of the year's remainder could be salvaged.

I guess folks are just too wiped to produce newer articles at the moment.  Maybe the beginning of a new month will stir them a bit.  Here's hoping for good things in the months to come.

Cya...

Last Saturday In May...

It's a nothing morning & I'm fine with that.  We have nothing planned to do this weekend.  It was sunny when I woke up.  That & a little extra sleep helped this morning.   I shouldn't be dealing with SAD less than a month from the beginning of Summer.  For the meteorologists Summer starts in 2 days.  The rest of us wait until solstice.

The 1st half of this year has been weird & taxing.  I'm hoping the remainder can calm down.   I'm sick of all the, "We're alone together," BS commercials & the corporate suck-upery.  It's time for COVID to crawl back into it's cave & go home.

Take care.

Cya...

Laden...

Laden is an odd word, we don't use it much anymore.  But we overladen at the moment.   We're dealing with loss of security, perceived slights, inconveniences, fears, economic crunches, etc...  It's scary & we are very overladen by all of it. 

Most of the articles are rehash & reaction.  Many were already struggling just to handle HIV.  Now, there's COVID & all its fallout.  On top of that, life goes on, like it or not.

All I can say, try to breathe.   Step as far away as you can, shut your eyes & just breathe.  It won't solve all your problems, but it might calm you enough to better face them.

Here's a video that's circling.  It's Larry Kramer's furious HIV speech.

Cya...

Larry Kramer Has Left The Building...

We're here, We're queer, Get Used to It.  The author, activist, playwright, leader, Larry Kramer has passed. Pieces like this article show reactions.   Without him, there'd be no, The Normal Heart or ACT UP. 

He wasn't a doctor or scientist, but without him & other like-minded people, HIV would still be a death sentence.  People would  be dropping like flies & the mainstream would blame them.

I can get saddened about the passing of many of the famous types from my youth when they pass.  But Kramer had a direct hand in making my life possible.  Without him, HIV would still be in the 80's.  Since  I'm allergic to Zidovudine (AZT), I'd most likely have died 20 years ago.

If you are unfamiliar with this man, especially if you're HIV+, LBG...., or connected to someone who is, learn about him.  Explore his actions & legacy.  He wasn't an easy man, probably not even likable.   But without him, we'd be missing so much & so many.  He was 1 of us, he was gay, an outsider & HIV+.  He faced the hell of being Gay & having AIDS in a very unforgiving time.  Maybe he earned some slack.  He deserves respect & remembrance.

We lost a legendary child.  Good journeys Mr. Kramer, may your next life be glorious & giving.

Cya...

Last Wednesday Of May...

I'd love to have something more weighty to discuss, but that's not the case.  It's the end of the month & things are winding down.  Articles are scarce & lately most of them have dealt with COVID.  

It's nice now, but there are more storms predicted.  I'm sick of grey skies.   The only things planned for today are taking trash to the curb & running to the mailbox.  Other than that, nothing.  

Here's hoping next month will be brighter.

Cya...

Fading May...

I had a lot more hopes for May than I should have.   It was dreary & wet.  Idiots wouldn't follow simple rules & this COVID thing is still a major concern.   I hope June goes better.  

The 28th would've been my brother's birthday.   He died at 50.  My oldest sister shares that birthday.  I have no idea how this will affect her, if at all.  It might have been different if we had ever been close.  It's hard to be a close-knit family when you're just trying to survive drunk parents & the havoc they bring into you life.

Take care.

Cya...

Memorial Day...

Someone forgot to tell the weather it's supposed to be a holiday.   It turned out to be another overcast morning.  It looks like that could be the way for the rest of the month.  Oh joy...

I need to get around & clean up.  We have to go shopping in a bit.  Other than that, nothing much is up for us today.   

Hope you have a good Memorial day.

Cya...

Ugh Morning...

Several days of drear have left me in a funk & I hate it.  I hate feeling both buzzed & exhausted.   Nerves make me wired but my body is spent.   It fades in a bit, but for a while it's rough.   I know we need rain, but I need light.  

I may have been able to live further north when I was younger, not now.  I need more than I'm getting.  Maybe this is why I've always hated mornings.  Maybe I used to sleep til it was bright out so I could avoid this crap.  

Take care.

Cya...

Another Privacy Blunder...

Gilead stepped in it again.  According to this piece  & others, the pharma corp revealed sensitive info on  mailers that could be seen by anyone viewing the outside of the envelope.   See below.

Who knows how many people received these. Many  are very private about their lives, especially their health.  The letters were a violation.  They could very well endanger the recipients. 

Not surprisingly, there's a lawsuit.  There should be.  Gilead is trying to get ahead of the matter.  But litigation may be the only  way to figure how such a thing happened at all.

Take care.

Cya...

Mid May Updates...

I had my appointment with the new provider, Edward Wemmerus.  He seems to be a good fit so far.  We'll see as things go.  If my primary falls apart, I'll probably go to him.   I found out when things go back to normal at my primary's office, most the office staff will no longer be there.   They had  worked there for decades.  Weird.  

I saw another article about cabotegravir.  It was stating there was a massive efficacy difference between it and Truvada, 60+%.  How is it possible, when Truvada was touted as nearly bullet proof?  You can't trust the marketing stats.

Cya...

Thoughts & Appointments...

I have an appointment with a new nurse practitioner this morning.  This should give me  someone to handle referrals, since my primary does so through my insurance.  I hope this goes well.

There's a lot of talk about telemedicine or telehealth becoming a more primary source of medical contact for patients.  While I appreciate the telemedicine I use because it saves me a lot of time, expense & travel.   It has it's limits.  

It's great for a quick a meeting & update.  I wouldn't want it for my regular provider.  Everything about telemedicine is different than direct contact.  Or I handle it differently.  I react to telemed appointments as a visual phone call & my regular appointment as a real world conversation.  I'm far more open in person than over the phone.  Maybe I shouldn't be, but I am.  

Telemedicine will never catch the social, emotional or physical cues, direct contact will.   Most people actually don't like to complain or talk about their health.  Unless a care provider can read the clues, things will slide.

I think telemedicine is great for maintaining a current situation.  However, it has very definite limits.  I understand in some areas, it may be the only option.  For that I'm grateful, but IMO, it'll never be on par with a physical meeting. 

Cya...

Yesterday's Dubious News...

Yesterday I posted on an injectable form of cabotegravir.  This is a medication I'd posted over before.  It's commercial pushed the medication as being for men or those born male only.   The articles over the injection imply the same.  Those born female were left out of the study.  

Allegedly there are studies going on with med concerning women.   Just not in time for the approval process.  This morning I saw articles praising this step forward in an injectable prevention means for those born male.  Only this piece acknowledged there was a woman problem.  Once again women been left out the study.  Even though women are taking the drug, oral & injected, there's little data on the matter.  Supposedly there are studies undergoing on both forms with women.  Where's the data?  Why not study & present both sexes at the same time?  

Again, women are left out of medical advancements.  I understand males & trans women make up the majority of HIV cases.  That doesn't justify this bias approach to research.  Women's medicine is consistently behind men's.  Why?  I bet that's an ugly answer.

Cya...

Interesting, But Not In A Good Way...

I've been seeing articles like this piece.   It says a bi-monthly injection of cabotegravir provided better protection for PrEP than current daily pills.  That's great I suppose, but then we get to these 2 points.

The finding — in which a third fewer people became infected on cabotegravir compared with the other drugs...

I thought there were so very few failures on current PrEP meds.  What happened?  How could anything be more effective than what they've touted for Truvada?

Then, this piece mentioned no women, only men & transgender women.   There have been studies on this med & women.  But, most like this study do not include those born female.  

While I hope meds like this progress well.  I have questions about the alleged efficacy  & why women aren't more prevalent in most PrEP studies.  If they're going to keep pushing this approach, they can't leave out half the population.

Cya...

Screwy Morning...

I had to refile for a new referring provider.   My primary is no longer referring through my insurance.  He had a person handling that, but they declined to continue.  I spent the morning trying to resolve that issue.  I think it's handled.  That was not fun.  I hate the business side of doctor issues.  

I've got to handle the rest of my early stuff, then go shopping & pay a bill.  This is it for this morning.  Take Care.

Cya...

Uggh...

I'm sick of dreary, rainy days.  I need sunlight.   I'm spent.  It's supposed to be sunnier today.  I hope so, I need it.

There's 1 thing I hate more than not finding articles or finding only rehash/op-ed.  It's advice columnist.   These writers do their smoozy best to come off as accepting & supportive.  That's BS.  

These columnist have serious bias.  They just get these people writing in to show their guts & then the writer stomps on them.  The advisors harbor a slightly more restrained, cooler abhorrence against fringe groups not in vogue.

If the writer is younger, gay, trans, POC or liberal, they are part of the promised people.  Let them be older, white, religious & then by all means tear them down.  Older, white women, especially if slightly more affluent are prime targets.   These writers love telling people in the most Karen of ways just how out of touch they are.  They ridicule them for not being PC & being relics of their time.   

If you aren't part of their target demographic, then your fair game to attack.  To be advice-splained to about all the wrongness that is you.  Funny, I thought that was what the progressives accused of conservative of doing.  It always comes down to, "star on thars."

Cya...

Tired Morning...

Yesterday was tiring.  We got home before the storms started.  After that, it barely let up.  Weatherbug said we had 2.5" & there's flooding. 

Between the dark, constant rain & wind, I was spent.   It's supposed to stay this way all weekend.  Just great.

I got a call from the nurse practitioner doing my referrals.  She's no longer able to, unless I see her full time.  I have an appointment with my primary in June.   I'll figure out what I have to do then.  I understand her position, but the timing sucks.  They called about changing things during this COVID thing, during a storm & on Friday.  I hope they didn't expect anything done then.

That's about all I have for now.  Take care.

Cya...

Gloom...

It's mid-May & it still feels like early Spring.  It's been chilly, wet & dark.  There's a big chance for storms all weekend long.  That's 3 more days of dreary skies & no light.  I'm really sick of this.   

I didn't find any articles.  We have to go shopping in a bit & I still need a shower.   That's for now, maybe more tomorrow. Take care.

Cya...

Irritated...

I'm not happy with another grey morning.  Windows did the slowest, most sloggy update.  When I looked for articles over HIV, I mostly got things covering coronavirus.  COVID is not HIV.

Some people need to remember they don't exist in a bubble, spatial or temporal.  The attitudes & actions they display during this COVID situation will be remembered.   There's the neutral group, that's  just hunkered down & didn't cause any waves.   There'll be the positive types that tried to distract others with entertainment, happy info & learning new things.   Then there are the asshats.  Those that just had to make matters worse by showing the most negative side of themselves they could.

When this is all said & done, people will remember which group you were in.  You won't be given a free pass just because you were having a bad time or drank the plandemic kool-aid.  You're responsible for your behavior; good, bad or otherwise.   There are no excuses for some people's horrible behavior going on right now.

For the rest of us, take care.

Cya...

Appointments...

Been trying to make sure my upcoming appointments are actually going to meet.   My dental cleaning had to be rescheduled to a later date.  My primary should be meeting, but in a different office.  My neuro seems to be on track.  We'll see if any of this actually holds by the 1st of June. 

That's about it for this morning.  Take care.

Cya...

Dreary Day...

Not a fun morning, it's dreary, dark & raining.  This looks to be here for the duration.  I didn't need a dismal day.   I needed more sunshine.   It probably won't even hit 60 today.  This rain is going to make it feel a lot colder.  At least we don't have to go out in it.

There were some articles over vaccine work, but they're all still very preliminary.   The rest of it was rehash & reprint.   That's all, take care.

Cya...

Meh...

I'm not feeling great this morning, not too bad either.  It's just a meh morning.  The sun's not shining.  The weather is still weirdly cool & allergies are awful.  I woke feeling slightly off & a little dehydrated.  I'll probably be fine in a couple of hours, but for now, meh.

I didn't find any new or even newish articles.  We have to go shopping in a bit.  Hopefully that will go smoothly & then we can head home.  I'm already low on energy today.  

Take care.

Cya...

Ongoing Odd Temps...

I should've left a blanket down.  It's been much cooler the last several days.  We've had rain & an overnight in the 30s.   Tuesday's high is supposed to only be in the low 50s.   This is May, where are these temps coming from?

I didn't notice much in the way of articles.  There isn't much going on here.  Other than the weird temperatures, I have nothing else to write about.  That's it for, take care.

Cya...

Wow, Not Good...

I'll start with some ballpark numbers.  It's stated the Non-Hetero population makes up between 5 -10 %.  That's the whole gaggle of a letters including Gays, Lesbians, Non-Binary, etc....  It's between .03 - .08% for Transgender.   I'm not citing specifics on this because they change depending on who's reporting.  However, these are the general ranges.  Google more specific numbers if you want.  This article states HIV in the Trans population is rising.  

The number of new infections increased from 553 in 2014, 589 in 2015, 638 in 2016, 584 in 2017 to 601 in 2018. Accounting for about 2% of new HIV infections...

A population that's less than 1% is accounting for 2% of new HIV cases in the US.   The stats pointed to mostly to transgender women of ethnic origin as the highest risk group.  Again being fringe is dangerous.   This needs more research.

Cya...

Weird Weather...

The weather isn't making my life easy.  I'd adjusted to warmer weather.  Temps had been nearly to 90 earlier this week.  The overnight temps for the last few nights have been in the low 40s.  We may dip into the upper 30s tonight.  After that, it's supposed to back to normal in a few days.  

It's messing with my sleep.  I'd gone to bed with just a sheet & light bedspread.  Neither me or the cat were warm last night.  She spent the night plastered against me.  The rain didn't help.

Articles weren't much this morning.  I'm out of things to write about for now.  We have to go shopping in a bit.  Stay safe & take care.

Cya...

Not Weird At All...

Not trying to be judgemental, but I don't trust this.  A few years ago, Israel based, pharma company, Zion Medical claimed the developed of an HIV drug, they called Gammora.   They touted it as a near cure.  There's been a lot of flack against that.  My problem  is, even though I've heard of Zion, there's not a lot on it.  All I can find is their webpage, not even a decent article or wiki page.   There's even less on Gammora, just reaction pieces.  BTW, can we take a look at the name, that kind of implication with an HIV med.  Says a lot.

This article states, it aids in the fight against COVID in Africa. It's not claiming to cure the virus, but to aid in recovery.  I don't trust much from Zion.  It would be nice if this worked though.  I'll wait & see though.   I find it hard to trust a pharma company so little is  known about.

Cya...

Was Supposed To...

It's the 1st trash day of May.  We'll be heading out on some errands.  I need to renew some things at the tag agency.   My prescription is supposed to be in today.  We'll stop by the mailbox & grab some lunch.   That's about it for today. 

I was scheduled for a dental cleaning.  That isn't happening.  Dentist offices can't open for another 2 weeks & then there will be a lot rescheduling.   I don't know when this will happen.

So far, it's a nice day.  Take care.

Cya...

Plodding Along...

Weird beginning to the month.  It's moving along slowly & not much seems to be in any hurry.  Some of the bills have been handled.  Others won't be until Friday.  We'll go out tomorrow to the pharmacy, then on the tag agency.  I need to renew my tags & license.   Things are galling on odd days, hence the slow start.

I found out Monday my younger brother passed.   I hadn't seen or spoken to him in a long time.  It'd be an serious understatement to say we weren't close.  He'd been ill for a while & in pain.  Maybe this was a release.  His birthday would've been later this month.  It all seems a bit surreal.  

That's all for now. Take care.

Cya...

Testing Tells...

Since Wednesday, Oklahoma has seen a significant uptick in COVID-19 cases.  Some might say it's because the state loosened stay at home orders.  However, Wednesday was the 1st day the state opened coronavirus testing for anyone, not just those showing symptoms.    It's not surprising the numbers have jumped.

Just like with HIV, testing is everything.   There needs to be sound information for people to understand the risks.  There needs to be open, easily available testing & then treatment.   This is the only way this virus will be controlled.   

Inform, test, treat..., where have we heard that before?  Take care.

Cya...

May Start...

Yesterday got warm.  The warmth & rain really have the fleas moving again.  We never really got to stop dealing with them this Winter, but now they're really showing up.   It'll be warm again today.  

We're going out to handle a couple of the "1st of the month" things today.  I don't want to face all of it tomorrow with social distancing.  This can be annoying enough without adding the 6' thing.   I'll be happy when this goes away.

Take care.

Cya...

Slow Start...

It's a slow start to May.  The weather's been nice & so far only a internet glitch has marred the image.   Bill paying will start tomorrow or Monday.   Finally, after a month, the lawn guy came over & mowed.  I was worried he might have come down with something.  I don't need my lawn man dying.  It's selfish, I know, but still it's true.   

That's about it for this morning.  There weren't any new articles to cover.   Take care & be well.

Cya...

Happy Mayday...

Hello May, it's Beltane or Mayday.  Mid-Spring is here.  It's time to celebrate.  This year may prevent maydaying with maypoles & handfasting.  But, the Lady & Green Man have other celebrations like  making egg charms, planting seeds or sowing oats.  Try to have a good day, if possible enjoy the sun.  We've been cooped too long.  I hope May brings light & clears the stress away.

Take care & Happy Mayday.

Cya...