I hope your Christmas and Chanukah were as wonderful as my holidays were this year. Chanukah featured the dedication of the magnificent new sanctuary at Scarsdale Synagogue Temples Tremont and Emanu-El. Kudos to everyone from those who were responsible for raising the funds to those who designed and built the facility during not such normal times for a job well done.
Christmas followed an over 50 year tradition. Christmas Eve Day with our dear friends the Costantini family. Patriarch Adelmo ‘Chubby’ Costantini presided over the festivities, god bless him at 94 years old. Not everyone was able attend but those who did enjoyed a traditional Italian fish dinner and they are still eating the desserts. We even had two reindeer in our midst! Chubby’s granddaughter Erica and her husband Keith donned reindeer antlers and we played Christmas Reindeer games! You throw 2 red and 2 green round rings onto the large Reindeer Antlers on your friend’s head! Oh what fun!
Late Christmas Eve afternoon brought the call every family wants. A new beautiful baby girl was born to one of Chubby’s granddaughters. It capped a wonderful holiday! The gorgeous couple didn’t announce the sex of the baby in advance, so about 5:00 p.m. give or take a few minutes I got busy on my iPhone to see what stores would still be open Christmas Eve to buy clothes for the baby girl. One store closed in 40 minutes, the other in an hour and 40 minutes. All agreed to wait until the stores were open Sunday to lavish the baby in beautiful new clothes!
Mazel Tov to Chubby, the charming, loving, talented grandparents and the proud mother and father of the precious baby girl on this blessing!
So now back to work. A lot has occurred in the two weeks since we last met. I hope you and your family had as wonderful a holiday as my sister and I and the Costantini clan did. Yes, Covid is in the the air and many have taken ill. For the fully vaccinated (2 shots and a booster for Pfizer and Moderna, 2 shots for J & J) chances are the breakthrough infections may have no symptoms and many may not even be aware they have the virus. For those who do feel sick, the symptoms are usually mild and last a few days to one or two weeks. These symptoms typically include headache, cough, fever, and fatigue. Serious symptoms are unusual.
Figures are all over the place but 80% of those being hospitalized are unvaccinated. It’s your body. But stay away from me and my loved ones if you are unvaccinated. The Fox News and other conservative media who opine on vaccine mandates, Dr. Fauci, and all topics Covid? You bet your ass they are fully vaccinated. Most of their media companies won’t let them in the door unless they are fully vaccinated!
Some pointers on what you should be aware of out in the real world:
If you are going to a restaurant or even for a cup of coffee at Panera or Starbucks, call to make sure the location you are going to is open, what hours and if the seating area is open.
Going shopping at the Supermarket or Department Store? Call before you go to make sure the store is open and what the specific hours they are open which might deviate from posted or online hours. Covid has hit the retail world hard, and many stores have cut back hours due to lack of personnel.
New York requires masks in places of business unless you have a medical condition or are consuming food. Don’t give the poor $15 an hour clerk (happy the minimum wage has gone up, but stores are still having a hard time getting workers) a hard time. They nor their managers make the laws. They try to enforce them, but there is always the idiot looking for a fight. If you don’t want to wear a mask, have things delivered or use outside pickup services most stores have.
I’m no doctor. Check with yours for medical advice. But nervous people are crowding emergency rooms making it difficult for those who truly need true emergency rooms services from being treated. And with a lot of health insurance plans, if you use an Emergency Room and don’t get admitted to the hospital you will be stuck with a big bill.
A good rule of thumb: The most basic guidelines for what makes a situation emergent is if your life, limb or vision is at stake. If any of these things are in danger, its an emergency. Other conditions outside of life, limb, or vision also warrant immediate intervention because of the likelihood of the condition getting worse and possible organ failure. There are patient populations that are at higher risk of death — this includes children under 2 years of age, geriatric patients, and those with weakened immune response.
I don’t want to hear of a hospital that does not allow a 97 year old patient coming in for a new pacemaker to have a visitor as I heard this week. If this should happen to you ask to see the hospital administrator in charge. Every hospital has one. Familiarize yourself with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) if you are still having problems, but we would hope most most hospital administrators have sensitivity in situations involving 97 year olds!
Go out and get fresh air everyday, even if that means a walk around the block. Bodies are made to move, not stay static. If you are in a big, quiet park like Tibbetts in Yonkers or Saxon Woods don’t wear a mask unless you are allergic to something in the park. You want to get fresh air in your lungs. Even in the cold, crack the windows open in your house or apartment to let fresh air come in.
Many gyms have good deals right now. Look for a less crowded gym or go at off hours. Your mask must cover your noise and throat. And we need synchronization between rules in Westchester and New York City and frankly the rest of the state. It can’t be that I have to show my Vaccination Card over the Westchester line in the Bronx but in Westchester I need to be masked up with no need to show vaccination cards. We need uniformity in rules otherwise everyone will go nuts.
If we want to end this pandemic, workers in Westchester should have to show they are fully vaccinated to work. Customers must to protect the workers show proof of vaccination just like they do in New York City to enter a restaurant. Nobody likes doing this, but it keeps both employees and customers safe.
The folks that own Ridge Hill should open the Main Street that runs through the complex. It’s impossible for handicapped people to park near the destination they are going to. The road was closed to allow for tables and chairs outside during the summer for al fresco dining. Too cold now. Ridge Hill ‘tear down those gates’ that block access to stores from the Apple Store to just in front of TJ Maxx by vehicle, and add more handicapped parking!
If you picked up one of those Covid tests at the Office of Emergency Management on Saw Mill River Road or in Mount Vernon or other municipalities that offered them, save the test for when you have symptoms. Don’t just use it because you have it. Be careful and report to the Attorney General’s office companies that price gouge you for getting tested. These services should be available free of charge at State, County and Local Government facilities.
I’ll have more tips for you next week. If you have a tip you think I should include you know how to reach me. If we all work together, things will get better and back to normal sooner than you think.
Happy, Healthy New Year my friends!
Reach Eric Schoen at thistooisyonkers@aol.com. Follow him on Twitter @ericyonkers. Listen to Eric Schoen and Dan Murphy on the Westchester Rising Radio Show Thursday’s from 10-11 a.m. On WVOX 1460 AM, go to WVOX.com and click the arrow to listen to the live stream or download the WVOX app from the App Store free of charge.
