Actually, I have specifically NOT been all over this COVID thing since the show was announced. I posted exactly once in this thread, saying I thought it was a dumb idea to gather at a pinball event. And although I have had plenty of opportunity to comment more, I did not. It is absolutely your right to go out and gather with other pinballers and play at a show. Go out to eat, have a grand old time. I still believe it is absolutely stupid, but sure, have at it.
The reason I wrote after my sister died of COVID is because we don't know where she got it. She had a foot injury that unfortunately required surgery, and she started showing symptoms a few days later at home. So somewhere in her travels, be it the ambulance, the hospital, the ride home, or one of her friends helping her at home after, she caught COVID and DIED. It chewed her up and spat her out. And the thing that pisses me off is that people don't seem to understand how easily it spreads. You can be around someone that looks perfectly healthy who is shedding the virus. THAT is the screwed up thing about this, someone can look perfectly healthy, and you breathing in the air around them can give it to you. It is a virus, and unsurprisingly, that is how viruses work.
And I guess you're right, right now I am "all over this COVID thing" now. As Boob said (and yes, Randy knows me), nobody wants to go to shows more than I do right now. I can't wait for my league to start again. I can't wait to go to friends houses and drink, pizza, and pinball all night long. And if you're vaccinated, you're darn right you should go. It's a long trip, but if I was vaccinated, I'd even think about making the journey, because pinball and beer are the best. But if you're not vaccinated, it's dumb. And if you have a family, it's even dumber.
And that comes down to my entire point being, the risks are all known. There is no mystery here. We all understand how COVID spreads. It's your choice how you deal with those risks. And fortunately, the odds are in your favor. Most people that catch it seem to have a mild flu. But some subset of that wind up in the hospital. And a subset of that end up on a ventilator. And a subset of those.... die. You know that, and now that two people very close to me have died of COVID, I know that, very clearly.
Sorry to be so preachy, but telling me I've been all over this COVID thing since the show was announced kind of irritates me. I don't want anyone else to catch this. If I met you at a show I'd probably buy you a beer and kick your ass at whatever game you chose at the show, or get mine kicked and laugh about the fun we had. But this is deadly serious stuff, and I know that firsthand. I also know that my opinion and thoughts won't change a thing.